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Refiner's Fire #1
Candle in the Darkness
Book 1 in the Refiner's Fire series. The daughter of a wealthy slave-holding family from Richmond, Virginia, Caroline Fletcher is raised in a culture that believes slavery is God-ordained and biblically acceptable. But upon awakening to the cruelty and injustice it encompasses, Caroline's eyes are opened for the first time to the men and women who have cared tirelessly for her. Her journey of maturity and faith will draw her into the abolitionist movement, where she is confronted with the risks and sacrifices her beliefs entail.
Audiobook
First published November 1, 2002
About the author
Lynn Austin
67 books5,856 followersFor many years, Lynn Austin nurtured a desire to write but frequent travels and the demands of her growing family postponed her career. When her husband's work took Lynn to Bogota, Colombia, for two years, she used the B.A. she'd earned at Southern Connecticut State University to become a teacher. After returning to the U.S., the Austins moved to Anderson, Indiana, Thunder Bay, Ontario, and later to Winnipeg, Manitoba.
It was during the long Canadian winters at home with her children that Lynn made progress on her dream to write, carving out a few hours of writing time each day while her children napped. Lynn credits her early experience of learning to write amid the chaos of family life for her ability to be a productive writer while making sure her family remains her top priority.
Extended family is also very important to Austin, and it was a lively discussion between Lynn, her mother, grandmother (age 98), and daughter concerning the change in women's roles through the generations that sparked the inspiration for her novel Eve's Daughters.
Along with reading, two of Lynn's lifelong passions are history and archaeology. While researching her Biblical fiction series, Chronicles of the Kings, these two interests led her to pursue graduate studies in Biblical Backgrounds and Archaeology through Southwestern Theological Seminary. She and her son traveled to Israel during the summer of 1989 to take part in an archaeological dig at the ancient city of Timnah. This experience contributed to the inspiration for her novel Wings of Refuge.
Lynn resigned from teaching to write full-time in 1992. Since then she has published 27 novels. Eight of her historical novels, Hidden Places, Candle in the Darkness, Fire by Night, A Proper Pursuit, and Until We Reach Home have won Christy Awards in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, and 2009 for excellence in Christian Fiction. Fire by Night was also one of only five inspirational fiction books chosen by Library Journal for their top picks of 2003, and All She Ever Wanted was chosen as one of the five inspirational top picks of 2005. Lynn's novel Hidden Places has been made into a movie for the Hallmark Channel, starring actress Shirley Jones. Ms Jones received a 2006 Emmy Award nomination for her portrayal of Aunt Batty in the film.
It was during the long Canadian winters at home with her children that Lynn made progress on her dream to write, carving out a few hours of writing time each day while her children napped. Lynn credits her early experience of learning to write amid the chaos of family life for her ability to be a productive writer while making sure her family remains her top priority.
Extended family is also very important to Austin, and it was a lively discussion between Lynn, her mother, grandmother (age 98), and daughter concerning the change in women's roles through the generations that sparked the inspiration for her novel Eve's Daughters.
Along with reading, two of Lynn's lifelong passions are history and archaeology. While researching her Biblical fiction series, Chronicles of the Kings, these two interests led her to pursue graduate studies in Biblical Backgrounds and Archaeology through Southwestern Theological Seminary. She and her son traveled to Israel during the summer of 1989 to take part in an archaeological dig at the ancient city of Timnah. This experience contributed to the inspiration for her novel Wings of Refuge.
Lynn resigned from teaching to write full-time in 1992. Since then she has published 27 novels. Eight of her historical novels, Hidden Places, Candle in the Darkness, Fire by Night, A Proper Pursuit, and Until We Reach Home have won Christy Awards in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, and 2009 for excellence in Christian Fiction. Fire by Night was also one of only five inspirational fiction books chosen by Library Journal for their top picks of 2003, and All She Ever Wanted was chosen as one of the five inspirational top picks of 2005. Lynn's novel Hidden Places has been made into a movie for the Hallmark Channel, starring actress Shirley Jones. Ms Jones received a 2006 Emmy Award nomination for her portrayal of Aunt Batty in the film.
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November 24, 2021
A LOT of American historical fiction focuses on the Civil War. In terms of American deaths, it was the bloodiest war in our history (at least 620,000 --and possibly as many as 750,000; records are fragmentary in some places-- soldiers died, and there were many more civilian fatalities, from "collateral damage," starvation, and war-exacerbated epidemic diseases), and was paradoxically both the most crucial turning point in our history and the source of a host of unresolved questions and divisions that continue to haunt our common life and consciousness. The fascination for writers is obvious. Despite my liking for the historical genre, though, this isn't a period I'm drawn to in fiction (though I have an interest in the nonfiction history), but rather one that I tend to avoid; like World War II and the Holocaust, the sheer scope of gruesome human misery it involves doesn't attract me to wallow in it for "entertainment." I'm also not a big reader of ECPA Christian fiction marketed as "romance" (or secular "romance" fiction, for that matter). So, this is a book I read only because it was picked as a group read. But as sometimes happens in those cases, it proved to be an unexpected gem! That's not to say there isn't a great deal of gruesome human misery in its pages. But it has more than that; and the added dimension(s) that it has are worthwhile.
The prologue takes place in the small hours of an autumn night in 1864, as protagonist Caroline, awake in her home in beleaguered Richmond and expecting imminent arrest for unspecified reasons, tears off wallpaper from her walls (paper is scarce) as a surface on which to write a true account of what led up to this night. That first-person account will constitute Part 1 of the book, which is 374 pages long (in contrast, Part 2, in third person, is only about 54 pages in length). It begins when she's just 12 years old, in 1853, with her first exposure to the really ugly realities of slavery. The only living child of a wealthy Richmond merchant (his brother is a planter, so we'll get a look at both urban and plantation slavery), Caroline's father is generally busy, and her mother mentally unstable (we'd call her manic-depressive today) and a laudanum addict; so the girl has been mostly raised by her black "mammie" Tessie. She's especially close to Tessie, to Tessie's little son Grady, and to the gentle and devoutly Christian black coachman, Eli; and unlike many of her peers, she's always seen the slaves as real people, family members she cares about and who care about her. That perspective will stay with her and stand her in good stead in terms of moral formation as she grows to young womanhood. (Later exposure to abolitionist views while spending some time with relatives in Philadelphia isn't as crucial in shaping her attitudes as the Goodreads description suggests it is; she's already anti-slavery before leaving Richmond.) How her belief in the fundamental wrongness of the "peculiar institution" will shape her young life, moral choices, and interactions with those around her will constitute the deeply immersive story Austin tells here.
This is not a nonfiction sociological analysis of antebellum Southern society and race relations, covering all aspects of slavery and the nuances of Northern and Southern thought about what to do about it as, in the 1850s, they confronted it as a grim inherited reality that already existed, whether they liked it (as plenty of slaveowners enthusiastically did :-( ), or disliked it, as some people in the South as well as the North did. (We don't, for instance, get any real look at the attitudes of poor whites in the South; we also don't see much of Northern society or race relations.) Nor is it a nonfiction dissertation on the constitutional arguments about whether or not states legally could (and still can) secede from the Union, and how that question should have affected policy in 1861. What it is is a novel, a fictional look at events through the eyes of one young woman who recognizes slavery as an ulcerous moral evil which is hurting people she loves, and how she copes with that reality. As a novelist, that's a worthwhile thing for Austin to do; she does it well, and she's not obligated to do the former kinds of things that might be asked of nonfiction writers. So the complaint by one reviewer that the novel read like a "one-sided" "lecture" and that the author was "lacking a sense of historical nuance," IMO, missed the mark. The message of the wrongness of slavery was not presented in tract-like, lecture fashion; as in Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, it grows naturally out of the events of the plot, and the discussions about slavery and secession do bring out nuances. (Those discussions aren't presented at great length, precisely because this isn't a tract disguised as a novel; long-winded philosophical and political discussions aren't the stuff of genuine fiction. The latter communicates its moral messages by showing their effects on human lives, often in very gripping and emotionally evocative ways, as Austin does here.) A strength of the novel, in fact, for me, is that Austin does not demonize Confederates in mass, and brings to life some of the feelings of moral dilemmas and divided loyalties that must have confronted thinking Southerners in those years.
There are some minor historical inaccuracies here (and one jarring typo, where the Army of Northern Virginia is mistakenly referred to as "the Army of the Potomac"). But none of these affected the plot. The romance element did not swallow up the whole book, although it was an important plot strand. Unlike another reviewer, I did not find it "cliche' --it came across to me as heartfelt, moving and adding considerably to the emotional dimension of the book. Austin's descriptions of Civil War hospitals, and of civilian suffering on the Southern home front, are powerful and realistic. Personally, I can't rate this at any less than five stars; and I would highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates serious historical fiction.
The prologue takes place in the small hours of an autumn night in 1864, as protagonist Caroline, awake in her home in beleaguered Richmond and expecting imminent arrest for unspecified reasons, tears off wallpaper from her walls (paper is scarce) as a surface on which to write a true account of what led up to this night. That first-person account will constitute Part 1 of the book, which is 374 pages long (in contrast, Part 2, in third person, is only about 54 pages in length). It begins when she's just 12 years old, in 1853, with her first exposure to the really ugly realities of slavery. The only living child of a wealthy Richmond merchant (his brother is a planter, so we'll get a look at both urban and plantation slavery), Caroline's father is generally busy, and her mother mentally unstable (we'd call her manic-depressive today) and a laudanum addict; so the girl has been mostly raised by her black "mammie" Tessie. She's especially close to Tessie, to Tessie's little son Grady, and to the gentle and devoutly Christian black coachman, Eli; and unlike many of her peers, she's always seen the slaves as real people, family members she cares about and who care about her. That perspective will stay with her and stand her in good stead in terms of moral formation as she grows to young womanhood. (Later exposure to abolitionist views while spending some time with relatives in Philadelphia isn't as crucial in shaping her attitudes as the Goodreads description suggests it is; she's already anti-slavery before leaving Richmond.) How her belief in the fundamental wrongness of the "peculiar institution" will shape her young life, moral choices, and interactions with those around her will constitute the deeply immersive story Austin tells here.
This is not a nonfiction sociological analysis of antebellum Southern society and race relations, covering all aspects of slavery and the nuances of Northern and Southern thought about what to do about it as, in the 1850s, they confronted it as a grim inherited reality that already existed, whether they liked it (as plenty of slaveowners enthusiastically did :-( ), or disliked it, as some people in the South as well as the North did. (We don't, for instance, get any real look at the attitudes of poor whites in the South; we also don't see much of Northern society or race relations.) Nor is it a nonfiction dissertation on the constitutional arguments about whether or not states legally could (and still can) secede from the Union, and how that question should have affected policy in 1861. What it is is a novel, a fictional look at events through the eyes of one young woman who recognizes slavery as an ulcerous moral evil which is hurting people she loves, and how she copes with that reality. As a novelist, that's a worthwhile thing for Austin to do; she does it well, and she's not obligated to do the former kinds of things that might be asked of nonfiction writers. So the complaint by one reviewer that the novel read like a "one-sided" "lecture" and that the author was "lacking a sense of historical nuance," IMO, missed the mark. The message of the wrongness of slavery was not presented in tract-like, lecture fashion; as in Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, it grows naturally out of the events of the plot, and the discussions about slavery and secession do bring out nuances. (Those discussions aren't presented at great length, precisely because this isn't a tract disguised as a novel; long-winded philosophical and political discussions aren't the stuff of genuine fiction. The latter communicates its moral messages by showing their effects on human lives, often in very gripping and emotionally evocative ways, as Austin does here.) A strength of the novel, in fact, for me, is that Austin does not demonize Confederates in mass, and brings to life some of the feelings of moral dilemmas and divided loyalties that must have confronted thinking Southerners in those years.
