A volunteer for the newly established Weather Bureau, Sophie van Riijn needs access to the highest spot in her village to report the most accurate readings. Fascinated by Dierenpark, an abandoned mansion high atop a windswept cliff in the Hudson River Valley, Sophie knows no better option despite a lack of permission from the absent owners. The first Vandermark to return to the area in sixty years, Quentin intends to put an end to the shadowy rumors about the property that has brought nothing but trouble upon his family. Ready to tear down the mansion, he is furious to discover a local woman has been trespassing on his land. Instantly at odds, Quentin and Sophie find common ground when she is the only one who can reach his troubled son. There’s a light within Sophie that Quentin has never known, and a small spark of the hope that left him years ago begins to grow. But when the secrets of Dierenpark and the Vandermark family history are no longer content to stay in the past, will tragedy triumph or can their tenuous hope prevail?
Author's Website: http://elizabethcamden.com/books/until-the-dawn
MY REVIEW:
Elizabeth Camden has given us another exciting read filled with history, romance, and mystery. The story takes place in a historic mansion in the Hudson River Valley. This part of New York and the Dutch migration were unfamiliar to me and I enjoyed learning more about them as I read the book. One thing I appreciate about Elizabeth Camden's books is that she always has interesting and different locations for her stories. She effectively describes both the interior and exterior of Dierenpark and it was easy to be drawn into the intrigue of the surroundings. I can understand Sophie's desire to want to stay at a mansion that has both a design of elegance and the spirit of a home.
The book has several characters that are growing spiritually and maturing throughout the story. I thought Camden did a great job defining the characters, giving you the ability to follow the characters as they developed. Sophie was very likable and she possessed great spiritual wisdom at a young age. I liked that she was independent in a time when this was not common or accepted. She did not have a full education, yet she was smart, intuitive, and had an unsinkable faith. Her smarts were gained from reading the books in the mansion's library and I appreciated this part of her story. My favorite character in the book was Quentin as I found myself routing for him despite his disbelief and cynicism. As we came to know more about his past my heart felt a tugging toward him. I can relate to some of the feelings and pains he was experiencing. I am a believer in true love and that God can ignite a fire between two people in order to show His love between them. They were exactly what the other person needed and that can only happen by Divine hands.
This is the second book I have read by Elizabeth Camden and I have become a huge fan. I am grateful to have been given this book for review by Bethany House Publishing for my honest opinion of Until the Dawn.
