Daughters of the Wreckage ⭐⭐⭐💫

Daughters of the Wreckage by Stefanie Koens


Cover Facts: 
Was published in Australia
as Daughters of Batavia

NetGalley About Summary

Two women. One shipwreck. And four centuries of secrets.

Shortly before Christmas in 2018, Tess McCarthy, after years as a hard-working English teacher who never did anything out of the ordinary, flies to Western Australia's remote Abrolhos Islands. She is in search of answers--both to the infamous Batavia shipwreck and her personal family crises.

In 1628, Saskia, an orphaned young Dutchwoman, boards Batavia with relatives, bound for a new and potentially dangerous life in the East Indies--only for her world to first collide with Aris Jansz, the ship's taciturn under surgeon.

Tess, Saskia, and Aris--their lives linked by secrets that span generations--carry the baggage of past losses and the uncertainty of their futures. And, in the most unlikely circumstances, they may find qualities that echo through centuries: faith, acceptance, and love.

A woman searching for answers in her own life finds them--and much more--in the wreckage and haunting stories of the Batavia shipwreck.

Genre: Historical Fiction, Romance

The How/Why: NetGalley email 

⭐⭐⭐💫 

🎉 Overall Storytelling? 🎉🎉🎉🎊

🎣 Did it grab and keep my attention? 🎣🎣🎣🎏

🗣️Would I recommend it to anyone? Maybe 🤷 

🕮 Would I want a sequel? No ➖ 

📚 Would I want to read more books by this author?  Maybe 🤷 

💣💥 📢 Content Warnings? Vi0lɇncɇ & Phƴsicɐl Abusɇ, MŪrdɇr, DɇaṪh

🌶 Spice? No

🌪 Plot Twist? No

👟 Pace? Uneven 1628-1629 Good; 2018 Slow

💻 Tidbits ~ No pirates but mutiny, madness, and the struggle to survive none the less. 

Dual Timeline, Triple POVs (Saskia, Aris, Tess):

1628-1629 follows Saskia (17 year old orphaned Dutch woman), Aris (under-surgeon on the Batavia), Lucretia (wealthy woman traveling in the upper class quarters), Jeronimus (Chief mutineer). 

2018 follows Tess (English teacher grieving her father's death), Professor McCarthy (Tess's late father), and Drew (local tour guide).

Saskia boards the ship with her aunt and cousin to join her uncle. When the Batavia strikes a reef, the quest for survival begins. Saskia never lost sight of her strong will and willingness to help others. 

Tess travels to Abrolhos Island to finish the historical research her father started on the Batavia. She is also searching to discover who she is.

I was more interested in Saskia and Aris's stories than Tess's. Possibly because of their fight for survival under unimaginable circumstances was more riveting. Tess's modern day grief is handled well, however it could not compete with the high stakes survival story of Saskia and Aris. This affected the overall pacing for me. 

Favorite Quote: "Don't let anyone see your soul unless you're prepared to lose it"
ALC, not yet published, quote subject to change.

Favorite Character: Lucretia. Saskia helped her in her time of need. Although she was of a higher social status, their friendship removed the boundaries.

Facts vs Fiction: Batavia Shipwreck, The Reign of Terror, Lucretia, Aris are all based on facts.
Saskia, The Romance, Tess are all fictional. 

Check trigger warnings. Vi0lɇncɇ, Phƴsicɐl Abusɇ, and MŪrdɇr are historical facts. 

🎧 Narrator: Kristy Best, Jessica Spies, Angus McGruter

🎧12.20 hours 🕮 368 pages

Not yet published. Expected 9-15-2026

Thank you NetGalley and Thomas Nelson Fiction Audio for the free ALC in exchange for my honest review.

31 and counting

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

When Women Ran Fifth Avenue *DNF*

Image
  When Women Ran Fifth Avenue by Julie Satow *DNF* The cover is the best part G👀dreads A glittering, glamorous portrait of the golden age of American department stores and of three visionary women who led them, from the award-winning author of The Plaza . The American department a palace of consumption that epitomized modern consumerism. Every wish could be met under one roof – afternoon tea, a stroll through the latest fashions, a wedding (or funeral) planned. It was a place where women, shopper and shopgirl alike, could stake out a newfound independence. Whether in New York or Chicago or on Main Street, USA, men owned the buildings, but inside, women ruled. Genre: NonFiction, History, Fashion, Biography. Circa early 1900's. I listened a little while I was puttering around in the casita in the morning. There is a part where she says the sales ladies would say "Oh Harriett" to warn another employee that a customer could not be pleased. Like a take off of modern day ...
Read more

Killers of a Certain Age ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Image
Killers of a Certain Age by Deanna Raybourn From Goodreads: Older women often feel invisible, but sometimes that's their secret weapon. They've spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they're sixty years old, four women friends can't just retire - it's kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller. Billie, Mary Alice, Helen, and Natalie have worked for the Museum, an elite network of assassins, for forty years. Now their talents are considered old-school and no one appreciates what they have to offer in an age that relies more on technology than people skills. When the foursome is sent on an all-expenses paid vacation to mark their retirement, they are targeted by one of their own. Only the Board, the top-level members of the Museum, can order the termination of field agents, and the women realize they've been marked for death. Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Fiction ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ I really liked it a lot. It ho...
Read more

Home of the American Circus ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫

Image
Home of the American Circus by Allison Larken  G👀dreads After an emergency leaves her short on rent, thirty-year-old Freya Arnalds bails on her lackluster life as bartender in Maine and returns to her suburban hometown of Somers, New York, to live in the house she inherited from her estranged parents. Despite attempts to lay low, Freya encounters childhood friends, familial enemies, and old flames—as well as her fifteen-year-old niece, Aubrey, who is secretly living in the derelict home. As they reconnect, Freya and Aubrey lean on each other, working to restore the house and come to terms with the devastating events that pulled them apart years ago. Set in the birthplace of the American circus, this deeply moving novel is an exploration of broken families, the weight of the past, and the complicated journey of finding home. Genre: Literary Fiction, Contemporary, Family Drama Dual Timeline: ETA: This is listed as dual timeline but I thought it was more like memory flashbacks. It's ...
Read more