Back Roads to Bliss
In 1898, headstrong mill owner’s daughter Allison Middleton attempts to elope with a village boy to Gretna Green. Her father banishes her to a distant relative in Canada. But Allison’s paid escort absconds with most of her money on arrival, and she is not able to find the relative who was to meet her. Unwilling to return to her old life and buoyed by her newfound faith, she acts on an invitation to visit a young couple from the ship who were going to live in the wilds of Saskatchewan.
The story cuts between Allison’s adventures and the Bliss residents’ lives. The two threads come together as Allison meets an intriguing stranger on the train, who is also bound for Bliss.
A minus: the author puts some suspiciously North American-sounding expressions into the mouths of what are supposed to be proper English characters in the beginning of the book. A plus: the author pokes some enjoyable gentle fun at some of the more pompous Bliss church board members. It is not necessary to have read the other volumes in “The Saskatchewan Saga” to enjoy the light entertainment afforded by volume 6.