There are some minor historical inaccuracies here (and one jarring typo, where the Army of Northern Virginia is mistakenly referred to as "the Army of the Potomac"). But none of these affected the plot. The romance element did not swallow up the whole book, although it was an important plot strand. Unlike another reviewer, I did not find it "cliche' --it came across to me as heartfelt, moving and adding considerably to the emotional dimension of the book. Austin's descriptions of Civil War hospitals, and of civilian suffering on the Southern home front, are powerful and realistic. Personally, I can't rate this at any less than five stars; and I would highly recommend it to anyone who appreciates serious historical fiction.
May 3, 2016
I had a 1,000 word review written and was about to post when my battery crashed. Though I am seeing stars right now, I am going to try to recreate it. Hopeless. I promise, I phrased it much more nicely before I wasted two hours of work on a book I didn't even like.
So, I may come back later and edit it into more of a semblance of what I lost. I had a really nice list of what I liked and why I couldn't stand Robert for being a selfish cad. Only I didn't call him that. Promise. I was nice.
My list of good was like this:
—Eli! (reasons)
—Charles! (reasons)
—Tessie! (reasons)
—Isaac and what she does with him (no reason needed!)
—The ending (no spoilers, thus no reasons)
My list of middlin' was like this:
—Caroline. Eh. Bleeding heart for her own particular slave people, but no showing of true empathy for the rest of the people starving to death under her nose. They "somewhat deserved it" because they had slaves. Well, news, missy. They didn't all have slaves. And slaves were starving, too. I did like her parts in the hospital, and I liked her friendship with Sally, and I actually wanted quite a bit more of her romance, which is unusual for me.
Kick 'em to the curb (again, the current emotion):
—Robert. Seriously, man, you say you love her, but convince her that helping measly you escape prison is going to vitally change the Union's prospects when Grant cares so little that he sends thousands of men a day to certain death? You know she is engaged and guilt her into helping you? You call it love when you deliberately endanger her life, knowing the consequences?
—Fletcher. A blockade runner getting rich off the suffering of others. 'Nuff said.
So, what made me mad about the book (since I'm just a little furious. I got interrupted when I was almost done and tried to keep going despite interruptions. An hour later I still hadn't finished and my battery would have been fine to post any time within that hour.):
#1. History, history, history. First off, Caroline is a spoiled rich girl (nope, didn't call her that the first time around, either). She cares about her slaves, which is great. She helps with wounded soldiers, also great. She, however, waltzes into a prison in wartime without the permission of a powerful man of society, whose name she uses to get in; when he objects, she defies him and keeps going. Nope. All he had to do was say one word to the commandant at the prison. And she made a spiritual reason for defying her father-in-law-to-be by saying she was doing God's work in her visits. This wouldn't have happened.
She "Has a crush" and "Goes on a date." Oh, I see. A time traveller.
She wears a corset before she goes to school and is told she will have to quit wearing short sleeves when she is a little older. Neither of these comments are accurate for the 1850s. And, to be sure, I searched online. More than enough proof.
When she goes North for school, she meets a preacher who is a devout abolitionist. She senses something missing in their message, though she is uncomfortable with it. Finally he looks at her on one occasion and asks her of her view. She rebukes him (she being at the time a girl of seventeen) with a look and the words, "They are not a cause. They are people." Thereafter he preaches a sermon using her view. Well, yes. She's right. But the situation is totally contrived. And it's told as though her words turned the whole city's view of slavery upside down.
She repeatedly practices deceit and begins spying without really knowing why except that she's pleasing Robert...who told her how much he loved her while knowing she was in love and engaged, while endangering her life by his commands. She outright lies to her father on multiple occasions.
These anachronistic views and words and attitudes were too engrained in the story and plot to overlook.
#2. History, history, history.
Now for the view of actual events. Lynn Austin and Caroline cannot be sure that God sent the sword into the south for the sins of slavery. The conquerors were only partially pro-abolition, and had plenty of their own sins. One of the positive aspects of the war was the revival that started in the trenches. We don't get to see any of the spiritual awakening the soldiers would have seen, especially near Jackson's men.
Lee's request for slave soldiers is portrayed as a greedy wish for bodies to fill the trenches. In fact, Lee had asked for slaves to be sent repeatedly, and had urged Richmond politicians to allow him to grant freedom to any man who served out his term of enlistment honorably. This was BEFORE the Emancipation Proclamation. If Richmond had agreed, the South could easily have been the first to announce pro-emancipation steps. But Richmond was full of politicians (those who owned twenty or more slaves were exempt from the draft, which was mentioned) and blockade-runners, who were busy getting rich (Fletcher is an example of this.) All the men worth their salt were for the most part at the front lines, giving their lives for their homeland and freedom. No matter what Austin thinks, Lee WAS NOT pro-slavery. He had spoken in terms of regret of it more than once before the war. (In contrast, Grant was pro-slavery, saw nothing wrong with it, and did not release his own slaves until the actual Contitutional Amendment was passed years later.)
Some questions for you to ponder:
How come so many people who did not own slaves and did not have much to lose (such as sharecroppers) went willingly to fight? All the West was just opening up, and anyone who didn't choose to fight could easily have gone west before the drafting began. Those in territories were not subject to it. So, why would so many men go off to risk and give their lives in a cause like this? It was because of freedom.
It's not accurate that both Caroline and Charles would believe their cause doomed from the start. The South genuinely believed they could win, and if supplies had been forthcoming, they quite easily could have had a chance at it. Most of the West Point classes were from Virginia and were staunch Southerners. Northern men didn't go in for military as much; they were farmers and Quakers and gentlemen and mill-owners. With very few men, very few materials, Lee's and others' generalship nearly had the North by the ears.
And for Austin to flippantly excuse the horrors perpetrated in the south as "just desserts" for their sins, I can only hope that she has not studied what Sherman commanded his men to do to win his way through the South. They stripped the land, wrecking it, taking prisoners, ripping apart families, sending mill workers north to fill the places of the men drafted to march against the South, raping, murdering. Entire towns were burned, forests razed. Military law did not allow the murder of non-combatants, but it happened under Sherman.
Also, Caroline compares herself to Rahab of Jericho and decides she has God's blessing in her work. There is an error where it is said that Rahab was a "spy who betrayed her country"...actually, no. All she did was give shelter to two strangers because she heard of the power of God. Sheltering spies doesn't make her a spy herself.
Anyway, apologies to my friends for the tone of this. As I said before, it honestly was much more tame before the Cowardly Battery Betrayal.
So, I may come back later and edit it into more of a semblance of what I lost. I had a really nice list of what I liked and why I couldn't stand Robert for being a selfish cad. Only I didn't call him that. Promise. I was nice.
My list of good was like this:
—Eli! (reasons)
—Charles! (reasons)
—Tessie! (reasons)
—Isaac and what she does with him (no reason needed!)
—The ending (no spoilers, thus no reasons)
My list of middlin' was like this:
—Caroline. Eh. Bleeding heart for her own particular slave people, but no showing of true empathy for the rest of the people starving to death under her nose. They "somewhat deserved it" because they had slaves. Well, news, missy. They didn't all have slaves. And slaves were starving, too. I did like her parts in the hospital, and I liked her friendship with Sally, and I actually wanted quite a bit more of her romance, which is unusual for me.
Kick 'em to the curb (again, the current emotion):
—Robert. Seriously, man, you say you love her, but convince her that helping measly you escape prison is going to vitally change the Union's prospects when Grant cares so little that he sends thousands of men a day to certain death? You know she is engaged and guilt her into helping you? You call it love when you deliberately endanger her life, knowing the consequences?
—Fletcher. A blockade runner getting rich off the suffering of others. 'Nuff said.
So, what made me mad about the book (since I'm just a little furious. I got interrupted when I was almost done and tried to keep going despite interruptions. An hour later I still hadn't finished and my battery would have been fine to post any time within that hour.):
#1. History, history, history. First off, Caroline is a spoiled rich girl (nope, didn't call her that the first time around, either). She cares about her slaves, which is great. She helps with wounded soldiers, also great. She, however, waltzes into a prison in wartime without the permission of a powerful man of society, whose name she uses to get in; when he objects, she defies him and keeps going. Nope. All he had to do was say one word to the commandant at the prison. And she made a spiritual reason for defying her father-in-law-to-be by saying she was doing God's work in her visits. This wouldn't have happened.
She "Has a crush" and "Goes on a date." Oh, I see. A time traveller.
She wears a corset before she goes to school and is told she will have to quit wearing short sleeves when she is a little older. Neither of these comments are accurate for the 1850s. And, to be sure, I searched online. More than enough proof.
When she goes North for school, she meets a preacher who is a devout abolitionist. She senses something missing in their message, though she is uncomfortable with it. Finally he looks at her on one occasion and asks her of her view. She rebukes him (she being at the time a girl of seventeen) with a look and the words, "They are not a cause. They are people." Thereafter he preaches a sermon using her view. Well, yes. She's right. But the situation is totally contrived. And it's told as though her words turned the whole city's view of slavery upside down.
She repeatedly practices deceit and begins spying without really knowing why except that she's pleasing Robert...who told her how much he loved her while knowing she was in love and engaged, while endangering her life by his commands. She outright lies to her father on multiple occasions.
These anachronistic views and words and attitudes were too engrained in the story and plot to overlook.
#2. History, history, history.
Now for the view of actual events. Lynn Austin and Caroline cannot be sure that God sent the sword into the south for the sins of slavery. The conquerors were only partially pro-abolition, and had plenty of their own sins. One of the positive aspects of the war was the revival that started in the trenches. We don't get to see any of the spiritual awakening the soldiers would have seen, especially near Jackson's men.
Lee's request for slave soldiers is portrayed as a greedy wish for bodies to fill the trenches. In fact, Lee had asked for slaves to be sent repeatedly, and had urged Richmond politicians to allow him to grant freedom to any man who served out his term of enlistment honorably. This was BEFORE the Emancipation Proclamation. If Richmond had agreed, the South could easily have been the first to announce pro-emancipation steps. But Richmond was full of politicians (those who owned twenty or more slaves were exempt from the draft, which was mentioned) and blockade-runners, who were busy getting rich (Fletcher is an example of this.) All the men worth their salt were for the most part at the front lines, giving their lives for their homeland and freedom. No matter what Austin thinks, Lee WAS NOT pro-slavery. He had spoken in terms of regret of it more than once before the war. (In contrast, Grant was pro-slavery, saw nothing wrong with it, and did not release his own slaves until the actual Contitutional Amendment was passed years later.)
Some questions for you to ponder:
How come so many people who did not own slaves and did not have much to lose (such as sharecroppers) went willingly to fight? All the West was just opening up, and anyone who didn't choose to fight could easily have gone west before the drafting began. Those in territories were not subject to it. So, why would so many men go off to risk and give their lives in a cause like this? It was because of freedom.
It's not accurate that both Caroline and Charles would believe their cause doomed from the start. The South genuinely believed they could win, and if supplies had been forthcoming, they quite easily could have had a chance at it. Most of the West Point classes were from Virginia and were staunch Southerners. Northern men didn't go in for military as much; they were farmers and Quakers and gentlemen and mill-owners. With very few men, very few materials, Lee's and others' generalship nearly had the North by the ears.
And for Austin to flippantly excuse the horrors perpetrated in the south as "just desserts" for their sins, I can only hope that she has not studied what Sherman commanded his men to do to win his way through the South. They stripped the land, wrecking it, taking prisoners, ripping apart families, sending mill workers north to fill the places of the men drafted to march against the South, raping, murdering. Entire towns were burned, forests razed. Military law did not allow the murder of non-combatants, but it happened under Sherman.
