Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    The Last Runaway
    Unavailable
    The Last Runaway
    Unavailable
    The Last Runaway
    Audiobook8 hours

    The Last Runaway

    Written by Tracy Chevalier

    Narrated by Laurel Lefkow

    4/5

    ()

    Unavailable in your country

    Unavailable in your country

    About this audiobook

    Honor Bright is a sheltered Quaker who has rarely ventured out of 1850s Dorset when she impulsively emigrates to America. Opposed to the slavery that defines and divides the country, she finds her principles tested to the limit when a runaway slave appears at the farm of her new family. In this tough, unsentimental place, where whisky bottles sit alongside quilts, Honor befriends two spirited women who will teach her how to turn ideas into action.

    “The best thing she's written since Girl with a Pearl Earring.” ROSE TREMAIN

    “A joy.” MAGGIE O'FARRELL

    “Addictively compelling.” THE TIMES

    “Highly recommended.” THE INDEPENDENT

    “A gripping and potent novel which shows Chevalier at the height of her powers.” THE EXPRESS

    “A quietly powerful and gripping novel.” THE MAIL
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherW. F. Howes Ltd
    Release dateApr 30, 2015
    ISBN9781471293764
    Unavailable
    The Last Runaway
    Author

    Tracy Chevalier

    Tracy Chevalier is the author of eleven novels, including A Single Thread, Remarkable Creatures and Girl with a Pearl Earring, an international bestseller that has sold over five million copies and been made into a film, a play and an opera. Born in Washington DC, she moved to the United Kingdom in 1986. She and her husband divide their time between London and Dorset.

    More audiobooks from Tracy Chevalier

    Related to The Last Runaway

    Historical Fiction For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Sad Farewell

      Jul 2, 2021

      FOR readers there’s a real poignancy to seeing The Missing Sister by Lucinda Riley at the top of the SA fiction bestseller list because it’s the last book that will be released by the much-loved Northern Irish author. Riley’s family recently announce

      1 min read

    • Article

      The Casco Bay Death Ship

      Mar 31, 2020

      The Casco Bay Death Ship
      4 min read

    • Article

      MESSAGE In A BOTTLE

      Mar 1, 2023

      FOR HUNDREDS OF years scores of Boston-bound ships have foundered on the rocky ledges that lurk just beneath the waves all along the coast of Massachusetts Bay. The wreck of the brig St. John must surely be the most tragic of all. She was a “famine s

      6 min read

    • Article

      MESSAGE In A BOTTLE

      Mar 1, 2023

      FOR HUNDREDS OF years scores of Boston-bound ships have foundered on the rocky ledges that lurk just beneath the waves all along the coast of Massachusetts Bay. The wreck of the brig St. John must surely be the most tragic of all. She was a “famine s

      6 min read

    • Article

      The Ashes

      Sep 9, 2022

      It’s almost 50 years since my wife Roz and I moved aboard our first serious cruising boat. While paying off our overdraft, we lived in a mud berth on a rickety pier attached to what was then Moody’s yard at the top of the Hamble River. It was univers

      5 min read

    • Article

      The Ferryman

      Oct 26, 2020

      At the end of the summer, when the high tide of tourists had gone out but autumn proper was still a few weeks away, the foot ferry still ran on the August timetable. It was always dead quiet when he made the first run over to Fowey from Polruan; even

      6 min read

    • Article

      Never Lonely

      Aug 5, 2021

      Never Lonely
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Only Rule

      Jul 13, 2020

      There is only one rule in polite English society, but it is iron clad. Of course, polite English society is a fiction. For one thing, its members are rarely polite. Politeness is for the middle classes rather than those who live off ancestral acres o

      5 min read

    • Article

      As the World Collapses

      Jul 27, 2017

      As the World Collapses
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Women Of The Palace

      Sep 19, 2022

      At Georgia’s ragged edge stands a causeway made of earth piled by hand atop bricks and tires, long grown over with grass and sandspur and sea oxeye. It is a tenuous ribbon of stability cutting through mud and salt and spartina, connecting land and ri

      11 min read

    • Article

      Beyond the Mangrove Trees

      Aug 6, 2020

      No one expects their house to float away. Ethel certainly hadn’t. Our story begins in the sleepy village of Greenwood, where Ethel had spent her entire life. It was an overcast Sunday afternoon and Ethel watched the rain lash against the window from

