Book Summary
A soldier and a young woman, on opposite sides of the revolution, must run for their lives across a war-torn France in this gripping novel of friendship, love, and survival.
France, 1794
Maxence Étienne, a soldier for the République, believes fiercely in the revolution that is bringing liberty to France. But even though the monarchy has fallen and Maxence is part of a great cause, he is still searching for a place to belong.
Armelle Bernard is a young woman from Breton whose father was sentenced to death for hiding counterrevolutionaries. She decides to confront the priest who betrayed her father, and as the conflict escalates, she herself is ordered to be executed—an order to be carried out by Maxence.
Maxence has seen his share of violence and bloodshed, but he also carries a tragic secret and can’t bring himself to carry out his assignment. In allowing Armelle to escape, he is forced to combat a fellow soldier, who dies in the struggle.
Though Armelle and Maxence are strangers and on opposite sides of the revolution, they find themselves united as fugitives of the new republic. Now they must find a way to trust each other as they search for a path to peace, and to freedom.
Book Details
- Publisher : Shadow Mountain (June 6, 2023)
- Genre: Historical Fiction
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 368 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1639931074
- ****I received a complimentary book from publishers, publicists, NetGalley, book tours, and or authors. A review was not required and all opinions and ideas expressed are my own.****
My Review
Along a Brenton Shore By Arlem Hawks is a sequel to Beyond the Lavender Fields. You really can read this book as a stand-alone, but you will get more out of it by reading the other book first. There is one family that is highlighted in both books and how The French Revolution affected their family from many different angles and POVs.
There are helps at the beginning of the book with a full list of the characters, places found in the story, and MANY French Terms. Those were kind of overwhelming for me and I read through them at first, but I didn't go back to look at them again.
This story is different from the first book and moves a little slower. The romance and relationship between Armelle and Maxence is a slow build and they go through a lot before romance blooms. They act like fighting siblings through a lot of it. There are some humourous moments amidst the angst-filled parts where they are running away from the soldiers.
This is very good historical fiction and as always, the author has done impeccable research. The Historical Notes at the end were very interesting to read too.
There is one aspect near the end of the book that absolutely shocked me. It had to do with a character from Beyond the Lavender Fields. I was sad and disappointed and questioned why it had to happen. Even though I liked the ending for Armelle and Max, this other thing deflated my feelings for the ending.
This book had me feeling so many different emotions from the beginning to the end. Arlem Hawks is a good writer and I've enjoyed her stories. This probably wasn't my favorite but I will be happy to read more from her.
3.5-4 Stars from me.
****Meet Author Arlem Hawkes****
~*~*~*~*Purchase Along a Brenton Shore~*~*~*~*
HERE:
Hardcover-https://amzn.to/42o183G
Kindle-https://amzn.to/3J3e5Jh
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