Christina 's Reviews > Clear

I had never heard of the Scottish Clearances and also didn’t know about the contention between the different church denominations in 1840 Scotland. As I understand, because of the contention, John, a minister, has little money because he has few members in his church. To supplement his income he takes on the job of evicting a remaining solitary tenant, Ivar, from a landlords island. This task is made almost impossible when John has a terrible accident and additionally can’t understand Ivan’s language.

I enjoyed seeing the island through John’s eyes. The descriptions are written beautifully. I could “see” the island and “feel” the atmosphere. The descriptions of Ivar’s food and daily activities were very interesting. I was drawn in by this gentle story and couldn’t wait to find out the ending.

That’s where I had to suspend my belief. It seemed very contrived and out of character for a staunch, religious man who felt that even dancing was a sin. The addition of the wife coming to find her beloved husband and delightfully accepting the situation seemed unreal.

If it weren’t for the ending I would have given the book 5 stars but it just didn’t seem real. Especially in the 1840’s.

Many thanks to Carys Davies and Scribner for the ARC via NetGalley.