The Soldier's Lady

This one had a lot of page-space from the young man's perspective and frankly it was a little hard to read. I almost put the book down. It ended up being a decent book, one I enjoyed, but the first third was tough going. Still, the story's nice and you need to read it if you want to keep up on the Carolina Cousins.

Reading a novel set in the post-civil war south about blacks and whites learning to live together is a good thing. How many Caucasians stop to consider how terrible and difficult life was for slaves. Even after the abolition of slavery, it was a long hard road. Books like this provide that awareness and give whites an appreciation for the struggles faced by blacks even today. This is the second book in the Carolina Cousins series. This new series doesn't suffer from being an offshoot of the popular Shenandoah series. Just like the novels of George MacDonald, a man who has served as a mentor to Phillips, character development is primary. The focus is on relationships and issues. Phillips follows MacDonald's lead in emphasizing the fatherhood of God, our relationship to him as children, and obedience as the primary way to know and follow God. Though this might be considered light reading, it contains thoughtful spiritual content. Like MacDonald, Phillips provides keen insights into human nature and the nature of God. He is not afraid to challenge traditional thinking. His views, which are slightly unorthodox at times, can be a little unsettling, but they are also thought-provoking. Some may find them refreshing. Particularly interesting are the romantic relationships. Jeremiah starts to wonder if Mayme, the woman he planned to marry, is interested in his long lost friend Micah, who comes to live with them on the Rosewood Plantation. Jeremiah begins to wonder if he has more in common with Emma, an uneducated former slave, who has a son named William. Phillips effectively portrays the insecurities and uncertainties typical in romantic relationships. He keeps you guessing as to what will happen. Blacks and whites living and working together in the post-Civil war south may seem far-fetched but the good writing and storytelling make it believable. That's not to say that this group doesn't experience hostility and danger from others. They do. The story starts with an act of evil and then backtracks to fill in the events leading up to it. This is a pleasant read, and since it's been shown that whites and blacks have different perceptions on racism, books like this can be a bridge to a more realistic perspective and promote empathy.

Never having read this author before I picked up this book for two reasons; 1) the lovely cover art work and, 2) the brief synopsis provided from the back cover. The setting of this is in North Carolina in the period after the Civil War, and is the second book in the `Carolina Cousins' series. It documents more of the challenges which were faced by the young women of Rosewood and their extended and unusual `family' made up of whites, blacks and half-negroes who emulate what it means to be a true Christian family. Even though the story is oftentimes told in the first person voice of Mayme Daniels the illegitimate child of a black woman and Katie's Uncle Templeton it is really the story of another young black woman, Emma Tolan whose self esteem had been sadly de-moralized while a slave on a neighboring plantation. Emma was portrayed as a slightly scatterbrained young woman who had arrived pregnant when cousins Katie and Mayme aided her in the delivery of her now four year old son William. After escaping from a cruel white master Emma had found sanctuary and love within the generous and loving Templeton extended family. When the bedraggled and wounded soldier, Micah Duff found his way to Rosewood he too would find that same safe sanctuary as he was soon embraced by and invited into the `family'. Micah was a remarkable black man from the north. Spiritually aware, educated and speaking more like a refined white gentleman than even some of the Southern men which of course did not endear him to the powers to be in the `new South'. As Micah's wounds healed he became more and more aware of the beautiful black girl Emma, and before he knew it he'd fallen in love with her. Unfortunately, a white man with political aspirations couldn't afford to have his dirty laundry aired in public, and have a black son show up to ruin his chances of glory. While plans were progressing to eliminate his annoying indiscretions, Micah would battle in order to keep both Emma and William safe in order to save his dreams of them becoming a real family. The story was simple yet complex with numerous secondary characters that took some time in having to sort out the relationships between all of the various members of the `extended' Templeton family. The author kept the lively pace moving briskly along with the intrigue and suspense of the dangers that dogged Southerners who treated former black slaves as equals. If at times my reading slowed it was in trying to decipher the Southern negro patois the author utilized that while adding a level of natural flavor to the story, was at first difficult for this reviewer to understand. Otherwise, I found this to be a well written and well researched novel for the period showing the bitterness and turmoil of the population from those defeated Southern states. More importantly, it was a novel showing true Christian values and of faith in God and how that faith could sustain a body when the most horrible tragedy of loss o

This is the 2nd title in the Carolina Cousins series. It follows the same characters as Shenandoah Sisters series, but in the reconstruction period of the South. Unlike book 1 of the series, this one seems to move forward. I enjoyed it - it was good to be among familiar characters as they are growing up and considering their new options.