18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Shine, January 23, 2005
It can be a common occurrance for people to think that God has deserted them in times of need, or to blame God for their station in life. Lynn Austin's A LIGHT TO MY PATH, the latest of her books about the Antebellum South, examines this while detailing the coming of age of two young slaves, Anna and Grady, who have given up hope that "Massa Jesus" hears their prayers or cares what becomes of them.
Anna's first memory is the day her parents were recaptured after an attempted escape from slavery. Since that day, she has had little faith that God could do anything to help her situation. While she was spared from death or the auction block, Anna's life is, nevertheless, one of biting criticism, harsh servitude, and endless longing. A glimmer of hope for something better comes along when she meets Grady.
Grady hates all white people after experiencing a tortuous auction where he was torn from his mother's care and later a stint as the assistant of a slave trader. Grady's stark reality leads him to believe that all white people are evil and that the only way to progress in life is to exact his revenge upon them someday. Once a ladies' man, Grady is stunned by Anna's beauty and he begins to change his ways. But Anna and Grady come in contact with numerous obstacles, including the Civil War. They must put their trust in God's plan in order to victoriously emerge from the battles.
A LIGHT TO MY PATH is historical Christian fiction at its finest, spanning time periods from Antebellum America into Reconstruction. The story never became dull, nor did it ever read like a sermon. Lynn Austin introduced all of her characters, both primary and secondary, and followed them through until the end, each lending a significant voice and contribution to this heartbreaking and divine saga. I was impressed with this book and hope to go back through the series and read all of the earlier installments. (RAW Rating: 4.5)
Reviewed by CandaceK
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers
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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A great read for fans of historical fiction and faith themes, December 10, 2004
In A LIGHT TO MY PATH, the stand-alone follow-up to CANDLE IN THE DARKNESS and FIRE IN THE NIGHT in the "Refiner's Fire" series, Lynn Austin weaves themes of forgiveness, racial reconciliation, love, and faith together to create a compelling story of lives changed by God during the Civil War.
Austin switches points of view between two slaves: Anna, or "Kitty" as she is dubbed, a young girl who grows up as a companion to Missy Claire, and Grady, a young light-skinned slave torn from his parents at an early age. Both characters, living in the second half of the 19th century, respond to their slavery differently.
Lacking knowledge of any other way to live, Kitty, who was too young to remember her parents' deaths at the hands of slavetrackers, numbly accepts her mistreatment at the Fuller Plantation in South Carolina as her lot in life, loyal to the mistress who looks at her as no better than an animal. Kitty's desire to be loved is endearing, and her artistic bent adds an interesting component to her personality. The kindling of her anger over her slavery and her desire for freedom comes about only when the ones she loves are threatened.
Her opposite is Grady, a well-developed character who simmers with rage and yearns for freedom throughout the novel. Readers will resonate with Grady's anger as they see the desperate plight of slaves separated from their families, mistreated by slave traders, and sold into grinding work on southern plantations or into New Orleans brothels. It all helps build a believable case for Grady's rage against all white people, which eventually culminates in murder. Grady's love/hate relationship with music, his casual flirtations, and his fear of truly loving anyone again, lest they be taken away from him, are just a few of the ways Austin fully fleshes him out as a believable character.
One of the more dynamic figures in the story is the aging mammy Delia, whose strong faith will endear her to readers. As events in the South careen into chaos, Delia tells Kitty, "I don't waste time worrying. I pray," then adds, "Praying ain't about getting your own way. It's about asking God to have his way." Delia believes that "...the Lord is in charge." Everything that happens to Kitty, Grady, and herself is part of His divine plan. "I do know that we can trust the Lord, even when we don't understand why things happen the way we do," she says. Her belief in a God who is in control and her ability to forgive becomes even more intriguing as her past gradually unfolds to Grady and Kitty.
Of all of the characters, the most disappointing is Missy, the belligerent, spoiled mistress who owns Kitty, and who comes off as a bit flat and one-dimensional. It would be nice to see her more fully developed, as her childish tirades sometimes seem over the top, especially after Kitty has her baby. Even a glimmer of occasional kindness would have added authenticity to her character.
A LIGHT TO MY PATH is Austin's twelfth novel, and her experience in fiction shows through her careful attention to detail, vivid backdrops, and smooth dialogue between the characters. The pacing occasionally slows, especially toward the end, and one wishes the book were shorter by about 50 pages. The final scene between Grady and his father is particularly difficult to believe. Yet the plotline and characters are strong enough to keep the reader continuing to the end of the story. Fans of historical fiction with strong faith themes should find this enjoyable tale much to their liking.
--- Reviewed by Cindy Crosby (phrelanzer@aol.com)
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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Third Book in Refiner's Fire Series, April 26, 2005
This is a most compelling story of slavery in South Carolina from 1849 through the Civil War. There are two main characters, Grady and Anne, born into slavery on two different plantations and how their lives cross and then interwine. It is a vivid depictions of the treatment and attitudes of the plantation owners toward their "property" and the resulting behavior and attitudes of the slaves to their owners. By following the lives of these two children through to their adulthood, the utter fear, the disgust and the extreme choices, are made very real. The one consoling factor for the slaves is their faith in God. Grady is willing to take chances to gain his freedom but Anne, "Kitty" will grovel before her mistress to retain her position as a house slave. Though Grady marries Anne in the traditional manner for slaves, he refuses to allow Anne to cower before the threats of their mistress or to be treated in a demeaning manner. When Grady has the chance to run away to join the Union Army and gain his freedom, Anne is given a choice. Paralyzed by her fear of the unknown, Anne remains at the plantation believing she will not face hardships or whippings. When threats of her baby being rip way from her, Anne stands up to her mistress and faces the horror of the penalty of her insubordination. The Union Army Troop to which Grady belongs is making a sweep of all plantations to release all the slaves. Grady finds Anne, rescues her and their son, William. Anne understands what Grady had felt all long about the inhumane treatment slaves had to endure and gladly joins her husband on the path to freedom and a path of faith.
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