My Journey

by Olga Sushinsky

Rebecca O’Connor-Smith is married to the love of her life at twenty-six, but her office career leaves a lot to be desired. A former anthropology major, she secretly misses her university years. When she decides to volunteer for an archaeological dig in Ashkelon, Israel, she doesn’t realize how much it will change her. Rebecca finds herself in a beautiful city surrounded by people who share her infatuation with the ancient world and develops a crush on a handsome Ph.D. student. Soon enough, political tensions strike the southern region, and her team is forced to seek safer alternatives. Rebecca ends up spending a week at the Albright Institute, a prominent research center in Jerusalem, translating a complicated article. The difficult task makes her feel accomplished for the first time in the longest while. Rebecca realizes she has always wanted to pursue archaeology professionally. However, following her dream won’t be easy. When she reunites with her husband, Jason, after the dig, nothing is the same anymore. As tensions increase in her marriage, she begins to wonder if she can have the best of both worlds—or if she’ll have to give up everything she’s ever known to have what she’s always wanted.

347 pages, Paperback

Published October 15, 2016

About the author

Olga Sushinsky graduated with a B.A. in History and French and an M.A. in Near Eastern Civilizations from the University of Toronto. Her longtime fascination with ancient Israel inspired her to write her debut novel, Finding Myself. When she's not writing, she enjoys reading light fiction with happy endings, visiting local galleries, and spending time with her family. Olga lives in Toronto, Canada.

Reviews

[Linda Soto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you ever thought that your life was safe? That you weren’t doing what you loved or you were on a path that was what others wanted for you but you didn’t want for yourself? I think in a way any person can relate to this scenario, whether it’s being stuck in a job that doesn’t make you happy or being a relationship because it might be “convenient”.

That is exactly what our heroine is going through in Amalie Coles’ – My Journey.
Rebecca O’Connor Smith has a loving family, a loving husband and job that pays the bills but is it enough?

After a tragedy hits her family, they are forced to move to Toronto to start over and pick up the pieces. Where her sister, Erin, fits in perfectly with the “in” crowd becoming a cheerleader, Becky is sort of an outcast. She didn’t feel as though she was a “typical Canadian” where most people cared about the Maple Leafs, she preferred Biblical archeology and ethnic music.

During her third year of college, she met Jason Smith who would come to be her husband. He made no qualms at the fact he loved her and her interests, he respected the fact that she was studying what she loved; anthropology. After dating, he proposed and they were married shortly after against everyone’s advice that maybe she is too young, but when you meet your soulmate, that doesn’t matter, does it?

After four years in a marriage that she is content with, she decides to apply for a scholarship where she will be doing an archeological dig in Israel for three weeks and thus begins the start of her journey in finding herself.

This story is filled with ups and downs that will you have you biting your nails.
Can her marriage survive through the trials of being apart, her chasing her dreams, and meeting a new guy who shares her interests? Can she choose between doing what she loves and what is expected of her? Does she have to?

One thing you will absolutely take away with this book is a new respect for anthropology. Let’s face it, most of what we know about anthropology and archeology is from Dr. Brennan on Bones or Indiana Jones. I got completely tangled up in the historical facts as well as the love story of Becky. I couldn’t help but google some of the cities and sites that were mentioned throughout and felt just a little bit smarter after reading it.

Don’t worry, no spoilers, but Becky does find her happy ending.

[Ann Pratley · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an intriguing read! There were so many aspects to this story but overall I would place the focus on personal growth. It introduces a rawness in knowledge about a region of the world that I am unfamiliar with so there was some historic learning provided whilst a completely fictional story took place. It was a nice flowing story.

There was focus on interactions between the main character, her husband, her friends, and the new people who flowed in and out of her life on her journey. Overall I found this a pleasant read.

Due to there being no adult or violent content, really it would be well suited to any reader of any age.

[Shlomit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full of twists and turns, My Journey takes readers on quite an adventure that makes it difficult to put down the book as surprises abound with the main character's trip and personal life. Coles' sprinkling of historical and archaeological information throughout the novel makes the book both fun and educational. An interesting read for those still exploring their own passions and path to happiness.

- Shlomit Kriger, Editor of Marking Humanity: Stories, Poems, & Essays by Holocaust Survivors

[B.A. A. Mealer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book gives one woman's journey into who she wants to be. You can feel Rebecca's frustration in a no end job and then her elation in doing what she loves. I enjoyed the book and was able to relate to Rebecca, the main character.
Other than an issue or two which were minor, the book was well put together and kept you reading. I would definitely read another of her books.