Publication date 19th October 2017
About the book
An unputdownable story of a woman in search of the truth, the man she falls in love with, and the devastation of the Second World War.
1934, Guyana. All her life, Mary Grace has wanted to know the truth about who her parents really are. As the mixed-race daughter of two white plantation owners, her childhood has been clouded by whispered rumours, and the circumstances of her birth have been kept a closely guarded secret…
Aunt Winnie is the only person Mary Grace can confide in. Feeling lost and lonely, her place in society uncertain, Mary Grace decides to forge her own path in the world. And she finds herself unexpectedly falling for charming and affluent Jock Campbell, a planter with revolutionary ideas.
But, with the onset of the Second World War, their lives will be changed forever. And Mary Grace and Jock will be faced with the hardest decision of all – to fight for freedom or to follow their hearts…
An utterly compelling and evocative story about the heart-breaking choices men and women had to make during a time of unimaginable change. Perfect for fans of The Secret Wife and Island of Secrets.
Sharon Maas was born in Georgetown, Guyana in 1951, and spent many childhood hours either curled up behind a novel or writing her own adventure stories. Sometimes she had adventures of her own, and found fifteen minutes of Guyanese fame for salvaging an old horse-drawn coach from a funeral parlor, fixing it up, painting it bright blue, and tearing around Georgetown with all her teenage friends. The coach ended up in a ditch, but thankfully neither teens nor horse were injured.
Boarding school in England tamed her somewhat; but after a few years as a reporter with the Guyana Graphic in Georgetown she plunged off to discover South America by the seat of her pants. She ended up in a Colombian jail, and that's a story for another day...
Sharon has lived in an Ashram in India and as a German Hausfrau--the latter giving her the time and the motivation to finally start writing seriously. Her first novel, Of Marriageable Age, was published by HarperCollins, London, in 1999 and reprinted as a digital edition in 2014. After working as a social worker in a German hospital she finally retired and now has time for her favourite pastimes: reading, writing, and travelling.
Sharon's Social Media Links
My Review
I have got to say what a really lovely, elegant cover for this book! It really makes you want to pick it up and delve into the story!
This is a completely different genre of book to the usual book I would read but it has completely opened my eyes reading books like this one! I thoroughly enjoyed it and it was much better than I had thought!
So this is the final part of the series but as I hadn't read the previous two books I definitely agree that this can be read as a standalone book. It doesn't take you long to get familiar and catch up with the story so far.
The story itself is utterly heartwarming and extremely emotional. I loved the character Mary Grace, we see her go through a lot and my heart went out to her - all she wanted was to know the truth about her parents and find that sense of belonging. It's been a pretty tough time for her.
I really loved the letter at the end of the book from Grace to her Aunt Winnie really made me smile.
You should definitely give this book a read if you haven't already it is really eye opening, and so easy to read! Once you pick it up and start to read it, it is very hard to put it down!
I am delighted to have to take part in this Blog Blitz for The Girl from the Sugar Plantation. It would be amazing if you could check out the other fabulous bloggers that are taking part! Oh and of course buy the book!!!!! You won't look back!
