“A person often meets his destiny on the road he took to avoid it.” Jean de la Fontaine
The much awaited next instalment in this compelling and educational series just came out and I inhaled it. It is every bit as good as the six preceding books, but it is not the finale as was expected. Riley explains that there was just way too much story to squeeze in because it was to include the missing sister as well as the story of Pa Salt. As disappointed as I am to not have all of the answers yet and must wait to see the family reunited, I really respect and commend the author for not rushing it. There will be another year to wait for Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt.
The missing sister refers to Merope, whose birthplace coordinates were inscribed on the armillary sphere in the garden at Atlantis, but had not grown up with the other sisters. In fact they knew nothing about her nor why she had never been adopted. This book is about the challenging journey the family embarks on to find her. The quest begins in New Zealand but focuses mostly on the situation in Ireland, a land of great heart and beauty, during a time of terrible poverty and the war for independence.
The series is categorised as a work of fiction but is peppered with real historical figures who are seamlessly woven into the fictional account of the seven sisters. The seven D’Aplièse (anagram for the star constellation Pleiades) sisters have each been on an incredible journey to discover their heritage and learn where and who they were originally adopted from. Click below to see Lucinda Riley’s website with all of the titles. The series is immersive, entertaining, and so conducive to armchair travel. It begins with the book The Seven Sisters.
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