Also, Caroline compares herself to Rahab of Jericho and decides she has God's blessing in her work. There is an error where it is said that Rahab was a "spy who betrayed her country"...actually, no. All she did was give shelter to two strangers because she heard of the power of God. Sheltering spies doesn't make her a spy herself.
Anyway, apologies to my friends for the tone of this. As I said before, it honestly was much more tame before the Cowardly Battery Betrayal.
March 2, 2016
Update 2/28/16: Just finished my 5th time through this book and I can honestly say I enjoyed it just as much, if not more, this time through! I'm quite sure I'll be reading it again in the future. :)
I just finished reading this book for the 4th time. Is it possible that it gets better every time I read it? I loved it every time & actually can't wait to read it again! :) This is my favorite series by Lynn Austin and possibly my favorite series of all! I highly recommend these books to all my book-loving friends, especially the ones who like to read about history-- the American Civil War, in particular.
This book really made me look at the American Civil War differently than I ever had before. It made me consider the Confederate side of things more. It also helped me to better understand the importance of trying to see both sides of a situation before judging someone's stand on an issue or response/reaction to a situation. Caroline was in a really tight spot during the war. She had some really hard, important decisions to make. Some people would immediately judge her decisions according to their biased opinions. She truly struggled to make those decisions and to live with the way others treated her because of them. I enjoyed reading about how she felt and what she did to get through those struggles. I'm sorry to say I don't know that I would have had the character it took to do what she did.
Honestly, it would take way too long to tell everything I like about this book. I can go on, and on, AND ON about it! Suffice it to say that I LOVE this book and hope that all my friends enjoy it too! :)
I just finished reading this book for the 4th time. Is it possible that it gets better every time I read it? I loved it every time & actually can't wait to read it again! :) This is my favorite series by Lynn Austin and possibly my favorite series of all! I highly recommend these books to all my book-loving friends, especially the ones who like to read about history-- the American Civil War, in particular.
This book really made me look at the American Civil War differently than I ever had before. It made me consider the Confederate side of things more. It also helped me to better understand the importance of trying to see both sides of a situation before judging someone's stand on an issue or response/reaction to a situation. Caroline was in a really tight spot during the war. She had some really hard, important decisions to make. Some people would immediately judge her decisions according to their biased opinions. She truly struggled to make those decisions and to live with the way others treated her because of them. I enjoyed reading about how she felt and what she did to get through those struggles. I'm sorry to say I don't know that I would have had the character it took to do what she did.
Honestly, it would take way too long to tell everything I like about this book. I can go on, and on, AND ON about it! Suffice it to say that I LOVE this book and hope that all my friends enjoy it too! :)
March 15, 2015
This is undoubtedly one of my favourite books of the year. Just wow. It was totally amazing!
The prologue draws you in, the characters come alive and the writing speaks to you. The story is intense, deep, moving and heartbreaking. Lynn Austin has incredible talent, and I am sorry that I had never read a book by her before. Clearly I have been missing out!
Candle in the Darkness is going to be really hard to review without spoiling anything, so I'm just not going to mention anything at all that happened in this book. Because that was the best part of it; reading and not knowing a single thing that was going to happen. I have the unfortunate habit of peeking ahead whenever I read a paperback, and nearly always spoil twists and turns for my self, and I usually have the ending read before I've begun chapter 3. It's a terrible habit, I know, but I can't help it! But with this book here, it didn't happen because I was reading it on my Kindle (and trying to peek on a Kindle is the most annoying thing ever) and didn't know how it would end until I got to the end. I hadn't even read the synopsis. So, because I want everyone else to enjoy it as much as I did, I'm going to shut up now and not reveal anything, other than the fact that Caroline Fletcher, the heroine, was courageous and wonderful in the extreme, and I wish I were more like her.
The story takes place in the 1860's in Virginia, during the Civil War. Not being American, I had only heard vaguely about it, and had never added two and two to realize that the war was connected to the issue of slavery. After reading this beautiful novel, I feel a lot less dumb, and I sincerely thank the author for having included all those details about the war, and all those important historic names of people and places. If you are like me and don't know much about the American Civil War, don't let that deter you; everything is well explained and you won't be lost.
Now, for those of you who have already read it and maybe wish to know more of what I thought, here are my spoilerish comments. :)
Everyone who enjoys Christian historical fiction, add this book to your list now! :)
The prologue draws you in, the characters come alive and the writing speaks to you. The story is intense, deep, moving and heartbreaking. Lynn Austin has incredible talent, and I am sorry that I had never read a book by her before. Clearly I have been missing out!
Candle in the Darkness is going to be really hard to review without spoiling anything, so I'm just not going to mention anything at all that happened in this book. Because that was the best part of it; reading and not knowing a single thing that was going to happen. I have the unfortunate habit of peeking ahead whenever I read a paperback, and nearly always spoil twists and turns for my self, and I usually have the ending read before I've begun chapter 3. It's a terrible habit, I know, but I can't help it! But with this book here, it didn't happen because I was reading it on my Kindle (and trying to peek on a Kindle is the most annoying thing ever) and didn't know how it would end until I got to the end. I hadn't even read the synopsis. So, because I want everyone else to enjoy it as much as I did, I'm going to shut up now and not reveal anything, other than the fact that Caroline Fletcher, the heroine, was courageous and wonderful in the extreme, and I wish I were more like her.
The story takes place in the 1860's in Virginia, during the Civil War. Not being American, I had only heard vaguely about it, and had never added two and two to realize that the war was connected to the issue of slavery. After reading this beautiful novel, I feel a lot less dumb, and I sincerely thank the author for having included all those details about the war, and all those important historic names of people and places. If you are like me and don't know much about the American Civil War, don't let that deter you; everything is well explained and you won't be lost.
Now, for those of you who have already read it and maybe wish to know more of what I thought, here are my spoilerish comments. :)
Everyone who enjoys Christian historical fiction, add this book to your list now! :)
April 9, 2009
Well, I tend to be extremely wary of Christian fiction. My personal views differ enough from these authors that their ranting and pulpit-pounding style just does me in within seconds! So I have a personal habit of automatically determining not to read anything labeled religion or religious fiction. Fortunately for me, I saw this in a war fiction category, so I read it. And I’m thrilled that I did.
This author is apparently well known among readers of Christian fiction, having one a Christy award for the book I’m about to describe to you. Before I try to do the description, please trust me when I tell you that if you, too, have a real aversion to Christian fiction, you can read this book just fine without feeling the need to skip the condescending patronizing moralizing that is so much part and parcel of so much of this literature. Why is that? Because only in one spot did I find anything that made me itch and twitch and tentatively consider skipping a few pages. Ultimately, I didn't skip a word of this book, and for good reason. The research done on this book is beyond dazzling. Let me see if I can do better at explaining this to you in the paragraphs below; first, a bit about the plot, then my comments on the writing style of the author:
As this book opens, you feel the eerie silence that has descended over war-weary Richmond, Virginia. It is the spring of 1865, and nearly everyone who could leave the city has done so. Richmond is on fire—a fire started by desperate confederates determined to leave nothing to their northern conquerors. Caroline Fletcher is in her 20s as this book opens; she’s a classic young woman of the pre-civil war and civil-war south, replete with beauty and rich memories of a gentle life lived in opulence as a direct result of her family’s slaves and their labor. But if she’s a classic young woman of the 1850s and 1860s-era south, she’s also breathtakingly and starkly different from the majority of her class. Caroline is absolutely anything but shallow. She proves herself ultimately to be a woman of tremendous strength and integrity—the kind of person you would rejoice to count among your friends. As the book opens, Caroline is removing strips of wallpaper from her once-opulent Virginia home to create a written record of her life up to and throughout the civil war. Her efforts are designed to help those close to her better understand some of the decisions she made in a world of terrible personal conflict as well as a national war.
From the prologue, you flash back to Caroline’s early girlhood in the early 1850s. Young Caroline is stricken to see that her father is about to sell a 9-year-old slave boy, the son of Caroline’s nanny—a boy who may have been fathered by Caroline’s dad. Her mother fights depression with opium pills, and after the mother gives birth to a stillborn child, she overdoses on the pills and dies. Throughout all this time, Caroline is quietly observing the slaves on her own plantation and that of her neighbors. She’s beginning to understand the hypocrisy of slavery, and she’s beginning to recognize that the Bible is used to preach both for and against slavery equally well. One of the most endearing characters in this entire book is a giant of a slave named Eli, who has become not only a student of the Bible, but a man who deeply lives the gospel of Jesus Christ to the very best of his abilities. While other slaves cry in clandestine meetings for revolt and bloodshed, Eli assures his listeners that God will indeed make them all free without them having to lift a hand against their white owners. And he ingeniously uses scriptures to make his point.
After her mother dies, Caroline moves temporarily to Philadelphia to live with a kindly aunt and uncle who introduce her to all the famous abolitionists and further cement her perspective as a southern woman who thoroughly opposes slavery and seeks for abolition throughout the South.
As the threat of war between the states looms, Caroline’s father determines it’s in her best interest to return to Richmond, and she agrees, but for quite different reasons. Her hope is to spread the abolitionist gospel among her friends and neighbors.
On her first day back at home, she ventures into Richmond on business with a bag full of abolitionist tracts. When she sees a young man preparing to capture and beat a little black boy who has stolen an apple, she intervenes, and the sparks fly between her and the young man—a young man who will eventually become her fiancé.
Then war comes indeed and all things are changed. Her father becomes a blockade runner for the confederates, her fiancé and beloved cousin go off to war, and Caroline is left to deal with the plantation and its slaves.
As the war progresses, Caroline learns that a cousin whom she knew in Philadelphia has been taken prisoner of war. She determines to visit him, and as a result, she begins spying for the Yankees, reasoning that if her actions end the war sooner, then her fiancé will come home sooner and slavery will be abolished. Of course, she is dreadfully conflicted because she knows that her actions could get her beloved Charles killed. This is a gruesome conflict that would break a lesser woman.
No way have I done this plot anything approaching justice. The author’s writing style is absolutely gripping; you’ll enter this saga as Richmond is burning and Caroline is writing by candle light, and you’ll leave it after the war is ended and the vanquished south lies crushed and silent under the weight of all the changes that are coming. You will be impressed by the writing style of someone who can so fully bring slaves and white owners to life and enmesh those lives together. Lynn Austin clearly did some truly first class research on this era for this book. I don’t claim to be a civil war expert by any stretch, but her research really appears to me to be beyond rock solid. The writing style is rich and while there’s much here about God and Jesus and the bible, much of what is taught is done using the voice of Eli, the magnificently articulate black man who seems to be able to do far more than merely talk the talk of Christianity. I wasn’t able to put this down yesterday at all; I finished it at around midnight this morning, but there’s no way I’d have been able to sleep having left it unfinished.
The literary magic in this book for me is that you see fully the love that exists among slaves and their white owners in some households. You see the conflicts and the very worst horrors of slavery as Caroline’s drug-addicted mother forces her husband to sell the 9-year-old boy he appears to have fathered. There is even evidence of racism among the abolitionists of the north, and the author uses just the right amount of life experiences and sermons from the pulpit to demonstrate those conflicts and all the undercurrents of a slavery society. Caroline best of all is portrayed as a woman of conflict. She loves a fiancé who believes the north will win but fights with all he has for the Confederate cause. She also understands as do none of her neighbors that if the south wins, so does slavery.
