What do you think?
Rate this book
Heirs of Cahira O'Connor #4
The Emerald Isle
Interweaving two captivating stories of romance and intrigue, humor and faith, The Emerald Isle wraps up the multi-colored threads of Angela Elwell Hunt's The Heirs of Cahira O'Connor series in a page-turning conclusion that will satisfy both spirit and heart.
Resisting her confining, traditional role as a king's daughter, fiery-spirited Cahira O'Connor dreams of practicing her bow, not of capturing a husband. But when Norman invaders challenge the borders of the Kingdom of Connacht, Cahira finds both the one man who could win her heart and an irresistible calling to fight for the land and people she loves.
To Kathleen O'Connor, the story of Cahira's deathbed vow was nothing more than a legend‚until her research revealed that it was true. Now, in Ireland for the wedding of her best friend Taylor and his fiancee, Maddie O'Neil, Kathleen struggles to fit in at the O'Neils' farm, Ballyshannon, and focus on her research into the life of her ancestor Cahira. There among Ireland's emerald hills, Kathleen finds far more than she could ever have dreamed—including her own unexpected destiny as an heir of Cahira O'Connor.
Resisting her confining, traditional role as a king's daughter, fiery-spirited Cahira O'Connor dreams of practicing her bow, not of capturing a husband. But when Norman invaders challenge the borders of the Kingdom of Connacht, Cahira finds both the one man who could win her heart and an irresistible calling to fight for the land and people she loves.
To Kathleen O'Connor, the story of Cahira's deathbed vow was nothing more than a legend‚until her research revealed that it was true. Now, in Ireland for the wedding of her best friend Taylor and his fiancee, Maddie O'Neil, Kathleen struggles to fit in at the O'Neils' farm, Ballyshannon, and focus on her research into the life of her ancestor Cahira. There among Ireland's emerald hills, Kathleen finds far more than she could ever have dreamed—including her own unexpected destiny as an heir of Cahira O'Connor.
400 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
52 people are currently reading
442 people want to read
About the author
Angela Elwell Hunt
271 books1,967 followersChristy-Award winner Angela Hunt writes for readers who have learned to expect the unexpected in novels from this versatile author. With nearly six million copies of her books sold worldwide, she is the best-selling author of more than 165 works ranging from picture books (The Tale of Three Trees) to novels.
Now that her two children are grown, Angie and her husband live in Florida with Very Big Dogs (a direct result of watching Turner and Hooch and Sandlot too many times). This affinity for mastiffs has not been without its rewards--one of their dogs was featured on Live with Regis and Kelly as the second-largest canine in America. Their dog received this dubious honor after an all-expenses-paid trip to Manhattan for the dog and the Hunts, complete with VIP air travel and a stretch limo in which they toured New York City.
Afterward, the dog gave out pawtographs at the airport.
Angela admits to being fascinated by animals, medicine, psychology, unexplained phenomena, and “just about everything” except sports. Books, she says, have always shaped her life— in the fifth grade she learned how to flirt from reading Gone with the Wind.
Her books have won the coveted Christy Award, several Angel Awards from Excellence in Media, and the Gold and Silver Medallions from Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award. In 2007, her novel The Note was featured as a Christmas movie on the Hallmark channel. Romantic Times Book Club presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006, and American Christian Fiction Writers bestowed the same award in 2019.
In 2006, Angela completed her Master of Biblical Studies in Theology degree and completed her second doctorate in 2015. When she’s not home reading or writing, Angie often travels to teach writing workshops at schools and writers’ conferences. And to talk about her dogs, of course.
Now that her two children are grown, Angie and her husband live in Florida with Very Big Dogs (a direct result of watching Turner and Hooch and Sandlot too many times). This affinity for mastiffs has not been without its rewards--one of their dogs was featured on Live with Regis and Kelly as the second-largest canine in America. Their dog received this dubious honor after an all-expenses-paid trip to Manhattan for the dog and the Hunts, complete with VIP air travel and a stretch limo in which they toured New York City.
Afterward, the dog gave out pawtographs at the airport.
Angela admits to being fascinated by animals, medicine, psychology, unexplained phenomena, and “just about everything” except sports. Books, she says, have always shaped her life— in the fifth grade she learned how to flirt from reading Gone with the Wind.
Her books have won the coveted Christy Award, several Angel Awards from Excellence in Media, and the Gold and Silver Medallions from Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award. In 2007, her novel The Note was featured as a Christmas movie on the Hallmark channel. Romantic Times Book Club presented her with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006, and American Christian Fiction Writers bestowed the same award in 2019.
