1. Here Burns My Candle
    Liz Curtis Higgs
    WaterBrook / 2010 / Trade Paperback
    Our Price$12.99 Retail Price$18.00 Save 28% ($5.01)
    4.4 out of 5 stars for Here Burns My Candle. View reviews of this product. 95 Reviews
    Availability: Expected to ship on or about 04/18/24.
    Stock No: WW070010
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Displaying items 6-10 of 95
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  1. Lex0307
    Baraboo, WI
    Age: 45-54
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Great Read - Couldn't put it down
    April 26, 2011
    Lex0307
    Baraboo, WI
    Age: 45-54
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    I loved this book. The depth of the characters and the vivid descriptions of Edinburgh drew me in and transported me into their lives. I could relate to their struggles and celebrate with them in their victories. I was reminded of what a wonderful God we serve as I watched Him present Himself to the Lady Kerr and draw her near to Him. The transformation in Lady Marjory as her pride is slowly stripped from her, and she is brought to a point where her heart longs to return to her "first love" is heartbreaking and joyous all at the same time. As I reluctantly turned the last page, not wanting the book to end, I knew I would soon be reading the sequel, Mine is the Night.

    This is the first book by Liz Curtis Higgs that I have had the pleasure of reading. I was quite impressed with the obvious research that she had done on the historical and geographical aspects of the book and her insight into how God can work in our lives. I began reading the book knowing that it was based on the story of Ruth and Naomi, even though that gave me some insight as to where the book was going, it did not lessen the intrigue of how we were going to get there. Here Burns My Candle covers the first 18 verses of the Book of Ruth. The Bible does not really give us a lot of insight into what the daily lives of Naomi and her family were like before they returned to Bethlehem, and while I am sure it cannot truly be compared to life in Edinburgh in 1745; it did cause me to stop and ponder what Naomi and Ruth's lives were like during their time in Moab.

    The author does use a lot of local dialect in her characters speech. This did not really hinder the fluidity of the book for me. Most of the time I found it easily interpreted within the context, and on the rare occasion when it was not I just flipped to the Scottish glossary on the last page of the book. Another plus to the book are the Reader's Guide questions which encouraged me to take a look at my own life and how I would have handled the situations this family faced. In my opinion, this book would be an excellent choice for those involved in a book club.

    I look forward to continuing the journey with Marjory and Elisabeth and can't wait to meet Boaz in Mine is the Night. I would highly recommend this book to my friends.

    I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group in return for my honest review. I was not required to give a positive review.
  2. cyndidd
    Troy, MO
    Age: 25-34
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    April 14, 2011
    cyndidd
    Troy, MO
    Age: 25-34
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 4
    I really enjoyed Here Burns My Candle. Lady Elisabeth Kerr is highlander by birth and lowlander by marriage. She is faithful to her husband, but not to his God. She still chooses to worship the nameless one of her ancestors. Once Prince Charles comes into Edinburgh and her family swears their allegiance to the rightful heir to the throne, life drastically changes. Soon, Lady Kerr has to face facts... does the nameless one truly care for her? And what about the Holy One she pretends to worship at the kirk each Sunday?

    As Lady Kerr travels along her spiritual journey, she is forced to make choices that could change her life forever. Will this highlander learn to rely on the Holy One, God? Will she learn to trust Him and His plan for her life?

    I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys historical fiction.

    ---------

    I received this complimentary book from Waterbrook Press in exchange for my honest review.
  3. Laura of Harvest Lane Cottage
    Carthage, MO
    Age: 55-65
    Gender: Female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    I stayed up too late...reading this book...twice!
    March 30, 2011
    Laura of Harvest Lane Cottage
    Carthage, MO
    Age: 55-65
    Gender: Female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    I stayed up too late...reading this book...twice! I was drawn into the story immediately. The characters were so deep, so likeable. I felt like I was actually in 1745 Scotland and actually part of the Kerr family. The history of the Jacobite Rebellion was so skillfuly woven into the story, I felt the tension as the characters had to determine which course was the right one for their lives. I felt the ache as secrets were kept and were revealed. I love it when fiction books make me forget there is a real world; because, the world of the book becomes the real world for a little while. Here Burns My Candle did that for me.

    I was a little uncertain during the first couple of chapters. I don't like reading about intimacy... if you know what I mean. There was a certain amount that was tastefully described. It was not graphic in any way. However, I would not allow my teenager to read it. It's definitely for married women. Adultery, treason, war and finding a relationship with the true God are central themes.

    I recommend this book for married women.

    Five Stars
  4. Rachel Ropper
    Scotland, UK
    Age: 18-24
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    No review will ever do this book justice
    March 26, 2011
    Rachel Ropper
    Scotland, UK
    Age: 18-24
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    Life in Scotland during the Jacobite Rebellion of 1745 was not easy for anyone, least not the noble Kerr family in the capital city of Edinburgh. Elisabeth Kerr cannot hide her Jacobite sympathies from her family, and slowly her husband begins to share her sentiments. But when her beloved Donald and his younger brother Andrew decide to fight for the royal pretender, denouncing their loyalties to King George, Elisabeth can't help but question whether she should have kept her feelings to herself.

    Her emotions are torn even further when she discovers that the rumours about her husband's infidelity were more than just idle gossip. This news comes at the worst possible time, and Elisabeth resigns herself to waiting until her husband's homecoming to work on restoring her marriage. But will the Kerr men ever return from battle?