There are wonderful suspenseful scenes in here. On one occasion, her Philadelphia cousin whom she has visited in the prisoner of war camp has escaped with her help and needs to hide in her home from the searchers. She is suspected by her southern neighbors of assisting in the escape, but none of them can prove anything.
Despite Mr. Lincoln’s emancipation proclamation and the eventual northern victories under Sherman and Grant, Caroline’s slaves remain faithful to her. She ultimately and deliberately frees a little boy born during the war and given to her at her request by her father. The child would grow up entirely free from the day of his birth as a result of Caroline’s deliberate actions, which were risky and more than frowned on at the time by the society around her.
Some of you who are better more sophisticated readers than I am will probably find certain elements of this book hard to believe or digest. But this author writes so incredibly well that you hear the train whistles of the forlorn train that carries Jefferson Davis and his conquered cabinet away from Richmond in advance of the victorious forces of General Grant and others. The research on this book is so well done that it even refers to a visit Mr. Lincoln made to Richmond on April 4, 1865, just days before his death. The horror of the military hospitals of the day are poetically and graphically described, as is the horror of the prison camp which housed Union soldiers. You grieve with Caroline throughout the conflict and you understand completely why she’s not cheering like the rest of Richmond when the stars and stripes are flung down and replaced by the stars and bars of the Confederacy. You will marvel that Caroline can keep her wits about her while she’s sewing uniforms for Confederate soldiers and gleaning information she can pass on to Union forces. Best of all, this author wrote Caroline’s story in such a way that Caroline never seems to be a hypocrite or somehow evil and divided against self. She understood what she had to do to survive in Richmond; she understood what she had to do to keep the love between her and her fiancé on the battle front alive and well, and she understood what she had to do to help bring an end to the war and ensure Union victory.
Perhaps one of the things that fascinates all of us most about the civil war was the reality of family being divided against family. The very nature of that conflict actually helps make Caroline’s character more real than it otherwise might be.
There’s almost no profanity in here, and there are no sexual descriptions. Oh, Caroline and Charles do the usual pre-battle hug and kiss thing, but it’s all very chaste, since neither are married. My advice to those of you who enjoy civil war-era fiction but who, like me, aren’t particularly anxious about being preached at and patronized and moralized to death, is that you can go ahead and read this. Pay close attention to the religious philosophies of Eli, the giant kind-hearted slave. He’s way ahead of his time. Immerse yourself in this book, and you will be rewarded with evidence of some truly thorough first-class civil-war-era research on the part of this author. Her writing style won’t let your mind wander, and you’ll find yourself asking truly hard questions about how you would have handled things had you been an abolitionist-sympathizing southerner.
This author is apparently well known among readers of Christian fiction, having one a Christy award for the book I’m about to describe to you. Before I try to do the description, please trust me when I tell you that if you, too, have a real aversion to Christian fiction, you can read this book just fine without feeling the need to skip the condescending patronizing moralizing that is so much part and parcel of so much of this literature. Why is that? Because only in one spot did I find anything that made me itch and twitch and tentatively consider skipping a few pages. Ultimately, I didn't skip a word of this book, and for good reason. The research done on this book is beyond dazzling. Let me see if I can do better at explaining this to you in the paragraphs below; first, a bit about the plot, then my comments on the writing style of the author:
As this book opens, you feel the eerie silence that has descended over war-weary Richmond, Virginia. It is the spring of 1865, and nearly everyone who could leave the city has done so. Richmond is on fire—a fire started by desperate confederates determined to leave nothing to their northern conquerors. Caroline Fletcher is in her 20s as this book opens; she’s a classic young woman of the pre-civil war and civil-war south, replete with beauty and rich memories of a gentle life lived in opulence as a direct result of her family’s slaves and their labor. But if she’s a classic young woman of the 1850s and 1860s-era south, she’s also breathtakingly and starkly different from the majority of her class. Caroline is absolutely anything but shallow. She proves herself ultimately to be a woman of tremendous strength and integrity—the kind of person you would rejoice to count among your friends. As the book opens, Caroline is removing strips of wallpaper from her once-opulent Virginia home to create a written record of her life up to and throughout the civil war. Her efforts are designed to help those close to her better understand some of the decisions she made in a world of terrible personal conflict as well as a national war.
From the prologue, you flash back to Caroline’s early girlhood in the early 1850s. Young Caroline is stricken to see that her father is about to sell a 9-year-old slave boy, the son of Caroline’s nanny—a boy who may have been fathered by Caroline’s dad. Her mother fights depression with opium pills, and after the mother gives birth to a stillborn child, she overdoses on the pills and dies. Throughout all this time, Caroline is quietly observing the slaves on her own plantation and that of her neighbors. She’s beginning to understand the hypocrisy of slavery, and she’s beginning to recognize that the Bible is used to preach both for and against slavery equally well. One of the most endearing characters in this entire book is a giant of a slave named Eli, who has become not only a student of the Bible, but a man who deeply lives the gospel of Jesus Christ to the very best of his abilities. While other slaves cry in clandestine meetings for revolt and bloodshed, Eli assures his listeners that God will indeed make them all free without them having to lift a hand against their white owners. And he ingeniously uses scriptures to make his point.
After her mother dies, Caroline moves temporarily to Philadelphia to live with a kindly aunt and uncle who introduce her to all the famous abolitionists and further cement her perspective as a southern woman who thoroughly opposes slavery and seeks for abolition throughout the South.
As the threat of war between the states looms, Caroline’s father determines it’s in her best interest to return to Richmond, and she agrees, but for quite different reasons. Her hope is to spread the abolitionist gospel among her friends and neighbors.
On her first day back at home, she ventures into Richmond on business with a bag full of abolitionist tracts. When she sees a young man preparing to capture and beat a little black boy who has stolen an apple, she intervenes, and the sparks fly between her and the young man—a young man who will eventually become her fiancé.
Then war comes indeed and all things are changed. Her father becomes a blockade runner for the confederates, her fiancé and beloved cousin go off to war, and Caroline is left to deal with the plantation and its slaves.
As the war progresses, Caroline learns that a cousin whom she knew in Philadelphia has been taken prisoner of war. She determines to visit him, and as a result, she begins spying for the Yankees, reasoning that if her actions end the war sooner, then her fiancé will come home sooner and slavery will be abolished. Of course, she is dreadfully conflicted because she knows that her actions could get her beloved Charles killed. This is a gruesome conflict that would break a lesser woman.
No way have I done this plot anything approaching justice. The author’s writing style is absolutely gripping; you’ll enter this saga as Richmond is burning and Caroline is writing by candle light, and you’ll leave it after the war is ended and the vanquished south lies crushed and silent under the weight of all the changes that are coming. You will be impressed by the writing style of someone who can so fully bring slaves and white owners to life and enmesh those lives together. Lynn Austin clearly did some truly first class research on this era for this book. I don’t claim to be a civil war expert by any stretch, but her research really appears to me to be beyond rock solid. The writing style is rich and while there’s much here about God and Jesus and the bible, much of what is taught is done using the voice of Eli, the magnificently articulate black man who seems to be able to do far more than merely talk the talk of Christianity. I wasn’t able to put this down yesterday at all; I finished it at around midnight this morning, but there’s no way I’d have been able to sleep having left it unfinished.
The literary magic in this book for me is that you see fully the love that exists among slaves and their white owners in some households. You see the conflicts and the very worst horrors of slavery as Caroline’s drug-addicted mother forces her husband to sell the 9-year-old boy he appears to have fathered. There is even evidence of racism among the abolitionists of the north, and the author uses just the right amount of life experiences and sermons from the pulpit to demonstrate those conflicts and all the undercurrents of a slavery society. Caroline best of all is portrayed as a woman of conflict. She loves a fiancé who believes the north will win but fights with all he has for the Confederate cause. She also understands as do none of her neighbors that if the south wins, so does slavery.
There are wonderful suspenseful scenes in here. On one occasion, her Philadelphia cousin whom she has visited in the prisoner of war camp has escaped with her help and needs to hide in her home from the searchers. She is suspected by her southern neighbors of assisting in the escape, but none of them can prove anything.
Despite Mr. Lincoln’s emancipation proclamation and the eventual northern victories under Sherman and Grant, Caroline’s slaves remain faithful to her. She ultimately and deliberately frees a little boy born during the war and given to her at her request by her father. The child would grow up entirely free from the day of his birth as a result of Caroline’s deliberate actions, which were risky and more than frowned on at the time by the society around her.
Some of you who are better more sophisticated readers than I am will probably find certain elements of this book hard to believe or digest. But this author writes so incredibly well that you hear the train whistles of the forlorn train that carries Jefferson Davis and his conquered cabinet away from Richmond in advance of the victorious forces of General Grant and others. The research on this book is so well done that it even refers to a visit Mr. Lincoln made to Richmond on April 4, 1865, just days before his death. The horror of the military hospitals of the day are poetically and graphically described, as is the horror of the prison camp which housed Union soldiers. You grieve with Caroline throughout the conflict and you understand completely why she’s not cheering like the rest of Richmond when the stars and stripes are flung down and replaced by the stars and bars of the Confederacy. You will marvel that Caroline can keep her wits about her while she’s sewing uniforms for Confederate soldiers and gleaning information she can pass on to Union forces. Best of all, this author wrote Caroline’s story in such a way that Caroline never seems to be a hypocrite or somehow evil and divided against self. She understood what she had to do to survive in Richmond; she understood what she had to do to keep the love between her and her fiancé on the battle front alive and well, and she understood what she had to do to help bring an end to the war and ensure Union victory.
Perhaps one of the things that fascinates all of us most about the civil war was the reality of family being divided against family. The very nature of that conflict actually helps make Caroline’s character more real than it otherwise might be.
There’s almost no profanity in here, and there are no sexual descriptions. Oh, Caroline and Charles do the usual pre-battle hug and kiss thing, but it’s all very chaste, since neither are married. My advice to those of you who enjoy civil war-era fiction but who, like me, aren’t particularly anxious about being preached at and patronized and moralized to death, is that you can go ahead and read this. Pay close attention to the religious philosophies of Eli, the giant kind-hearted slave. He’s way ahead of his time. Immerse yourself in this book, and you will be rewarded with evidence of some truly thorough first-class civil-war-era research on the part of this author. Her writing style won’t let your mind wander, and you’ll find yourself asking truly hard questions about how you would have handled things had you been an abolitionist-sympathizing southerner.
June 21, 2017
If you want to become fully engulfed in the raging of the Civil War--the battle that was fought not only physically, but also morally, sit awhile by Caroline and read her story.
Having done a good bit of Civil War research on my own, I found "Candle in the Darkness" to be fascinating and well-researched. The story itself seemed a little slow at times because Austin was very thorough to explain the history of what was happening during that time. It actually made me think of books written by Ballentyne or Henty, because it wasn't just fiction, but educational.
There were some mentions of how men treated the women slaves, but no scenes happened. The romance didn't stand out to me much--but that could have been because I was more fascinated with the whole historical aspect. Yes, there was romance. There were some kisses, some mentions of longing to be a wife and what it entailed. I would say that the content is more appropriate for older readers rather than the young, conservative reader--just because some of the things mentioned may lead to questions.
I can't say that I fully agreed with the stand that the main character took. It was fascinating to read, her motives were very believable, but I tend to think that the Civil War was more than just rooted in slavery and the confederates' desire for states' rights more than just the right to own slaves, but that is my personal opinion. It's just that reading this book presents the idea that slavery was THE issue of the Civil War...
The spiritual content--seriously, best for last. I was highly, highly impressed! God and His Word was sprinkled throughout the entire book!! There were some amazing, strong Christian characters and they knew God's Word and used God's Word. This was, beyond any doubt, a Christian book. I found it spiritually edifying. I especially liked Eli (who wouldn't?). He was amazing and said some very thought-provoking things.
