Face of Heaven

Murray Pura

Description

Following on the heels of The Wings of Morning, the first book in Murray Pura's Snapshots in History series, comes this compelling saga of the Civil War.In April 1861, Lyndel Keim discovers two runaway slaves in her family's barn. When the men are captured and returned to their plantation, Lyndel and her young Amish beau, Nathaniel King, find themselves at odds with their pacifist Amish colonyNathaniel enlists in what will become the famous Iron Brigade of the Union Army. Lyndel enters the fray as a Brigade nurse on the battlefield, sticking close to Nathaniel as they both witness the horrors of war-including the battles at Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, and Antietam. Despite the pair's heroic sacrifices, the Amish only see that Lyndel and Nathaniel have become part of the war effort, and both are banished.And a severe battle wound at Gettysburg threatens Nathaniel's life. Lyndel must call upon her faith in God to endure the savage conflict and to face its painful aftermath, not knowing if Nathaniel is alive or dead. Will the momentous battle change her life forever, just as it will change the course of the war and the history of her country?The Face of Heaven is a dramatic story that will release on the 150th anniversary of the historic battle of Antietam, September, 1862.

Sujets

• Historical romance

Informations

• Publié par: Harvest House Publishers
• Date de parution: 01 août 2012
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780736949514
• Langue: English

