"The Inheritance" (Secrets of the Shetlands) by Michael Phillips

"The Inheritance" 

(Secrets of the Shetlands)

by Michael Phillips

If you are a big fan of sweeping historical fiction - this is an excellent book for you!  I'm a huge reader of generational sagas, historical details, and a christian theme, so I was right at home reading this book.  I also love it when I fall for a book, that it's not really over when it's over!  A series - yay!  I'm looking forward to reading Book 2, which just came out in October!  

I give this book all the stars - it may have had a slow start but to be fair there were so many characters and details to introduce, which included multi-generations!  So it was a lot to establish in your mind before proceeding!  I was very glad to see there was a 'family tree' included in the front of this book!  I found myself flipping to it many times to clarify or discover certain facts as I was reading!  

This was a fun book for me, I am writing this now, so that I can proceed to book 2 - 

"The Cottage"!

Here are my thoughts:

I loved this book! I am a big historical fiction fan and love reading books that illuminate a period of time, a place, and the people that lived it. This book takes place on Whales Reef, a tiny Shetland Island. It takes a couple chapters or more to establish the characters and get comfortable with the dialect and what is going on. The book flips from past to present, which took me a while to grasp and connect the dots. The writing was phenomenal and the storyline is deep and when you think you have all the facts, another layer is introduced!  I did find myself going back to previous chapters to confirm my thoughts. Once I grasped who was who, this book took me in! A death, no will, an inheritance and an unlikely heir all make for a great sweeping story! The community, the characters, and the history of all of them is given to you in bits and pieces until it all comes together! The story is detailed and well written! I'm also a fan of a book with a christian theme, it's there but does not overshadow the epic drama of this time and place! I enjoyed this book and was compelled to put off other things in order to continue reading! Great read and I am now a big fan of Michael Phillips! Can't wait to read book 2!

I was given a copy of this book free from Bethany House to read and share a review!  Thank you!

Here is the description of "The Inheritance" from BethanyHouse.com:

This is not written by me but I'm permitted to share their summary!

About

"The death of clan patriarch Macgregor Tulloch has thrown the tiny Shetland Islands community of Whales Reef into turmoil. Everyone assumed Tulloch's heir to be his much-loved grandnephew David. But when no will is discovered, David's calculating cousin Hardy submits his own claim to the inheritance, an estate that controls most of the island's land. And Hardy knows a North Sea oil investor who will pay dearly for that control. 

While the competing claims are investigated, the courts have frozen the estate's assets, leaving many of the locals in dire financial straits. The future of the island--and its traditional way of life--hangs in the balance.

Meanwhile, Loni Ford enjoys a rising career in a large investment firm in Washington, D.C. Yet, in spite of outward success, she is privately plagued by questions of identity. Orphaned as a young child, she was raised by her grandparents, and while she loves them dearly, she feels completely detached from her roots. That is, until a mysterious letter arrives from a Scottish solicitor. . . .

Past and present collide in master storyteller Michael Phillips' dramatic new saga of loss and discovery, of grasping and grace."

bethanyhouse.com