Isola by Allegra Goodman
Isola brings to life Marguerite de la Roque’s extraordinary journey of survival, courage, and defiance in the face of societal and familial oppression.
In centuries past, love was ruled by money, class, and everyone else’s opinions—so every forbidden romance came with a side of tragedy.
Ladies couldn’t marry servants or farmers—especially when marriages were arranged with money and reputation in mind.
Parents would exchange cash or land like they were trading Pokémon cards, meanwhile the bride wouldn’t see a penny.
You were less “beloved daughter” and more “valuable asset.”
But these people loved love!—risking everything, even death, just to be with the person they loved.
It makes you wonder…
Would you risk your life for love?
Personally, I won’t even risk crossing the street without the walk signal.
History gives us many versions of Marguerite de la Roque’s story, but the essentials stay the same:
She was a French noblewoman who sailed with explorer Jacques Cartier on a mission to colonize what was then called New France (present-day Canada).
The goal? Bring settlers and push out the Indigenous peoples who were already living there.
Her story is beautifully reimagined in Isola, which pulls Marguerite out of history and gives her the spotlight she deserves—for her resilience, her stubbornness, and her total refusal to bow to cruelty.
Marguerite was, and I say this respectfully, an early-1500s badass.
In Isola, Marguerites Uncle makes it clear he skipped every chapter on basic human decency.
After selling her childhood home to pay off his own debts, he forces her aboard a ship headed for New France.
Her life becomes one long, unwanted detour.
Marguerite tries to follow the strict religious teachings she grew up with:
stay quiet, stay obedient, stay small.
His version of God’s will is basically whatever makes her life miserable.
“My guardian served as my protector, but I had no one to protect me from him.”
Then, (ahem), comes the scandal:
Marguerite falls in love with her guardian’s secretary — a man the social elites would classify as “absolutely not, don’t even think about it.”
Was this love forbidden and dangerous? Oh, absolutely.
When their secret is discovered, her uncle brings down the hammer with dramatic 1500s energy:
He exiles the lovers to a barren island off the St. Lawrence River.
Translation: Yes, you may be together… until the wolves get you.
Stripped of society’s rules, comforts, and expectations, Marguerite becomes something entirely new.
Isolation hardens her.
Hunger shapes her.
Survival becomes her full-time job.
Marguerite hunts. She fights. Even when despair and loneliness threaten to pull her under.
Everything she once was — lady of status, obedient niece, sheltered girl — falls away.
And what’s left?
A woman who refuses to die quietly.
“I never knew my mother… I was heir to a chateau in Perigord… but I had no parents… and so I was alone.”
“We will live, I said. And that will be revenge enough.”
Isola isn’t just a survival story; it’s a transformation story.
It’s emotional in that “I’m fine, totally fine, just something in my eye” kind of way.
To feel the full weight of Marguerite’s journey—her travels, her heartbreaks, and her quiet rage—you’ll have to read Isola yourself.
Until next time,
Sheila
