Quote from one reader: "So nice to read about positives in a world of so many negatives."
Author's answer: "Absolutely. That's why. I aim to be a good storyteller; not just a novelist." * A dramatic escape from tyranny, a romance, a rags-to-riches feel-good adventure story
* Entertaining - but ensuring we never forget Britain's treatment of the Irish in the 19th Century
* Truth, fiction and tragedy...