The Edge Of Lost by Kristina McMorris- 340 pages
ARC from author
Book Blurb:
On a cold night in October 1937, searchlights cut through the darkness around Alcatraz. A prison guard’s only daughter—one of the youngest civilians who lives on the island—has gone missing. Tending the warden’s greenhouse, convicted bank robber Tommy Capello waits anxiously. Only he knows the truth about the little girl’s whereabouts, and that both of their lives depend on the search’s outcome. Almost two decades earlier and thousands of miles away, a young boy named Shanley Keagan ekes out a living as an aspiring vaudevillian in Dublin pubs. Talented and shrewd, Shan dreams of shedding his dingy existence and finding his real father in America. The chance finally comes to cross the Atlantic, but when tragedy strikes, Shan must summon all his ingenuity to forge a new life in a volatile and foreign world.
My Review: 4 stars
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The Edge Of Lost was an anticipated read for me, as I adore all books by Kristina McMorris, especially: The Pieces We Keep and Bridge Of Scarlet Leaves.
This book was wonderful in historical detail and really put me in the places, sounds and smells of a time capsule for the 20s and 30s. There is no doubt this was exquisitely researched and the author’s end notes go on to prove that.
The prologue sucked me right in and I couldn’t wait to get to that “part” in the story. I really liked the main protagonist however I would’ve liked more back-story on the little girl so that the anticipation of their meeting and their storylines would have been greater. She was a spitfire and I would’ve liked to know more about her.
Learning about Alcatraz, the unyielding power of mobsters, redemption, second chances, doing the right thing, family and hope were the underlying themes streaming throughout the book.
Quotes I liked:
Yeah, well. Doing what’s right and what makes sense aren’t always the same thing.