Local author launches second novel ‘Sarah’s Own War’ in Carrick–on-Shannon

Local author Anne L. MacDonell launches her second novel ‘Sarah’s Own War’ in Carrick-on-Shannon Library on Tuesday, January 23, at 5pm.

Published by Battlebridge Press in November 2023, the novel features a family drama set against the turbulent backdrop of the Jacobite rising in Scotland.

The eighteen-year-old Sarah MacDonell lives in Glen Rowan in the Scottish Highlands, and since her mother died in childbirth five years earlier, she has faced many challenges. It is a time of war in Scotland as the Jacobites try to install Bonnie Prince Charles as their rightful king.

Sarah must provide for herself and her younger siblings in desperate times of starvation. She falls in love with the dashing young Alistair, who disappears on the prince’s business for months.

When another suitor, Hamish, asks her father for her hand, she finds herself betrothed. Sarah loves both men and finds herself in a dilemma when Alistair returns.

The author weaves a story of survival and hope in the face of hardship, deceit and the force of history. Inspired by family stories passed down through the generations, the author weaves an unforgettable tale of drama and intrigue.

Originally from the Scottish Highlands, Anne had changed career after a 20-year career in the UK Probation Service training as a Chiropodist when she practised when she and her husband William made Leitrim home over 35 years ago.

Anne is also known in Carrick-on-Shannon for participating in weekly Musical sessions in various pubs in the local area. In 2020, she found herself working on the novels that she had been researching and writing for the past 20 years.

'Sarah’s Own War’ is available for sale in The Reading Room and in Mulvey’s House of Gifts in Carrick-on-Shannon for €9.99. It is also available online from the Publisher’s website at http://www.battlebridgepress.com.