      7 min read

    • Article

      A Round-up Of The Latest BOOKS

      Sep 9, 2022

      In 1901 John Voss, a sometime sailor and carpenter, set out on a round-the-world trip in a 38ft (11.6m) wooden dugout canoe named the Tilikum. It would be understandable if you viewed this not so much as a cruise as a suicide mission. Nevertheless, h

      2 min read

    • Article

      6 Watery Folklore Wonders

      Mar 25, 2021

      6 Watery Folklore Wonders
      5 min read

    • Article

      Guiding Presence

      May 18, 2020

      Guiding Presence
      7 min read

    • Article

      Tom Cunliffe

      Jun 25, 2021

      Tom Cunliffe
      5 min read

    • Article

      Tom Cunliffe

      Jun 25, 2021

      Tom Cunliffe
      5 min read

    • Article

      A Narrow Escape

      Aug 3, 2023

      A Narrow Escape
      2 min read

    • Article

      Sara Maitland

      Nov 18, 2021

      Sara Maitland
      2 min read

    • Article

      Notes From The Isles

      Dec 15, 2023

      Notes From The Isles
      4 min read

    • Article

      A tender THREAD

      Dec 22, 2021

      A tender THREAD
      9 min read

    • Article

      Until The Sea Closed Over Us And The Light Was Gone

      Jul 1, 2020

      —Dante, Canto XXVI But if the truth is dreamed of toward the morning—El Paso Although it was really last summer’s song,all this summer Despacito played on as slower then I turned myself to gazeupon Juarez. The summer everything hurts my eyes, a dozen

      6 min read

    • Article

      Linked Lives

      Mar 7, 2024

      I write standalone family dramas, often with dual timelines. The furthest I’ve gone back to, up to now, has been the 1980s. But my eleventh novel, The Girl From Donegal, became a new departure for me, as it’s my first book with a historical strand. I

      6 min read

    • Article

      Chasing Happiness

      Mar 16, 2021

      Chasing Happiness
      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for The Last Runaway

