Review: Fragments of Light by Michele Phoenix

Fragments of Light

by Michele Phoenix 

Publisher: Thomas Nelson

Pages: 352

Format: eARC

Buy the Book: Amazon

Goodreads:  Cancer stole everything from Ceelie—her peace of mind, her self-image, perhaps even her twenty-three-year marriage to her college sweetheart, Nate. Without the support of Darlene, her quirky elderly friend, she may not have been able to endure so much loss.

So when Darlene’s prognosis turns dire, Ceelie can’t refuse her seemingly impossible request—to find a WWII paratrooper named Cal, the father who disappeared when Darlene was an infant, leaving a lifetime of desolation in his wake.

The search that begins in the farmlands of Missouri eventually leads Ceelie to a small town in Normandy, where she uncovers the harrowing tale of the hero who dropped off-target into occupied France.

Alternating between Cal’s D-Day rescue by two young French sisters and Ceelie’s present-day journey through trial and heartbreak, Fragments of Light poses a timeless question: When life becomes unbearable, will you press toward the light or let the darkness win?

Kritters Thoughts:  Ceelie has just battled cancer and while cancer brought someone into her life, a new friend Darlene, it also broke her marriage into pieces.  While her marriage is crumbling, Darlene asks Ceelie for a very large favor to help her find the father that abandoned her and help her find peace before she dies.  Will this mission also help her marriage.  Interspersed throughout this story are chapters that take place back at the tail end of World War II around D-Day.  These chapters help give the back story to Darlene's father, but also leave the reader hanging in the best way possible.

I love a story that has a current storyline and a past in the same book.  I love when those stories connect, but when it takes a moment to find out how they really connect.  It was obvious that this storyline would be the connection to Darlene's father, but I was glad that it took some digging to find out all of the details.

Currently, I am avoiding books with bad marriages and cheating spouses, just not loving those books right now, so I was sad to read all the things that happened in this relationship and almost naively ignored that plot point of this book! 

I liked the writing and the characters in this book.  I would just avoid one of the plot points in the story.  I would read another by this author and may read one real soon!

Rating: definitely a good read, but can't read two in a row

Disclosure of Material Connection:  I received one copy of this book free of charge from TLC Book Tours.  I was not required to write a positive review in exchange for receipt of the book; rather, the opinions expressed in this review are my own.