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When a stranger buys property on Bennett's Island and drops anchor there in an expensive lobster boat, the locals are suspicious, in this eighth volume of the series. Day-to-day life goes on, but dark undercurrents begin to bubble in these chilly Maine waters.

When Jennie Gilchrist fled from the Scottish Estate of Linnmore during the fiery violence of the infamous Highland Clearances, she planned to make her way to her sisters in England, but instead she found herself sailing on the brig Paul Revere, bound for the coast of Maine--the New World.Accompanying her is Alick Gilchrist, cousin to her late husband, now a fugitive. Jennie feels obligated to help Alick escape Scotland, as she is partly to blame for his outlaw status. SInce the sponsor of the trip requires that all immigrant men aboard the Paul Revere be married, Jennie sails as Alick's'wife', the pair traveling under an assumed name, with little aside from the clothes that they wear.They arrive at the small but thriving town of Maddox on the newly settled Maine coast, unlike any place they have known before. They immediately set to building a new life for themselves--Alick building boats, and Jennie teaching the well-to-do MacKenzie children--but while Alick is fixing to live out his days on American soil, Jennie is biding her time and saving money for the passage back to England. But unforeseen events derail her plans, not the least of which is her bond with the inscrutable Alick Glenroy.

In 1809, marriage was the best a spirited, healthy, and intelligent girl could hope for, especially if she was an orphan without a fortune. Jennie Hawthorne has been hustled to London by her well-meaning aunt to secure just such a marriage, though Jennie despises the prospective wife parade and yearns for her childhood home by the North Sea. All that changes when she falls for the dashing soldier Nigel Gilchrist, marrying him after a whirlwind romance. Nigel wastes no time whisking his bride to the Scottish Highlands where he will serve as manager to the family estate.In Scotland Jennie is faced with the realities of the Highland Clearances: tenant cottagers forcibly evicted from their homes by lairds to make way for sheep and grazing land. When Jennie learns that both Nigel and his brother are complicit in such clearances, she finds her heart warring with her conscience. She defies Nigel and his brother, doing what she can to help the cottagers, and helping Alick Gilchrist resist the clearances. But their efforts bring disaster: a tragic accident makes Alick a hunted fugitive, and Jennie is compelled by circumstance to throw her lot in with his as they face an arduous journey across mountains to ultimately escape the strife-ridden Highlands.

Jennie and Alick Glenroy arrived in Maine with nothing, not even their names, starting anew in a different land, leaving the turmoil and violence of Scotland behind them. Almost twenty years later, the'Godless Glenroys'are a prosperous, though sometimes controversial, family. Alick is the proprietor of a successful shipyard, and Jennie has raised their five children to think for themselves, a trait that occasionally raises the ire of their staid neighbors.The Glenroys, along with the other inhabitants of Whittier, find themselves facing issues that they've long been sheltered from: slavery, malice, and violence. Jennie and Alick must defend their children against malicious accusations and guide them through the trials of adolescence, but also allow them the independence and space to grow into intelligent and principled adults. When a figure from their fugitive past sails into town, everything they have worked to build over the past twenty years is in danger of being torn asunder, but all they can do is face these new challenges with the same courage and persevering spirit that carried them over Highland mountains so many years before.

At long last Joanna Bennett is returning to her family's island, the childhood home that her heart has yearned for ever since she was forced to the mainland by catastrophe. At her side stands Nils Sorensen, her oldest friend, stalwart admirer, and new husband. Together they will restore Bennett's Island to its former glory: enticing former residents and other hardworking mainlanders to join their small community, repairing damaged buildings pummeled by the elements during five years of abandonment, and reclaiming the lobstering territory that was once the sole province of islanders but has been overrun by the nearby Brigporters.All the while, Joanna and Nils are setting the foundation of their future, one that will surely be stormy if Joanna tries to apply the rules of her previous marriage to her relationship with Nils. Joanna Bennett will always be a strong and fiercely independent woman, but without learning to trust and be vulnerable in her marriage, she will find herself proud and alone.This story, the second book in Elisabeth Ogilvie's beloved Tide Trilogy, transports readers to the beautiful and rugged Maine coast, where families must eke their livelihoods from the tempestuous ocean but in return they're afforded the daily splendor and simple pleasures of island life.

