The Mapmaker's Children by Sarah McCoy

Summary
Two lives in completely different time periods are intertwined by a house and a discovery relating to the Underground Railroad.

Abolitionist John Brown assists with the Underground Railroad in 1859.  His talented artist daughter, Sarah, comes to assist him as she becomes a key mapmaker in helping these slaves escape north as they use her distinctly designed codes within her paintings.  Sarah paints her maps on papers, as well as eventually the faces dolls so those who don’t know where to look cannot find the maps.  Due to an illness, Sarah is unable to bear children and has determined she will never marry.  This becomes hard to come to terms will as she falls in love with the son of one of her father’s activist friends.  How far will she go to stand for a cause that she believes?  Will part of the price be love?

Eden and her husband have been trying to have a baby for a while, with no luck.  Now living in an old house in a suburb part of town, she discovers an old porcelain doll head minus the body hidden away in her root cellar.  Inside this head Eden finds a key.  Could this be an old clue as part of the Underground Railroad?  As Eden continues her rocky relationship with her husband and new budding relationships their new family dog and the young girl next door Eden decides to ask around town about the porcelain doll head.  What will she discover as she pursues the story behind the doll’s head and possibly her house?

Available to purchase on Amazon:
Kindle
Hardcover

Author Information
Sarah McCoy is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of the novels The Mapmaker’s Children, The Baker’s Daughter, The Time it Snowed in Puerto Rico, and The Branch of Hazel a novella in Grand Central. 

The Baker's Daughter was praised as "a beautiful heart-breaking gem of a novel" by Tatiana de Rosnay and "a thoughtful reading experience indeed" by Chris Bohjalian. The Baker's Daughter was a Doubleday/Literary Guild Book Club selection and a Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Best Historical Fiction in 2012. 

Sarah has taught writing at Old Dominion University and at the University of Texas at El Paso. The daughter of an army officer, her family was stationed in Germany during her childhood. She currently lives with her husband, an army physician, and their dog, Gilly, in El Paso, Texas.

Connect with Sarah on:
Goodreads
Facebook
Twitter
Amazon
Website

Review
New York Times and internationally bestselling author, Sarah McCoy has created a beloved historical fiction novel loved by all.  This novel intertwines and connects the past to the present, bringing to life and connecting the stories of Sarah Brown in the 19th century and Eden in the 21th century.  These two women struggle through life as they come to terms with being unable to bear children.  Women, especially those that have been in a similar situation, will be able to connect and relate to Sarah and Eden as they read this story.  Themes discussed in this novel are family relationships, love, and courage.  I would recommend this novel to readers who enjoy novels with deep historical background and relatable characters.

Genre: historical fiction; contemporary; 19th century; military history; Civil War
Publisher: Crown
Publication date: May 5, 2015
Number of pages: 300

A review copy of this book was provided by Blogging for Books.