They survived Ireland’s Great Hunger to build a new society in untamed Australia . . .
1848: The girls, 4,000 in all, come from every part of Ireland—from the shores of Galway to the Glens of Ulster and Belfast’s teeming streets—to board ships bound for Australia. All were chosen from Ireland’s crowded workhouses. Most are orphans. The Earl Grey Scheme was presented as an opportunity for young women to gain employment as domestic servants in the Colony. But there is another, unstated purpose—the girls are to “civilize” the many men sent there as convicts, so that settlements can be built.Kate Gilvarry has spent six months in a Newry workhouse, subsisting on a diet of watery porridge. She knows there’s no future for her either within its walls or outside, in a ravaged, starving land. But once Kate’s ship completes the harrowing voyage, she and her companions find their reception in Sydney dismayingly unwelcoming, as anti-Irish sentiment grows. Homesick, and disillusioned by love following a shipboard crush, Kate strives to fit in, first as the servant of a demanding English woman, then as a farmer’s bride in the Outback.
When heat and drought force her husband to leave for long periods to work on a sheep ranch, Kate is left alone to fend off wild animals, drifters, and her aching loneliness. She longs to return to Ireland. But first, this beautiful, unforgiving country will teach her about resilience and survival, and the limitless possibilities that come with courage and love.
Evocative and compelling, The Famine Orphans is a testament to the young women whose pioneering spirit left an enduring legacy in a land so far from home.
Editorial Reviews
Book will be released May 27, 2025
Praise for Patricia Falvey
“A captivating portrayal of life in Ireland – above and below stairs – during the years leading up to the Great War and the Irish rebellion. Engaging, atmospheric and packed with rich historical detail I thoroughly enjoyed The Girls of Ennismore.” —Hazel Gaynor, author of The Girl from The Savoy on The Girls of Ennismore
“The enchanting saga of two Irish sisters…This new chapter of Titanic lore is worth plunging into.” —Publishers Weekly on The Titanic Sisters
“Falvey excels at creating atmosphere. The grit and poverty of Rosie’s life in Dublin stand in sharp contrast to the cocoon of Ennismore.”—Historical Novels Review on The Girls of Ennismore
“An evocative, heartfelt story of how the bond of female friendship can survive and thrive through adversity. Beautifully drawn, full of rich historical detail, and with a truest Irish sense of place, I was seduced from page one.” —Kate Kerrigan, New York Times bestselling author of Ellis Island on The Girls of Ennismore
“Rich in authentic historical and Irish detail, The Girls of Ennismore is a compelling story of love, duty, and reinvention, highlighting the vast rewards—or grave consequences—of following one’s heart.” —Kristina McMorris, New York Times bestselling author of Sold on a Monday on The Girls of Ennismore
“An engaging narrative of class differences, sibling entanglements, inheritance of grand Irish estates, and the potential loss of them, finding home, finding love, all set against the turbulent 1916 Easter Uprising in Ireland. A complex and enjoyable read.” —Susan Vreeland, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Hyacinth Blue on The Girls of Ennismore
“Patricia Falvey’s lovely and deeply romantic novel is more than a finely detailed and well researched chronicle of the tumultuous and sweeping social changes in Ireland at the turn of the last century. It is a richly imagined story of two friends—one woman born to wealth and privilege, the other born in poverty and facing a life of servitude— whose abiding friendship proves stronger than blood ties, an unforgiving class system, and even the ravages of war.” —Kathleen Kent, author of The Heretic’s Daughter on The Girls of Ennismore
“An engaging narrative of class differences, sibling entanglements, inheritance of grand Irish estates, and the potential loss of them, finding home, finding love, all set against the turbulent 1916 Easter Uprising in Ireland. A complex and enjoyable read.”
—Susan Vreeland, New York Times bestselling author of Girl in Hyacinth Blueon The Girls of Ennismore
“Falvey, adept at combining vivid historical detail and rich characterization, brings closure to Rose’s and Victoria’s amorous predicaments with brio and simplicity as the women eventually reunite in friendship.”
—Publishers Weekly on The Girls of Ennismore
“An emotionally powerful book, and a joy to read. Falvey has a gift for creating realistic and very believable characters. By saying it’s a gift, I don`t mean it’s easy to do this. It is the result of much hard work.”
—Irish American News on The Linen Queen
“A host of interesting characters, surprising but plausible plot developments, and deftly incorporated details of the Irish struggle for independence add up to a debut novel sure to please fans of historical romance.”
—Library Journal on The Yellow House
“A provocative reminder of the tangled strings of family, war and familiar war.”
—The Dallas Morning News on The Yellow House
