I was provided a complimentary copy of this book by Bethany House, NetGalley. I was not compensated for this review and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own. I was not required to write a positive review.
A Refuge Assured by Jocelyn Green Published by Baker Publishing Group on February 6th 2018
Genres: Christian, Fiction, Historical, Religious
Pages: 416
Source: Bethany House, NetGalley
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Lacemaker Vivienne Rivard never imagined her craft could threaten her life. Yet in revolutionary France, it is a death sentence when the nobility, and those associated with them, are forced to the guillotine. Vivienne flees to Philadelphia but finds the same dangers lurking in the French Quarter, as revolutionary sympathizers threaten the life of a young boy left in her care, who some suspect to be the Dauphin. Can the French settlement, Azilum, offer permanent refuge?
Militiaman Liam Delaney proudly served in the American Revolution, but now that the new government has imposed an oppressive tax that impacts his family, he barely recognizes the democracy he fought for. He wants only to cultivate the land of his hard-won farm near Azilum, but soon finds himself drawn into the escalating tension of the Whiskey Rebellion. When he meets a beautiful young Frenchwoman recently arrived from Paris, they will be drawn together in surprising ways to fight for the peace and safety for which they long.
You know that moment when you finish a book and you know that what it spoke to you is not what it did not probably any other reader. Ever. Oh, that doesn’t happen to you? Well, perhaps I’m just weird but from random time to time it happens to me. When I sat down to read ‘A Refuge Assured’ I was expecting an interesting historical romance with a touch of intrigue or even a bit of action-type stuff. I mean, it’s the second book about a French lacemaker set around the time of the American Revolution I’ve read this year. There was the twist of the child who may or may not be the smuggled out future King of France during their revolution. I figured that would bring about that intrigue and actionish stuff. I mean I totally got that book. But that’s not what I took away from the book.
Everywhere you go there is greed and envy. No matter what time period of life you look at or what geographical location or even race and creed of people you study; greed and envy. Greed and envy breeds hate. And when a group of people band together in their hate even the innocents are not safe. Any time something is undertaken due to greed or envy then nothing is sacred. Hate brings hate. Individuals may not hate the same things or even for the same reasons but hate is contagious. Hate breeds hate. This book was written, ultimately, because of hate. When people band together through shared hate innocent people stand to lose everything, including their lives, because of it. Hate has no reasoning skills, hate has no rationale, hate fuels itself through added hate. A young woman, Vivienne, sneaks out of France, not with a title or as nobility, but because she is a lacemaker. She is not the object of their hate but an innocent who is running for her life. A child, Henri, who has not yet had time to make enemies of his own or make mistakes to fuel others aggression toward him, but his life is in danger because of who they think he might be. Not who he is but by the thought that he could be the future king of France.
This book gave me amazing characters set with a well-researched backdrop of the French Revolution set in America just after their successful fight for freedom. I see the parallels between the rationale of the separate revolutions and it’s hard to understand how to take sides. I’m sure people felt the same way even then. I promise this book is not about greed and envy and hate. That is just the wonky way my mind worked as I read this book. Well told with strong characters and a strong story-line this book is pretty amazing. I’d highly recommend it for anyone who enjoys a light historical romance. While it is Christian fiction it is subtly woven into the threads of the story and enhances it overall instead of detracts (which is a pet peeve of mine!).
About Jocelyn Green
Jocelyn Green inspires faith and courage as the award-winning and bestselling author of numerous fiction and nonfiction books, including The Mark of the King; Wedded to War; and The 5 Love Languages Military Edition, which she coauthored with bestselling author Dr. Gary Chapman. Her books have garnered starred reviews from Booklist and Publishers Weekly, and have been honored with the Christy Award, the gold medal from the Military Writers Society of America, and the Golden Scroll Award from the Advanced Writers & Speakers Association. She graduated from Taylor University in Upland, Indiana, with a B.A. in English, concentration in writing. She loves Mexican food, Broadway musicals, Toblerone chocolate bars, the color red, and reading on her patio. Jocelyn lives with her husband Rob and two children in Cedar Falls, Iowa
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