Extrait

Endorsements
Murray Pura s first Harvest House novel The Wings of Morning stole the heart of reviewers
From Romantic Times
Pura has created one of the finest stories of Amish fiction I have ever read. The WWI-era Amish religious practices engage the reader, as does the dramatic love story The reader will be applauding the exceptional writing, and the cast of characters demands an encore performance.
From Publishers Weekly .
Pura has penned a meaty story dealing with complex issues as the impact of WWI and the Spanish influenza epidemic affect a Lapp Amish community in Lancaster, Pa., during 1917-1919 Pura, who has been a pastor and author in Canada for more than 25 years, masterfully balances depictions of simple Amish living with the harm that can be caused when religious ideology overrides compassion and understanding Pura s nearness to historical and Amish accuracies makes for a plausible and intriguing tale. Pura s previous works have been shortlisted for several literary awards; this entry into historical fiction is noteworthy as well.
From Eugene H. Peterson, Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Theology, Regent College, Vancouver, B.C., and author of more than 30 books, including his Gold Medallion Book Award winner The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language
Murray Pura s novel of an Amish community facing an unprecedented world war is accurate and winsome. But his portrayal of the two main characters, young people of integrity and maturity, is absolutely riveting. A book to be relished by any age, from young readers to their elders.
From Connie Cavanaugh, author of Following God One Yes at a Time
Murray Pura s first foray into Amish fiction does not disappoint. As a novelist of some distinction, Pura has already established himself in other genres, and his ability to tell a great story is as evident in this book as in his others. Pura weaves romance as well as spiritual depth into a challenging plot that will keep readers turning pages and leave them sweetly satisfied when all is said and done.
From Christian Manifesto reviewer Rachel Ropper
I completely fell in love with Murray Pura s take on the Amish during the First World War. The Wings of Morning wasn t simply an attempt to break out of the typical mould of Amish romances by sticking the story in front of the backdrop of WWI. Murray s writing showed that he d researched not only military camps and bases, the treatment of conscientious objectors and the role that aeroplanes played in WWI, but the actual flying of these planes I never thought I d enjoy reading flight sequences but Jude and Lyyndaya s descriptions of their experiences surprised me and made me think about what it would have been like to fly in one of the open-cockpit planes that were flown in this period Murray Pura shows the beginnings of being a popular voice in inspirational fiction and I look forward to reading more emotionally stirring and well-researched depictions of history in the next volume in his Snapshots in History series.
From Amazon.com Hall of Fame reviewer Harriet Klausner
This excellent fresh WWI era Amish thriller provides wonderful unique perspective of the community at a time when aeroplanes and electricity are so new they have not been banned yet; even Bishop Zook demands a flight. The seemingly star-crossed romance between the shunned hero and the woman he cherishes enhances a great period piece that will have readers wanting more historical tales like this winner from Murray Pura.
HARVEST HOUSE PUBLISHERS
EUGENE, OREGON
Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the King James Version of the Bible.
The Scripture quotation on page 8 is from The Bible in Basic English version.
Cover by Garborg Design Works, Savage, Minnesota
Cover photos Chris Garborg; iStockphoto/Taylorhutchens, WilliamSherman, Jpecha
THE FACE OF HEAVEN
Copyright 2012 by Murray Pura
Published by Harvest House Publishers
Eugene, Oregon 97402
www.harvesthousepublishers.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Pura, Murray
The face of heaven / Murray Pura.
p. cm.- (Snapshots in history ; bk. 2)
ISBN 978-0-7369-4949-1 (pbk.)
ISBN 978-0-7369-4951-4 (eBook)
1. Married people-Fiction. 2. Amish-Fiction. 3. United States-History-Civil War, 1861-1865-Fiction. I. Title.
PR9199.4.P87F33 2012
813 .6-dc23
2012002226
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means-electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other-except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
Contents
Endorsements
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Epilogue
Acknowledgments
About Murray Pura
For Lyyndae Levy Pura, RN, BN, graduate of Dalhousie University School of Nursing, 1983, and for all the nurses of America, Canada, and the world, whose skill, dedication, and compassion have saved millions of lives.
And for the men of the Iron Brigade.
L IBERTAS SUPRA OMNIA
I prefer the tumult of liberty to the quiet of slavery.
T HOMAS J EFFERSON
This is not a history of the American Civil War. Nor is it a history of one of the Union Army s most famous units in that conflict, the Iron Brigade, or of the 19th Indiana, one of several illustrious regiments that made up that brigade. It is instead a story of a young man and a young woman who sought love and God and forgiveness in the midst of America s greatest trial and its greatest tragedy.
But in answer he said to them, At nightfall you say, The weather will be good, for the sky is red. And in the morning, The weather will be bad today, for the sky is red and angry.
You are able to see the face of heaven, but not the signs of the times.
J ESUS, IN M ATTHEW 16:2-3
1
W henever she thought back to that morning years later, or told friends about how life was before the whole world changed, it was the warm spring sunshine and the brightness of the sky Lyndel spoke of the most. That and the green scent of the grass over which a morning rain had just come and gone, the opening of red snapdragons, and the talk of the men on the porch being lost to her ears as robins and larks opened their throats on that second day of April, 1861, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
The cows had already been milked and Lyndel s three younger sisters were hard at work with the butter churn in a room just off the kitchen. She was heading to the barn to open the doors and lead the dairy herd out to their spring pasture. A sudden pause in the birdsong allowed the men s voices to reach her as she crossed the yard.
Jacob, they have seized the federal forts in South Carolina and Mississippi and Georgia. Their intent is clear. I see no hesitation on the part of the states that have left the Union. They mean to have their own country.
Just wait. It s only a ploy to force President Lincoln to take their demands seriously. All will be right as rain by summer.
I m not so sure, Jacob. They mean to keep their slaves. They are afraid of Lincoln.
So you don t think the president can stop the Southern states, Samuel?
I don t know. Only I don t think they re merely spinning tops and playing games. They will have their slaves and they will have their own country.
Lyndel was surprised to find the cows pushing against the barn doors, more eager than usual to make their way to the pasture. Once she opened them, the herd rushed out, almost knocking her to the ground. Without Lyndel having to say a thing, Old Missus rapidly led the way to the pasture gate so that the young woman had to run ahead and swing it wide.
The cows shouldered through side by side, a few of them bawling, and traveled at least a hundred yards before deciding to stop and crop grass. Latching the gate, Lyndel went back to the barn to see if she could find out what had disturbed them. Perhaps a snake had found its way in among the straw.
Picking up a pitchfork to chase away any pest she encountered, she began to walk through the barn, glancing often at her feet as she stepped through the dirty straw.
Looking into the first stalls, she found they were empty of anything like porcupines or skunks or badgers. She stopped and listened a moment but heard nothing.
Slowly she made her way to the back of the barn, holding the pitchfork at chest height. Sunlight trickled between cracks in the walls and through the dusty skylight so she could make out what was in the corners. But by the time she reached the end of the barn there was still nothing. She didn t bother taking a look at the last two stalls and turned to head back. Whatever had spooked the milk cows was long gone. But suddenly she heard a groan.
She whirled, fear pricking her chest. Brandishing the pitchfork she stepped toward the last stall on the left, expecting to see a wild dog or a coyote or fox. Instead, in the dim light she saw two sets of human eyes-then teeth as a face grimaced, struggling to breathe.
We mean you no harm! a voice cried and a hand shot up to ward off a blow.
Lyndel immediately lowered the pitchfork and stepped closer. You re slaves! she said in astonishment.
We re men.
How long have you been here? What has happened to you?
One man was holding the other in his arms. He was the one who spoke to Lyndel, while his friend could only fight for air and wince. We ve been on the run from our plantation in Virginia for three weeks, he said, holding the wounded man close to his chest. We made good time riding the boxcars. But we had to jump while