    4/5

    574 ratings64 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Nice little story about a Quaker girl who helps the escaping slaves amidst her own personal struggles.
    • 5/5
      Honor Bright, a modest English Quaker who moves to Ohio in 1850, only to find herself alienated and alone in a strange land. Sick from the moment she leaves England, and fleeing personal disappointment, she is forced by family tragedy to rely on strangers in a harsh, unfamiliar landscape. Nineteenth-century America is practical, precarious, and unsentimental, and scarred by the continuing injustice of slavery. In her new home Honor discovers that principles count for little, even within a religious community meant to be committed to human equality. However, drawn into the clandestine activities of the Underground Railroad, a network helping runaway slaves escape to freedom, Honor befriends two surprising women who embody the remarkable power of defiance. Eventually she must decide if she too can act on what she believes in, whatever the personal costs.My Thoughts:I have just turned the last page of this book and my first thought was that I have really enjoyed it. My first encounter with TC was at book club, many moons ago and we read ‘The Girl with the Pearl Earing’ which I thought was awful. Glad to say that I then rediscovered TC with ‘Fallen Angels’ and am so glad that I did.This tale was quite pleasing and I enjoyed the book from the first page to the last. I loved the story and the ending finished the book quite nicely although I had got my own ending too.My only negative is that I would like to have read the book in the first person rather than the third. Then I could have felt more of what Honor was feeling and picked little bit more emotion from the book. The book overall for me was very enjoyable and well worthy of five stars.
    • 4/5
      Chevalier had my total attention because of her simple but compelling writing.Young Honor Bright (a bit too much, that) has been disappointed in love and decides to voyage to America in 1850. Terrible seasickness puts a blight on her idea of America and her chances of success.As a Quaker, Honor abhors the idea of slavery. She inadvertently becomes involved in the Underground Railroad, and the complications of that involvement form the plot. A nicely-written, quiet book, this works well. A star off for understating the real horror of slavery and he Fugitive Save Law.
    • 3/5
      Amazing story. Totally gripping.
      Dorset accent however was awful. It veered between American, Northern English and fantasy. Not good.
    • 4/5
      4 ★This 1850's drama is set in the vicinity of Oberlin, Ohio (a major stop on the underground railroad)As a period piece on Ohio life in the 1850s , the author's research is extensive.tchevalier.com provides additional research to enhance your reading experience.--------"the quakers have no formal creedtheir unity is based on shared understanding of the "Inner Light" in each person and a shared practice of silent worship" (T Chevalier)Honor Bright, an English Quaker, has decided to accompany her sister Grace, who is off to marry her fiance in America.Sister Grace dies of yellow fever on the journey and Honor continues to Ohio.First lodging is in Belle Mill's milliner's shop.Belle provides a safe house and food depot in the Underground Railroad systemHer brother, by sharp contrast, is a slave catcher.We follow the life of Honor Bright later Haymaker and the moral dilemmas she experiences.Honor becomes involved with the Underground Railroad."The Fugitive Slave Act has been passed: it is illegal to assist a runaway slave, and there are heavy penalties.The Quakers believe in equality but also want to abide by the law. "I have provided a very simplistic look at the novel.In reading it, you'll find a multitude of domestic details and a broader look at the realities of the Underground Railroad.
    • 3/5
      It was ok. I'm not sure how it is going to go over as summer reading for our high schoolers. And I didn't see anything extraordinary about the writing or the character development or plot. Oh, well.
    • 3/5
      Started out amazing, but ended so quickly. Character development was great but then everything just folds over and ties into a tight bow.
    • 4/5
      3.75 starsIn the mid-1800s, Honor, a Quaker, is accompanying her sister Grace across the ocean from England to Ohio, where Grace is to marry Adam, someone they grew up with who had moved to Ohio to help out his brother in his business. Unfortunately, Grace dies along the way. Honor is so seasick on the crossing, she can’t imagine getting back on a ship to cross the ocean again to head home. But it’s a bit odd for her to live with her widowed almost-brother-in-law, and his newly widowed sister-in-law. They manage for a while. On her way to Ohio, Honor met up with a local slave hunter. Before reaching Adam, Honor stayed a few days in a nearby town, helping Belle in her hat shop, as Honor is an amazing quilter and seamstress. Once she arrives to stay with Adam, though, she finds herself quite out of place, despite being part of a community of Quakers. This book had a lot going on… that is, the author had to do a lot of research on a lot of different things, including Quakers, quilting, Ohio, and the Underground Railroad. I quite liked it, but I never did figure out the odd attraction she had for one character. I did love Belle! I’m not a quilter or sewer, so I found the Underground Railroad and the Quakers more interesting. It’s odd that I’ve not read much about Quakers before, but both my audio book and this one, being read at the same time included Quakers who are immigrants to the US (though the audio was set in the 17th century and this one in the 19th).
