Ireland 1911. Two neighbouring bourgeoisie families living in County Cork are part of the Irish culture many readers may not be so familiar with (the author is an American) and the main characters come (like Romeo and Juliet in classic love story style from each of the families. Courtland O'Rourke is the handsome young heir now living with his businessman grandfather Devlin (after the death of his parents in a tragic sea accident) whilst Lacey de la Roche lives with her American father (whose wife tragically died in childbirth when Lacey was four years old).
We meet Lacey as a young girl, but one who is already in 'love' with Courtland (Court) yet also acting as a tomboy with local lads - especially Padraic. It took some time for me to warm to Lacey! she's spoilt and headstrong with little care for her actions. Obviously this is fine when the biggest local incidents are fights at the Fair. But when Court joins the Army and leaves, firstly for a few years to India and then to fight ' for the British cause' in WWI, Lacey will realise she will need to grow up and face the growing clouds of hostility and civil unrest than are brewing across Ireland.
At times annoyingly patronising towards the people beyond the wealthy homes and lives of the main characters (especially Lacey) I felt the undercurrents of serious life and death issues were a bit glossed over. However after Court returns from the trenches and the impact of the growing nationalism that erupts in 1916 surrounding the Easter Rising threatens not only Lacey but those in her family and friends who she loves I felt a more rounded novel took shape.
This is obviously a romance and has those elements to the main relationship but there are some interesting side characters and scenes (such as the Jalna Derby horse race in Dublin and the travels to New York) that definitely add interest to the central themes.
Having often travelled to southern Ireland and fed off the themes of nationalism, famine, British rule and the impoverishment of the Irish who had to emigrate to live this certainly was another view of Irish life.

Loved the story, would like to continue reading more from the author.

It's unreadable! There is repetitive sentences on every page. This Author better find a better Editor!
Carolintallahassee 👒

My knowledge of Irish English relations was a bit hazy and this helped in a way to clear some of the misconceptions I had.

The year 1911 and there is a simmering discontent amongst all walks of Irishmen. Unlike most rebellions which are confined to the labour and lower working class, this transcends class barriers and upper class folk also want to throw off the yoke of English supremacy in their own country.

Thrown together by circumstance and geography Court and Lacey lives are interwoven from the time Lacy was an infant and Court a teenager. The relationship is a tender one from the very onset but circumstances of a mixed up reasoning drives Court to take a position in the English Army in India for three years. Lacey is heart broken but is also attracted by a scheming and charismatic horse trainer in her family's employ.

The Easter Uprising of 1916 is meshed into the story along with the fledgling romance of Lacey and Court, their marriage and their future.

This was a very fine debut novel and I am waiting for the sequel.

Goodreads and Amazon reviews up on 22/6/2017. Review on my blog 26/6/2017

Rating:
★★★★ = I enjoyed this book but would not reread it in the future

Genre:
Historical Romance

Plot:
The forming of a friendship turned romance between Courtland and Lacey in Ireland during the early 1900's.


Pros:
1.) Ireland!
2.) Army! I love military stuff in books.
3.) Lacey is relatable in a lot of the way she reacts.


Cons:
2.) Betrayal??? No, thanks. That hits way too close to home.


Quotes:
None jumped out at me, unfortunately.


My thoughts:
Im looking back at what I wrote above and it sounds like I hated this book. I didn't hate it but I didn't love it either. I guess my expectations were high because Im an idiot and read other readers reviews before I read the book for myself. I picked this book up expecting to be immersed and not able to put it down which was not the case. I enjoyed Lacey but didn't like Courtland at all. I think Lacey deserved better than him. I hate that he left so early but I do love the whole military aspect of the book. I also love that the book is set in Ireland. I am all about books that take place where I wish I was on a daily basis. I do feel like some of the characters were undeveloped just like other readers mentioned BUT that didn't bother me at all because I didn't particularly care for those characters in the first place. I am looking forward to reading the second installment in this series. I am hoping for some commitment and loyalty!

This is my first time reading this author, Elizabeth Sparrow, but it will not be the last. This book is expertly plotted, well developed characters, and captures the reader’s attention from the first page to the last page. Fans of both history and historical romance will enjoy this book, finding it more than a romance. It is complete with love, betrayal, emotion, and filled with historical fiction. I will be looking forward to future releases.

Elizabeth J. Sparrow’s The Irish Tempest is marketed as a historical romance, but it should be understood that the ratio is round about 30:70 in favor of fitful mewling and surging loins. There’s nothing wrong with that, romance is a booming genre with an avid readership, but I personally prefer historic romance that is weighted in the other direction.

The jacket places certain emphasis on the Rising so let’s start there. The beginning of the insurrection is traditionally marked by Pearse’s reading of the 1916 Proclamation outside the GPO. The declaration was signed by seven of the movement’s leaders, but for some unknown reason Sparrow mentions only five: Tom Clarke, James Connelly, Joseph Plunkett, Thomas MacDonagh, and Patrick Pearse. The remaining two, Sean MacDiarmada and Eamonn Ceannt, are entirely omitted from the text and replaced by Michael Collins and Éamon de Valera.

On a similar note, the Rising didn’t just happen. It wasn’t planned at the last moment and the ideals that drove it weren’t new. Clarke himself had been fighting for the cause of Irish freedom since the late 1870s. Tensions had been steadily increasing for years, but Sparrow’s narrative ignores this reality and fumbles any and all development of the political landscape that shaped these men and their ideals. I wanted these concepts to take center stage, the prominence placed on them in the description are why I picked up the book, but at the end of the day the subject matter wasn’t central to the story at hand and that fact left me bitterly disappointed.

The love story didn’t interest me and I can’t say I cared much for Sparrow’s cast, but I’m not above giving the author credit where due. There are passages in this piece that are downright lyrical and I found much of the dialogue humorous and entertaining. There’s also noticeable build up to the conflict between Collins and de Valera in the final chapters of the story and I like how that attention sets the stage for the intended sequel.

Not a complete wash, but not something I see myself recommending to fellow readers.