"A Refuge Assured" by Jocelyn Green

A Refuge Assured (Feb. 6, 2018) by Jocelyn Green.*

Lacemaking is an honest trade and an artisan of such a trade nowadays would be rare, but in the 1790s, being a lacemaker to the queen of France, Marie Antoinette, and other aristocrats is enough to send one to the guillotine. So lacemaker Vivienne “Vienne” Rivard flees Paris, “the Paris she loved – and the Paris she hated,” across an ocean to Pennsylvania. When it becomes necessary to leave Philadelphia out of concern for the safety of her young charge and herself, she goes to French Azilum (Asylum).

            Having met Vienne in Philadelphia on his mail runs between there and Asylum, schoolteacher-turned-militiaman William “Liam” Delaney is drawn to the Frenchwoman who is a different person than he initially assumed her to be. Liam served during the American Revolution, but he now feels caught up in the Whiskey Rebellion. How does he dutifully serve the democracy he fought for, but barely recognizes, when the oppressive whiskey tax impacts his own family? Did he trade one revolution for another? Add in the fact that he lives near French émigrés fleeing their own revolution, including a woman and boy he’s come to care for deeply, and what’s a man to do?

            My first novel from Green, I enjoyed the richness of the story with the details the author wove together – the details based on historical fact and those she used literary license with. She was able to weave fact with fiction seamlessly. This inspirational, historical fiction novel is smartly written, and the faith of the main characters supports them and does not overwhelm who they are. Vienne and Liam are relatable characters that I wish I could meet in present-day real-life. And I appreciate Vienne’s thought, which can pertain to anyone who is struggling to put the past behind them: “It was time to lay aside the shape of her old life.” We cannot move forward when we keep looking at the past. This story isn’t just about fighting for peace and safety; it’s about moving forward despite a traumatic past and forming new relationships (and not just of the romantic variety).

            Humor within the pages that I enjoyed: “He killed an ice cream! Such villainy!” -- Martine to Vienne when she shares her horror over a loathsome man purposely beheading a lobster-shaped ice cream to prove his point (p. 100).

* Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Bethany House Publishers. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions are expressly my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”