Customer Reviews

Sunrise Song (Avon Camelot Books)

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Once in a great while, a book comes along that is so intelligent, so riveting, so utterly flawless that it should be required reading for every romance reader on the planet.

This is such a book.

Kathleen Eagle has used her considerable writing talent to craft a superb tale of family ties, betrayal, and redeeming love. And she has chosen an unusual format in which to do it -- a frame story within a fictionalized account of a little-known incident in American history, concerning an asylum for insane Indians in South Dakota.

The book contains two romances whose consequences are intertwined. One concerns Michelle Benedict, a teacher with an interest in Indian history, and Zane Lone Bull, a Vietnam vet and ex-con searching for his brother's murderer. The time is 1973.

The other concerns Rachael Trainor, a dedicated nurse, and Adam Lone Bull, an inmate at the Hiawatha Asylum for Insane Indians. This story takes place in 1933. These two stories are told together, intermixed throughout the novel.

Eagle never tries to hide the connections between these characters. We're not long into the story when we know Adam and Rachael were Zane's parents, unknown to him. We know Zane's Uncle Martin was an inmate at the asylum, where he was the victim of unspeakable brutality. We know Michelle is Zane's hope for the future, and their love can finally bring meaning to his life and an understanding of his past.

These are honest, flawed, wonderful people. We rejoice with Zane when he finds this loving woman, and they quickly realize they are right for each other. We agonize with Rachael and Adam as they try to defy the odds and make their love a reality in every sense of the word. Most of all, we are gripped by the tragedy of the inmates, suffering a hellish existence behind walls where few care to look.

Reading this book is like watching a tapestry being woven before your eyes. Some of the threads are shining and beautiful; some are flawed, and some are ugly and repellent. All of them combined interweave to complete a picture that can only be viewed as a whole. In her story of the Hiawatha Asylum and the people who were its inmates, Eagle has created a work of art. It's all the more compelling because it is based on fact.

This book won't appeal to every romance reader. Those who like their plots light and fluffy and a bit mindless will no doubt toss this book aside. But those who are willing to be disturbed, to ache, to rage, and above all, to believe that even the briefest of loves is a thing of joy, will consider this book to be a treasure. It is impossible to read this novel and not be deeply moved, and that's the mark of the best stories in any genre. I vote for having it bronzed.

Thank you, Kathleen Eagle.

Cathy Sova

From the review in "The Romance Reader".
URL: http://www.theromancereader.com/index.html

I haven't been disappointed in an Eagle book yet, and "Sunrise Song" lived up to my 5-star expectations again. Eagle weaves together past and present to create an unforgettable and poignant story of courage and love in the face of insurmountable obstacles. The descriptions of the events which take place in the Assylum for Insane Indians, though fascinating and educational, is profoundly sad, which may be unsettling to some readers. I turn the last page of an Eagle book with regret (that the story is over) but also with the deep satisfaction of a thoroughly good read and the feeling that I have learned a great deal about American Indian History. The fluidity of Eagle's writing is a pleasure to read, and no detail seems forced or extraneous - never a dull moment.

I've never been moved enough to review a book, but this one moved me beyond words. The story(ies) were eloquent, touching and kept be reading into the wee hours. I found the characters so finely developed that I found myself fighting and furious.

Adam and Rachael brought such poignancy to the story that I found myself frustrated for them, therefore rooting for Zane and Michelle. The way the story paralleled the two relationships back and forth was done with such finesse that I never missed a beat. Normally, going back in time can be frustrating to a story and sometimes distracting, yet this story brought forth such emotion I'm surprised too that it isn't on someones best seller list.

Kathleen Eagle is truly a gifted writer! She was able to weave her characters in and out of different time periods without losing you. The story is about how strong American Indians have had to be in order to preserve their heritage. It will make you cry and touch you in a way that you will never forget!

This is not so much a review as it is a rebuttal to "A reader from Chicago, IL".

You said Sunrise Song was a depressing read and the characters were one dimensional. I hope no one judges Kathleen Eagles books based on what you say.

Sunrise Song has to be one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read. Buy this book for an uplifting experience, and then, buy her other books; you won't be disappointed.

Kathleen Eagle books are meant for those of us who appreciate life and love.

God bless you, Kathleen Eagle

Kathleen Eagle has a real gift for making you identify with her characters. This is a fabulous story (2, really) of people helping each other and falling in love at the same time.

Kathleen Eagle far surpasses any other Romance writer and I'm just disappointed that Nora Roberts gets all the credit she does. I hope Kathleen puts out many, many more books.

Kathleen Eagle has outdone herself in this amazing love story/mystery/historical novel. While I'm an avid reader of Eagle's work - this is the first time I've ever read one of her books in one sitting. I simply couldn't put it down. Nothing could get me to put this book down until I'd turned the last page 8 hours after I bought it.

While I've usually bought Kathleen Eagle's books because she often writes of American Indian history and culture - she truly captured my attention and my admiration for her ability to tell a story filled with tragedy, triumph and love.

This wonderful book had me in tears as I read. The writing is so fine that I'm surprised that it was not on someone's best-seller list. Switching between past and present is sometimes awkward and annoying to a reader, but Ms. Eagle gives equal emotional truth to both. I have read all of her books I can get my hands on and can only hope for more, more, more. It is, however, a testament to her talent that she is not churning out book after book based upon the same characters some writers develop in the first book of a "series" and in later books just put them in different situations. Ms. Eagle creates original, memorable characters in each story.

Having read "Reason to Believe", I already knew that I liked Ms. Eagle's writing very much. After reading "Sunrise Song", I wound up being an even bigger fan and cannot wait for the next book to come out.

"Sunrise Song" pulled me into its content with the very first paragraph and about a year or so later, it still doesn't want to let me go completely. It made me sad to think that even as late as the 1930's we still had places like the Indian Insane Asylum mentioned in the book and that people were still sent there for no better reason than an BIA agent wanting to gain access to res. land. I can't say that I know what those people might have felt or even begin to comprehend the reasoning behind using such places.

The 1970's were also responsible for a double-wammie to the Indian community, especially those Indians that served in the armed forces during Vietnam. I am not militant, but I do hold a deep respect for all of the men and women who have served in the military throughout history. But for those soldiers, Indian, white, black, Asian, who came back from Vietnam were not only scarred physically, emotionally, or both, but had to face the hate of their own nation for having fought there. Think what it must have been for Indians who not only fought, but came back.

This book gives a glimpse of what some of these people must have gone through. Two men sent to a hospital they never should have went too, just because someone said that they were mentally incapacitated and having no say in the outcome. One man who fought for his country and came back to hate and the love of a good woman who, in the end, was able to give him some peace. Different times, different kinds of courage. The title a metaphor for a healing of the spirit in the form of a Sunrise Song.

This book, as all Kathleen Eagle's I've read thus far, is hard to put down. With two parallel stories, you can generally put a book down when the stories switch back and forth. Not this one! Excellent!