I also loved the very realistic battle with fear. The characters portrayed were VERY real with very real "flesh" and that was amazing to read.
As a writer, I found some things to wrinkle my nose at -- Austin's style was more of the "telling" where she summarized a lot of things. I prefer action as it leads the story forward a little better, but that's my critical viewpoint. ;) I didn't always feel like I was able to fully embrace Caroline. Sometimes, her raw emotion was very riveting, but other times, I had no clue how Caroline viewed something.
But yeah... as a reader I give this book an overall five star review. I recommend it for any older readers--especially those who love the Civil War.
A couple of quotes:
“Most folks won’t change their mind unless they have a change of heart first.”
“Faith don’t come in a bushel basket, Missy. It come one step at a time. Decide to trust Him for one little thing today, and before you know it, you find out He’s so trustworthy you be putting your whole life in His hands.”
Having done a good bit of Civil War research on my own, I found "Candle in the Darkness" to be fascinating and well-researched. The story itself seemed a little slow at times because Austin was very thorough to explain the history of what was happening during that time. It actually made me think of books written by Ballentyne or Henty, because it wasn't just fiction, but educational.
There were some mentions of how men treated the women slaves, but no scenes happened. The romance didn't stand out to me much--but that could have been because I was more fascinated with the whole historical aspect. Yes, there was romance. There were some kisses, some mentions of longing to be a wife and what it entailed. I would say that the content is more appropriate for older readers rather than the young, conservative reader--just because some of the things mentioned may lead to questions.
I can't say that I fully agreed with the stand that the main character took. It was fascinating to read, her motives were very believable, but I tend to think that the Civil War was more than just rooted in slavery and the confederates' desire for states' rights more than just the right to own slaves, but that is my personal opinion. It's just that reading this book presents the idea that slavery was THE issue of the Civil War...
The spiritual content--seriously, best for last. I was highly, highly impressed! God and His Word was sprinkled throughout the entire book!! There were some amazing, strong Christian characters and they knew God's Word and used God's Word. This was, beyond any doubt, a Christian book. I found it spiritually edifying. I especially liked Eli (who wouldn't?). He was amazing and said some very thought-provoking things.
I also loved the very realistic battle with fear. The characters portrayed were VERY real with very real "flesh" and that was amazing to read.
As a writer, I found some things to wrinkle my nose at -- Austin's style was more of the "telling" where she summarized a lot of things. I prefer action as it leads the story forward a little better, but that's my critical viewpoint. ;) I didn't always feel like I was able to fully embrace Caroline. Sometimes, her raw emotion was very riveting, but other times, I had no clue how Caroline viewed something.
But yeah... as a reader I give this book an overall five star review. I recommend it for any older readers--especially those who love the Civil War.
A couple of quotes:
“Most folks won’t change their mind unless they have a change of heart first.”
“Faith don’t come in a bushel basket, Missy. It come one step at a time. Decide to trust Him for one little thing today, and before you know it, you find out He’s so trustworthy you be putting your whole life in His hands.”
February 20, 2008
I had read a Lynn Austin book a long time ago (pre-kids, anyway) and really liked it: Eve’s Daughters, it was called. A recent message-board conversation reminded me of this author and so at the next opportunity, I snatched this from the library.
Ooooh, I LOVE historical fiction! And something about well-written historical fiction like this can really keep those pages turning. It’s thicker than many of the books I’ve taken on recently, but I finished the bulk of it in one long Saturday afternoon while Nathan held down the fort and I tried to recover from a cold.
(This is another “review” that’s turning into a post about myself, of course. If you REALLY want a serious review, I hope you know to go to Amazon by now.) ;-) Okay, okay:
Candle in the Darkness is about an antebellum Southern girl who comes to despise slavery. Sometimes a zealot that needs tempering by other characters (which includes everyone from the kindhearted, Christian family slave to the Southern gentleman she falls in love with), Caroline inspires slave and freeman, abolitionist and Confederate with her unique perspective.
And that perspective is definitely valuable to us, the readers, who have only learned about slavery in books:
“Everywhere I went, it seemed that people wanted to discuss slavery, yet they talked about it as if it was an abstract concept. It wasn’t abstract to me. Slaves were real-life people with individual faces and souls. I knew some of those faces, loved some of those souls, and it broke my heart to be reminded of the truth about them — that Josiah and Tessie weren’t allowed to be man and wife; that Grady had been torn without warning from his mother’s arms; that Eli could be whipped for secretly preaching about Jesus in the pine grove or killed for knowing how to read.” (page 101)
It’s so easy to paint history over with a wide brush. I love how historical fiction can make me examine a broad concept in more detail — to think about it from the perspective of the characters. Things never quite as cut-and-dry when I do that, and I like thinking about it that way.
Ooooh, I LOVE historical fiction! And something about well-written historical fiction like this can really keep those pages turning. It’s thicker than many of the books I’ve taken on recently, but I finished the bulk of it in one long Saturday afternoon while Nathan held down the fort and I tried to recover from a cold.
(This is another “review” that’s turning into a post about myself, of course. If you REALLY want a serious review, I hope you know to go to Amazon by now.) ;-) Okay, okay:
Candle in the Darkness is about an antebellum Southern girl who comes to despise slavery. Sometimes a zealot that needs tempering by other characters (which includes everyone from the kindhearted, Christian family slave to the Southern gentleman she falls in love with), Caroline inspires slave and freeman, abolitionist and Confederate with her unique perspective.
And that perspective is definitely valuable to us, the readers, who have only learned about slavery in books:
“Everywhere I went, it seemed that people wanted to discuss slavery, yet they talked about it as if it was an abstract concept. It wasn’t abstract to me. Slaves were real-life people with individual faces and souls. I knew some of those faces, loved some of those souls, and it broke my heart to be reminded of the truth about them — that Josiah and Tessie weren’t allowed to be man and wife; that Grady had been torn without warning from his mother’s arms; that Eli could be whipped for secretly preaching about Jesus in the pine grove or killed for knowing how to read.” (page 101)
It’s so easy to paint history over with a wide brush. I love how historical fiction can make me examine a broad concept in more detail — to think about it from the perspective of the characters. Things never quite as cut-and-dry when I do that, and I like thinking about it that way.
November 2, 2021
A riveting firsthand account of life just before and during the Civil War. Fans of historical fiction should definitely give this one a read.
January 1, 2015
SUMMARY: Caroline Fletcher is caught in a nation split apart and torn between the ones she loves and a truth she can't deny. The daughter of a wealthy slave-holding family from Richmond, Virginia, Caroline Fletcher is raised to believe slavery is God-ordained and acceptable. But on awakening to its cruelty and injustice, her eyes are opened to the men and women who have cared tirelessly for her. At the same time, her father and her fiance, Charles St. John, are fighting for the Confederacy and their beloved way of life and traditions. Where does Caroline's loyalty lie? Emboldened by her passion to make a difference and her growing faith, will she risk everything she holds dear?
REVIEW: Lynn Austin is an incredible writer and makes history come alive. This novel is full of love, hate, choices, forgiveness, and Christian growth. I am particularly fascinated by the Civil War period and Ms. Austin makes the reader feel they are right there in the midst of all that is happening. The characters are real life people with all the strengths and weaknesses of every day characters. The storyline presents a varying perspective of someone from the South. Caroline finds herself torn between the state she loves and the country she honors. I am sure this was a difficult position for many southerners during that time period.
Although I loved Caroline and how she grew and changed during the novel, my favorite character was Eli. What a strong, loving, loyal, Christian friend and role model he was for Caroline. A father in many ways that her own father was not. The relationship depicted between Caroline and all 6 of her loving Negro "family" was poignant with the sweetness of her devotion to them and the sadness of what she saw happening to them and their families.
I can't wait to read others in this series and hope they live up to the standards always set by Austin's writing.
FAVORITE QUOTES: This book was filled with wonderful gems and these are just a few that caught my attention:
"That's why we struggle. Until we can pray 'Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven," we gonna have a whole lot of sleepless nights......You got to put your life in Jesus' hands. Trust that in the end, whatever happens, He still in control."
"Faith don't come in a bushel basket, Missy. It come one step at a time. Decide to trust Him for one little thing today, and before you know it, you find out He's so trustworthy you be putting your whole life in His hands."
The Bible says men got plenty of plans in his heart, but it's always the Lord's plans that win.
REVIEW: Lynn Austin is an incredible writer and makes history come alive. This novel is full of love, hate, choices, forgiveness, and Christian growth. I am particularly fascinated by the Civil War period and Ms. Austin makes the reader feel they are right there in the midst of all that is happening. The characters are real life people with all the strengths and weaknesses of every day characters. The storyline presents a varying perspective of someone from the South. Caroline finds herself torn between the state she loves and the country she honors. I am sure this was a difficult position for many southerners during that time period.
Although I loved Caroline and how she grew and changed during the novel, my favorite character was Eli. What a strong, loving, loyal, Christian friend and role model he was for Caroline. A father in many ways that her own father was not. The relationship depicted between Caroline and all 6 of her loving Negro "family" was poignant with the sweetness of her devotion to them and the sadness of what she saw happening to them and their families.
I can't wait to read others in this series and hope they live up to the standards always set by Austin's writing.
FAVORITE QUOTES: This book was filled with wonderful gems and these are just a few that caught my attention:
"That's why we struggle. Until we can pray 'Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven," we gonna have a whole lot of sleepless nights......You got to put your life in Jesus' hands. Trust that in the end, whatever happens, He still in control."
"Faith don't come in a bushel basket, Missy. It come one step at a time. Decide to trust Him for one little thing today, and before you know it, you find out He's so trustworthy you be putting your whole life in His hands."
The Bible says men got plenty of plans in his heart, but it's always the Lord's plans that win.
February 17, 2017
First time reading: {3 stars}
I've always enjoyed books set during the Civil War. This one was good, especially since Caroline helps her Northern cousin to escape from the South's prison. I found myself, though, throughout most of the book wishing Caroline would meet a different guy to marry. The one she does end up with just seems lacking. Anyway, still a worthwhile read.
Second time reading: {3 stars}
I read a hardback copy for my second reading through. Nothing beats holding a real, honest-to-goodness book between your hands!! (Is anyone a book smeller like I am???)
That being said I did still enjoy it a little more this time than the first time through. The whole spy stuff is great. And I love how the author shows the difficulty of knowing which side to take. Eli, Caroline's wonderful slave, is my favorite character. He is full of wisdom and spiritual encouragement. Love him!!
The writing style isn't my favorite. There is a lot of telling instead of showing. Also, it annoyed me a little that it wasn't until after Caroline was engaged to Mr. So-and-So that he began to talk about God and Christianity. I didn't even think he was Christian when she first met him (how they met cracked me up!! So funny :)).
This is a good perspective of a girl during Civil War, and those who love historical fiction or war books will enjoy this one!
I've always enjoyed books set during the Civil War. This one was good, especially since Caroline helps her Northern cousin to escape from the South's prison. I found myself, though, throughout most of the book wishing Caroline would meet a different guy to marry. The one she does end up with just seems lacking. Anyway, still a worthwhile read.
Second time reading: {3 stars}
I read a hardback copy for my second reading through. Nothing beats holding a real, honest-to-goodness book between your hands!! (Is anyone a book smeller like I am???)
That being said I did still enjoy it a little more this time than the first time through. The whole spy stuff is great. And I love how the author shows the difficulty of knowing which side to take. Eli, Caroline's wonderful slave, is my favorite character. He is full of wisdom and spiritual encouragement. Love him!!
