I picked up A Wild and Heavenly Place because I love historical fiction, though romance isn’t my usual genre. I’m glad I gave it a try. The story follows Hailey MacIntyre and Samuel Fiddes from the slums of Glasgow to the untamed frontier of Seattle. Their connection happens fast, and they can’t seem to stay apart, no matter how life tries to separate them.
I traveled to Scotland twice, so the descriptions of Glasgow felt familiar. Still, I wanted more sensory detail. I longed for deeper sights and sounds that would pull me further into the streets and shipyards. That said, the scenes in Seattle offered a window into the city’s early days, which I found fascinating. Locals will spot real landmarks and events woven into the plot.

In addition to reading the eBook, I listened to parts of the audiobook and enjoyed the narrator’s Scottish accent. It brought the characters to life, though James’s voice irritated me. He came across as whiny and annoying. From the beginning to the end, I rooted for the primary couple. Although the plot felt predictable, I didn’t mind. It was a relief to escape into their story for a while.

Overall, A Wild and Heavenly Place brought me on an absorbing adventure. I’d recommend it for readers seeking a sweeping love story set against a rugged backdrop. 4 stars.

** Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a complimentary copy. The opinions are my own.

A Wild and Heavenly Place is a captivating historical romance set in the early days of Seattle. It intrigued me, as someone who spends a good bit of time in the city. It's a beautifully written novel that follows two young lovers as they pursue their dreams in a new land, facing challenges and hardships along the way. It's a poignant and engaging story that will resonate with readers who enjoy historical fiction and tales of love and adventure.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me.

I have read other Robin Oliveira books and loved them. I approach A Wild and Heavenly with some high expectations. The book is an enjoyable tale but, for me, not in keeping with prior works. The romance pushes to the side the history and the actual "wild and heavenly place" where this book is set. The place does not come to life in the same way as it does in Robin Oliveira's other books.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2024/09/a-wild-and-heavenly-place.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of A WIld and Heavenly Place by Robin Oliveira!

Thank you to netgalley.com for this ARC.

I loved this book. It was so interesting reading about the beginnings of Seattle and that part of the country. I also enjoyed learning and reading about the trips that took people from Europe to the Western US during the late 1800s and all the hardships they faced.

While the story/ending was predictable, I liked reading about the characters in dual narrator voice and their stories.

Rags to riches, Riches to rags, He, She and They mixed up neatly in Glasgow and set to rise, punched down and re-rise across the ocean in the upcoming community now known as Seattle, Washington. The calendar reads 1870 and there's news of riches to be had for those willing to work for it - in the Washington Territory. Add a dash of siblings who matter, and parents who. . .don't. . . much. . . and you've got motivations for love striving to be realized - but the wild world and its unruly humans so consumed by eager self-interest may cause a forfeit of the promise.

Samuel and Hailey, one with his feet in poverty and the other's feet well shod in wealth - are two people on opposite sides of the social class chart. It is their tryst to endeavor with all the limited opportunities their lives as the charge of others allows. As with all of us, time changes everything.

Robin Oliveira spins an impressive tale, the beauties of the Pacific Northwest well-drawn (and reading it while in this lovely place just made it even better!). History rises up out of the earth here, it can be felt every moment wandered in this land - and she with her words, conjured up echoes, cries, foresty fragrance, mud that doesn't let go and mist that comforts bare skin.

If I'd have read this anywhere but here, it would have made me homesick. A great tale for any season surely, but it felt particularly serendipitous during the autumn days we were together.

*A sincere thank you to Robin Oliveira, Penguin Group Putnam, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review independently.*

I LOVED THIS BOOK! A heart wrenching, character driven addition to the historical fiction genre. It was interesting to read about a little-known portion of history.

Loved this book! I think I liked it even more because I lived in Washington State and knew all the places they were talking about. The characters were well written and likeable. It covered many issues of the times and all groups were covered. It was a love story as well as a bit of a history lesson as far as how Seattle started, and I don't know that I would have survived, those people were made of some tough stuff! This book was beautifully written, I did listen to the audio version and the narrators made the story come alive and did a phenomenal job with all of the different accents. I will be looking for other books by Robin Oliveira. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Many thanks for the complimentary ARC kindly provided by NetGalley and the author/publisher.

