Green Among the Clovers

Cat is a professional genealogist, but she has yet to complete her own family tree. Her biggest "brick wall" involves the origins of her great-grandfather. All she knows about him is that he was from Scotland and emigrated to New Jersey in the 1880's. Caroline, Cat's great-great-grandmother, grows up in poverty in Victorian era Scotland. At age thirteen, she is sent away to work endless days in a textile factory. As her misfortune compounds, she struggles- at times on the streets to care for her baby son. Caroline and her son end up in the county poorhouse, where she finds love and friendship. But challenges seem to stand in the way of Caroline's happiness. Cat is fascinated by the details she is piecing together from historical records that give her a tantalizing look at the life of Caroline. However, Caroline's second son, Cat's great-grandfather, was born out of wedlock with no father named. Cat becomes obsessed with discovering who that father was, and convinces her own father to supply a DNA sample for analysis. With Cat hot on the trail of her mystery great-grandfather and Caroline searching for love and safety in an era that was punishing on the poor, the story spirals towards its bittersweet conclusion.