Soul's Prisoner by Cara Luecht - REVIEWED

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Soul's Prisoner (WhiteFire Publishing (December 15, 2015)) by Cara Luecht

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

A Word from the Author:I never planned to be a writer. In fact, it took me a while to finish college. But I did, and here I am. And I now I can’t imagine not being a writer. By day, I am an English Instructor for a local college, mother to four amazing children, and wife to an eternally patient and supportive husband. In the evening, when I can squirrel away some quiet time, I read and write historical fiction. I have a B.A. in English Lit. from UW Whitewater and an M.F.A in Creative Writing from Fairleigh Dickinson University in Madison, NJ. If you have a question for me, or if you are local and would like me to stop by your book club or writer’s group, please drop me a line via the “Ask the Author” tab. I always love the opportunity to meet with others who share my love of books.





ABOUT THE BOOK

She'll fight for her future...but can she escape her past?
Chicago, Winter, 1891
Rachel is in danger. She s seen too much.
She creeps along the cement walls through the dank underbelly of the asylum. She d never planned to leave her quiet farm life, never thought she d find a place in the city, never imagined she d be in the kind of danger that would have her cowering in Dunning s cold, labyrinthine basement.
Jenny has finally found her place. After a childhood of abuse, she has friends, a real job, and her only wish is to give her adopted son the kind of life she never had.
A life of stability, without the risk and uncertainty of a father.
But when Jeremy, Rachel s brother, stumbles into their warehouse, asking for help to find his missing sister, Jenny s carefully constructed life begins to crumble.


My Thoughts:

“Trust me to value your gift. You paint for a reason. You don’t have to understand that reason before you put brush to canvas, and I don’t have to understand  that reason to believe it exists.”  (p. 264)

Miriam’s gift has matured…grown into a gift of seeing not only faces she doesn’t know, but she can now images that prove vital to situations that reveal themselves in her own life.  Cara Luecht has written another fascinating tale  that, sadly, is based loosely on the mystery that mental illness represented during the late 1800’s.  Because mental illness was so misunderstood, it became a dark covering for some rather depraved behavior.

Luecht explores all of this and more through the relationships of a very broad range of characters.  There are rich, privileged characters, poor, working-class characters, and those who have struggled to find their way and now want to help others.  There are many different kinds of relationships that are explored in this novel, as well as a mystery that is finally resolved in a courtroom setting. 

This is truly a fascinating tale, and one that will keep your imagination captive from beginning to end.  Michael and Miriam have become even more precious to me as I’ve grown to know them better.  I can honestly say that I can’t wait to see what flows from Cara Luecht’s imagination next!  She is a gifted author! 

If you would like to read the first chapter of Soul's Prisoner, go HERE.