Customer Reviews

Love's First Light

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Love's First Light starts out with an intensely emotional and graphic scene that made me wince, but I couldn't stop reading. Carie did an excellent job with realism. As I read along I realized how many morbid sayings come from that era like, "Should I stick my neck out?" and "Some heads are gonna roll." Ew. That time period was downright brutal and unfair to the innocent. I loved how well the author played this theme out even if it did gross me out a bit at times.

This started out as a really good story but there were a few things that didn't sit right with me from the middle to the end. The hero's dialogue sounded a bit more like a woman than a man for much of the second half of the book. It could've been because he was a scientist and artsy sort, but I'm not inclined to think the author made the man seem effeminate on purpose. Maybe it's just me, but I also felt like I was slipping in and out of the time period, too. It's hard to explain. Maybe the voice wasn't consistently French- Revolution-sounding. That's the only thing I can think of that would explain why I didn't feel immersed in the story from the middle of the book to the end.

One more sort of humorous comment. On page 263 one of the characters references when the French gave the Statue of Liberty to America after they won their freedom from England. Well, I'm not a huge history buff when it comes to the picky dates and details but even I knew that event occurred in the 1800s. It bugged me so I looked it up and the date was 1886 to be exact - a full 100 years later. One historic site wrote... The Statue of Liberty was given to America by the French in 1886 and has been a symbol for America ever since. So there is no possible way that the character in 1794 could have know about something that took place almost 90 years in the future. That was a big whoops on the author's part. History buffs are sure to notice. Sheesh, I hate to be critical because I'm a big Jamie Carie fan, but this did throw me for a loop to the point of distraction.

In some places the words the author used were so beautiful and poetic, but in other places the dialogue threw me off because it didn't seem to fit the era. And the romance between two older secondary characters seemed a bit plastic to me. I wasn't feeling the love like it was a real thing. It also seemed like the color and prism theme in the story was a bit disjointed. But I am still a big Jamie Carie fan and I loved The Duchess and the Dragon and Wind Dancer. This book...not so much. Sorry!

On the more positive end, I have to say the author has a way with words when it comes to romance and kissing. That's definitely her strength. I loved the forgiveness theme in the story as well and how the author showed that sometimes the people who have every right to be bitter are the ones God uses to set the example (if they are willing) by their love and demonstrated forgiveness. That was very well done. So, that said, for the above reasons this was not my favorite book by Carie, but if you like reading about the era and the issues surrounding the French Revolution, you would still enjoy this story.

I love the setting and the plot of this book. The 18th century France, is a subject I have never read about before and it was fun to get to know some of the issues that people faced at that time. I worried that I would be overwhelmed reading a 'Christian' novel. I was pleasantly surprised that the religious mentions where not as abrupt and distracting as I thought they might be. Actually, the people of that time were much more religiously aware then the people of today, so it fit quite well. The only negative comments that I might add were that I wish some parts had been developed more, for instance when Christophe makes his decision it seemed so hasty. Otherwise, a solidly written book. If you enjoy historical romance this book is worth your time.

Young Christophe, the Count of St. Laurent, was brutally left alone in the midst of the French Revolution. Fearing for his life, escaping from Paris was his only hope...

Knowing all he ever loved is gone forever, Christophe retreats to the old family castle in the medieval town of Carcassonne. Consumed with research, experiments and writings he thinks of little else. Years pass unnoticed, like the blowing of the wind.

Unable to sleep he wanders about late at night. One evening, clad in disguise, he finds a beautiful young woman visiting a grave. He tries to speak with her but she is withdrawn. A spark of hope is ignites in Christophe's heart with the prospect of future encounters.

Beset by the trials of poverty, life for the commoner grows more difficult each day. Self-reliant and resourceful, Scarlett, a recent widow, her sister and mother have survived fairly well. However, their resources are rapidly depleting and drastic measures must be taken. A plan is set in place.

