Anna Denton is on a steamer departing Seattle for the Klondike in the late 19th century. A wealthy gold rush prospector has purchased the right to her hand in marriage from her family, and Anna is on the way to marry him. This is the story of Anna’s trek into the northwest.

I compare this story of the gold rush in the Yukon and Alaska to those written by Jack London. Eoin Dempsey has done as Mr. London did many years ago which is capture the tales of the hardships of men and women as they made their way to Dawson over the infamous Chilkoot Pass. The stampeders, as they were called, had heard the stories of gold discoveries and unheard of riches to be had and were driven to get theirs. It was a nightmarish challenge, and many had to quit and turn around.

The author did an awesome job of telling this story keeping me turning the pages with the amazing frozen backdrop, man’s lust for riches, deceit, backstabbing, and murder. It is also a tale of determination, honor, love and friendship.

This premise sounded interesting, but I really struggled with this one. It focused mainly on the romance than the thriller aspect. Also, I could not really connect to the characters. Still, I recommend this for anyone interested in stories set during the Gold Rush.

Anna Denton loves her three sisters, her father’s having money problems and she agrees to the marriage he’s arranged. Leaving Seattle is hard, she’s in tears as she waves goodbye, and she’s accompanied by two chaperones who will be traveling with her to Klondike in Alaska. Due to the gold rush, it’s a very dangerous place, and especially for a pretty young woman.

Henry Bradwell is the King of Klondike, and marrying him will solve her father’s financial problems. Aboard the Mercury, she meets William Leary and his adopted brother Silas Oliver, both are concerned about the character of the two men her fiancée has employed to get her safely to Dawson city? Sure enough they leave Anna stranded, Will and Silas agree to take her the six hundred miles, it’s a long and dangerous trip, and they need to make it Dawson city before the mountain pass closes due to snow. Anna’s a lot tougher than she looks, she walks without complaining, climbs the mountain terrain, and travels last part of the journey by a homemade boat.

When she arrives, Henry Bradwell is charming older man, and the business he owns is a saloon. Winter sets in, Anna realizes she’s trapped, she can’t contact her family and Henry’s pressuring her to set a date for the wedding. She’s starting to have big doubts about her fiancée morals, she’s also attracted to Will and the situation becomes dire.

Towards The Midnight Sun by Eoin Dempsey, is an adventure story set Alaska, Anna’s character's brave, she didn’t give up, she faced the challenges, and I really liked heroes Will and Silas. I received a copy of this book in exchange for on honest review, interesting reading about the gold rush in 1897, the stampeders and four stars from me.

After coming back and rereading the synopsis, I no longer believe I would enjoy this book to it’s full potential.

It took me a while to get into this book and on my 3rd try I finally read it. It is an interesting take on a rather familiar setting - the Klondike gold rush. It was ok but not amazing. I liked the main characters but didn't love them and the story was intriguing although the journey to the gold fields dragged somewhat.

When Anna Denton's sister becomes ill with cancer and her father can't pay for the treatments, he sells Anna in marriage to an Alaskan miner. She begins her journey with two rather sketchy chaperones who gamble away her passage on the ship to Alaska and then abandon her. She falls in with two seemingly honest and dependable brothers on their way overland to the gold fields to make their fortune. They agree to travel with her and deliver her safely to her fiancee. The journey is nearly impossible but her stubborn streak and determination keep her struggling on until they reach Dawson just before it becomes snowed in. Along the journey, Anna and Will had begun having a strong attraction to each other, but if Anna didn't marry Henry Bradwell, her family wouldn't get the promised money. Can she turn back on love for family loyalty?
Although arranged marriages were more common in those times, I found it so selfish that Anna's father would sell her to cover his own debts. She faces an awful future with an old man in a land inhospitable to women, but she forges on in sacrifice to her family. I loved the part about their journey across Alaska and the mountains. This was a really good adventure story.
I received a complimentary copy of this book through Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Historical fiction is one genre I tend to love for the way authors weave in actual events and people for a story. This one was extra appealing as I have a soft spot for Alaska as I lived there for several years.

This tale was quite fascinating. The perils faced on the journey were ones that would have most people turning tail to return home.

Eoin Dempsey does a wonderful job describing a bit of the beauty along with the dangers faced by those trying to make it rich during the gold rush. The romance woven into the story is beautiful as well.

For some reason I couldn’t connect with this one. It seemed like an interesting premise, but didn’t grab me.

This book sounded really good and I was excited to read it but didn't enjoy it at all. A lot of the things that happened were so far fetched that it took away from the enjoyment of the book.

2.5 rounding up.
I should have known I wouldn't enjoy this after reading White Rose Black Forest, but I gave it a go anyway. Dempsey's writing style feels as though it tries too hard to be profound when it's juvenile. This author would be better suited to write YA in my opinion. Not my cup of tea.

I cannot review this book as it did not download to my Kindle as it normally did. Once I discovered that it did not download properly the book had already been archived and I was unable to download it. I have to give it a star rating, so as of now I am giving it a 1 star. Once I have read the book, I will come back and revise my review. Sorry.

I absolutely love everything Eoin Dempsey writes and this book is no exception. The story about the gold rush and Anna having to marry to keep her family out of the poor house was a good one. Of course, we know that all things are not that easy, I would have preferred more historical fiction that romance but it is still a good, quick read.

Love awakened on the treacherous climb to reach the goldfields of the Klondike. A story of survival and passion at all costs. Excellent writing.

Gold Fever on the Klondike

I really enjoyed this book. The history of the miners and the journey they made to reach the Klondike gold fields was very interesting, especially the trek over the Chilkoot trail and the stair steps, then the dangerous trek down the half frozen river in a homemade boat. The description of the emerging mining towns with their loudness, whiskey, gambling and girls of the saloons. The mud sticking to the boots, the extreme cold and the disillusion of many.

The characters were believable as human's with all their failings. They were more true to life than many books I have read. The author wrote them as just that...people with the normal human feelings, failings that we see in everyday life with the extra ruggedness needed for such a frontier setting. Those that made it had to be the most rugged and desperate just to get to Dawson.

At every step of the way people dropped out and turned back. Those that kept going and finally made it to Dawson were still unsure of their future. By the time our characters in the story made it most of the good mines had already been claimed. How they were able to establish themselves was more to the character's gambling ability than to their luck at finding a good claim.

I enjoyed the characters of Will, Silas, Anna, Betsy and Mr. Bradwell, as well as all the other minor characters in between. The book describes the long winter after the miners arrival in Dawson. No contact at all with the outside world, no mail, no supplies. The passions felt, the desperation of some, the romance between Will and Anna even though she was betrothed to Mr. Bradwell. All of it was part of the way of life in that era in the Klondike. Food and supplies were scarce and women were more so as only a few were able to make it to Dawson and most that did were either married or ladies of ill repute.

I applaud the author for telling the story how it must have been in those times with all the rawness of the environment. Times were hard, life was harder, it was how it was.

I recommend this to anyone interested in reading about this time period in history.

Thanks to Eoin Dempsey, Lake Union Publishing, and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review an advance copy of the book.