{"product_id":"beyond-derrynane-a-novel-of-eighteenth-century-europe-paperback","title":"Beyond Derrynane: A Novel of Eighteenth Century Europe - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eKevin O'Connell\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWed in an arranged marriage to a man nearly fifty years her senior, sixteen-year-old Eileen O'Connell goes from being one of five unmarried sisters to become the mistress of Ballyhar, the great estate of John O'Connor, one of the wealthiest and most influential men in Ireland.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhen O'Connor dies suddenly seven months into their marriage, Eileen must decide whether she will fulfil her brother's strategic goals for her family by marrying her late husband's son.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eHeadstrong and outspoken, Eileen frustrates her brother's wishes, as, through the auspices of her uncle, General Moritz O'Connell of the Imperial Austrian Army, she, along with her ebullient elder sister, Abigail, spend the ensuing richly-dramatic and eventful years at the court of the Empress Maria Theresa in Vienna.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThe sisters learn to navigate the complex and frequently contradictory ways of the court, and succeed in making a place for themselves in a world far different from remote Derrynane. Together with the general, they experience a complex life at the pinnacle of the Habsburg Empire.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDerrynane \u003c\/em\u003e and the three books to follow, which will together constitute \u003cem\u003eThe Derrynane Saga \u003c\/em\u003e- promise to be an enthralling series of historical novels, presenting a sweeping chronicle, set against the larger drama of Europe in the early stages of significant change, dramatising the roles, which have never before been treated in fiction, played by a small number of expatriate Irish Catholics of the fallen \"Gaelic Aristocracy\" at the courts of Catholic Europe, as well as relating their complex, at times dangerous, lives at home in Protestant Ascendancy-ruled Ireland. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eIn addition to Eileen's, the books trace the largely-fictional lives of several other O'Connells of Derrynane, it is the tantalisingly few facts that are historically documented about them which provide the basic threads around which the tale itself is woven, into which strategic additions of numerous historical and fictional personalities and events intertwine seamlessly.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Kevin O'Connell is a native of New York City and a descendant of a young officer of what had-from 1690 to 1792-been the Irish Brigade of the French army, believed to have arrived in French Canada following the execution of Queen Marie Antoinette in October of 1793. At least one grandson subsequently returned to Ireland and Mr. O'Connell's own grandparents came to New York in the early twentieth century. He holds both Irish and American citizenship. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e He is a graduate of Providence College and Georgetown University Law Centre. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e For more than four decades, O'Connell has practiced international business transactional law, primarily involving direct-investment matters, throughout Asia (principally China), Europe, and the Middle East. \u003c\/p\u003e The father of five children and grandfather of ten, he and his wife, Laurette, live with their golden retriever, Katie, near Annapolis, Maryland. \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 348\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.78 x 9 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e July 07, 2016\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47408583868594,"sku":"9780997407600","price":21.58,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0770\/3891\/1666\/files\/47fb5360737cf4ce02900f8954cb9317.webp?v=1778248597","url":"https:\/\/box.dadyminds.org\/products\/beyond-derrynane-a-novel-of-eighteenth-century-europe-paperback","provider":"DADYMINDS BOX","version":"1.0","type":"link"}