Unrest by Gwen Tuinman

Unrest is an edgy adventure yarn about women’s freedom. It’s a thoroughly Canadian novel, yet it also has the flavour of the Wild West. National Post

"When the fabric of society is so rigid that it cannot change quickly enough, adjustments are achieved by social unrest and revolutions."

In the early 1800s, Irish families crossed the ocean dreaming of a better life in Bytown, Upper Canada (now Ottawa).

But the English upper class wanted nothing to do with Irish settlers.

The town quickly split into the comfortable British… and the struggling Irish.

Most Irish families lived in tents or makeshift shanties patched together from scraps — wood, metal, anything they could find.

(Imagine trying to sleep through a Canadian winter in a tin home?!)

The men worked long days, leaving women alone to fend off weather, strangers, and the general chaos of Bytown.

Survival was a tough, full-time job.

Adding to the misery, the town’s main strip had 15 drinking establishments and a swarm of illegal groggeries selling watered-down booze.

At night, bored and drunk men filled the streets, punching each other bloody for entertainment. Some were arrested, some didn’t make it home at all.

And Irish men who wanted more excitement joined the Shiners — a gang that terrorized Bytown in what later became known as the Shiners’ War (1835–1845).

Unrest follows the O’Dougherty family through this storm of hardship and violence as they fight for a way out.

Mariah, our main character, cares for her older sister. She treats her more like Cinderella than actual family.

And Mariah is hiding two huge secrets:

• a forbidden love for her brother-in-law
• and their illegitimate son, Thomas

Small details. (Insert nervous laughter here.)

Thomas is a blacksmith apprentice, but he’s restless. He believes the only way to rise above poverty is to take what the British refuse to give — even if it means joining the Shiners.

But the Shiners aren’t exactly a gentle crowd.

“Mr. Hobbs found his horses wandering the countryside. Their ears were cut off and their tails too. One had flesh cut from its back haunch.”

When Mariah learns her son is in danger, she travels alone on a high-stakes mission that will change both their lives forever.

And honestly? I was stressed for her.

A blend of Outlander and Peaky Blinders, Unrest delivers forbidden love, unforgettable violence, and a constant undercurrent of “oh no oh no oh no” as you turn each page.

You’ll find yourself rooting for every character, even when they make questionable decisions.

And rooting for love.

Woot woot.

Until next time,
Sheila