    • 4/5
      English Quaker girl emigrates to Ohio in 1850s and has to choose between her desire to help runaway slaves and alienating her Quaker community.
    • 4/5
      This is a powerful book about finding your place in an unfamiliar world, finding a voice, and learning how to be an advocate and an activist to an oppressed people in a manner that will actually help. The women in this book are varied, interesting, and complex. This is definitely one of Chevalier's better novels.
    • 3/5
      English Quaker Honor Bright has been jilted by her fiancé. Feeling embarrassed and out of place in her community, she jumps at the chance to accompany her sister Grace, who is sailing for America to join and marry Adam Cox, a dry goods owner in a small Ohio settlement. The voyage is difficult for Honor, so rough that when,shortly after disembarking, Grace dies of yellow fever, she can't bear the thought of recrossing the Atlantic and decides to continue on to Wellington. Adam has been living with his ailing brother and his sister-in-law, but by the time Honor arrives, his sibling has died of consumption. Abigail is now the householder, and it's clear that she doesn't welcome another woman in the home. Within a few months, Adam and Abigail marry, and Honor knows that she must find her own place in her new community--most likely through marriage.Honor is curious about the runaway slaves that she encounters now and then. Quakers, of course, oppose abolition, but the new Fugitive Slave Law makes it more difficult for anyone to aid them. Before she reaches her first destination, the wagon she is riding ini s stopped and searched by a bounty hunter--the brother of a milliner named Belle who becomes a close friend. Despite his drinking and slave hunting, Honor feels attracted to Donovan--an attraction that doesn't stop when she marries a dairy farmer, Jack Haymaker. Though she is warned of the severe penalties that can be brought on those who assist runaway slaves, Honor feels bound to provide food and water to those on their way north. Out of tune with her family and her community, she reaches--and crosses--a breaking point.A lot is going on in this fairly short novel. There's Honor's dilemma of trying to find a place in a Quaker community so different from the one she knew in England and the choices she has to make between moral and practical actions. Set in 1850, the slavery debate is in full swing, and even those who oppose the practice believe that freeing the slaves would bring economic ruin to the entire nation. And Honor is torn between two men who are total opposites.I enjoyed Chevalier's depiction of the Quaker communities surrounding Oberlin, and she created two intriguing characters in Belle, the milliner, and Mrs. Reed, a black resident. Unfortunately, many of the other characters felt like stereotypes, and Honor herself was inconsistent and sometimes even annoying. So overall, this was just an OK read for me, and not the best of Tracy Chevalier's novels that I have read.
    • 4/5
      Honor Bright, an English Quaker recently jilted by a romantic interest, flees to America with her sister, who is to be married to a man in Ohio in the year 1850. However, shortly after arriving, Honor's sister is met with tragedy, and Honor must fend for herself in an unfamiliar country. While struggling to fit in and find her way, she is unwittingly thrust into, and forced to take sides regarding slavery and the Underground Railroad. Though Tracy Chevalier's stories are generally rather slow-moving and lack a lot of what you might consider action, she is gifted at historical fiction storytelling. I've generally enjoyed her older books more than her newer ones, but they've all enlightened me and provided a more complete picture of subjects that I may or may not have had any previous knowledge of. This one was no exception. It started out slowly, but I became more enthralled the further I got into the meat of the story. And although the ending was not necessarily predictable, it was satisfying.
    • 4/5
      Chevalier had my total attention because of her simple but compelling writing.Young Honor Bright (a bit too much, that) has been disappointed in love and decides to voyage to America in 1850. Terrible seasickness puts a blight on her idea of America and her chances of success.As a Quaker, Honor abhors the idea of slavery. She inadvertently becomes involved in the Underground Railroad, and the complications of that involvement form the plot. A nicely-written, quiet book, this works well. A star off for understating the real horror of slavery and he Fugitive Save Law.
    • 5/5