Historical fiction fans of Donati’s Wilderness and Gabaldon’s Outlander Series will find much to like in this book by Robin Oliveira. The initial setting of Glasgow, Scotland introduces Hailey of the wealthy MacIntyre family and Samuel Fiddes when he instinctively saves her younger brother’s life. Most of the story takes place when they both find themselves in Seattle, and it’s clear this is well researched.

It’s a story of love and heartbreak, destitution and strength, and was delightful to read. With great characters, believable situations, and a story that will draw you in I highly recommend this one.

4.25⭐️
Amazing scenery and writing, a melancholy love story with intense longing; beautiful from start to finish.

I’m not sure what could have made it a 5⭐️- perhaps a bit more oomph or twist in the plot?

I think fans of Amy Harmon or any other slow burn historical fiction would love this.

"An ode to the Pacific Northwest, to those courageous enough to chase the American Dream, and to a love so powerful it endures beyond distance, beyond hope."

What I liked:
1. Robin Oliveira's writing is always so beautiful and lyrical and she did not disappoint here!
2. The settings - Scotland 1870 and early Seattle - came to life in this book - vibrant and colorful!
3. I loved the history portion so much!

What I didn't like:
1. Probably more romance than what I normally like in a historical fiction novel.
2. Maybe a little predictable.

Would recommend for those that love when the setting is a focus of the book!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A love story and a story of the birth of Seattle and the people who endured hardship to get there. Beautifully written.
Many thanks to PENGUIN GROUP Putnam and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

A Wild and Heavenly Place
By: Robin Oliveira

I love a beautifully told historical fiction romance and this one takes us from Scotland to the infancy of Seattle in the gorgeous PNW. Written by a Robin Oliveira, Registered Nurse who really captures the themes of reversal of fortune, love, and sacrifices. In this heartbreaking story we follow these characters that suffered so much hardships and Oliveira did a fantastic job incorporating accurately the historical aspects of Glasgow and the budding new city of Seattle. I really enjoyed reading this one a lot.

I am definitely going back to Oliveira's backlists.

A tale told with two voices: Hailey and Samuel. It begins in Glasgov ending in Seattle. They are two lovers who are separated by status, distance, and events. Many challenges from mining incidents to Seattle fire; from wealth to poor. Read this story to find the answers.
Robin Oliveira has a lovely, descriptive story. Makes one glad not to live in that period of time.

As someone who has spent time in Seattle, I am interested in learning more about the history of the area, since I've spent my entire life in and around New England. This novel set in 1878, has the main characters travel from Glasgow to Seattle in search of a new life. Hailey's father is a coal mining executive who loses all his money in a bank collapse and decides to move his family to the Washington Territory because he's heard there's coal to be mined. Just before this happens, Hailey falls in love with a destitute orphan who cares for his younger sister. He follows her to Seattle hoping he can find her. This is a sweeping saga filled with good and bad characters and it will definitely keep you reading late into the night.

Rags to riches and riches to rags to riches. This was the saga of the MacIntyre family and Samuel's family. The setting is Glasgow, Scotland, early-1880s. The MacIntyre family is wealthy. Their daughter, Hailey, meets Samuel and little sister, Alison, in a church setting. There, Samuel can be assured that he and Alison will receive a decent meal. Samuel and Hailey fall in love and meet in secret. When the bank fails, Mr. MacIntyre is flat broke. By selling all that he owns (or the bank owns) he scrounges up enough money to go the America. When Samuel realizes the family is gone, he resolves to follow. He and Alison stow away on another ship. A long journey to arrive on the west coast of the United States, in the new area of Washington state.

By the time Samuel and Hailey meet again, Hailey is married to another, suffering abuse and mistreatment from her husband. Samuel is powerless to do anything to remedy the situation. Or is he powerless? Samuel and Alison make a life for themselves.

The writing is beautiful, very descriptive and makes the reader feel as if they were in the middle of this beautiful country.

