Review of His Steadfast Love by Golden Keyes Parsons

Rating: 3.5 Stars

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Synopsis from Thomas Nelson: The Civil War - a defining time of great sacrifice, change, and betrayal which determined the fate of the Nation.

-It isn’t until it comes into her very home that Amanda Belle must face impossible choices of love, loss, and loyalty.  It's the spring of 1861 on the Gulf Coast of Texas. Although Amanda never thought she would marry because of her promise she made to her dying mother, her attraction to Captain Kent Littlefield is undeniable.
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When Texas secedes from the Union, her brother Daniel marches off to war to fight for the Confederate States and Kent remains with the Union troops. Her heart is torn between the two men she loves and the two sides of the conflict. When she turns to God for help, Amanda expects direction and support, but hears nothing. Is God listening to her anymore? Where is God in the atrocities of war—and whose side is He on?
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Amanda senses her life is at a turning point. But she must trust God to bring her family through the chaos that threatens her home, her family, and the beloved state of Texas . . . with her heart, and her faith, intact.

Review: His Steadfast Love is the third novel that I have read in the past few weeks relating to the Civil War era.  Each story has brought to life different aspects of the war and its effects on the nation and its people.  In her latest novel, Golden Keyes Parsons delves into America's tumultuous years when friends and neighbors turned into enemies on the battlefield.  The plot begins in 1860, just before the start of the war and concludes at the war's end. As a result, readers see the struggles, heartaches, and uncertainties that families faced during four long years.  We also see examples of bravery and forgiveness.  It is important to remember both aspects of the war that divided the nation, and Parsons nicely combines loss and triumph.  

Amanda is caught between her love for her Southern family and her love for her Northern beau, Kent.  During much of the novel she is torn by loyalty to the South and her feelings for Kent, who suddenly becomes labeled as the enemy. The love between Amanda and Kent develops quite rapidly at the beginning of the novel.  A few months pass between their initial meeting in September 1860 and Kent's departure. Unfortunately, the jump did not allow me to witness the development of their feelings for each other.  The steadfastness of their love for one another is touching and is an example of bravery itself.  

Parsons integrates loss into the fabric of His Steadfast Love as well.  Some deaths occurred suddenly and in within a few pages of each other, leaving me stunned.  Again, I felt that the jump of a few months from chapter to chapter disconnected me from the characters' grief and their healing process.  Through the various losses, injuries, and uncertain futures, Parsons illustrates the importance of maintaining one's faith despite hardships.  Amanda questions her faith during the war, as many people undoubtedly did, but she ultimately reclaims it along with happiness. 

His Steadfast Love has strong qualities and offers a glimpse into the Civil War era. Parsons sets the plot in Texas, a state not often focused upon in Civil War novels.  The setting was refreshing, but I felt a distance from the characters at times. I had difficulty delving into the novel, especially during the first half.  The historical content is a clear strength and Parsons takes the reader on an journey from family parlors, to prisons, to battlefields.    

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through their book review program.  I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed above are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Review of A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner

Rating: 4.5 Stars

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Synopsis from WaterBrook Multnomah: A house shrouded in time. A line of women with a heritage of loss.

As a young bride, Susannah Page was rumored to be a Civil War spy for the North, a traitor to her Virginian roots. Her great-granddaughter Adelaide, the current matriarch of Holly Oak, doesn’t believe that Susannah’s ghost haunts the antebellum mansion looking for a pardon, but rather the house itself bears a grudge toward its tragic past.

When Marielle Bishop marries into the family and is transplanted from the arid west to her husband’s home, it isn’t long before she is led to believe that the house she just settled into brings misfortune to the women who live there.

With Adelaide’s richly peppered superstitions and deep family roots at stake, Marielle must sort out the truth about Susannah Page and Holly Oak— and make peace with the sacrifices she has made for love.   