Young, vivacious Joanna Bennett desperately wishes to be captain of her own lobstering boat, but despite being the favored daughter of Bennett's Island's founding family, she is still just a girl in the eyes of the community, and a girl living off the coast of Maine in the early 20th century is expected to mind the kitchen, not tend to pot buoys. While quietly struggling to find her place on insular Bennett's Island, one where she could let her bold and opinionated nature shine without shaming her family, Joanna instead finds love when she meets a witty stranger with a sparkling smile just off the mailboat. One whirlwind courtship and wedding later, Joanna finds herself master of her own house, and every aspect of her beloved island seems to reflect her joy. But when the luster begins to wear off and her husband's dark secrets slowly reveal themselves, Joanna must draw on her determination, resilience, and resourcefulness to keep her family together.This evocative coming-of-age story transports readers to the beautiful and rugged Maine coast, where families must eke their livelihoods from the tempestuous ocean but in return they're afforded the daily splendor and simple pleasures of island life.

Philippa Marshall arrives on isolated Bennett's Island as a young war widow eager to provide for her son. The insular island community initially welcomes her as the teacher in their one-room schoolhouse, but when she champions a clutch of neglected children, she finds herself thrust in the midst of a smoldering conflict between two prominent families. The prospect of a lobster war between the Bennetts and Campions threatens the livelihoods of everyone who calls Bennett's Island home. Philippa must grapple with her sense of loyalty to her deceased husband, even as her feelings for Steve Bennett blossom against the rugged coastal landscape. She longs to be reunited with her son, but she's troubled by the specter of latent strife that lies beneath the tranquil surface of the island community. Philippa must weigh the balance of her heart and her mind and plot the course of her destiny.

Rosa Fleming motors her way to Bennett's Island in the dark of the night, fleeing her divorce, her philandering husband and the gossipmongers of her hometown. On the Island she discovers not only a refuge to heal her emotional wounds, but also a community that nurtures her battered confidence and a man who teaches her to love and be loved as an equal.When a fight breaks out between the island's lobstermen and the invading fishermen who disregard the island's longstanding customs, Rosa steps into the struggle and saves a man's life. She flourishes amid the crisis, but her growth may be at the expense of her fledgling romance. Strawberries in the Sea is a story of self-discovery and rejuvenation, as a sad insecure woman realizes her own inner beauty and personal strengths.

Vanessa Barton steps onto Bennett's Island for the first time as if she is stepping into a prison cell. She feels trapped by her marriage, she carries the emotional shackles of a childhood spent as a ward of the state, and she wants nothing to do with the island community. A chance encounter with Owen Bennett sparks off an attraction that brings Vanessa to life, as she discovers something real that eclipses the fantasies of the novels she reads. Owen leads her on a path of self-discovery that forces her to confront long buried feelings and begin healing old emotional scars.Island life shakes Vanessa out of her self-pity but when misfortune knocks once again at her door, she must decide once and for all whether to succumb to the fugue of her earlier days or whether to seize her independence and happiness.

As the battle-fit men of Bennett's Island are called to fight in World War II, many of the other inhabitants head to the mainland as well. The small island community becomes a bit of a ghost town, though Joanna Bennett keeps the home fires burning. Rather than dwelling on her husband's fate in the Pacific Theatre, she devotes her time to the raising of her young son, and keeping an eye on her wild and troubled brother. Even when she is forced into boarding an unwanted guest in her home, she plays her role of hostess flawlessly if coolly, but the guest soon proves his mettle, helping the Bennetts contend with both natural and human elements. When Joanna's heart softens towards the kind and handsome young man, she finds herself fighting to be true to her absent husband, and facing down old ghosts from her past.As the final book of the Tide Trilogy, this wartime story transports readers to the beautiful and rugged Maine coast, where families must eke out their livelihoods from the tempestuous ocean but in return they're afforded the daily splendor and simple pleasures of island life.