#9: 1772-1789; covers the American Revolution; Enclosure

It is the eve of the American Revolution—a time where there is “a tide in the thoughts of men, and the tide is making.” Jemima is the family matriarch, married to Allen Macallen and the mother of seven. Thomas Morland a captain in the Navy, while Jemima’s son William joins as a midshipman. Meanwhile, their cousin Charles, a botanist and entomologist, cuts himself off from the family in order to marry a Creole woman in Maryland; and Henri Stuart, illegitimate son of Aliena’s daughter, is a libertine in Paris.

Another strong addition to the series; the gaps between books are shorter, and the time covered is also getting shorter, which is definitely a good thing. CHE focuses a lot more on character development so that the reader finds themselves rooting for the protagonists—even Henri, though his deception with regards to his wife truly is despicable. With regards to the married couples in this novel, the only marriage that truly is happy is Allen and Jemima’s—they’re a bit too smug-married-couple at times, but they’re a nice foil to the dysfunctional marriages here.

Harrod-Eagles always smuggles in a bit of history with her fiction; this time she mostly covers the American Revolution and the Enclosure Acts that so changed the landscape of England in the late 18th century. There are other, smaller, changes, too, as Morland Place gains a bell system for its servants. We witness the Revolution mostly from afar, from sea rather than by land, but nonetheless, I was entertained by Harrod-Eagles’s telling of the story. The book ends at the start of the French Revolution, and I look forward to reading more in the next book in the series, The Tangled Thread. ( )

The Flood-Tide, the ninth book in Cynthia Harrod-Eagles’s Morland Dynasty series, covers a relatively peaceful period in England. Under the governance of Allen and Jemima Morland, Morland Place is being restored and improved, after years of war and mismanagement. Although the Morland family no longer must worry about seeing their home ravaged by war, they are touched by wars outside the boundaries of England. Jemima’s cousin Thomas and son William, who serve in the Royal Navy, are called to America to fight in the Revolutionary War. Another cousin, Charles, settles in America and must decide where his loyalties lie. Against this historical backdrop, family members marry, bear children, have affairs, and continue to adjust to changing times.

This book was just as enjoyable as previous books in the series. As an American, I was especially interested in the sections devoted to the Revolutionary War. I don’t believe I’ve ever read any books about the war from the English perspective, and it was fascinating to imagine what people on the other side might have thought about these events.

As in past books, Harrod-Eagles does a nice job treating her characters and their ideas with respect. It’s one of the things I appreciate about her books. She allows her characters to express ideas that as modern readers we find repugnant, but she doesn’t turn them into villains for holding these ideas. I wish more historical fiction writers would follow her lead.

That’s not to say that all of Harrod-Eagles’s characters fully embrace the morality and customs of their time. The Morland family itself continues to have its share of spunky women who buck society’s expectations. Jemima shows no interest in court life, fashion, and social advancement, and she’s frustrated when her daughter Mary does. Still, Jemima is not the renegade that Annunciata, the heroine of the previous books was, and it’s a relief to read about a more stable, less selfish sort of woman.

Another plot thread involves Henri, the grandson of Annunciata, who now lives in France and whose existence is a secret kept from most of the Morlands. His story was a favorite of mine, and I’m very interested to see where it goes, given that this book ends with the storming of the Bastille.

See my complete review at my blog. ( )

Good continuation on of this series (even though it took me 6 months to find a copy!). Good character development. ( )