The writing style isn't my favorite. There is a lot of telling instead of showing. Also, it annoyed me a little that it wasn't until after Caroline was engaged to Mr. So-and-So that he began to talk about God and Christianity. I didn't even think he was Christian when she first met him (how they met cracked me up!! So funny :)).
This is a good perspective of a girl during Civil War, and those who love historical fiction or war books will enjoy this one!
April 11, 2013
wow! awesome! whew!
this book makes the Civil War personal. written from the point of view of a real southern lady (Richmond, VA) who, though she loves her southern home and country, loves God more. the old slave, Eli, teaches her that the Bible says " slavery is wrong".
She risks losing absolutely everything to support her beliefs. this story tells WHY she did what she did.
She visits her "northern" cousin first in PA at the death of her mother, then later in a southern prison. She and Eli help him escape. She passes war secrets to the north through a fish-seller. She always treats her family's slaves with love and compassion. When her father gives her Baby Issac to be her own slave, she gives him his freedom papers immediately.
Her greatest fear is that she would lose Charles's love. His family, her swing circle friends, and all her neighbors cannot understand why she did what she did. But after reading her confession - written on wallpaper torn from the front hall - and hearing Josiah's words. . . . well, that scene with Josiah and Charles at the ruins of his flour mill is my favorite.
I look forward to reading more in this series.
this book makes the Civil War personal. written from the point of view of a real southern lady (Richmond, VA) who, though she loves her southern home and country, loves God more. the old slave, Eli, teaches her that the Bible says " slavery is wrong".
She risks losing absolutely everything to support her beliefs. this story tells WHY she did what she did.
She visits her "northern" cousin first in PA at the death of her mother, then later in a southern prison. She and Eli help him escape. She passes war secrets to the north through a fish-seller. She always treats her family's slaves with love and compassion. When her father gives her Baby Issac to be her own slave, she gives him his freedom papers immediately.
Her greatest fear is that she would lose Charles's love. His family, her swing circle friends, and all her neighbors cannot understand why she did what she did. But after reading her confession - written on wallpaper torn from the front hall - and hearing Josiah's words. . . . well, that scene with Josiah and Charles at the ruins of his flour mill is my favorite.
I look forward to reading more in this series.
October 7, 2019
(How do I explain this...?)
*cough cough*
Let's just begin with - well, really cliche books are NOT my strong point. An-And I don't really like Christian romance as a genre. At all.
http://memecrunch.com/meme/G3W6/legol...
So cute MC walks down the street like, 'yo I'm an abolitionist', and then hot guy turns up out of the blue, completely bumps into her, knocks her stuff off into the street, helps her pick it up, ends up falling in love (even though he totally disagrees with her views)...you get the picture.
So yeah. I didn't love this book.
*cough cough*
Let's just begin with - well, really cliche books are NOT my strong point. An-And I don't really like Christian romance as a genre. At all.
http://memecrunch.com/meme/G3W6/legol...
So cute MC walks down the street like, 'yo I'm an abolitionist', and then hot guy turns up out of the blue, completely bumps into her, knocks her stuff off into the street, helps her pick it up, ends up falling in love (even though he totally disagrees with her views)...you get the picture.
So yeah. I didn't love this book.
October 12, 2011
Lynn Austin is becoming one of my favorite authors. Her books are well-written, her settings and characters are full of interesting historical details, and her plots are driven by actual events and legitimately difficult struggles by her characters. She has all the things I love about the Christian romance genre - an uplifting lack of violence and salacious sex scenes (It's not so much that I'm a prude as that they're excessively difficult to write well and generally end up just being embarrassing to read.), a bit of romantic tension, and a feel-good happy ending. She includes none of the things I hate about Christian romance - trite, ridiculously improbably back stories, inane dialogue, and a plot driven by stupid, willful misunderstandings between the main characters for the sole purpose of prolonging the book.
Enough about Lynn Austin generally and more about Candle in the Darkness specifically: I really enjoyed this book. I've read a lot of books about the Civil War, but there aren't many that are so sympathetic to the Confederate cause and give such good insight into the myriad reasons people fought for the South. The details about the hardships suffered by the residents of Richmond was really interesting, as were the details about how those hardships were managed/overcome. None of the characters were nearly as well-developed as Caroline, but I didn't feel that really detracted from the story as most of the book was written from her perspective anyway. On the whole it was a great book, and I'll be adding more of the author's books to my to-read list.
Enough about Lynn Austin generally and more about Candle in the Darkness specifically: I really enjoyed this book. I've read a lot of books about the Civil War, but there aren't many that are so sympathetic to the Confederate cause and give such good insight into the myriad reasons people fought for the South. The details about the hardships suffered by the residents of Richmond was really interesting, as were the details about how those hardships were managed/overcome. None of the characters were nearly as well-developed as Caroline, but I didn't feel that really detracted from the story as most of the book was written from her perspective anyway. On the whole it was a great book, and I'll be adding more of the author's books to my to-read list.
January 24, 2014
I love historical romances, especially ones that center around the Civil War or one of the World Wars. At first, I really enjoyed this story but as it went one, I found myself disliking Caroline. She helped the North under the guise of being against slavery yet, she lamented the entire time that she just wanted to do whatever it took to end the war so her fiancé could come home. She struck me at times as completely self-centered and somewhat of a spoiled brat. She wanted her slaves freed but didn't want them to leave her. She didn't want Charles in the war so she continually betrayed him to the North hoping it would expedite his trip home. Even after she countlessly delivered information to the North, only to have the South lose, she acted so shocked...time after time after time. And each time, she whined about how Charles was never coming home and she'd never get married...so much so that she finally figures she'll just marry someone else.
The details about the war are rich but Caroline falls flat as a character. I'd much rather read the story from Charles or Jonathan's viewpoint. I have a feeling it'd be easier to swallow.
The details about the war are rich but Caroline falls flat as a character. I'd much rather read the story from Charles or Jonathan's viewpoint. I have a feeling it'd be easier to swallow.
February 13, 2015
Revised rating upward: I just downloaded Uncle Tom's Cabin and several books by Frederick Douglass and I ordered Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution 1863-1877, all of which means that Candle in the Darkness had more of an impact on me than I first thought. So...bumping the rating up to 4 Stars.
A very readable, clean romance ideal for Christian teens or possibly younger audiences. Good introduction to the Civil War and life in the South, including thoughtful portrayals of slave life.As my new priority reads demonstrate, it's got me thinking and looking to do more serious reading about slavery, the Civil War, and the Reconstruction.
On the downside, I found the plot a bit improbable, the characters somewhat flat and there were some dangling loose threads left at the end, but it still kept me turning the pages.
A very readable, clean romance ideal for Christian teens or possibly younger audiences. Good introduction to the Civil War and life in the South, including thoughtful portrayals of slave life.As my new priority reads demonstrate, it's got me thinking and looking to do more serious reading about slavery, the Civil War, and the Reconstruction.
On the downside, I found the plot a bit improbable, the characters somewhat flat and there were some dangling loose threads left at the end, but it still kept me turning the pages.
August 13, 2016
Another great read by Lynn Austin! I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters were well developed and the story flowed seamlessly. If I had to find a flaw, it would be that the ending seemed too short. I know this is the first book in the Refiner's Fire series; but, since the others are from different people's perspectives, I'm not sure much, if anything, will be said about this book's main characters. An epilogue would have been great. That said, I still loved this book and highly recommend it!
June 10, 2025
“Not my will, but Yours be done.” 🙏
I stand corrected. Wendy was right. This book. The faith of the slaves and the bravery of Caroline to stand up for her convictions was what did it for me. Also, Eli has my whole heart. He’s right up there with Mrs. Kip for top favorite characters of all time. 🥺❤️
I stand corrected. Wendy was right. This book. The faith of the slaves and the bravery of Caroline to stand up for her convictions was what did it for me. Also, Eli has my whole heart. He’s right up there with Mrs. Kip for top favorite characters of all time. 🥺❤️
August 18, 2014
Torn between the loyalty she feels necessary towards her family and the force of the feelings in her heart, Caroline Fletcher finds herself in a very distressing situation after the Civil War outbreak. She knows she must protect her loved ones, but is she ready to sacrifice herself and lose her chance of happiness in order to do that?
“We have been fighting for six long days. When I close my eyes at night it’s very difficult to erase the horrifying sights and sounds from my mind. And so I curl beneath my blanket on the hard ground and dream of the day when you will lie in my arms at night. I study your picture before every engagement so that your face is the last thing I see before the enemy charges. I carry it in my breast pocket, above my heart...”
After reading this letter, I knew I had to include it to my review because it contains everything you need to understand this book. Pain, hope and true love. A man writes to his beloved woman to find peace during a dreadful time, she is his only hope to survive, only to think about her give him the strength not to die. And that woman, Caroline Fletcher, is someone worth living for.
While her fiancé is fighting in the Confederate Army, she risks her own life to protect her loved ones, her father’s slaves, who raised her and never abandoned her. Caroline, a southern girl, chooses to help the Union, to be on the North side to abolish slavery, while all her family and friends fight against her beliefs. She chooses to follow God’s will and not her wishes, because throughout the war she sees there is nothing more worthy than to do anything she can to save people, no matter what. Her happiness is not her first concern and that makes her a wonderful heroine.
I had never read a book as heartbreaking as this one, I do not mean that in a negative way, though. I felt this book was almost perfect. I loved all the historical details (they helped me a lot since I was not familiar with the Civil War, I just knew something from my high school years), I loved what Caroline did to help those whom she considered part of her family, she proved to be brave and determined in a time period where many people thought just about themselves. But at the end of the book I felt as if something was missing. I would have loved to see what happened to some characters and, most of all, I wanted Caroline to know all the truth about her father. There are some things from his past that she had to know, in my opinion. Probably the ending would have been the same, had she known everything, but I prefer it when books end with a complete explanation even when they are part of a series. I still have to read the other books in the “Refiner’s Fire” series, however, so hopefully I will know something more in the future!
I would recommend this book to whoever wants to read a beautiful story about courage and determination, about a woman who chooses to be different in a country which risks a complete destruction. “Candle in the Darkness” is undoubtedly a great novel worth your time!
“We have been fighting for six long days. When I close my eyes at night it’s very difficult to erase the horrifying sights and sounds from my mind. And so I curl beneath my blanket on the hard ground and dream of the day when you will lie in my arms at night. I study your picture before every engagement so that your face is the last thing I see before the enemy charges. I carry it in my breast pocket, above my heart...”
After reading this letter, I knew I had to include it to my review because it contains everything you need to understand this book. Pain, hope and true love. A man writes to his beloved woman to find peace during a dreadful time, she is his only hope to survive, only to think about her give him the strength not to die. And that woman, Caroline Fletcher, is someone worth living for.
While her fiancé is fighting in the Confederate Army, she risks her own life to protect her loved ones, her father’s slaves, who raised her and never abandoned her. Caroline, a southern girl, chooses to help the Union, to be on the North side to abolish slavery, while all her family and friends fight against her beliefs. She chooses to follow God’s will and not her wishes, because throughout the war she sees there is nothing more worthy than to do anything she can to save people, no matter what. Her happiness is not her first concern and that makes her a wonderful heroine.
I had never read a book as heartbreaking as this one, I do not mean that in a negative way, though. I felt this book was almost perfect. I loved all the historical details (they helped me a lot since I was not familiar with the Civil War, I just knew something from my high school years), I loved what Caroline did to help those whom she considered part of her family, she proved to be brave and determined in a time period where many people thought just about themselves. But at the end of the book I felt as if something was missing. I would have loved to see what happened to some characters and, most of all, I wanted Caroline to know all the truth about her father. There are some things from his past that she had to know, in my opinion. Probably the ending would have been the same, had she known everything, but I prefer it when books end with a complete explanation even when they are part of a series. I still have to read the other books in the “Refiner’s Fire” series, however, so hopefully I will know something more in the future!
