Into the Wilderness

This is the first book of 6 in the Wilderness series, each one is excellent. The descriptiveness which Sara Donati uses makes the characters seem real. Each scene she tells about is very vivid, you can nearly see, smell and hear. Read them all to follow their ups, downs, and lives. There are two other books afterward that sum up their story they are The Gilded Hour and Where the light enters by Sara Donati. My husband and I enjoyed this series and the 2-book sequel that comes after the Wilderness Series so much! I wish there were more of them.

Fantastic journey! Love everyone of her books!!

Such a good set of three be sure and read them all.

This novel is the first in a series of three such novels published to date. It is a riveting, page-turning work of well-written historical fiction. It is a story woven from the gossamer threads of history and infused with the creativity of this author, so as to produce an utterly spellbinding and ambitious, sweeping epic novel. This is a novel that will appeal to those who love rousing historical fiction that carries with it a sense of teeming and timeless adventure. Those readers who have enjoyed the enormously popular "Outlander" series of novels by author Diana Gabaldon will especially enjoy this book. It should be noted that Diana Gabaldon herself has warmly endorsed this book. Moreover, that its author is herself a fan of Ms. Gabaldon, there can be little doubt, as the two main characters in Ms. Gabaldon's best selling "Outlander" series make a brief appearance nearly midway through this book. Moreover, the author also incorporates James Fennimore Cooper's character "Hawkeye" from his book, "The Last of the Mohicans", adding to the intriguing pastiche of characters, historical, literary, and imaginative, who pepper this book.The book is simple in its premise. An independent and outspoken, intelligent Englishwoman in her twenties, Elizabeth Middleton, leaves England with her brother Julian, to join their father, Judge Alfred Middleton, in the mountains of upstate New York, northwest of Albany. There, she meets Hawkeye's son, handsome backwoods man Nathaniel Bonner, a man who straddles two worlds, that of the white man and that of the native American, and finds herself falling head-over-heels in love with him. Despite her father's attempts to marry her off to a wealthy landowner and the village doctor, Richard Todd, she gravitates towards Nathaniel in defiance of her father, who has his own reasons for wanting to marry her off to Dr. Todd. The good doctor also has his own secret agenda in this matter, a secret that he keeps well hidden until thwarted of his desire. To further complicate matters, Elizabeth sets herself up as a school teacher for all the children of the village in which she lives, black, white, and native American, but finds herself locked in conflict with those who believe that education is only for a select group. What happens to Elizabeth and Nathaniel, as well as to their respective families, is positively gripping, given the adventures into which they are thrust. The author gives the reader a tantalizing glimpse into what life may have been like in upstate New York during that time period, with all its hardships, deprivations, and political and social turmoil, as well as the constantly shifting conflicts and alliances between the white settlers and the Mohawk nation. Descriptively rich and densely plotted, filled with historical personages of the time and well-known historical events, this ambitious and compelling novel will have the reader compulsively turning the pages until the very end. It is simply a wonder

When I first picked up this book, I didn't realize it was a 'sequel' to Last of the Mohicans. YUCK, I groan, and read it anyways. About 100 pages in I'm toting the book everywhere with me, reading it on coffee breaks, at traffic jams, on lunch hour, before work, after work, during meetings, etc.You get the idea.The story is your typical sweet 'romance' idea. City girl moves to the country to teach school and meets a boy. Only that's where the 'normal' stops and the breathtaking begins.Donati doesn't waste any time. Directly into the first chapter, we meet Elizabeth and her man, Nathaniel. Donati's prose is so compelling that you immediately /know/ how she wants her characters pictured just from a few simple words. Read the opening paragraph again--you'll see what I mean.The characters are what truly make this book memorable. I laughed at Elizabeth's pert words and ready blushes, and could relate to her unfamiliarness in the wilderness. I cried at Nathaniel's earnest charm, his teasing humor, and his steadfast loyalty to his family. This is a book where the 'back-scene' characters shine as well. Hannah is a gem. Many Doves and Runs-From-Bears will have you starry-eyed over their romance as well.I really can't say enough good things about Sara Donati. Usually when I take the time to write a review about a book, it's because I dislike it so much I want to warn the other readers away.I want to warn you TOWARDS this one! Run out to the store and get it. I promise you'll love it.

Historical fiction with a heart, this book is the first of two books that Donati has written chronicling the life of Elizabeth Middleton and Nathaniel Bonner. Elizabeth, a spinster with spunk and a determined air, is about to hit the "New World" by storm. What she finds in the back woods of upstate New York in the late 1700's is literally Paradise, the small town her father, the judge, has honed from a rustic environment along with a group of frontiersmen and Indians.Elizabeth arrives from England with her brother Julian, amid her staunch crinolines and straight lace ways only to find that life is about to change drastically. Brought up as a part of the Mohawk nation, Nathaniel is about to take her life by storm. Land is a top priority in the new world and there is much to be had by all but our adventure takes a twist when two rivals meet over the ownership of Hidden Wolf Mountain. With a cast of characters that you will never forget, conveniently set in writing at the beginning of the book, along with a map of the region, you are swept along by a novel that rivals the likes of Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. I was completely surprised when Donati included a short excerpt of Jamie and Claire Fraser in the book. We are also given an inside look at the Native American's way of life, their pride in the land and their people and their acceptance of a changing world. Their strength of character and respect for nature's ways is clearly evident in her writing. Reading this book was like a total immersion into another time and place to which I can hardly wait to return. I have already purchased the second book titled DAWN ON A DISTANT SHORE. Kelsana 8/8/01

I know different people get different things from the books they read, but I honestly don't understand how any lover of romantic fiction could dislike this book. True, it's formulaic, but I don't mind a formula if the writing is good, and Donati is very good. She could often bring tears to my eyes, and was just as effective in helping me to see the great wilderness that much of the novel was set in.From the beginning, I found myself comparing it to Gabaldon's series (probably because of her recommendation on the cover), which could have been very unfair as I think her books are among the best historical fiction I've ever read. But I must say _Into the Wilderness_ comes out well by comparison. I ended up caring as much about Elizabeth and her Nathaniel as I did about Claire and her Jamie, and that says a lot. Sometimes I did feel that Elizabeth and Claire were a lot alike - perhaps almost too much - but I do so enjoy a strong woman character. Elizabeth is definitely "writ large," but I'm glad when I run across a heroic female character for a change who takes her destiny in her own hands.Since I could not put it down from the time I began reading it, I enthusiastically recommend this novel and I eagerly look forward to the sequel!