      ‘’I am excluded even from the excluded, she thought.’’Tracy Chevalier is one of those writers who have contributed in the development of Historical Fiction as we know it today. Her writing contains beautiful metaphors and a successful combination of a fresh, modern feeling and a kind of dialogue that is faithful to the depicted era. Girl With A Pearl Earring managed to bring the Netherlands to focus and started a whole array of books set during the 17th century, inspired by the magnificent painters of this beautiful country. The Last Runaway is equally successful. I dare say that, at times, it is even better…Ohio, 1850s. The tension between the cities of the North and the cities of the South regarding the abolition of slavery is brewing. The communities are divided over the issue and over their own religious beliefs, The Quakers are considered weird but they are supposed to be honest and supporters of equality. Does this ‘’equality’’ extent to salves? It depends...In the midst of it all, we find Honor. A young Englishwoman whose life changes drastically the moment she set foot in the New World. Her relationships with an array of interesting characters and her convictions compose a beautiful, sad, poignant story.‘’Well, there you go. We’re all from somewhere else. That’s how Ohio is.’’ The community Chevalier depicts is a mix of opposites. Ohio is a stop on the way North or on the way South. The residents are torn between sympathy and fear. The story is built on the notion of antithesis. Antithesis between our faith and our actions. Between love and duty. Between obligations and wishes. Honor has been brought up to be honest no matter what but there are things she can’t even admit to herself. Donovan is torn between his twisted notion of duty and the demands of his heart. To what extent can we disregard our social and familial duties in order to do what we think is right and just? Do we give in and betray our principles? These are the questions Honor has to face while trying to forge a life in a place that is an amalgam of clashing convictions and troubled souls.The writing is exceptional. I could go on about all the vivid details, the beautiful imagery, the dialogue. There is an underlying tenderness and softness in the prose even if the subject itself is difficult and harsh. Τhe daily life and customs are masterfully described and the themes that Chevalier uses to compose her story are always relevant to any era. The tone isn’t didactic or preachy but simple, direct and calm like Honor herself. The characters are major contributors to a successful novel and in this one we have quite a few memorable ones. Honor is a delight in the sense that she’s realistic, determined and persistent. I didn’t think of her as naive. On the contrary, I admired her bravery because she had to face the prejudices of a whole community and the horrible manners of her mother-in-law. Now, I will become controversial here and admit that I would choose a different path and obey my true wishes regarding marriage and family but I understand her motives given the era and the circumstances. This brings us to Donovan, one of the most interesting characters I’ve recently come across. He is complex, almost tragic in his choices, his inner battle. Belle is also exceptional as are Virginie and Mrs Reed. The Haymakers? I definitely could have done without those idiots…There is an interesting theme permeating the novel. The notion of looking and thinking forward instead of dwelling in misfortune. The American Way. Honor questions this. She considers it a mistake because not remembering leads to the same mistakes over and over again. Judging by the way our world works, I cannot help thinking that she is right. Slavery, war, atrocities committed against the people whose land was stolen by the settlers… Within such a context, future can only become better through togetherness. The end is satisfying but it is clear that Honor isn’t convinced. And she’s right, in my opinion. Noone can speak of equality and continue dividing people into categories. And once more, I cannot help thinking that every successful Historical Fiction novel acts as the clearest mirror reflecting our problematic societies…
    • 4/5
      A good story ( as always by Chevalier) - 1850's migration from England to Ohio - Quakers - quilting - slave underground railroad
    • 4/5
      Jilted by her fiance, English Quaker Honor Bright travels with her sister from Britain to America in 1850. When her sister dies of yellow fever soon after arrival, Honor has not choice but to continue her journey and meet up with her sister's fiance. Unfortunately his brother has also just died. Honor stays with him and his newly widowed sister-in-law and tries to get used to a very different life in pre-civil war Ohio. Life is complicated by a local slave hunter, her relationship with two very strong women, and the activities of the Underground Railroad, a network of safe houses and food depots helping runaway slaves make their way to freedom in Canada. We learn much about quilts and quilting, but I would have liked more development of the underground network and plight of runaway slaves. Enjoyed.
    • 3/5
      This is the story of a young English Quaker Woman's journey to America during the time period that Southern Slaves were running away and people were trying to help them.