The ensuing story is about the reawakening of two broken hearts amid the devastating circumstances of the French Revolution. Will they fall prey to the devious plans of the revolutionists?

Jamie has done it again. Love's First Light is action packed and emotionally charged from beginning to end. The characters are fully developed and become ingrained in your minds eye. The writing is so vivid you will feel their pain, experience their struggles, and smile at their peaceful moments.

Love's First Light is the best romance book I have read in a long time. I was enthralled, addicted, and couldn't put it down.

I am a Christian, an avid reader, and free lance writer. I search for quality books to read in many different genres. I was thrilled when I found this book, never having read any of Jamie Carie's books before. The title and the starred reviews caught my attention---and I love anything French, especially historical. I couldn't wait to receive this book....The opening chapters did not disappoint. In fact, I have never read anything so emotionally tearing and horrific. I made myself stick with it because her writing was so vivid and clear and I cared about this family she was depicting. I thought to myself, "I have found a wonderful new (to me) quality Christian writer....and then the book fell apart. It was like she truly immersed herself and spent time and focus on the first couple of chapters, and then, just like that, quit. WAS A DEADLINE LOOMING?.....I don't know, but the characters became actually silly, doing things that did not make sense, or fit with who they were, because it appears, only to move the plot along. It almost became comical. And it became insulting. I made myself finish, hoping it would redeem itself. But sadly it did not. And then, as a reader, I became angered because I had invested time and energy in the opening chapters, reading the gruesomeness of something I would not have read had I not believed in the book and its potential to be a great story. It was a bad story because it lost all of its authenticity and believability. I ended up throwing the book away!!
I am only saying this because, as one writer to the next, "Shame on you". You DO have the gift of writing. You are very talented.....please, next time keep your brilliance going to the end.....I am going to order another one of your books and give you a second chance....I am hopeful I will write a great review next time....

From the start of the book, I knew that I was going to like it. This is the first book I have read by Jamie Carrie and I really enjoyed it. I like historical books but I believe this is the first one I have read about the French Revolution it was very interesting. I never knew the story of how all the French aristocrat's were be-headed. It was so terrible that one man "Robespierre" could come in and cause this. He was so mean, as Christophe (the count of St Laurent) grabbed his little sister and hid in a secret hole in a wall while his parents and brothers were killed with the guillotine in their own family room.


After this happened Christophe and Emilie ran down the street to an old friends of his, but someone was after them so he told his sister to run to the red door and run into the home of his friend, but he could not find her. Then the "citizen" movement that it was being called brought more people up on a platform to be-head and they had a young girl with blond hair with a hood over her head and they be-headed her so Christophe lost it and ran. Even King Louis XVI and his young wife Marie Antoinette was beheaded during this revolution.


He meet Scarlett in the cemetery where she was putting flowers on her husband's grave and she was with child. They became friends but can he get over the nightmares of what happened to his family and what will happen to the citizen movement. Scarlett was married to Robespierre's cousin and she didn't know how mean they were. Will her child be born healthy? Will Christophe finally be able to be able to sleep again with out nightmares?


This book was sent to and autographed by the author through B&H Media for review.

From the beginning, I really liked the easy manner in which Carie pulls the story together. I found her sentence construction and story telling to be straight forward, yet engaging. Honestly, it was an easy read that had me caring about the characters in such a way that I had to keep reading to know what was going to happen next.

Although I know some of the history of the French Revolution, it was interesting to have a story that approached it, sympathetically, from the aristocrat's side. This direction in story telling made me feel much more sympathy for those who lost their lives as children, who had nothing more than their family lineage to blame for their deaths. I thought that Christophe's story, and the painful loss of his family made it all the more important for us as readers to see him happy again. Having him fall in love with the equally saddened Scarlett seemed perfect, although the gap in their backgrounds definitely complicated the story and kept it moving.

