Survivors of the Irish Great Hunger, 1845–1850

About the Book

In 1801, everything changed for the people of Ireland. Several years after the Act of Union forces Ireland to become the breadbasket for England, blight ravages the potato crops, and the country and its residents begin to starve. As thousands die and more emigrate, greedy landlords wreak havoc on those who remain to work their land.

English landlord James Palmerston—a man known for using brutality to get his way—rides through a sheep meadow on his horse, running down farmer Sean Kavanagh and his innocent young son. After Sean reports the incident to the sheriff, however, Palmerston vows revenge, setting off a chain of events that leads to a questioning of Sean’s past, an attempted rape, and a brutal attack on a young female tinker. As the threat of Civil War brews in the distance, a Mercy nun who ministers to the distressed Kavanagh family and many others has no idea that her destiny is about to lead her in another direction.

In this historical tale set during an unforgettable time in history, the people of Ireland face one perilous challenge after another, proving their resilience and determination to survive despite seemingly insurmountable odds.

About the Author

Jack O’Keefe is an English professor with a doctorate in literature from Loyola University. He attended the Purdue University Rhetoric Seminar and studied under Gordon Mennenga at the University of Iowa Writer’s Workshop. Jack is the author of two college reading and writing texts as well as two other novels, Brother Sleeper Agent and Famine Ghost: Genocide of the Irish. He lives with his wife, three sons, and four grandchildren in Chicago.