In 2006, Angela completed her Master of Biblical Studies in Theology degree and completed her second doctorate in 2015. When she’s not home reading or writing, Angie often travels to teach writing workshops at schools and writers’ conferences. And to talk about her dogs, of course.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
June 22, 2019
Maybe gets a 4.5. Hunt is one of the greats amongst Christian fiction. I only realized recently how long and prolifically she's written. Some of her books are excellent, as is this historical fiction series, The Heirs of Cahira O'Connor. I don't always like her plot ideas, but no matter what she writes, her style is excellent. This series is probably my favorite stuff she's written. I wouldn't collect everything she's written, in fact, I'm getting rid of one book right now that I reviewed earlier, but this book would get docked a bit for credibility. Also the attempt to jump back and forth between the modern romance story and the ancient ended up making the ancient story well-developed, absorbing, but sad, and both stories not as developed as they could have been. Perhaps it should have been a 5-part series, but then the modern story would have had to be threshed out much better to match the rest of the books. The way the modern Kathleen fit into the "heirs of Cahira" idea was kind of lame. I do like that Hunt emphasized being a wife, mother, and evangelistic Christian, but even those themes could have been fleshed out a bit more to prove that they somehow fit into the heirs of Cahira... Still, a great story overall!
November 1, 2019
I really liked this whole series. I would probably give this one 4.5 stars. It was my favorite. It tells Cahira’s story and takes us to Ireland which is a great ending for the series.
May 16, 2024
This was a beautiful conclusion to the Heirs of Cahira O'Connor series! I would recommend this book to anyone interested in a good time-slip novel with a deeper look at big Christian issues such as the role of women in God's Kingdom.
August 16, 2016
This book goes between the story of Cahira O'Conner in the 1200's & Kathleen, the author of the series in the stories, in the late 1900's (this book taking place in 1999). 2 love stories & lots of history!
The sections of this book are Kathleen, Cahira, Patrick, Colton, James O'Neil, Rathcroghan, & Ballyshannon. (Main characters & locations)
The story starts in New York city on Thursday, June 17, 1999. The author says that she's a Christian, and sometimes hears the still, small Voice. She was about to cross the street when she heard the Voice tell her to wait...why now? The light changed & she waited for something terrible to happen. A girl commented on the book she had been reading, but didn't want to give away the ending...since they didn't know each other, how could she hold anything against her? The girl tells her how the book ends. They decided to eat together, & a new friendship was formed!
The new Irish friend was Maddie O'Neil & when Taylor arrived it looked like they would get along together. The waitress suggested hot tea, but the author ordered diet soda. She ordered her usual sandwich, but Taylor ordered the same as Maddie. Maddie had never heard of Cahira O'Connor, but it was a common Irish name. Taylor described who she was & described the subjects of the books Kathleen had written. He also talked to Maddie about his favorite author, Rudyard Kipling. Kathleen drank her soda, while listening to the conversation she had heard before. Couldn't someone else have played matchmaker?
Why do people fall in love? Taylor invited Maddie to go with them to the museum opening they had planned to go to on Friday. As they left the museum, Taylor invited both women to a movie the next night, Maddie accepted, Kathleen excused herself. So Kathleen spent Saturday night in her apartment with her dog, Barkley, discussing the situation with him. She had hoped that she & Taylor would have gotten together eventually. Just the thought of Taylor & Maddie made her feel tense.
The sections of this book are Kathleen, Cahira, Patrick, Colton, James O'Neil, Rathcroghan, & Ballyshannon. (Main characters & locations)
The story starts in New York city on Thursday, June 17, 1999. The author says that she's a Christian, and sometimes hears the still, small Voice. She was about to cross the street when she heard the Voice tell her to wait...why now? The light changed & she waited for something terrible to happen. A girl commented on the book she had been reading, but didn't want to give away the ending...since they didn't know each other, how could she hold anything against her? The girl tells her how the book ends. They decided to eat together, & a new friendship was formed!
The new Irish friend was Maddie O'Neil & when Taylor arrived it looked like they would get along together. The waitress suggested hot tea, but the author ordered diet soda. She ordered her usual sandwich, but Taylor ordered the same as Maddie. Maddie had never heard of Cahira O'Connor, but it was a common Irish name. Taylor described who she was & described the subjects of the books Kathleen had written. He also talked to Maddie about his favorite author, Rudyard Kipling. Kathleen drank her soda, while listening to the conversation she had heard before. Couldn't someone else have played matchmaker?
