Customer Reviews

The Edge of Light (At Home in Beldon Grove, Book 1)

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4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
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The Edge of Light is a seamlessly written story of faith, courage and survival. The story begins in 1838 with Molly McGarvie, who lives in St. Lawrenceville, Missouri. When her husband, Samuel, dies she must find a way to provide for herself and her family. A woman of spirit and strength, Molly believes for the impossible and sets out on a journey that takes her and readers on a quest for a new life and a miracle.

Ann's captivating writing style draws readers into the lives of Molly McGarvie, her companion Betsy who is more a friend than a slave, and Doctor Spangler who carries a burden only God can lift. There is also an interesting cast of characters you'll pray for and cheer with, and some you'll want to strangle. Ann's attention to detail and her elegant writing style will draw you into every scene. You'll experience emotions and encounters right along with her characters.

The Edge of Light is a fabulous first book! Once you read it, you'll forever be an Ann Shorey fan. I am.

Molly McGarvie is suddenly thrown into maturity beyond her years as her husband returns home with cholera. She has three children and another due soon. Betsy her childhood friend lives with them and together they fight the odds against them in the frontier.

Molly's husband Samuel has a business and Molly believes that she and her children can handle it, until...her brother-in-law legally takes it and their farm from them.

She must move back to Kentucky where she can raise her family. She is unable to take Betsy with her and is devastated, firmly resolving help bring her back with the family.

Molly deals with guilt and anger at having chosen the wrong doctor for Samuel and believes if only Doctor Spengler had been there, maybe Samuel would have lived. Not only that but he was responsible for the loss of her son and she will never forgive him.

The young mother has determined that she can raise her family alone with no help from any male and she spurns everyone, including Dr. Spengler who has tried everything to get her attention.

This was a wonderful read and I became so involved with the characters, I didn't put it down....Jim made his own dinner that night!

Ann Shorey did a great job and I recommend this book to women of all ages.

Paulette Harris
www.pauletteharris.biz
comeandsitawhile.blogspot.com

Molly is a woman I can relate to. Molly is pregnant with three young children and a loving husband when disaster strikes. Her husband dies unexpectedly, and she is left a widow. Molly is left without means to support her family. Since it's 1834, she's expected to rely on men to help her put her life back together. But she faces life head on and works to keep her family together. Not only that, but with every tragedy that comes her way, she clings to faith in God to combat it. This woman will not give up no matter what life throws her.

I was amazed to find out this was Ann Shorey's first novel. I want to read more of her work. This is the best novel I've read this year.

Life has suddenly been put on hold for Molly McGarvie. Her husband has passed away due to a bout of cholera and now she is faced with the sole responsibility of raising their children. To make things more difficult, she is pregnant and her brother in law has decided he wants her gone from the property. Faced with nowhere else to go, she contacts her brother who decides to bring her out West to where he lives. The journey however is difficult and Molly is faced with many challenges which test her strength and sanity. Meanwhile the town doctor finds himself trying to protect Molly and keep himself from falling for her at the same time.

Molly's story gives a glimpse of how difficult living in the West must have been. When her husband died, many would have just given up but she kept going strong for her children. Even though things kept going downhill, she never stopped because it got too hard. Frontier life was very hard and she somehow managed to survive and take care of her family by herself. It's a very inspiring and motivating story. I would have been so angry and bitter towards her brother in law and would have wanted to wish a thousand deaths on him. She however learns not to give in to vengeance and while she is angry, she moves on and does not let it consume her. It was also an interesting aspect of the story to focus also on slavery during the time period. Usually Western stories and slavery don't usually mix so it was a nice change to see them integrated. There was one scene that made me want to gag as it involves a stick and an eyeball. That was the first time I've read something like that in a book and it caught me off guard and made me shiver.

While I enjoyed the book very much, there were times when I felt the story to be cliched and a bit predictable. I felt like I had read the plot before in other historical Christian fiction novels and that I knew what was going to happen. The way some of the characters acted felt like I had seen them before. Also the way the how Westward experience was portrayed such as the portrayal of Native Americans, slavery, and just Western frontier life in general seem to play up the "myth of the West". There's nothing wrong with how it was portrayed, it just seem like there was nothing new to add and it just added to the stereotype of Western life. I just didn't feel that anything new or innovative added to the subject. However, as I said, I did enjoy this book. Even though the story was familiar, it was comforting. Molly is a strong women and I enjoyed reading her story. I will be looking forward to the next book in the series.

In 1828 Missouri, Molly McGarvie's husband dies suddenly, leaving her with three children to care for while expecting a fourth. Her situation is made intolerable by her husband's envious brother, Brody, who inherits the brickyard that had provided Molly's family a living. Molly refuses to return to her father's home in Kentucky because she wants to free her slave girl, Betsy, who has been with her since they were children. So she sends for her own brother in Illinois to help her move to that state. At the last moment, though, Brody claims Betsy as part of the property he inherited.
During the move, Molly's younger boy wanders off and can't be found. So Molly settles her remaining family in the new location, determined to support them through her own talent for weaving. From there, the novel chronicles her struggles against a merciless environment to provide for her family while avoiding all pressures to remarry, always hoping to find her lost son and raise enough money to buy Betsy back and bring her to freedom.
In this historical novel, Ann Shorey has created a believable pre-Civil War world peopled with well-motivated characters struggling with realistically portrayed practical and spiritual problems. Highlights of the book include well-researched descriptions of weaving and other details of rural life in that era. But the book's most outstanding characteristic is the fully mature mind and writing style of its author. It will be received with pleasure by readers hungry for a mature product.

The Edge of Light is an engrossing story about a strong woman whose faith and stamina are both tested by the tragic events in her life. Told with skill, compassion and strong emotions, the story also has many interesting details about life in the 1830s. There is also a touching subplot about a slave with an important lesson for the heroine about the real meaning of freedom.
I'm looking forward to more books about Beldon Grove.

What a wonderful debut novel from author Ann Shorey! "The Edge of Light" is the story of a young pregnant widow, Molly McGarvie, living in Missouri in 1838. Through circumstances beyond her control,she must take her children and find a future in the wilds of Illinois. Loss and disappointment continue to follow her as surely as her shadow. Molly must deal with issues of trust, hope, forgiveness, and mercy.

I enjoy reading about women in the frontier during the 1800's, but find a lot of books tell the same basic story. In this novel, though, things I thought would happen didn't, and events surprised me as they unfolded. Ann Shorey spun a tale that kept me reading until midnight for several nights. Part of me wanted to speed read to find out how the story ended, but the saner part of me desired to slow down and savor the rich words and concepts that the author wove throughout the book. I can't wait for the next book in the series to be published. Write faster, Ann!

This was my first book by Ann Shorey and I have to say it was a great read. I couldn't put it down, even when I should have been studying. I will definitely be looking for others by her.

Here's the story line from the blurb: It is the summer of 1838 in St. Lawrenceville, Missouri, and Molly McGarvie's life is about to change forever. When her beloved Samuel succumbs to cholera, Molly is heartbroken but determined to take care of herself and her children. But when Samuel's unscrupulous brother takes over the family business and leaves Molly to fend for herself, she knows she must head out on her own. It is a dangerous journey and Molly has to leave her old life behind. Somehow she must find a way to make a living, keep her family together, and fend off some over-eager suitors.

I read the Kindle version of The Edge of Light and loved it. The heroine surprised me with her strength, yet she was vulnerable, balancing out that strength and independence. Tension, pace, plot, historical setting, and characters were all great! I loved the twists and unexpected turns like O Henry. It really kept me glued. The Edge of Light (At Home in Beldon Grove, Book 1) Readers who enjoy this book will also like Elizabeth of Saginaw Bay by Donna Winters, a Michigan pioneer story of 1837.

I enjoyed this book. It has adventure, romance, a little suspense, and a great overall Christian theme.
I just read that this was this author's first book- amazing first book!