The book started out well in Scotland with the forbidden love crossing classes, but after the emigration to Washington, I began to really dislike the two selfish main characters who wouldn't let go of their obsessive love and how use and hurt others because of it -- and their really stupid actions made me even more annoyed with them. However, I did enjoy the historical fiction aspect of the book--the information about the prejudice against the Chinese, ship life and ship building, and what Seattle was like at that time.

DNF 21%. As much as I wanted to like this book, I didn't like the romance between Hailey and Samuel. Their feelings for each other were juvenile, and as their love for each other was the backbone of this book, I couldn't keep reading.

A Wild and Heavenly Place, another phenomenal story written by Robin Oliveira, is inspired by the author’s great-great grandfather immigrating to America from Scotland. Oliveira’s beautiful prose drew me into this love story of reversed fortunes and ultimate sacrifices immediately, and kept me turning the pages till the end. She definitely did her research as the historical details are remarkable. The scenery is so vivid adding a tactile sense to the experience of reading this story. Oliveira as always gives her readers characters that are true to life, and luckily we get to follow them as they struggle through life first in Glasgow and then in frontier Seattle, in this heart wrenching beautifully written story. I highly recommend A Wild and Heavenly Place, one of the most exquisite and memorable historical novels I have read in a long time.

I received a complimentary copy from Putnam/Penguin Random House through NetGalley for an honest review. I was under no obligation to write a favorable review and all opinions are my own.

Robin Oliveira is the author of the well-known book, MY NAME IS MARY SUTTER. I haven’t read it but it has been on my list for several years. Her newest book, A WILD AND HEAVENLY PLACE, is her fourth novel.

Set in Seattle, the author’s home, in the late 1800s for most of the novel’s story, the characters begin in Glasgow, Scotland before immigrating to America. The MacIntyre’s are a well-to-do society family in Glasgow. Davinia MacIntyre’s sole focus is to find her daughter Hailey a husband, chosen from the eligible society men at one of the many balls they attend. Still, Hailey isn’t interested in any of them. Samuel Fiddes and his young sister Alison are orphans and live from food scrap to food scrap. Barely making enough money to keep a roof over their heads and food in their bellies, Samuel strives to make a better life for them.

After church, Samuel and his sister are outside when he notices a loose carriage careening down the street. Hailey’s brother, Geordie is in its path and Samuel rushes to save him. Hailey is grateful and invites Samuel and his sister to dinner at their family home. Of course, their lives are completely at opposite spectrums but a spark sizzles between them, and Hailey can’t deny her attraction to him.

When the Glasgow bank fails and her family’s finances are gone, her father has the idea to travel to Seattle where there is talk of many jobs. Hailey doesn’t want to leave Samuel behind but has no choice as her family’s reputation is ruined and they have nothing left. Samuel vows to find her but how can he manage to travel to America?

“Not even in her worst imaginings had Hailey thought that her father would lead them into darkness.”

Of course, the MacIntyre’s arrival in America is not as promised and they are forced to live in squalor while subsisting on beans. Hailey becomes the homemaker of the family as Davinia can’t function living in such poverty. Hailey and Geordie become their own little family and Hailey finds ways to make their house a home and provide for them. Samuel, in the meantime, is determined to find Hailey but the two of them have no idea of all the struggles they will face.

As star-crossed lovers, Hailey and Samuel keep meeting obstacles that keep them apart. Whether it is timing, people, or circumstances beyond their control, it doesn’t seem possible that they will ever be together. But, I had faith that the author would find a way and was rewarded with a genuine romance story that led to a happy ending. Even though there were so many external forces keeping them apart, the reader still had hope of the two of them finding their way to each other.

“I know what it is to lose someone important. It’s a heartbreak that lasts forever.”

Oliveira obviously did extensive research on Seattle in the late 1800s related to coal mines, logging, shipyards, and shipbuilding as well as the awful, muddy weather conditions not conducive to women’s heavy, long dresses. She created a setting that was easily imagined in the readers’ eyes and made us thankful that we were born in a much later generation.

Fans of historical fiction and/or romance will find much to love about this story of riches to rags and rags to riches as well as two people who will do anything to find a way to be together. Those who have triggers related to spousal abuse should know there are some scenes in this story. Even though there is so much heartbreak and hardship in this novel, you will be so invested in Hailey and Samuel’s relationship that you won’t be able to stop reading.