Why do people fall in love? Taylor invited Maddie to go with them to the museum opening they had planned to go to on Friday. As they left the museum, Taylor invited both women to a movie the next night, Maddie accepted, Kathleen excused herself. So Kathleen spent Saturday night in her apartment with her dog, Barkley, discussing the situation with him. She had hoped that she & Taylor would have gotten together eventually. Just the thought of Taylor & Maddie made her feel tense.
December 29, 2010
loved it! This whole series was amazing!
August 9, 2019
This one tells the story of Cahira mixed in with Kathleen's own story. Kathleen meets Irish Maddie O'Neil and introduces her to Taylor who falls head over heels. Taylor persuades Kathleen to go to Ireland with them for a couple of months before the wedding. All is not as wonderful as it first appears. Maddie's estranged brother Patrick comes for the wedding and to help his dad who's dying of cancer. He and Kathleen get thrown together. While doing her research on Cahira, she discovers that her ancestors were just ordinary women who were forced by circumstances to do extraordinary things. Kathleen determines her task is to help Patrick reconcile with his father and with God. In the process, they fall in love. This has much stronger "preachy" overtones than the first 3 volumes. Well done conclusion to the series though.
March 12, 2018
An intriguing end to the heirs of Cahira O'Connor; Kathleen unwillingly finds herself in Ireland, going back to where everything began. Stuck in a romance she feels she shouldn't be involved in, Kathleen finds herself caught between her new 'friend' and the man that she-at least thought-she pictured herself marrying. Seeking Cahira's back story and what made her pray that her heirs would 'shine like the stars' and 'bring good in this dark world', Kathleen is left to figure out what path she must take and whether Patrick ONeil must take the path with her. This book is a great conclusion, though it is not what I expected as the ending; somehow I expected a bit more of a grander ending for the heir.
September 12, 2025
I really enjoyed this last novel! I think it flowed nicely between the two stories. Although you wanted to know more and were sometimes sad each time the story jumped, then you were reminded of the other story and excited to see where it lead. Angela crafted the two stories together well and it did work.
I was a bit disappointed at the end with her decision that ordinary can still be extraordinary. Although I agree with the concept, I was really hoping Kathy would have some really big role to play to fulfil her destiny as part of the Cahira descendants. Still a good ending as she find the love of her life, but wish she could have done more or made plans for them both to serve and do something together to help somehow.
I was a bit disappointed at the end with her decision that ordinary can still be extraordinary. Although I agree with the concept, I was really hoping Kathy would have some really big role to play to fulfil her destiny as part of the Cahira descendants. Still a good ending as she find the love of her life, but wish she could have done more or made plans for them both to serve and do something together to help somehow.
June 24, 2022
Kathleen, a 5th generation O'Conner, if you count by every 200 year female, is on a quest to discover her ancestral heritage and the reason for the white streak in her hair, touted by only these previous four women in her blood line. Her journey to Ireland is self fulfilling in so many ways for her and her best friend Taylor. Cahira is one of a kind woman whose prayer ignites the heritage from the 1200's forward. The 4th in this series with a beautiful conclusion. Now to get my hands on the first two books in the series, The Heirs of Cahira O'Conner.
July 26, 2023
I am glad that I stuck with the series to the end. I would say the first three books are my favorites. The last book was a combination of two stories. I liked seeing more of Cahira's life. I could see what the author was trying to do with Kathleen's story. Still, it would have been cool to see something in the modern day that even now would be a unique walk in life for a woman. But things have changed a lot. I think the story is sweet and I liked the growth of the relationships between the characters. I would recommend this series to fans of Irish history, family lineage, and strong women.
March 19, 2023
I wasn't sure how everything would come together and felt a bit nervous headed into the last 50 pages at the lack of resolution. But I loved how everything turned out. I appreciate how this series has been predictable in some ways and unpredictable in others. The religious and progressive elements of the stories were woven together well throughout this book especially and have given me good food for thought.
August 4, 2017
I read this book long ago and enjoyed it then. However, after the immense disappointment of the first book in the series, as well as another book by this same author, I have chosen not to waste time on reading the remainder of the series.
This book did not survive the second round of the purge from my personal collection.
This book did not survive the second round of the purge from my personal collection.
January 8, 2019
Kathleen O’Conner you inspire me!
