The daughter of a Mohawk mother and French father in 1759 Montreal, Catherine Duval finds it is easier to remain neutral in a world that is tearing itself apart. Content to trade with both the French and the British, Catherine is pulled into the fray against her wishes when her British ex- fiance, Samuel Crane, is taken prisoner by her father. Samuel asks her to help him escape, claiming he has … he has information that could help end the war.
Peace appeals to Catherine, but helping the man who broke her heart does not. She delays . . . until attempts on Samuel’s life convince her he’s in mortal danger. Against her better judgment she helps him flee by river, using knowledge of the landscape to creep ever closer to freedom. Their time together rekindles feelings she thought long buried, and danger seems to hound their every mile. She’s risked becoming a traitor by choosing a side, but will the decision cost her even more than she anticipated?
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I really enjoy learning historical happenings in Green’s storytelling. She has a way of making characters come alive and feel like your friends by the end of the book. I strongly recommend you give it a read. Thank you to Bethany House Publishers for providing me with a copy. All opinions are my own.
“What is courage…..but moving forward in the face of fear?”
The author has once again done incredible research to bring us this historically accurate book. It’s 1759 and the Seven Years War is being fought on multiple sites and in a number of countries. This book highlights the war between the French and English with both sides the St. Lawrence River as the main battleground. Catharine Stands-Apart, our heroine, who is half French and half Mohawk, has chosen to live with her father and run his trading post. While the war has created some shortages, the fact that she refuses to pick sides has allows the post to continue to flourish. When ultimately she must make a choice, will she make the right one?
I received an ARC from the Bethany House Publishers. All impressions and opinions are my own.
Compelling characters, engaging plotline, and beautifully captured setting. I was captivated by the story, the history, the characters throughout. Highly, highly recommended.
Bethany House provided me a copy. All opinions are my own
“What is courage, he said, but moving forward in the face of fear? If there was nothing to be afraid of, we would have no need to be brave.”
–Samuel Crane
Jocelyn Green takes us into the third year of the Seven Years’ War, deep into the heart of the conflict between the British and French forces who also managed to draw many colonial settlers and Native Americans into their struggle as well. Between Two Shores is a captivating story that explores the complexities of war, relationships, and the price we pay when engaged in life’s struggles.
After a five year absence Samuel Crane, a twice captured colonial, once again shows up at the trading post run by Gabriel Duval at Kahnawake, Quebec. With the return of Samuel, Catherine Duval’s life is turned upside down. Catherine, a young woman living in a world where she is constantly torn by guilt and conflict, works to find her true self and answers to her many questions amidst the turmoil raging around her.
The tale follows Catherine’s path to discovering her inner self, to grasping the courage and forgiveness she needs, and to finally understanding and accepting that God’s plan for us is not always what we perceive it to be. Family, faith, and choices are all key aspects of this beautiful story that takes us from the shores of the St. Lawrence River to the battlefield during the Battle of Quebec.
This story and these characters stayed with me for days after I finished the last page. Emotional, hauntingly sad at times, and filled with wonderful life lessons! The depth of feeling in this novel and the inability to foresee the turns the story would take captured this reader thoroughly. Historical storytelling at its finest!
This ARC copy was received from Bethany House Publishers and Netgalley.com. The above thoughts and opinions are wholly my own.
Between Two Shores…literally!
Catherine must decide if she should risk assisting her former fiancé, Samuel Crane, escape captivity. If she does, will she be killed or will he? Will her heart endure constant contact with her former love? Will her endeavor aide the cause of peace?
Jocelyn Green’s writing sparkles like sunshine glistening on rippling water. Her high prose rises to poetic in places while her plot compels the reader to flip pages and see what happens next. Like an incoming tide, urgency carries the reader along seeking to know how the story will end. Even if one is a history buff and knows how native and colonial history ended, this author makes the era surge with life. Although constrained by historic events, Jocelyn Green weaves a tapestry of intricate design bursting with vibrant color. This is a book to be cherished and read and reread. It’s that good.
Having said as much, the reader will simply have to buy the book when it is released in February to find out what happens to Catherine and Samuel as they run the gauntlet through French territory to bring crucial intelligence to the English.
This reader received a copy from Bethany House Publishers and opinions expressed are mine.
I really loved this book! The story was rich in history, full of adventure, and also grabbed my emotions throughout. The importance of family is emphasized as well as doing what is right no matter the cost. The story line and the ending were deliciously unpredictable and kept me turning pages to see what lay ahead. I felt like I was there canoeing down the river and shopping at the trading post…the story came alive! Another wonderful story from Jocelyn Green that you won’t be able to put down.