I would recommend this book to whoever wants to read a beautiful story about courage and determination, about a woman who chooses to be different in a country which risks a complete destruction. “Candle in the Darkness” is undoubtedly a great novel worth your time!
June 24, 2013
A Candle in the Darkness by Lynn Austin is a well-developed, engaging story of a girl’s personal walk through the most dramatic and horrifically defining times in American history. With sensitivity, Ms. Austin gives voice to the often explosive feelings behind both sides of the Civil War, while leaving the reader empathizing with the individuals and the hard choices they are called upon to make.
We are introduced to Caroline Fletcher, the daughter of a Southern,slave-owning, plantation baron. She is awakened to the injustices of the “institution” of slavery at a young age. Growing up as the only child of a manic-depressive mother and work absorbed father, Caroline not only befriends the slaves on her plantation, but loves them as her own family. Seeing them as people and not property becomes the heart-cry of “Missy Caroline” as she matures into womanhood and moves North to further her education. Upon hearing Abolitionist speakers, she becomes more convinced than ever that her “mission” is to return to Virginia and help emmancipate the slaves. Her immediate efforts are quickly thwarted by the very frustrating, very “Southern” and very handsome “Massa Charles” – the son of one of the richest men in town. Her subsequent relationship with this man, despite their opposing views of slavery, carry the story all the way through the Civil War. Charles, fighting as a “Southerner and a Gentleman” for the Confederacy, and Caroline torn between her love for Charles and doing all in her power to help her beloved family of slaves.
Ms. Austin’s well-researched, almost play-by-play (or battle-by-battle), account of the Civil War brings to life the daily drama of those living during that awful time when loyalties could be, and often times were, so painfully divided. As one by one of Caroline’s friends are directly affected by the ravages of the War, she finds great comfort in her “family” consisting of five slaves. When forced into a postion of seeming betrayal to her country, Caroline’s love for God and these dear people give her the courage to do what is right – even at a staggering cost to herself.
The picture painted by this book is very personal. We see intimately the initial grandeur of the Southern plantationist’s lifestyle and the ultimate demise of that same way of life. Ms. Austin enables the reader to keenly feel the effects of the Great Conflict on every level of the human experience – emotionally, spiritually, mentally and physically. A compelling depiction of a most tragic time in our great history.
We are introduced to Caroline Fletcher, the daughter of a Southern,slave-owning, plantation baron. She is awakened to the injustices of the “institution” of slavery at a young age. Growing up as the only child of a manic-depressive mother and work absorbed father, Caroline not only befriends the slaves on her plantation, but loves them as her own family. Seeing them as people and not property becomes the heart-cry of “Missy Caroline” as she matures into womanhood and moves North to further her education. Upon hearing Abolitionist speakers, she becomes more convinced than ever that her “mission” is to return to Virginia and help emmancipate the slaves. Her immediate efforts are quickly thwarted by the very frustrating, very “Southern” and very handsome “Massa Charles” – the son of one of the richest men in town. Her subsequent relationship with this man, despite their opposing views of slavery, carry the story all the way through the Civil War. Charles, fighting as a “Southerner and a Gentleman” for the Confederacy, and Caroline torn between her love for Charles and doing all in her power to help her beloved family of slaves.
Ms. Austin’s well-researched, almost play-by-play (or battle-by-battle), account of the Civil War brings to life the daily drama of those living during that awful time when loyalties could be, and often times were, so painfully divided. As one by one of Caroline’s friends are directly affected by the ravages of the War, she finds great comfort in her “family” consisting of five slaves. When forced into a postion of seeming betrayal to her country, Caroline’s love for God and these dear people give her the courage to do what is right – even at a staggering cost to herself.
The picture painted by this book is very personal. We see intimately the initial grandeur of the Southern plantationist’s lifestyle and the ultimate demise of that same way of life. Ms. Austin enables the reader to keenly feel the effects of the Great Conflict on every level of the human experience – emotionally, spiritually, mentally and physically. A compelling depiction of a most tragic time in our great history.
May 21, 2008
The first book in this trilogy about the Civil War is definitely the weakest. It follows a daughter of the South who struggles to fight against slavery, having learned from her Christian faith to realize that racism is wrong. This could be the setup for an interesting story, as she is torn between her own family and loved ones fighting for the South, and her convictions. But instead, the story stays watery and bland, never gripping the emotions. Caroline, the heroine, seems like a cardboard prop -- she doesn't have enough personality to be very sympathetic and all the things that happen to her fail to move the emotions. Her slaves seem like caricatures, unfortunately, especially the wise, patient, and faithful Eli, who has no apparent flaws and does not in fact appear to be human at all.
The romance also annoyed me because of the fact that it seems to endorse the idea of "soulmates" plus a slight edge of missionary dating, as Charles is finally converted to anti-slavery by Caroline's beauty and faith. Hmmph. I thought Robert a much worthier candidate for Caroline's affections, but because of the whole soulmates thing he never gets a real chance.
This is still much better written than most Christian romance fiction, although there are some historical inaccuracies. However, I'd still recommend skipping this first novel and reading the second two of the series, which have a lot more depth.
The romance also annoyed me because of the fact that it seems to endorse the idea of "soulmates" plus a slight edge of missionary dating, as Charles is finally converted to anti-slavery by Caroline's beauty and faith. Hmmph. I thought Robert a much worthier candidate for Caroline's affections, but because of the whole soulmates thing he never gets a real chance.
This is still much better written than most Christian romance fiction, although there are some historical inaccuracies. However, I'd still recommend skipping this first novel and reading the second two of the series, which have a lot more depth.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 26, 2023
Seeing as I wrote a Civil War Christian fiction book, it seemed about time to finally read one of the reigning books in the genre.
To be honest, I started it once before and couldn't get into it. American chattel slavery was traumatic to the human race as a whole, and as a human person, I can only take reading so many stories about it. Other cons for this book are the storyline I feel like I've read a dozen times already, highlighting the "one secret abolitionist in the South" fiction trope - and a wealthy belle in Richmond, no less. Been there, read that. Also as a Civil War historian myself, I wanted to yawn when I realized the book was pretty much a day by day report on the war. That's great if you don't know much about the war and want to imagine what everyday life was like during it. But it just made the book long and dragging. The ending then wrapped up with the snap of the fingers and didn't have the full reconciliation you wanted to see after all the reader's been through. Lastly, there just weren't many surprises in the plot.
The pros were: the first person account was well written; a thorough imagining of life during the war for those who are interested; a very solid Christian thread throughout; and a theological exploration of the philosophies behind the war.
My favorite scene was when the main Black characters all gave Caroline their "surprise" - that was the most powerful scene in the book.
To be honest, I started it once before and couldn't get into it. American chattel slavery was traumatic to the human race as a whole, and as a human person, I can only take reading so many stories about it. Other cons for this book are the storyline I feel like I've read a dozen times already, highlighting the "one secret abolitionist in the South" fiction trope - and a wealthy belle in Richmond, no less. Been there, read that. Also as a Civil War historian myself, I wanted to yawn when I realized the book was pretty much a day by day report on the war. That's great if you don't know much about the war and want to imagine what everyday life was like during it. But it just made the book long and dragging. The ending then wrapped up with the snap of the fingers and didn't have the full reconciliation you wanted to see after all the reader's been through. Lastly, there just weren't many surprises in the plot.
The pros were: the first person account was well written; a thorough imagining of life during the war for those who are interested; a very solid Christian thread throughout; and a theological exploration of the philosophies behind the war.
My favorite scene was when the main Black characters all gave Caroline their "surprise" - that was the most powerful scene in the book.
September 20, 2021
I have no idea how to describe this book
I learned about God, I learned what is obedience and what it costs us sometimes.. Truly obeying God and loving Him more that you love the ppl you have in your life.. can you obey God if it means you can loose your lover/fiance ..how do you trust Him with that.. How do you show up
Truly staying yourself.. standing up for what you believe and loving God more than anything..
I learned so much from this book. I mean we all study in Bible and know we should do it. But in real life how to show up .. this book excatly did it to me
Never ever Will God waste your efforts.. He loves you and has the best for you.. even if you don't know how you will do .. He is there for you!!
His faithfulness is eternal!!!
God will give you nothing but the best , even in suffering you will have Him.. His peace to guard you
He Loves us
This was such good book guys.. I've read it a while back but I'm writing a review now cause I couldn't get myself to words to write it.. having convicted about how I'm living.
I learned about God, I learned what is obedience and what it costs us sometimes.. Truly obeying God and loving Him more that you love the ppl you have in your life.. can you obey God if it means you can loose your lover/fiance ..how do you trust Him with that.. How do you show up
Truly staying yourself.. standing up for what you believe and loving God more than anything..
I learned so much from this book. I mean we all study in Bible and know we should do it. But in real life how to show up .. this book excatly did it to me
Never ever Will God waste your efforts.. He loves you and has the best for you.. even if you don't know how you will do .. He is there for you!!
His faithfulness is eternal!!!
God will give you nothing but the best , even in suffering you will have Him.. His peace to guard you
He Loves us
This was such good book guys.. I've read it a while back but I'm writing a review now cause I couldn't get myself to words to write it.. having convicted about how I'm living.
April 29, 2023
Loved this richly faith based story of a young woman who has grown up with slaves, but believes in her heart that God does not approve of any man being treated less than another. She literally risks everything for beliefs, and her courage is remarkable. Through the main character and other characters, different viewpoints that were held about slavery at that time are offered, and the layers of heart issues underneath it all for both sides are explored.
Although I don't at all care for books that give historical details about battles and don't care for battle scenes, I do like books that are heavily faith based, and this is one. It was woven into the fabric of the story so beautifully! The last couple of chapters that focused on forgiveness was so well written! Insert the crying emojis here!
I also loved the characters. Especially Eli! Definitely recommend this book if you enjoy Civil War books or need a book that offers perspectives from both sides of the Civil War.
Although I don't at all care for books that give historical details about battles and don't care for battle scenes, I do like books that are heavily faith based, and this is one. It was woven into the fabric of the story so beautifully! The last couple of chapters that focused on forgiveness was so well written! Insert the crying emojis here!
I also loved the characters. Especially Eli! Definitely recommend this book if you enjoy Civil War books or need a book that offers perspectives from both sides of the Civil War.
February 9, 2018
I read Candle in the Darkness over a year ago yet vividly remember how it touched my heart. I immediately passed it on to my sister-in-law who asked if I had a good book for her to read. The main character, Caroline, raised in the South to believe slavery was a basic part of life is challenged in her long held belief. This may be one of the best stories of that time period revealing the depth of deception people had towards ownership of slaves. I don't want to spoil the book for you. I would encourage to read Candle in the Darkness. You will be moved!
February 21, 2017
This book of historical fiction was amazing. The depth and storyline was just so realistic. I don't remember a lot of details because it has been a while since I read it, but I remember liking it a lot, but feeling that it was pretty long.
I don't remember if there was any content.
I don't remember if there was any content.
February 28, 2016
Buddy read with Aery :D
May 14, 2024
This book was so good I can’t even put it into words! The horrors of the civil war were described in such a realistic way, it broke my heart. But woven throughout it all was so much hope and faith. Caroline learned so much about trusting God’s will over her own. It was truly the only way she could have peace in the middle of a war. I felt liked I learned right along with her.
And the characters, all of them, SO well done! They were amazing.
Sooo so good!!
And the characters, all of them, SO well done! They were amazing.
Sooo so good!!
