AT FIRST SIGHT: A Novella
by Parris Afton Bonds
Reviewed by S. S. Bazinet

Description: UNLIKE ANY CHRISTMAS STORY YOU HAVE READ
New Sweden, American colonies (when Christmas was outlawed)

Five years before, in 1649, the heads of Lady Evangeline Bradshaw’s father and brother rolled on Cromwell’s chopping block, along with those of King Charles’s and others. Not waiting to see if her head was next, she fled England with the family’s remaining gold and silver crowns, putting a vast ocean between herself and peril.

Even here, in this remotest place on earth one could imagine, Evangeline still does not feel safe. And especially not now, this Christmas Eve, when she opens her Virgin Queen Tavern’s door to admit the midnight traveler Nathan Sutcliff, who is most devilishly handsome ~ and most determined to carry out Cromwell’s order.

Review: “A Powerful Story of Love and Devotion!”

The author, Parris Afton Bonds, has an extraordinary ability to bring the reader into her stories, and to make the reader feel what the characters are experiencing. That said, one of the first potent emotions that I felt was fear! I was afraid for the heroine, Lady Evangeline Bradshaw. She’d escaped the tyrannical rules of Cromwell and fled to the new world. Now, living in poverty and trying her best to survive, she wanted to give her little “family” of misfits a special day of celebration. She wanted to share the joy of Christmas. But when there’s a knock at the door and a stranger asking for shelter, the reader knows she’s in trouble. We’re not talking about a rap on the knuckles. We’re talking about life and death.

At that point in history, the new world wasn’t free from the tyranny and oppression of the old world. The story left me with a great appreciation for the people who came to this country and fought for their freedom on a daily basis. I also felt very grateful that I could celebrate Christmas without fear of a knock on the door and possible punishment. Wonderful story of love and the powerful spirit within that drives a person to go beyond their fears and reach for something beautiful!

Five Stars!

Website: parrisaftonbonds.com
Author page on Amazon
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