Secret Daughter

Lately I seem to be reading books that really focus on women... not sure why, that just seems to be the way things are going. Secret Daughter is no exception. It's the story of three strong women - Somer, Kavita, and Asha - whose lives are linked in many sad and happy ways.

Somer is a California doctor, married to Krishnan, an Indian man she met in med school. When she learns she can never have children she is devastated, but then Kris' mother suggests they adopt a baby from India, seemingly an answer to their prayers.

Kavita is a poor Indian woman who has already had one daughter ripped from her arms moments after birth. When she gives birth to a second daughter, she makes the long journey to an orphanage in Mumbai to give her a chance at life, rather than hand her over to certain death.

Asha is Kavita's and Somer's child. She has her own journey to make, from being unsure of her heritage and her place in the world, to coming to an understanding of the reasons things happen, and how both of her mothers loved her in their own way.

Secret Daughter is a beautiful story, sad at times, but ultimately uplifting and enlightening. As an adopted person I may have appreciated it in a special way, but I think any reader will thoroughly enjoy it.

Secret Daughter

Accidents of Providence

This is the story of Rachel Lockyer, a glovemaker's apprentice in 17th century England. It's not a cool time to be living in England - Cromwell and his crazy Puritans are in power, and they've pretty much banned everything fun - even Christmas! Being a woman during this time is even worse, since anything you do can be construed as "lewd."

So what does Rachel do? She falls in love with a married older man and gets pregnant. Then when the baby dies in childbirth, she secretly buries her. But of course someone sees what happens, digs up the baby, and Rachel is made to stand trial for murdering her bastard child.

I found the book hard to get into - the language is a bit stilted. But once I got into it I really enjoyed it. The males characters are sort of accessories - and they are actual historical people - but the author, Stacia Brown, really develops the female characters, mostly Rachel of course. And I'm glad I stuck with it, because the ending of the book was a real surprise, and a really cool surprise at that. Definitely an intriguing read.

Accidents of Providence