I have enjoyed this series immensely! Angela Hunt makes learning history so fun! Her immaculate research always adds fascinating details to her many layered story lines. Truly just a joy to read. A four instead of a five because her most recent books are even better!
I have enjoyed this series immensely! Angela Hunt makes learning history so fun! Her immaculate research always adds fascinating details to her many layered story lines. Truly just a joy to read. A four instead of a five because her most recent books are even better!
March 15, 2019
Excellent tale
The parallel stories of Cahira and Kathleen were very well done. It started a little slow but once it picked up, I couldn’t put it down. The role of faith was central to each plot line, worked out through each character’s experience with adversity. I want to read all the author’s books!
The parallel stories of Cahira and Kathleen were very well done. It started a little slow but once it picked up, I couldn’t put it down. The role of faith was central to each plot line, worked out through each character’s experience with adversity. I want to read all the author’s books!
March 18, 2020
Inspiring!
I was drawn to this book because I have enjoyed other books by Angela E Hunt and because I spent two years of my childhood in Cork, Ireland. This is the first book I have read in the Heirs of Cahira series even though it is the 4th book; it stood well on it’s own. I loved the characters, the history, and the truths shared. I will read the other three books.
I was drawn to this book because I have enjoyed other books by Angela E Hunt and because I spent two years of my childhood in Cork, Ireland. This is the first book I have read in the Heirs of Cahira series even though it is the 4th book; it stood well on it’s own. I loved the characters, the history, and the truths shared. I will read the other three books.
September 23, 2019
This was a great ending. I was glad to finally have the rest of Cahira’s story. I struggled with the third book in this series. (It took me almost over a month to get through it!) It was nice to pick this up and breeze through it cause the story was so intriguing.
March 23, 2020
Good read!
This was a really good story. Actually, it was two really good stories. Those of us of the great Irish descent may see snippets of ourselves in the bravery of the women in this novel. I also hope this will lead you to a knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
This was a really good story. Actually, it was two really good stories. Those of us of the great Irish descent may see snippets of ourselves in the bravery of the women in this novel. I also hope this will lead you to a knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
March 31, 2020
Definitely captures and keeps your interest
Wonderfully written with great plot premise of time period family research. Informative and personally challenging. Loved the sets of characters and how it all progressed. Great read!
Wonderfully written with great plot premise of time period family research. Informative and personally challenging. Loved the sets of characters and how it all progressed. Great read!
May 24, 2017
Love the entire series. Couldn't stop until I finished the last book!
March 15, 2020
Since I have some Irish heritage I enjoyed the story a great deal. Clean, history, faith, love.
August 3, 2020
Great completion
Good mix of past and present heroines. Better mix of faith and the truth - like the first in the series.
Good mix of past and present heroines. Better mix of faith and the truth - like the first in the series.
June 25, 2022
Terrific finale to the Heirs of Cahira O'Connor series. This book details the lives of both Cahira O'Connor and present-time heroine Kathleen O'Connor.
February 11, 2023
Angela Hunt is one of my favorite authors.
September 25, 2023
Loved the book; a bit too much narrative, but engrossing nonetheless.
June 14, 2025
Great ending to the series!
May 13, 2022
You can't understand how amazing this book is! You know it's good when your bawling your eyes out while reading it and choking back tears when you think back on it. This book evokes so much emotion it's amazing. And a great close to the series! I have to say, at first I was disappointed with Kathleen's love story, but as usual, Angela managed to make the Hero (or should I say HEROS in this two-story case) amazing! Colton and were just
June 27, 2022
Irish Adventure
This really was the perfect conclusion to the Heirs of Cahira O'Connor. It tells Cahira's story, as well as perfectly wrapping up Kathleen's story. With the Irish setting, it is the perfect getaway.
This really was the perfect conclusion to the Heirs of Cahira O'Connor. It tells Cahira's story, as well as perfectly wrapping up Kathleen's story. With the Irish setting, it is the perfect getaway.
October 13, 2021
Emerald Isle
Wonderful story. I’ve enjoyed the entire series. Each one kept me reading for hours. Wish there were more. I have enjoyed all them all but this one was my favorite.
Wonderful story. I’ve enjoyed the entire series. Each one kept me reading for hours. Wish there were more. I have enjoyed all them all but this one was my favorite.
May 30, 2007
This was a satisfying (though slightly fragmented) ending to the Cahira O'Connor lineage story. It's a tale of finding bravery and purpose from looking at the women who came before.
February 10, 2008
great finish!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews