It's 1885, and all Nora Shipley wants, now that she's graduating from Cornell University as valedictorian of the entomology program, is to follow in her late father's footsteps by getting her master's degree and taking over the scientific journal he started. The only way to uphold her father's legacy is to win a scholarship, so she joins a research expedition in Kodaikanal, India, to prove herself in the field.
India isn't what she expects, though, and neither is the rival classmate who accompanies her, Owen Epps. As her preconceptions of India--and of Owen--fall away, she finds both far more captivating than she expected. Forced by the expedition leader to stay at camp and illustrate exotic butterflies the men of the team find without her, Nora befriends Sita, a young Indian girl who has been dedicated to a goddess against her will.
In this spellbinding new land, Nora is soon faced with impossible choices--between saving Sita and saving her career, and between what she's always thought she wanted and the man she's come to love.
India isn't what she expects, though, and neither is the rival classmate who accompanies her, Owen Epps. As her preconceptions of India--and of Owen--fall away, she finds both far more captivating than she expected. Forced by the expedition leader to stay at camp and illustrate exotic butterflies the men of the team find without her, Nora befriends Sita, a young Indian girl who has been dedicated to a goddess against her will.
In this spellbinding new land, Nora is soon faced with impossible choices--between saving Sita and saving her career, and between what she's always thought she wanted and the man she's come to love.
My thoughts: I liked the many layers of this story. Nora is single minded in what she wants in life, to follow in her father's footsteps as an Entomologist and take over the journal that he started. When the opportunity to travel to India opens up, she takes it in hopes that it will open more doors for her. But, it's hard to be a profession as a female in the late 1800's, and she finds that her job in India is different from the others when they don't include her in the fieldwork.
I loved the history of this story and learning more about entomology, especially since it took some big steps in the time frame of this story. I also loved the relationships in this book, both the romantic one and that of Nora with her parents. This is a delightful story to pick up!
I received this book from Bethany House. This is my honest review.
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