The flight of Gemma Hardy, by Margot Livesey

This modern day retelling of Jane Eyre is moderately successful in reminding the reader of the earlier classic. In some ways, I might have liked the novel better without this reference. Gemma, orphaned at an early age, was born in Iceland, but taken to Scotland when her parents both died. When her caring uncle dies, her aunt and cousins more or less turn on her. Sent to boarding school on a “scholarship,” she finds herself and her fellow scholarship students virtual indentured servants. After several unhappy years there, the opportunity arises to become the companion to the young niece of Mr. Sinclair, whose ancestral home, Blackbird Hall, is on the Orkney Islands. Frankly, Mr. Sinclair’s secret isn’t nearly as interesting as a mad wife in the attic, but I liked the character of Gemma and particularly enjoyed the settings of the Orkney Islands and Iceland, where Gemma finally finds her real name. 464 pp.