Title: The Lightkeeper's Daughter (A Mercy Falls Novel)

Author: Colleen Coble

Publisher: Thomas Nelson 2009

Genre: Historical Fiction; Christian; Romance

Pages: 306

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: Historical Fiction; A to Z Authors: C; Support Your Local Library

Addie Sullivan leads a quiet life in a northern California lighthouse. She mourns the death of her father and endures her mother's bitterness, until the night a storm brings an injured stranger and a dark secret to her home. The man insists she is not who she thinks she is, but rather "Julia Eaton"—the child long lost and feared dead by her wealthy family. Seizing the chance to be reunited with the Eatons, Addie leaves her lighthouse home but decides to keep her true identity a secret until they can unravel the mystery.
Addie loves the Eatons' palatial home tucked away among the California redwood forests. She feels secure with the jovial family, adores the young boy who is her charge as governess, and finds romance with his father John, a young widower. But sinister shadows overtake Addie's joy. As dusty rooms and secret compartments give up their clues about her past, Addie finds a faith and a love she could never have guessed. To embrace this new world of promise is to risk her life; but to run away is to risk losing the greatest love she's ever known.

I read a lot of Christian historical fiction. It's quick, easy, and guaranteed to have a good message. Unfortunately, a lot of the genre falls into a very formulaic structure. By the end, I often want to chew my arm off because of the predictability.

That being said, The Lightkeeper's Daughter was a refreshing change. Maybe it was because the characters weren't stereotypes of people. Maybe because the writing, specifically the dialogue, didn't seem forced and from an 8th grader. Maybe because the story had many twists and turns to which I didn't know who was the villain. Maybe because the story was saved from being overly sermonized (is that a word?, it is now); the Christian message was still there, but subtle.

Whatever the reason, I enjoyed the book immensely. I found out there was another book released in the Mercy Falls series. Of course, I ran to the library to get that one too. It's next on my reading list: The Lightkeeper's Bride. I give The Lightkeeper's Daughter 4 out of 5 stars. I definitely recommend to anyone loving mysteries with a bit of romance and without all the sex and violence of my other authors. Enjoy reading! And don't worry I won't give away the ending. You just have to find that out for yourselves.

Mercy Falls