The Prodigal
Son
(The Graham Saga,
Book #3)
By Anna
Belfrage
Matthew's
continued and stubborn religious support places his entire family in danger,
causing quite the strain on his marriage. After all, Alex was born in 1976 and
raised in an extremely secular environment (prior to being flung three
centuries backwards in time) so she finds all these faith related conflicts
very difficult to comprehend.
"Come,
come, mistress, all of you know that the king requires all men to swear oaths
of fealty to him and his church. A most necessary measure here, where
Covenanters stand as thick on the ground as common daisies..."
Matthew
Graham feared that if he signed the oath, if he renounced his faith, then he
would risk his very soul and a chance at life everlasting, but if he did not,
if he continued to aid the likes of Alexander "Sandy" Peden, then he
put his wife and his children in mortal danger.
For
Alex Graham, it is a simple choice. Family must come first, and if her foolish
husband cannot see that then... Things had been so different in her own time.
More tolerant. Less intimidation. But Alex had made her choice to stay with
Matthew in the 17th Century many years ago, and she does not regret
that choice. But, if Matthew continues to play this dangerous game of cat and
mouse, then she can foresee only death and despair.
However,
the greater the persecution, the stronger the convictions of the Covenanters
become. But such religious zeal is a two-edged sword, and while God watches on
with apparent disinterest, Matthew risks losing everything and everyone he has
ever loved.
Set
during a time of religious persecution and civil unrest, The Prodigal Son (The
Graham Saga, Book 3) by Anna Belfrage is the unforgettable story of one man's
fight to defend his faith against insurmountable odds and one woman's
determination to save her husband from himself.
Oh, my.
I don't think words can express how much I loved The Prodigal Son. I was
already invested in the characters of Matthew and Alex after the first two
books, but what I did not expect was to fall in love with them all over again.
I was swept totally off my feet by this novel.
Belfrage has written a book that not
only evokes the mood of this era, and the hardship and uncertainty, but she has
also penned a story about love and loss, heartache and joy. All of which has a
sense of realism about it. These characters are profoundly affected by what
they see, what they have experienced, and indeed their own decisions. This
story, above everything else, explores the human condition — from birth to
death, with everything in between, set in a backdrop of violence and
repression. At times this book was deeply moving, at other times joyfully
amusing. The Prodigal Son is a truly extraordinary story.
Any
historical reviewer worth their salt has to praise Belfrage for her attention
to the historical detail. Not only has Belfrage a firm grip on the event, most
notably the Scottish Presbyterian movement during this time, but she also has a
great understanding of what life might have been like concerning the management
of a successful farm — if they got the timing of the harvest wrong, if the
harvest failed, then that became a life or death situation. It brought
home how difficult life was back then. This vast difference between then and
now was demonstrated rather beautifully by Alex's perspective. Alex
occasionally has moments wishing for modern healthcare, fast-food and
television, which reminds the reader of that differences between the two
periods. Alex also cannot understand why anyone would put their faith before their
children's welfare, and this gives rise to some rather interesting exchanges
between herself and her husband. Alex is also not afraid to tell Sandy Peden
what she thinks of him — much to Sandy's mortification. Alex often finds
herself very close to the boundaries of propriety when she has moments where she
forgets what era she is in, which was sometimes cringeworthy and other times
extremely entertaining
Matthew,
on the other hand... Oh, my days. Poor Alex — she might as well have banged her
head against the wall, for he would not listen to reason. His stubbornness, his
loyalty to his faith, could be commended if it didn't put himself and those he
loves in danger — and it wasn't even one-off, he did it again and again. Of
course, I can understand his principles, and why he was so determined
throughout this book to aid and abet Sandy, but at the same time, he is risking
his children's lives — saying that however, I love Matthew. He had been through
hell in Book 2, but he kept on walking, and he continues to do so. His spirit
is not one that can be easily broken. However, Matthew feels very deeply —
perhaps too deeply, and everything he has been through and witnesses leaves a
mark. Despite Matthew's dalliance with the law, he has a beautiful relationship
with his children, and, when they are not disagreeing, his wife! Matthew's
relationship with Ian was particularly poignant in this story, and I enjoyed
reading about that.
Ian's story is one of abandonment and heartbreak. He is a child who thought he knew
who he was and where he came from, but in this book, he learns a truth that
changes the course of his life forever. I thought Ian was masterfully
portrayed. He is such a likeable young man, and I look forward to reading more
about him as this series progresses.
The
narrative is incredibly compelling, and it is next to impossible to put down.
This book is definitely a keeper and one I will come back to again.
The
Graham Saga is addictive to the extreme — not only because of the realism
in Belfrage's writing, her attention to historical detailing, and of course,
not forgetting, the evocative Scottish landscape — what brings a reader back to
this saga is the characters themselves. I cannot wait to get my hands on Book 4!
I
Highly Recommend.
Review
by Mary Anne Yarde.
The
Coffee Pot Book Club.
Pick
up your copy of
The
Prodigal Son
Anna Belfrage
Had Anna been
allowed to choose, she’d have become a time-traveller. As this was impossible,
she became a financial professional with two absorbing interests: history and
writing. Anna has authored the acclaimed time travelling series The Graham
Saga, set in 17th century Scotland and Maryland, as well as the
equally acclaimed medieval series The King’s Greatest Enemy which is set in 14th century
England. She has recently released the first in a new series, The
Wanderer. This time, she steps out of her normal historical context and A Torch
in His Heart is with a fast-paced contemporary romantic suspense with
paranormal and time-slip ingredients.
Find out more about Anna by visiting her website,
or herAmazon page.
I cannot count the number of times I've read, edited, read, re-written, edited this book and yet your review has me jumping up and down in my eagerness to read it again. Thank you!!!!!
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