Customer Reviews

Shadowed in Silk

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Shadowed in Silk will keep you up long past your bedtime--each time you want to put it down, you tell yourself, just one more page, just one more page...

Lindsay has written of two characters, Major Geoff Richards and Abby Fraser, who grab you from the beginning and don't let go until the last page. They are in an impossible situation which only gets more difficult, but the reader roots for them from the moment they meet on board a ship bound for India, he to take up his old post after surviving the horrors of World War I and she to return to her childhood home.

You'll fall in love with Geoff--the strong, silent hero with a tragic past, who proves to be a wonderful surrogate father to Abby's young son, and a quiet protector to Abby when she is faced by more danger than she knows.

And you'll feel for Abby, trying to do what's right when her life seems to have ended before it has a chance to begin and coming finally to that place of acknowledging that she can't do it on her own.

There's a wonderful set of secondary characters, especially those Indian Christians who endure the loss of everything for their newfound faith.

The Indian backdrop with its sights, smells and sounds and the increasing turmoil under the British raj only add to the allure of this story. For those who love The Far Pavilions and The Jewel in the Crown, with the addition of a strong Christian theme and a wonderful romance, this book is for you!

"Shadowed in Silk" is a wonderfully written novel that transports the reader to India after World War I. As I was reading it, I was thoroughly engrossed in the novel, so much so I could not put my Kindle down. We start as Abby Fraser is on her way with her son, Cam, to meet up with Cam's father and Abby's husband, Nick. Abby and Nick were only together for a small handful of days after their marriage, and Abby is looking forward to starting a life together with her husband and son all together as a family. Cam, her son, has made friends with Major Geoff Richards, on the train on the way to meet his father. When they arrive at the station, Nick is nowhere to be found, and there begins the weaving and intersecting together of Abby, Cam and Geoff. As the novel progresses, Geoff becomes not just a friend but a protector to both Abby and Cam.

The Christian elements of the storyline are expertly woven in without preaching to the reader. Not only do you see Abby come to faith in Christ, but you get a beautiful glimpse of Christian life in India in that time period.

The novel truly transports you right to India, and I found myself feeling as if I was really watching and listening to the events, rather than just reading a book. The story is thoroughly engrossing, so be prepared to have plenty of time because you probably will not be able to put it down.

I received a complimentary copy of this book in order to review it.

I really enjoyed this story. I loved to read Kim by Rudyard Kipling and this was reminiscent of that story only later in time. The story takes place in India right after WW1. Abby arrives in India on one of the troop ships with her 4 year old son to live with her husband. They were married at the beginning of the war and he was immediately posted to India. The story is about a young girl learning that the man she is married to isn't really the man she thought he was. She also finds that the India she has returned to is different from the one of her youth and the British women are very cut off from and scorn those around them. The book covers the time of the riots in Amritsar and the beginning of Ghandhi's peace revolution. Inadvertently Abby becomes involved with the political mechanisms of the Russian spy, Indian, and British military government in Amritsar all the while being torn apart by her husband's inattention and falling for Major Richards who is Christian and would never allow himself to become involved with a married woman. There was lots of tension and mystery in this fast moving story that held my attention throughout.

Special thanks to Christine Lindsay for sending me a review copy. I was not obligated in any way to give a good review, these thoughts are my own opinion.

This is an exceptional story for a number of reasons. For one, it was bravely told. I love an author who is honest in their story-telling. The faith journey was one of my favorite aspects of this story. It wasn't forced, contrived, or in any way sappy. The author gets bonus points for that alone. Plus, this story was very well written and full of rich historical and cultural detail. But the details don't bog the story down like I've seen in a number of books lately. For me, the details enhanced the richness of the setting. This time period was one that few novels cover, including history set in that part of the world, so I learned quite a bit on top of everything else.

Shadowed in Silk sort of reminded me of a Christian version of The English Patient. (Christian because it was clean and nothing immoral happened between characters, but with similar dynamics.) But this story was unique in it's own right. I learned quite a bit about Ghandi and how he influenced the people of India after the Great War. I also empathized with Indian countrymen who were subjected to similar domination as the Jewish people experienced during the time Rome ruled their nation.

Besides this novel being full of rich historical detail, it also had great pacing and plenty of mystery and intrigue to keep a person reading. The romance in the story was like the icing on the proverbial cake. Though in this story it was even more intriguing for a number of reasons I won't go into in this review. I'd hate to spoil some of the surprises for readers. To find out the details about this complex, yet fascinating culture, you'll have to read the book for yourself.

Shadowed in Silk has a lot to offer...exceptional writing, rich detail, heart-pounding action, and breath-stealing romance. This novel not only had it all, but the story was done right. And you might even shed a tear or two as you enjoy this heart-warming tale of intrigue, faith, and second chances. I absolutely loved it.

I thoroughly enjoyed Shadowed in Silk about an American woman returning to post-war India (her childhood home) to reunite with the husband she'd known only a short time before he was deployed. Christine Lindsay does a wonderful job of immersing the reader in the sights, sounds and language of India in the time of British colonial rule. It took me awhile to get used to some of the unfamiliar East Indian vocabulary, but it added an authenticity that I wouldn't have traded for a simpler read. Christine certainly had me hooked.

