I admit to being a fan of Lark's writing. This is well done historical fiction. It's probably best read as a followup to the first novel. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I recommend this book to genre fans. I give it three stars. Good characters and plot. I would suggest that the first book be read first though.

Brief synopsis from the book cover:
As the nineteenth century draws to a close, the struggle for women’s suffrage has finally reached New Zealand. But when the tide of change rolls in, it threatens to engulf two young women from very different backgrounds, who are coming of age amid the tumult.
Torn between the two worlds that make up her heritage, Matariki Drury is the daughter of a successful white businesswoman and a descendant of Maori royalty. Scarred by poverty and hoping to make a new life for herself in this strange and forbidding land, Violet Paisley is the middle child of a poor Welsh coal-mining family.
Drawn together by their shared commitment to social change, and tested by traumas that neither of them could foresee, these two independent-minded women will find themselves thrust onto the front lines of the fight for equal rights and racial justice. To win their place in this world, they must learn to rise above their personal pain and choose a path of reconciliation rather than retribution.

Story: 4 out of 5 stars
Writing: 3 out of 5 stars
Character development: 3.5 out of 5 stars
Overall: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Review:
This is the second book in the Kauri Trilogy. As the story is easy to follow you can read each of the books in the series separately. The story is well written and is set in an historical interesting time for New Zealand. It gives you an inside into the Maori wars on the one side and the women movement on the other side.
As usual in Sarah Lark’s books the women are strong and possess endurance. It is not difficult to like them and soon you find yourself cheering them on wanting them to overcome their difficulties and have the life they so deserve.
The scenery is vividly described, it’s like you are really there. The only thing that I struggled with, the book was a little bit longwinded at times, lots of mundane scenes where nothing really happened. I felt it did not really add to the story in fact it was distracting and made it harder to keep going with the book. I am glad that I persisted as once you get past it; it’s a fascinating story with interesting characters, well worth a read.
If you like previous books by this author, you will also enjoy this book. Fans of historical fiction and women’s fiction will defiantly like it
Review copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for a honest review