      Here is what I really enjoyed about liked about this book; Honor (our young Quaker) sends detailed letters of what life is like in America. There was so much depth and detail in those writings and I will tell you that those letters kept me going.

      Here is what I didn't care for about this book; it is advertised as being a book about the underground railroad and, unfortunately, that simply is not true. I feel a bit duped by the synopsis. I also felt that Honor would not have done many of the things that she did based on what we know about her. Some of Honor's action just did not seem to fit the time period or her background.

      Many thanks to net galley and Dutton Publishing for the opportunity to read this ARC.
    • 5/5
      "When she saw Donovan, she felt as if she were looking on a distant shore of a place she had once loved but no longer felt such an urgency to get to. Donovan had become like England." - Tracy Chevalier, "The Last Runaway"A major turning point in the story of Honor Bright, the young Quaker woman at the center of Tracy Chevalier's fine 2013 novel "The Last Runaway," comes very early. Jilted by the man she was pledged to marry, Honor decides to accompany her sister from England to America, where her sister plans to marry a man who has settled in a small frontier town south of Oberlin, Ohio. The year is 1850. But Honor gets seasick as soon as the ship leaves port and stays sick for the entire long voyage, She knows she can never put herself through that ordeal again, meaning she can never return to England.Before getting to Ohio, however, her sister dies of disease, and Honor is stranded alone in a strange country. She continues her journey to Ohio and to the man who had expected to marry her more outgoing sister. Honor realizes that to survive in this tiny Quaker community, she must soon marry, but she is not drawn to this man, nor he to her. Besides, another woman, his brother's widow, already has her sights on him even before Honor finally arrives.So many good women seem to be attracted to bad men, and such is the case with Honor. She yearns for Donovan, a tireless pursuer of runaway slaves who follow the Underground Railroad to Oberlin and then to Canada. She detests slavery and, in fact, assists Belle, Donovan's own sister, in aiding runaways, yet she can't stop wondering if she could change Donovan by marrying him. Even after she marries a more suitable Quaker man and has a baby girl, Donovan continues to occupy her thoughts. That is, until she herself becomes "the last runaway."I love this novel. It may be Chevalier's best book since "Girl with a Pearl Earring."
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed the way this book was written. The Last Runaway chronicles the life of a Quaker named Honor Bright. She has left England with her sister who is to marry a man in America. Honor has just lost the man she was supposed to marry and feels she needs to make a change. So she decides to go with her sister to America.The story starts with the voyage over the ocean. Honor writes letters to family and friends. I enjoyed reading the letters because it was like getting a closer glimpse into the Quaker way of life and Honor's past.I am really glad our book club read this book. This is one I may not have picked up to read otherwise.
    • 3/5
      2.5 stars
      This was not my favorite book of Tracy Chevalier. Her method of doling out historical research was a bit heavy handed. The story didn't really flow and everything felt a bit forced. By the end of the story I felt like she had abandoned most of her characters, with the exception of Honor Bright, and those remaining were only wisps of their former selves.
    • 5/5
      I may have read this before, but I really appreciate it now. An English Quaker comes to Ohio and becomes involved in the Underground Railroad. Very good.
    • 3/5
      Audiobook performed by Kate Reading2.5** In 1850, Honor Bright accompanies her sister to America. Grace is betrothed to a Quaker merchant who has set up shop with his brother in Ohio. Honor is fleeing a failed romance, hoping for a new start. But the “frontier” of Ohio is very different from the long-established English community Honor left, and she feels adrift and unwelcomed, though she has little choice but to rely on these virtual strangers to help her.I’ve been a fan of Chevalier’s for a long time. I like the way she puts the reader into the time and place of her historical novels, and this is no exception. I felt I was discovering the joys of sweet corn, the marvel of lightning bugs, and the trill of song birds right along with Honor. I was interested in the realities of life in such communities at this time in America’s history, and liked the references to the Underground Railroad and the subtle (and not-so-subtle) ways in which “Friends” helped the runaways. But I didn’t really believe in Honor. She seemed way too naïve and trusting, and the whole “on and off” attraction to “bad boy” Donovan seemed way out of character for her. And then there’s the ending … it seemed to me that Chevalier got herself into a corner and didn’t know how to get out, so she used the most convenient way to end things. It was so dissatisfying, to me, that I dropped half a star. Kate Reading does a fine job performing the audio version, although she never succeeded in giving Honor (or any of the other new arrivals from England) a British accent (something which is commented upon several times).
    • 4/5
      A good read with a plot that moved along -- though this book was not as enjoyable as Girl with a Pearl Earring, which was mesmerizing.
    • 5/5
      Honor Bright, an English Quaker, travels to America with her sister, who is to marry a storekeeper in Ohio. Shortly, after landing in Philadelphia, her sister becomes ill and dies. Although her sister’s fiancé offers her shelter along with his brother’s widow, she finds the arrangement uncomfortable and marries Jack Haymaker, a neighbor who owns a farm where his mother and sister also live. Soon she finds herself drawn into the clandestine activities of the Underground Railroad, a network helping runaway slaves to escape to freedom in mid-19th century America. The Haymakers, previously losing their farm in the South for helping a slave to escape are now afraid to become involved and forbid Honor in continuing these activities. She now finds herself caught between honoring her family wishes and following her heart for this ministry.

      Always a fan of Tracy Chevalier’s historical fiction, this one does not disappoint. Most of her novels involve ordinary women interacting with historical figures such as William Blake, Vermeer, or Mary Anning. In this particular novel, which is the first to be set in America, the protagonist and novel includes no notables with the exception of all those unknowns who risked their lives and property assisting runaway slaves out of bondage. As always, the novel is well researched regarding pre-Civil War Ohio and others subjects such as the Society of Friends, Underground Railroad, and quilt making.
    • 4/5
      Honor Bright comes to America to accompany her sister to her wedding. Although her own ocean crossing is horrific in terms of seasickness, it is her sister who succumbs to illness and does not make it to their final destination. Being a young, sheltered Quaker woman in 1850’s Ohio Honor finds there is no way to make a life for herself except to marry. And that is exactly what she does, to an honorable and hardworking dairy farmer. A chance encounter with a runaway slave introduces Honor the Underground Railway, the fugitive Slave Act, a bounty hunter and makes Honor question her own faith as a Quaker. What does one do when the teachings of an entire lifetime come to a grinding halt in the face of reality?