Review: A Sound Among the Trees is yet another masterfully blended tale of the past and present. Susan Meissner never fails to give her readers the best of both worlds in seamlessly integrated and fully developed plots. A Sound Among the Trees is a captivating, poignant, and occasionally haunting novel.  Meissner builds her latest story around Holly Oak, an antebellum mansion in the charming town of Fredericksburg, Virginia.  The plot begins in present day, enrapturing us with remnants of the past that reside within the home’s four walls. Lifelong Holly Oak resident, Adelaide, and her new granddaughter in-law, Marielle, are the focus of the first half of the novel.  Adelaide’s impressions of the mansion and its past have been formed over a lifetime, which has been defined by loss. Like Marielle, we view the house from a new perspective and are left to sort through the mysteries and “ghosts” that have become a tangible part of the home.

Meissner divides the first half of the novel into five parts: The Garden, The Parlor, The Studio, The Cellar, and Holly Oak.  The garden, parlor, studio, and cellar are important places in the mansion’s existence.  Their history resonates through the pages, and they are more fully brought to life when Meissner switches to the perspective of Holly Oak’s most pivotal Civil War resident and source of much speculation, Susannah Page.  Susannah’s story is told through a sequence of unguarded letters to her cousin.  I was completely engrossed in Susannah tale of love, loss, and bravery.  Meissner’s skill as a story-teller shines in the poetical narrative.  Despite the passage of more than a century, Susannah is still very much a part of Adelaide’s life and the presence of the mansion.  Her letters provide an insight into the truth of her life and her values.  As a character, she is fully developed, despite her perspective accounting for less than half of the novel.   

Adelaide offers a prime example of how years of misconceptions can cloud our view of the present and cripple our outlook on life.  She places Holly Oak in a position of power and lets it define her life.  From the first chapter, we learn that Adelaide, Marielle, and their families, have struggles to overcome.  The past defines Adelaide’s present life and the weight of her superstitions have implications in the lives of others who live at Holly Oak.  As the characters embrace the truth and let go of their fears, readers are left with a satisfying ending, full of promise.  But like real life, not everything is perfect, but Holly Oak becomes a place of peace.

As someone who loves historic homes, I loved this novel. A Sound Among the Trees sings an enchanting melody of love and truth. I highly recommend it!

A Sound Among the Trees is available for purchase at the following locations:
Christian Book Distributors, Amazon, Barnes & Noble

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Multnomah/ WaterBrook Press through their book review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed above are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Curiosities of the Civil War by Webb Garrison

Rating: 4 stars

Did you know that some wives, including General Grant's wife, actually followed their husbands from one battlefield to the next during the Civil War?  Even after losing a limb, did you know that some soldiers returned to battle?  Have you ever thought about the thousands of horses that lost their lives during the Civil War?  Reading Curiosities of the Civil War will open your eyes to numerous aspects of war that are not mentioned in traditional history books and documentaries. With this 150th anniversary edition, Thomas Nelson Publishers has re-introduced readers to the extensive research and amazing findings of Webb Garrison, the late historian and former associate dean of Emory University.  The attractive cover serves as a tribute to our nation's history and the durable hardback binding will stand the test of time, like the stories within its pages. 

Curiosities of the Civil War is arranged in nine parts, beginning with "Memorable Players in the Nation's Greatest Drama" and ending with "The Money Trail." Every chapter within each part follows a general theme and is comprised of paragraph snippets of interesting findings about individuals who served in the war.  Many of these findings are based on secondary resources, like diaries and newspaper articles from the time period.  One of my favorite chapters is entitled "No One Called Lincoln Handsome." Newspaper columnists and acquaintances noted his unusually large hands and feet and his lanky frame, and it is now believed that he may have had Marfan Syndrome.  Today, when visitors view the famous Lincoln Memorial, they will not see the hands of Lincoln, but the hands of its sculptor, Daniel Chester French, who apparently decided not to accurately depict Lincoln's over sized and bony fingers.

As a person who enjoys learning about the past, I found Curiosities of the Civil War to be quite interesting. This is not a book that needs to be read in a few sittings. In fact, it is an excellent book for the coffee table that can be read in snippets and offer conversation starters.  If you happen to teach history, it is a wonderful supplement, and a daily passage can be shared at the beginning of Civil War history lessons to capture students' interest.  A question can be posed from the account to stimulate their thinking and natural curiosity.  Curiosities of the Civil War offers a multitude of  interesting historical details for the young and old alike.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Book Sneeze through their book review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed above are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”