Jessilyn Lassiter no longer has to convince people she’s not a child. Having just turned 19 in the summer of 1936, her love for Luke Talley has never been more real. And Luke is finally beginning to care for her in the way she's always dreamed of.But their budding romance is interrupted when Tal Pritchett—a young, black doctor—comes to Calloway, stealing the heart of Jessilyn’s best friend, Gemma, and stirring up the racial prejudice that has been simmering just beneath the town's surface.
The tension starts to bubble over when Jessie's elderly neighbor Miss Cleta becomes the first white townsperson to accept Tal’s treatment. And when a young black man is lynched, Calloway is brought to its knees once again as Jessilyn realizes that her anger can make her heart as full of hate as the Ku Klux Klan members who have terrorized her town and her family.
This book is part of a series, but does stand alone very well. Do yourself a favor and get to know Jessilyn and Gemma from an early age with Fireflies in December. This third book is a wonderfully written, emotional picture of how holding on to bitterness, anger and unforgiveness does us more harm. "Bitterness and anger are evil twins that can follow a body around wherever she goes, and they whisper things in her ears that only make bad things worse."
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Jennifer Erin Valent is the 2007 winner of the Christian Writers Guild's Operation First Novel contest. A lifelong resident of the South, her surroundings help to color the scenes and characters she writes. In fact, the childhood memory of a dilapidated Ku Klux Klan billboard inspired her portrayal of Depression-era racial prejudice in Fireflies in December. She has spent the past 15 years working as a nanny and has dabbled in freelance, writing articles for various Christian women's magazines. She still resides in her hometown of Richmond, Virginia. Visit the author's website.
***Special thanks to Maggie Rowe of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. for sending me a review copy.***
4 comments:
Great review! I do want to read this series, and though this could be stand alone, I wish to start from Book 1.
Nice review. Sounds good and I like that it can be read as a stand alone too
Thanks for posting! So glad you enjoyed the book!
I will certainly start out with book 1. I must start a series at the beginning. Great review and the quote at the end is excellent. Give a great feel for the story.
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