      Ms. Chevalier’s writing has always managed to get me wrapped up in the story. The Last Runaway is no exception. But she gives us so much more than just the story itself (captivating as it is). She gives us the color (and barrenness) of the time, some insight into the differences of this new America of the mid 1800’s compared to the civility of England and a taste of the traditions and beliefs of the Quakers who settle the land. She even manages a little enlightenment into traditional vs. new world quilting (not an integral part of the story, but very interesting. This book is an example of historical fiction the way it’s supposed to be done.
    • 4/5
      Tracy Chevalier is an excellent story teller and this tale of Honor Bright, a Quaker who sets off from Bridport to the New World, doesn't disappoint.
    • 4/5
      Chevalier knows how to weave history and story so well. Her main character Honor Bright has such strength and will. And what a name! It certainly suits her. The scenes are so vivid that I lost myself in the story. For fans of Girl with a Pearl Earring you will not be disappointed!
    • 2/5
      Tale of English girl Honor, raised as Quaker, who find herself trying to carry on her beliefs in America. Describes her interrelationships with some of the people involved with the underground railroad. Not as good as some of the other books by this author.
    • 4/5
      This book was chosen by my Library Book Club for September 2014. I had previously read and enjoyed Chavalier’s Girl With a Pearl Earring but nothing else so I was glad to expand my knowledge of her repertoire.Honor Bright (wouldn’t a girl born in England have her name spelled Honour?) is a Quaker from Bridport England. When her fiancé broke off their engagement so he could marry someone else Honor decided to emigrate to the US with her sister Grace. Grace was going to marry Adam Cox, another Quaker from Bridport, who had joined his brother in Ohio to run a dry goods shop in Oberlin. Honor found the sea crossing almost unendurable although the ship’s captain said it was the smoothest sailing he had ever had. Honor knew that she would never be able to return to England because she wouldn’t survive another ocean voyage. Thus her fate was sealed in America and even when Grace died of yellow fever before reaching her fiancé Honor had to continue on. She relies on strangers to continue her journey which brings her into contact with the Underground Railway. As a Quaker Honor is opposed to slavery so she supports their work. She learns that American Quakers have somewhat tempered their opposition to slavery because it is believed that emancipation would ruin the economy. Honor runs into even more opposition to her aid to runaways when she marries Jack Haymaker. Jack lives with his mother and sister and runs a dairy farm. They had left Kentucky to come to Ohio because of Kentucky’s support of slavery ten years previously. But they are worried they would lose their farm if they supported runaways and so Honor is forbidden to help them. This causes tension between Honor and her husband.Among the interesting characters that Honor meets are Belle Mills and her half-brother Donovan. Belle is a milliner and a member of the Underground Railway. Donovan hunts runaway slaves. I especially liked Belle who seems highly practical but then makes her living by providing frivolous things like new hats and bonnets.Quilting is the backbone of this book. Honor is a superb needlewoman and she loves piecing quilts. When she marries her future mother-in-law requires that she provide a dozen quilts. Honor only brought one quilt with her so she borrows 3 quilts that her sister-in-law had made. These quilts are appliqué, not pieced, which Honor doesn’t like as well. She must replace these quilts as soon as possible so that occupies her during the harsh winter. It seems that women never are at leisure; even sitting after supper they have some needlework in their hands.I thought this book was well-written and I would read more of Tracy Chevalier’s books.
    • 4/5
      Author, Tracey Chevalier, has a gift with words. With her most recent book, her writing transports the reader back in time, providing the overwhelming feeling of being present in 1850s America and encouraging the reader's observation of the intricacies of human engagement. She captures the arcane language of 19th century Quaker Friends' conversation which by then, had already become passé. The story begs the question, "Can someone so deeply principled, exist and stick to their principles in an ever-changing society?" "Is it ever okay to look the other way in order to survive and will that forever damn your soul?" A definite, "must read" for fans of historic fiction through a woman's eyes. Synopsis:In New York Times bestselling author Tracy Chevalier’s newest historical saga, she introduces Honor Bright, a modest English Quaker who moves to Ohio in 1850, only to find herself alienated and alone in a strange land. Sick from the moment she leaves England, and fleeing personal disappointment, she is forced by family tragedy to rely on strangers in a harsh, unfamiliar landscape. Nineteenth-century America is practical, precarious, and unsentimental, and scarred by the continuing injustice of slavery. In her new home Honor discovers that principles count for little, even within a religious community meant to be committed to human equality. However, drawn into the clandestine activities of the Underground Railroad, a network helping runaway slaves escape to freedom, Honor befriends two surprising women who embody the remarkable power of defiance. Eventually she must decide if she too can act on what she believes in, whatever the personal costs. A powerful journey brimming with color and drama, The Last Runaway is Tracy Chevalier’s vivid engagement with an iconic part of American history.