I read the novel in two nights, staying up into the wee hours because I couldn't wait to see how it ended. From the beginning I found myself rooting for a seemingly impossible hero (for a Christian romance) and I worried that the resolution would be clichéd. It isn't. My chest hurt from the emotions evoked by the writing. The story kept me totally engaged. Looking forward to reading more from this promising new writer.

Christine Lindsay takes us away to exotic, far away India in the early 1900s, a land of turbans and sari's, spicy foods, fragant flowers, and silk! However, it is also a land of great political and religious unrest under the regime of the British Raj. Abby Frazer has not seen her husband in four years, and she excitedly returns to India to be reunited with him, along with their little son, Cam, whom Nick has never seen. Abby is surprised when she descends from the ship, to find that Nick isn't even there, and she must travel three days alone by train, if not for the kindness of Major Geoff Edwards, a man she met on board ship.

Geoff Richards still suffers the horrors of war, and the loss of not only many of his comrades, but his lovely wife and child as well. Feeling sympathy for Abby, and a great affection towards Cam, he escorts them to their new home and promises the boy he will return to see him. However, something is terribly amiss when Abby arrives and the servant puts her bags in a guestroom and she smells a jasmine scent coming from Nick's room. Who is the lovely, Tikah, who mysteriously flits about the house, and why does she seem to hate Abby? As time goes on, Abby realizes that Nick is very abusive, but still does her best to salvage her marriage.

Soon bedlam breaks out and many are killed and wounded, and in her loneliness and feelings of rejection, Abby does something very foolish to endanger her son's life. Will the God that Geoff believes in hear her prayers and save Cam before it is too late? Will Geoff be able to stifle his feelings towards Abby; an abused, but married woman, and also find healing for his own troubled soul? And who is the traitor among them who is a wolf in sheep's clothing?

I was hooked from page one and literally burned the midnight oil reading this one, something I haven't done in a long while! This novel was filled with excitement, romance, and non-stop action! Fabulous job, Christine Lindsay!

This book was so wonderful and emotionally involving that it took me away from what I should have been doing. I pushed aside everything and kept reading. My attention was riveted to this absolutely beautifully-written novel which brings to the forefront so many themes of love, loyalty, longing, hate, prejudice, and how God is sovereign in the midst of tragedy and triumph. Ms. Lindsay gives us a strong, haunted but loyal and stalwart hero in Geoff, and my heart broke for the kind-hearted heroine, Abby, even as I glimpsed her strong inner strength. I literally cheered out loud when she began to assert her will and stand up against those who sought to hurt her and her son. You will laugh, you will cry, you will smile and you will ultimately be deeply touched by these characters and their story. It's a heartfelt story I won't forget, and I am giving it my highest recommendation.

Christine Lindsay has crafted a wonderful epic romance with tons of action that kept me turning pages. I don't usually read romance, but this was that in the classic sense of the word, and it grabbed hold of me and kept me turning pages.

What an exotic period. The novel delves into ethnic and religious prejudices, political intrigue, love/hate, gun running, and a Russian spy thrown into the mix.

Christine Lindsay's SHADOWED IN SILK is a beautifully written book full of superb period detail to give the reader a you-are-there feeling; charcters you truly care about, including a Mother Theresa figure; and gripping events, many of them right from the pages of history.

After World War I Abby returns with her small son to the India she grew up in hoping to rebuild her life with her husband, but little of the man she married is apparent in the cruel Nick Fraser. Major Geoff Richards is a good friend to young Cam, but the demons of his past and the dangers of the present demand that he keep his distance from Abby. The revolution and turmoil in the streets are echoed in the pain and tumult in Geoff and Abby's hearts right up to the very satisfying ending.

A Very Private Grave

Shadowed in Silk was a wonderful surprise. I knew the book would be great because some of my writer friends had said it was. But there were things about it I didn't expect even reading the description. I was stuck in the usual and normal way of doing things, I suppose. It wasn't just a historical but one that took me to India, a place and time I had never read about. It gave me some wonderful insight into that time period. As someone with a heart to reach out to those of other nationalities this really spoke to me. I have been learning so much about different cultures. This helped further those lessons. I was never really interested in history when I was in school but now that I am a homeschool mom and writer history has taken on a whole new excitement.

The characters were vibrant and alive throughout the story. Abby is such a caring and loving person. She doesn't hold prejudice's against others because of their skin color. She respects the cultural boundaries. Geoff is a strong man of good character. He is a great leader. They each understand the boundaries that are set because of who they are and the position in life they are in. While Abby doesn't quite understand the one true God Geoff has strayed away from Him. His relationship isn't the close one he used to have. As the story unfolds God does a mighty work in each of their lives.

This is a book that shows us how to love people for who they not the color of their skin or where they live. Sadly it shows us our mistakes where our actions have caused others great pain on both sides of great wars and disputes. But that is our fallen world. It isn't the world God wanted for us. It is a great book that I recommend anyone to read who loves a great historical. I can't wait to read her next book.