    As she waits for news of her husband, Elisabeth finds herself drawing closer to Marjory, the mother-in-law who had previously scorned her for being a Lowlander. Outlawed for their allegiance to the bonny prince and lost without their men, these two women learn to find trust in each other as their position in society and their beloved country begin to crumble around them.

    No review I write of this book will ever be able to do it justice. There are some books that I find myself so enamoured with that I cannot even begin to think of any flaws in them, and Here Burns My Candle is one of these. Having considered it, I could understand that those of a sensitive nature may be upset by the discussions of adultery and mistresses. And non-Christians may find Elisabeth's conversion to Christianity uninteresting and feel the need to skip over these sections.

    And I must confess, I am of a bit of an advantage when it comes to understanding the Scottish dialect in this novel, having grown up in area of Scotland where most of the residents speak with a rather broad Scots accent. (Although I will admit that my own accent is incredibly neutral, causing all of my foreign friends to complain that I don't sound "Scottish enough". So while I can decipher old Scots, I couldn't pronounce it to save my life. Please don't ask me to read this book out loud!) Fortunately, the author has included a wonderful glossary at the back of this book. If you have not yet discovered this, I'd recommend searching for it now! Even I had to use it a couple of times. The idea of having to look up a glossary in a novel might seem strange at first, but I know that most Amish novels now include these so the idea is not entirely new. But I can sympathise with those who are put off this novel due to the dialect.

    That said, I honestly cannot think of one aspect of this novel that I did not love. I was cautious at the idea of reading a book set in my own country, as my one previous experience with a Scottish historical romance wasn't particularly inspiring. Eighteenth-century Scottish history isn't a period that I'm overly educated in, and I'm fairly certain that the Jacobite Rebellion was covered in a one-hour lecture in my first year of university. Thus, I'm certain that there are American readers who came to this book more read on this subject than myself! Like many, I started this book rather blind, and was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed it.

    I was immediately taken in by the strong, yet somehow vulnerable character of Elisabeth, who was treated like an equal by her husband yet looked down on by his family. While she stood up to her mother- and sister-in-law, she was scared at confronting her husband about the rumours she'd heard whispered about him. As would any woman, Elisabeth tried to deny any thoughts of her husband's infidelity, yet on another level she believed them enough that she didn't want to risk confronting him for an answer. It was truly heartbreaking to witness Elisabeth's internal turmoil and to wait for the moment when she would learn the truth. And while you wouldn't think that Donald could be a terribly endearing character, I did wish that he would get the chance to reform himself and cut the ties to his mistresses.

    But this is Edinburgh during the Jacobite Rebellion, and I knew that the outcome of Elisabeth and Donald's story wouldn't be a pleasant one. Those who recall the Biblical story of Ruth will also know how this plot will pan out, since both Here Burns My Candle and its sequel, Mine is the Night, are based upon the Book of Ruth.

    Unlike a lot of the historical novels I read, the premise of this one was not a boy-girl romance, but the growth of a relationship between mother- and daughter-in-law. Marjory was originally a rather unlikable character, the typical matriarch who cared more about the appearance of her family than her relationships within it. But when her sons left to fight in battle, she found herself alone with her two daughters-in-law, and it was Highlander Elisabeth, not the more respectable Janet, in whom she found comfort. It was wonderful to watch the growing relationship between these two women, despite the bleakness of their situation, and the reformation of Marjory's personality. Their friendship also helps Elisabeth to draw closer to God, a figure who had been entirely absent in her upbringing but in whom she finds comfort after her husband's departure. Mother- and daughter-in-law relations are not often the subject of novels, but they are a topic that most women will be able to relate to.

    While I felt that the conclusion to this novel was largely optimistic, I'm also very glad that I have the sequel sitting in front of me! The Kerr saga is captivating, and I'm now a convert to the works of Liz Curtis Higgs and historical fiction of my homeland. It was so refreshing to read a novel not focused on romance, but the relationships between women in an extended family. If you're a historical fiction fan and have not yet discovered Liz Curtis Higgs, I highly recommend starting with Here Burns My Candle.

    Review title provided courtesy of Waterbrook Press.
  5. Laura Frantz
    Kentucky
    Age: 45-54
    Gender: female
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Stellar historical
    January 23, 2011
    Laura Frantz
    Kentucky
    Age: 45-54
    Gender: female
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    This is the finest historical I've read since Grace In Thine Eyes. I love that the novel is based on the Biblical story of Ruth, a personal favorite. Every page is rich and has so much pathos and depth that I had to put it down (unwillingly) just to let my emotions rest. When I finished I cried. Rarely am I am so moved by a book that I hate to let the characters go. Am thankful there's soon to be a sequel!

    Elisabeth is such an admirable character, a true Proverbs 31 woman. She handles life with such grace and her growth in faith is wonderful to watch. Donald's behavior made me realize the beauty of fidelity and what a gift that is - why it is so highly prized. I also loved the way Marjory's faith returns to her over time. Our Saviour does woo each of us in such beautiful, creative ways. Rob is such a strong, intriuguing man. I kept hoping he and Elisabeth would marry even though he behaves less than honorably at book's end. I know she deserves a Boaz but wish Rob was that!

    As an historical fiction author, I know fine fiction when I read it. Wish Liz could turn out a book a month! Och, what a loosome writer is she!
Displaying items 6-10 of 95
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