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Corinne_S
A Life Changing Decision
The opening line to this soul-searching first novel by M.L. Stedman begins, “On the day of the miracle, Isabel was kneeling at the cliff’s edge, tending the small, newly made driftwood cross. Questions come to mind immediately, why is Isabel tending the small, new driftwood cross? Why was the cross there? What could the miracle possibly be? Stedman, who was born in Australia, pulls you into the lives of Tom and Isabel Sherbourne, who have chosen to live a solitary life on the tiny island of Janus Rock, off the coast of Australia, where Tom tends the lighthouse.
The story of each person unfolds around a very difficult moral question. You, the reader, must decide what would you do, and do you agree with Tom and Isabel’s decision? How will their decisions affect other people around them? Are they ready for the consequences of the decisions they made in life? Stedman gives you enough background information about the main characters that allows you to build an understanding of who they are, and what experiences they have lived through that formed the choices they made.
I loved how the story created strong feelings of dread, fear, shame, anger, anxiety, sympathy, sadness, relief as you moved forward in time. I was rooting for Isabel even when I knew I would not do that in real life. The conclusion allows you to see how the choices each person made changed their lives forever. There is so many outstanding topics for the people in your book group to discuss that you will find the meeting will run late.
Marsha S. (Nags Head, NC)
The Light Between Oceans
This is a spellbinding story that I could not put down. I was pulled into the story and brought to tears on several occasions. I think the author did a masterful job of portraying the circumstances in such a way that I could sympathize with and almost support the decisions the Sherbournes make, almost making me believe that they have done the right thing. It is only when I distanced myself from the spell of the place and the characters that I could awake to the reality of what was done. It is a story that really left me wondering what I would have done in their place.
Deborah M. (Chambersburug, PA)
A Moving and Elegant Debut Novel
Tom Sherbourne, a decorated hero of World War I, is a haunted man: he's haunted by the men he killed, by the comrades who died alongside him; and by an unhappy childhood--none of which he is willing to talk about. In an effort to find peace, Tom takes a position as a lighthouse keeper on Janus Island, 100 miles out from the coastal city of Partageuse. No one is more surprised than Tom when he finds love with Isabel Graysmarks, a beautiful and spirited local girl who is willing to marry him and move to the isolated island. Both of them grow to love the spare landscape and the magical light itself. But if there is one thing that blights their happiness, it is Isabel's inability to bear a child. She has suffered two miscarriages and, just two weeks earlier, a stillbirth, when a boat washes ashore, inside it a dead man, a woman's cardigan--and a live infant. As always, Tom feels obligated to do the right thing ... but just what is the right thing?
Stedman has written a compelling novel, one that captivates the reader and moves him/her through a myriad of emotions, from sorrow to joy, from peacefulness to suspense, from anger to acceptance. Her characters are individual and believable (although I found the child Lucy just a bit too precious) and always deserving of empathy. Stedman's descriptions of the island and of the beloved lighthouse are so vivid that you can smell the salt sea, the polish, and the vapor. Overall, a fine novel--and an amazing debut. I look forward to her next endeavor.
Diana C. (Delray Beach, FL)
A Heartrending Tale
Notwithstanding the innocuous dialogue between husband and wife during the early years of their marriage, which takes place very early on, thankfully this book unravels into an absorbing, stirring and emotional story about how a seemingly benevolent split-second decision carries with it consequences that resonate throughout a lifetime. While the characters are rather undeveloped, the story is well written and the reader’s desire to see the story through gives the characters the lifeline they need.
Loretta F. (Fountain Inn, SC)
A Stunning Debut
This novel has all the elements of a great read. The poetic language carried me to a lonely lighthouse miles from land where I could almost feel the wind and hear the waves crashing. "The wind pounced on him like a predator..." and "The water sloshed like white paint, milky-thick..." Light vs. darkness was used throughout the novel as a metaphor for choices made and their consequences. The characters were so richly drawn that I became emotionally involved with them, caring deeply for what they were going through. But most of all, this is just such a good story. It pulled me in and kept me guessing until the very end.
I will be recommending this novel to my book club, to all my friends, and to anyone who enjoys getting lost in a good book.
Sue P. (Richardson, TX)
The Light Between Oceans
The choices we make not only shape us, they affect those whose life we touch. This is a novel about choices and how there really can be times when wrong is right and right is wrong. The author's telling of this tale made it so that I could empathize with all of the three principal characters, thus giving me choices to make, also. This is a very good book.
Teresa H. (Mechanicsville, VA)
Well written but left me emotionally drained
I can not remember reading a book quite so heartbreaking. After World War 1 a physically intact yet war damaged Tom Sherbourne accepts a post as a lighthouse keeper on Janus Rock, an isolated island in Australia. He marries Isabel and returns to life keeping the lighthouse. After several miscarriages a distraught Isabel hears the cries of an infant. They find dead man and a baby in a small boat. This sets forth a series of events that take on a life of their own. At what point is it too late to correct a wrong or is it ever too late? About the time I felt comfortable with their decisions a whole new dimension is brought in that made me reconsider who the victims really were. From the power we let the past have over us to the urge to protect and comfort those we love this book shows just how judgements can be clouded. The writing captured the desperation and emotions of each character to the point that I found myself sobbing. I will be pondering this book for a while.
Naomi B. (Tucson, AZ)
The Light Between the Oceans: A Strong Debut
From the first sentence, M.L. Stedman's The Light Between the Oceans draws the reader into the world of its memorable characters. With lyrical prose and a breathtaking setting, Stedman almost literally places the central conflict of the novel at our feet: a dingy with a dead man and a live baby. Isabel, who finds the child, considers the discovery a miracle from God, and in those first exquisitely wrought pages, we can see that this will set the stage for a story of both tragedy and love as Tom and Isabel, husband and wife, must deal with the consequences of their choices concerning this baby. The story is set on Janus, an isolated lighthouse on a beautiful but forlorn portion of the Australian coastline where Tom is the keeper of the light. Throughout the novel, Stedman returns to the image of the light, its beam illuminating a path of safety for sailors traversing the dark union of horizon and night. By extension, she casts this same light across her pages, offering her characters a ray of hope and guidance when they find themselves most lost, most tangled in the web their lives has cast around them. The intricacies of plot keeps us turning pages, the breathtaking descriptions keep us firmly inside place and story, and the complex and well-drawn characters keep us hoping for the best, even in the darkest moments. The only elements that drew me out of the story were tense switches, which I found jarring and unnecessary, and sections of point of view switches that I felt drew attention away from the central story and the central conflict rather than added to it. These were not fatal flaws, however. I found this to book to be engaging, well-wrought, and above all, a book of substance. It is a book I will remember.
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