Generations of Love

About the Book

It is 1878, and Jeremiah and Matilda Dunniff are broke. After the linen industry crumbles, the young Irish couple realizes they have no way to make money. With an eviction notice hanging over their heads, they decide to immigrate to America with hopes of creating a better life. They are unaware that, across the Atlantic, more hardship awaits.

When the Dunniff family arrives in New York City, they are forced to move into the tenements, where Jeremiah soon recognizes that the streets in America are not paved with gold. As he becomes angry and turns to the bottle for comfort, Matilda discovers she is pregnant with another child, whom she later names Rose. Unfortunately, Jeremiah is on a path of self-destruction; after Rose enters sixth grade, he dies from alcoholism. Rose, forced to grow up much sooner than normal, falls in love with the theater and begins acting. As Rose begins her own journey through life, it soon becomes evident that each generation born will turn to the previous one for guidance—an act that strengthens the Dunniff family bond forever.

Generations of Love is a compelling tale that follows three generations through love, loss, pain, sorrow, and joy as each family attempts to survive all of life’s challenges.

About the Author

Patricia Smith Janssen earned her BS and MA degrees at the University of Albany–SUNY and trained as a nurse at St. Peter’s School of Nursing. Now retired, she lives in Kingston, New York, with her daughter, three dogs, and one cat. This is her debut novel.