A Refuge Assured

by Jocelyn Green (Goodreads Author)

Vivienne Rivard fled revolutionary France and seeks a new life for herself and a boy in her care, who some say is the Dauphin. But America is far from safe, as militiaman Liam Delaney knows. He proudly served in the American Revolution but is less sure of his role in the Whiskey Rebellion. Drawn together, will Liam and Vivienne find the peace they long for?

My Review: 6.5/10

This book is definitely a page turner and it is so rich in detail- it really transports you. It takes place during the French Revolution and I never thought about the relationship between events taking place in France so soon after our American Revolution and how that affected things. The political representation was really well done, making historical figures come alive. Though it does take time for information to cross the ocean, it does make it eventually and I cannot imagine witnessing the horrors committed or feeling so trapped.

That being said I took issue with Vivienne's character. It just didn't seem realistic to me that someone who had been through what she had would be so naive and trusting. I would think it would make a person paranoid. **SPOILERS** Without giving too much away, let's just say that she ends up knowing something that could make her a serious political threat. Instead of being proactive and having explanations ready or being very guarded about revealing information, she carelessly has candid conversations in public areas (multiple times), confides in people left and right, and ignores red flags. If I had been her, I would have relocated pretty much immediately to some remote, unrelated place, perhaps multiple times. I would have given myself a new history and started over. From scratch. It just didn't make any sense that she would be so unaware of the constant serious threat to herself and others, which made it frustrating to read, when I kept thinking, "How did you not see this coming?!"