WITH THE SUN'S RISING

In this final installment of a historical fiction trilogy, a 19th-century woman tries to restart her life in the aftermath of a tragedy but is haunted by an uncertain danger.

Elizabeth Sonnefelt lives an “idyllic” life—she’s married to Matthew, whom she dearly loves, and makes her living as a schoolteacher in Misty Creek, Kansas, a job that inspires her. But recently she narrowly eluded catastrophe—Leon Simns, a repulsive man, tried to kill both her and her husband, and when he failed, he turned his rifle on himself. His last words doggedly pursue her and have the tincture of a threat: “This one’s for Billy.” She can’t be certain who this Billy is who might come one day to avenge Leon—the obvious candidate is a teenage son apparently as ungovernably angry as his father. In addition, William Clark, the president of the school board, hates her passionately—he has repeatedly tried to get her fired and, much to his chagrin, failed. Elizabeth draws strength from her profound Christian faith as well as the steadfast love of her husband. But she can’t stop anxiously awaiting the next attempt on her life, an unsettling expectancy artfully depicted by Vander Velden. The author displays a keen eye for psychological nuance; all of the characters (and there is a legion of them) are developed with great care and insight. Unfortunately, Vander Velden often indulges in sentimentality—consider these comforting platitudes conveyed by Matthew to Elizabeth: “I don’t know where life will take us, but I promise, wherever it will be, you won’t have to face it alone. Life’s got more for us, Beth. More than the stars, more than what was before today.” And the novel is needlessly long—at well over 600 pages, it is in need of an editor’s scalpel. Nevertheless, this is an impressively thoughtful work, both dramatically exciting and emotionally captivating.

An intelligent and engaging literary meditation on love and spirituality.