Only the River Runs Free - Christian Book Review

Annie’s Ink-Lings

Only the River Runs Free, Book 1 of 4 of The Galway Chronicles

by Bodie and Brock Thoene

I am a big fan of  the authors Bodie and Brock Thoene's (pronounced Tay-Nee) a Christian husband-wife team. Previously, I have read the Zion Chronicles and Zion Covenant, both of which are in our church library.  I recently began reading The Galway Chronicles, which is also in our library. The Thoenes are known to be accurate in the historical content of their books and are amazingly gifted in bringing forth characters and developing them.   The Galway Chronicles is an awesome series of four books about the persecution of the Irish by the British.  In an endeavor to eliminate all influences of Irish heritage, the English forced an intellectual and spiritual bondage on Ireland as well as a bitter physical bondage of servitude.  Freedom had become so rare that the Irish coined a saying, "In Ireland only the rivers run free."

And, of course, it was this clash of Protestantism and Catholicism, English and Irish, that has become Ireland's story.

This is a review of the first book of the series. 

The setting for the series is Ballynockanor, Ireland, in 1841, under the rule of the British.  Queen Victoria was on the throne in England.  Some of the Irish turned on their own during this time to avoid the wrath of the British.  The story is woven with mystery and intrigue, love and romance, sin and forgiveness, and much Irish history, scenery, and folklore.

Only the River Runs Free is aptly titled, for no one, not even the land of Ireland itself, is free in this book. Joseph Connor Burke is a lost man.  Cheated out of his inheritance as the Burke after his father was murdered, he has lived a silent, hidden life apart from his native Ballynockanor.  As would be expected, Joseph has also been waiting for an opportunity to right old wrongs, to free himself from his past, and to step into the role he was destined to fill.

The Donovans are a proud, Irish family.  A tragic fire had taken the life of Mrs. Donovan, her youngest child, and the young husband of her oldest child Kate.  Mr. Donovan, still heartbroken over the deaths of his wife and youngest child, is bound to the bottle, while Kate, scarred from the fire, which still holds her heart in bondage, believes her beauty has been marred and she will never be loved again.  She is still beautiful, however, to Joseph, who is beginning to question his call to the priesthood.

This is more than Joseph's and Kate's story, however, and the other Donovans are just as engaging. The setting is well done and almost a character in itself. You will smell the green of Ireland. You will feel the land kick against English suppression. The Thoenes do a great job of meshing the political and religious issues into the plot without overwhelming the reader with details. While the characters are finding their way to freedom, so are the Irish people.

Only the River Runs Free is a highly recommended series by me!

Blessings,

Annie