As a Jane Eyre fan, I was drawn to this novel hoping I would be captivated just as I had been with the unusual romance between Jane Eyre and Mr. Rochester. Livesey’s Gemma and Mr. Sinclair, however, did not measure up for me. Gemma, an orphan at age 10, finds herself in need of a new living situation when her boarding school closes it doors. Through an advertisement, she lands a nanny position for Mr. Sinclair of Blackbird Hall on the Orkney Islands.
As in Jane Eyre, Gemma finds out some questionable things about her employer/lover and she flees to a new town where she is an unknown. Mirroring the story of Jane Eyre, I really expected to like this novel. I felt, though, that the supporting characters weren’t developed thoroughly, nor was the mysterious past of Mr. Sinclair as exciting as Mr. Rochester’s hidden wife. (Ages 13 and up)