March 24, 2012
Story Description:
Book 1 in the Refiner's Fire series. The daughter of a wealthy slave-holding family from Richmond, Virginia, Caroline Fletcher is raised in a culture that believes slavery is God-ordained and biblically acceptable. But upon awakening to the cruelty and injustice it encompasses, Caroline's eyes are opened for the first time to the men and women who have cared tirelessly for her. Her journey of maturity and faith will draw her into the abolitionist movement, where she is confronted with the risks and sacrifices her beliefs entail.
My Review:
Twelve-year-old Caroline Fletcher awoke to ear piercing screams. It was her Negro Mammy, Tessie screaming and begging someone not to send her nine-year-old son, Grady away. Regardless of her pleas the group of men threw the boy into the back of a truck with other Negros of all ages. Little Grady was being taken to an auction to be sold at the request of Caroline’s father. She was heartbroken as Grady had been her playmate and friend since the time of his birth. Caroline’s father believed that slavery was biblically acceptable.
At age sixteen, Caroline lost her mother after she gave birth to a blue baby. She’d lost her mother and playmate in four short years but she had Tessie, Eli, Ruby, Luella, Eli, Gilbert and the other slaves her father owned. Caroline never viewed nor thought of them as slaves or possessions but as people and family that she loved dearly and they loved her in return. She hated the fact that her father only saw them as something he “owned” to do with them as he pleased. Caroline wished in every way possible that they could be set free. After visiting extended family in Hilltop, Virginia and seeing “slave row”, the more Caroline strongly believed slavery was wrong and became a firm believer in the abolitionist movement.
Caroline then began distributing abolitionist pamphlets and bumped into a handsome man, but when she attempted to give him one he told her it was against the law. She later ran into the same man at a social gathering and they argued about slavery but didn’t even know each other’s name. Caroline later learned this handsome man’s name was Charles and they began to feel much fonder toward one another however, Charles did not at all believe in the abolitionist movement and didn’t agree that slaves should be freed. By the time the Civil War began on April 12, 1861, Caroline and Charles were engaged to be married.
Caroline’s closeness to Eli (one of her father’s slaves), was such a touching addition to the novel. She very often turned to Eli in confidence about her feelings and concerns about everything happening in her life and her worries about Charles fighting in the war. Gentle Eli tenderly guided Caroline with his godly wisdom, his understanding of scripture from the Bible and affectionately imparted his wisdom and clarified what exactly those scriptures meant in Caroline’s life.
One day Caroline received word that her cousin and friend, Robert Hoffman was being held in Libby Prison. She began to visit him, taking food and newspapers so he could read what was going on with the war. Robert and Charles were fighting on opposite sides and Robert eventually asked Caroline to ultimately become a spy for his side. How is Caroline going to decide what to do? How can she betray her father, her family, and her soon-to-be husband, Charles? If she decides to help Robert and is caught, she would be arrested and most likely hung. However, Caroline also realized that no matter what she decided, someone would eventually pay the ultimate price.
I was deeply touched and impressed with this story. Austin’s writing is phenomenal! Although written as a work of fiction, the depictions of the Civil War were so accurate that it could have passed as non-fiction. This was a wonderful book about deep faith, selflessness, forgiveness, courage, and strength during a time that was littered with hatred, injustice, bitterness, hostility, and prejudice.
CANDLE IN THE DARKNESS is a novel that you won’t be able to put down until you’ve turned the last page. I can hardly wait to read book #2 titled Fire By Night.
Book 1 in the Refiner's Fire series. The daughter of a wealthy slave-holding family from Richmond, Virginia, Caroline Fletcher is raised in a culture that believes slavery is God-ordained and biblically acceptable. But upon awakening to the cruelty and injustice it encompasses, Caroline's eyes are opened for the first time to the men and women who have cared tirelessly for her. Her journey of maturity and faith will draw her into the abolitionist movement, where she is confronted with the risks and sacrifices her beliefs entail.
My Review:
Twelve-year-old Caroline Fletcher awoke to ear piercing screams. It was her Negro Mammy, Tessie screaming and begging someone not to send her nine-year-old son, Grady away. Regardless of her pleas the group of men threw the boy into the back of a truck with other Negros of all ages. Little Grady was being taken to an auction to be sold at the request of Caroline’s father. She was heartbroken as Grady had been her playmate and friend since the time of his birth. Caroline’s father believed that slavery was biblically acceptable.
At age sixteen, Caroline lost her mother after she gave birth to a blue baby. She’d lost her mother and playmate in four short years but she had Tessie, Eli, Ruby, Luella, Eli, Gilbert and the other slaves her father owned. Caroline never viewed nor thought of them as slaves or possessions but as people and family that she loved dearly and they loved her in return. She hated the fact that her father only saw them as something he “owned” to do with them as he pleased. Caroline wished in every way possible that they could be set free. After visiting extended family in Hilltop, Virginia and seeing “slave row”, the more Caroline strongly believed slavery was wrong and became a firm believer in the abolitionist movement.
Caroline then began distributing abolitionist pamphlets and bumped into a handsome man, but when she attempted to give him one he told her it was against the law. She later ran into the same man at a social gathering and they argued about slavery but didn’t even know each other’s name. Caroline later learned this handsome man’s name was Charles and they began to feel much fonder toward one another however, Charles did not at all believe in the abolitionist movement and didn’t agree that slaves should be freed. By the time the Civil War began on April 12, 1861, Caroline and Charles were engaged to be married.
Caroline’s closeness to Eli (one of her father’s slaves), was such a touching addition to the novel. She very often turned to Eli in confidence about her feelings and concerns about everything happening in her life and her worries about Charles fighting in the war. Gentle Eli tenderly guided Caroline with his godly wisdom, his understanding of scripture from the Bible and affectionately imparted his wisdom and clarified what exactly those scriptures meant in Caroline’s life.
One day Caroline received word that her cousin and friend, Robert Hoffman was being held in Libby Prison. She began to visit him, taking food and newspapers so he could read what was going on with the war. Robert and Charles were fighting on opposite sides and Robert eventually asked Caroline to ultimately become a spy for his side. How is Caroline going to decide what to do? How can she betray her father, her family, and her soon-to-be husband, Charles? If she decides to help Robert and is caught, she would be arrested and most likely hung. However, Caroline also realized that no matter what she decided, someone would eventually pay the ultimate price.
I was deeply touched and impressed with this story. Austin’s writing is phenomenal! Although written as a work of fiction, the depictions of the Civil War were so accurate that it could have passed as non-fiction. This was a wonderful book about deep faith, selflessness, forgiveness, courage, and strength during a time that was littered with hatred, injustice, bitterness, hostility, and prejudice.
CANDLE IN THE DARKNESS is a novel that you won’t be able to put down until you’ve turned the last page. I can hardly wait to read book #2 titled Fire By Night.
August 4, 2016
4.5 stars
What an incredible story! It drew me in from the beginning and I couldn’t put it down.
Caroline was the daughter of a wealthy, slave-owning family from Richmond, Virginia. She grew to see slavery for what it was - cruel and unjust - as she watched how those around her were treated despite how tirelessly they cared for her and her family. Her passion to bring freedom to slaves grew stronger as she matured and led to her becoming involved in the abolition movement where she was forced to confront the risks as well as sacrifices her beliefs held.
There is so much to this story, so much detail that can’t be shared here because it would be giving away the storyline. There were soooo many things to love about this book, including:
-Caroline – she was a strong heroine and she had incredible faith and courage to do what she believed was the right thing to do despite popular opinion of those around her, including her family. At times I wanted her to play it more safe because I feared for her future…which goes to show that she is much more brave than I would be!
- Caroline and Charles’ romance – oh my word. They didn’t start off on the right foot to say the least but their differences ultimately drew them together in a wonderful way!!!
-The relationship Caroline had with her slaves, ESPECIALLY Tessie and Eli! I loved these characters!!! They were family to her and they were totally devoted and loyal to her.
I love historical fiction and this was a great story that took place pre-Civil War to its conclusion. This was a story that gave me some new insights to consider about the war… which is always a win.
My one criticism about the book is that the author often misuses scripture by taking it out of context.
I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series! It will be hard to match up with this story so we'll see!
What an incredible story! It drew me in from the beginning and I couldn’t put it down.
Caroline was the daughter of a wealthy, slave-owning family from Richmond, Virginia. She grew to see slavery for what it was - cruel and unjust - as she watched how those around her were treated despite how tirelessly they cared for her and her family. Her passion to bring freedom to slaves grew stronger as she matured and led to her becoming involved in the abolition movement where she was forced to confront the risks as well as sacrifices her beliefs held.
There is so much to this story, so much detail that can’t be shared here because it would be giving away the storyline. There were soooo many things to love about this book, including:
-Caroline – she was a strong heroine and she had incredible faith and courage to do what she believed was the right thing to do despite popular opinion of those around her, including her family. At times I wanted her to play it more safe because I feared for her future…which goes to show that she is much more brave than I would be!
- Caroline and Charles’ romance – oh my word. They didn’t start off on the right foot to say the least but their differences ultimately drew them together in a wonderful way!!!
-The relationship Caroline had with her slaves, ESPECIALLY Tessie and Eli! I loved these characters!!! They were family to her and they were totally devoted and loyal to her.
I love historical fiction and this was a great story that took place pre-Civil War to its conclusion. This was a story that gave me some new insights to consider about the war… which is always a win.
My one criticism about the book is that the author often misuses scripture by taking it out of context.
I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series! It will be hard to match up with this story so we'll see!
August 4, 2016
Update 2/28/16: Just finished my 5th time through this book and I can honestly say I enjoyed it just as much, if not more, this time through! I'm quite sure I'll be reading it again in the future. :)
I just finished reading this book for the 4th time. Is it possible that it gets better every time I read it? I loved it every time & actually can't wait to read it again! :) This is my favorite series by Lynn Austin and possibly my favorite series of all! I highly recommend these books to all my book-loving friends, especially the ones who like to read about history-- the American Civil War, in particular.
This book really made me look at the American Civil War differently than I ever had before. It made me consider the Confederate side of things more. It also helped me to better understand the importance of trying to see both sides of a situation before judging someone's stand on an issue or response/reaction to a situation. Caroline was in a really tight spot during the war. She had some really hard, important decisions to make. Some people would immediately judge her decisions according to their biased opinions. She truly struggled to make those decisions and to live with the way others treated her because of them. I enjoyed reading about how she felt and what she did to get through those struggles. I'm sorry to say I don't know that I would have had the character it took to do what she did.
Honestly, it would take way too long to tell everything I like about this book. I can go on, and on, AND ON about it! Suffice it to say that I LOVE this book and hope that all my friends enjoy it too! :)
I just finished reading this book for the 4th time. Is it possible that it gets better every time I read it? I loved it every time & actually can't wait to read it again! :) This is my favorite series by Lynn Austin and possibly my favorite series of all! I highly recommend these books to all my book-loving friends, especially the ones who like to read about history-- the American Civil War, in particular.
This book really made me look at the American Civil War differently than I ever had before. It made me consider the Confederate side of things more. It also helped me to better understand the importance of trying to see both sides of a situation before judging someone's stand on an issue or response/reaction to a situation. Caroline was in a really tight spot during the war. She had some really hard, important decisions to make. Some people would immediately judge her decisions according to their biased opinions. She truly struggled to make those decisions and to live with the way others treated her because of them. I enjoyed reading about how she felt and what she did to get through those struggles. I'm sorry to say I don't know that I would have had the character it took to do what she did.
Honestly, it would take way too long to tell everything I like about this book. I can go on, and on, AND ON about it! Suffice it to say that I LOVE this book and hope that all my friends enjoy it too! :)
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