Blue Moon
By the Light of the Moon Series: Book 2
by Jenny Knipfer
This purported to be Christian fiction, so I was intrigued. It is a challenge, to be creative and also spiritual. There are Bible quotes, which was good. The tale started with an unwed girl forced to give her baby to her sister – would it explore what the Bible might say about forced adoption? The first thing represented was a lie: the passing of the child off as belonging to her sister. And all for the sake of the family patriarch’s political career. Exodus 20:16 forbids false witness. The story then explores the consequences, which are difficult to undo.
The tale jumps around a lot, and I know that works in big blockbusters, but it is a challenge to pull off. A straightforward narrative can be more compelling. At some point, this becomes a straight historical novel. Perhaps my expectation of the label ‘Christian fiction’ was unrealistic, but I think it would be better marketed as ‘historical’. As it is set in an era when Christian beliefs were more common, the few references would fit in quite well.
The authors’ bio shows that she writes from personal experience of Multiple Sclerosis, so she should know well what she is representing. However, I find the confidence with which she uses the term MS incongruous for the Nineteenth Century. The character suffers confusion and distress, which I think would have been magnified by the uncertainty of identification at the time.
MS was first described and distinguished from ‘trembling disease’ (Parkinson’s) in 1868, using the French term ‘la sclérose en plaques’. It was also called ‘disseminated sclerosis’ by military doctors. A famous neurologist is said to have asked a patient about their sex life, implying the symptoms were sometimes confused with Syphilis. Early treatments included ‘arsenic and strychnine’ – one a poison and the other a primitive blood thinner. (Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, 2005 Jun; 98(6): 289)
I received an advance review copy for free, and am leaving this review voluntarily.
Come Home to Love by Jeanine Lauren
A clean, ‘second chance’ romance that was a delight to read! Husband and wife have grown to take each other for granted and stopped having fun together. A series of omissions, white lies and misunderstandings leads to a rift which reminds me somewhat of Oscar Wilde’s pithy social comedy – I can’t pinpoint quite why, but it does.
It could all lead to a parting of ways, or renewing of vows. I finished the story – but I’m having fun with you and not telling… Honestly, with mature likeable characters, either outcome would be acceptable.
It is also refreshing to find middle aged heroes and heroines that are appealing. They are not young, beautiful and on the flush of first love (so easy to like); but plagued by doubt, financial uncertainty and mistakes from the past. Sounds blah – but in this writer’s hands – pretty cool.
My review copy was supplied by Book Sirens and I am an avid reader.