Altogether, I found the novel to be a fun, engaging read. Some of the "instant" falling in love sequences, when characters simply looked at someone and fell in love had skeptical me scoffing a little, but it was sweet. I can't say that I know how that whole eyes locking from across the way and knowing you're in love thing would actually work, or if that exists, but it did seem to pull characters together that you genuinely cared about and wanted to see happy. Who am I to drag my jaded views of love into the formula, right? In the end, I would say it was a good, fast read, and an engaging story that I can recommend to anyone who enjoys a little historical fiction, and a clean, sweet romantic story.

I received this book in good shape and it was very good reading. Would reccomend it .

I had read Jamie Carie's Snow Angel a couple of years ago and remember enjoying it, but this one was better than I expected.
Love's First Light starts in the heat of the French Revolution with an aristocratic family being executed. One teenage boy and his little sister escape. They are separated, and he later sees her being led to the guillotine. The heart ache, anger, and guilt form the man that Christophe St. Laurent becomes. The Revolution has left its scars on the heroine of the story, Scarlett, as well. She is widowed while expecting her first child. Christophe and Scarlett meet, feeling an instant bond, but he later learns that their feelings are not their only connection. The past ties them together in an almost unbearable way, and he flees from her back to his original pursuit of revenge. God works in mysterious ways and brings these two together again with more surprises awaiting. This story is a journey to reconciliation, forgiveness, and ultimately love: God's love and protection for His children, and the power of forgiveness for the one being forgiven, the one letting go, and those witnessing it.
I really enjoyed reading this book. The opening scene pulled me in, and I stayed engaged through the entire book. I became attached not only to both main characters, but also to many of the secondary characters. Jamie Carie creates beautiful romantic scenes as well as tense page-turning moments. I understand there is a historical discrepancy in the book dealing with the statue of liberty and the time frame; however, I did not notice it while reading. I read about in a review after completing the novel. It is important to have accurate facts when writing a historical novel, but that being said, Jamie Carie is a talented author. I do feel like I had gained a deeper understanding of the horrors of the French Revolution. Also, I have heard that a couple of her other books are even better than this one, and I look forward to reading those in the future.

Jamie Carie is definitely making her mark on Christian fiction. Love's First Light is a romantic drama at its best. You will get so hooked on the characters that you will not want to put the book down. Christophe' will touch your heart with his story and what he has gone through. Scarlett is a gentle but strong woman. Having this story set in the French Revolution brings the horror and survival that went on during that time and how Scarlett and Christophe persevere through it with Christian faith and values. They have many challenges to face, many emotions to deal with, and you will be cheering them each step of the way. This is another book by Ms Carie that is a winner for her and for her readers. This a must read for Ms carie's readers.

"Love's First Light" is a historical with romance set in France in 1789 & 1794 during the French Revolution. The very beginning was a bit painful to get through (due to the content), but the rest was very enjoyable.

The world-building was excellent, with historical details that brought the world alive in my imagination. (There was a Statue of Liberty mistake, but it was a very minor detail that wasn't important to the story.) The pacing was excellent and, except for a brief interlude in the middle, the tension remained high.

While I felt that some plot lines climaxed a bit early, the pacing remained fast and the story interesting to to end. The epilogue left a few question in my mind since it didn't fully explain why things ended up the way they did (we're simply told this was how they ended up). I'm not sure most people would even notice, though, since the obvious problems were tied up neatly.

The characters were interesting, and I grew to care about what happened to them. Sometimes I had trouble following the author's portrayal of how Christophé saw the world in a mathematical way, but these descriptions were brief and I still got the point, so it wasn't a problem.

The novel did have Christian elements, but it wasn't preachy. The characters lived out their faith the best they knew how with their lives thrown into confusion. They were searching for answers about God's character and his plan/will when life no longer made sense. As long as the reader isn't anti-Christianity, I don't think the Christian elements would bother them.

There was no sex or bad language. The gore was not graphic as the details were left to the reader's imagination. Overall, I'd highly recommend this novel was well-written, clean reading.


I received this book as a review eGalley from the publisher.

Reviewed by Debbie from Genre Reviews
(genrereviews. blogspot. com)