Review: Time travel, historical events, suspense, and enduring love - this one's a keeper!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 01 18, 2014
Oh. My. Stars.  This is a really fantastic novel on so many fronts.  I rarely read time travel stories because the time shift can be too hokey, or it seems the one who shifts adapts too easily to the change, but that is not the case in Reflected in a Hunters Moon.  The heroine, Meghan, travels back to 1858 and I believed it because she *couldn't* believe it.  She questions her location.  She questions this reality.  She questions her sanity.  It was refreshing to have a character voicing the same feelings I have as a reader, and I fell into the story immediately.The author sprinkles in just enough history so we recognize the situations, atmosphere, and politics without bogging down in information overload.  The characters reveal the history.  We meet runaway slaves.  We meet prosperous landowners.  We are in a male-dominated time.  We know what will happen but we still wonder how it will shape Meghan and her new life in this century.  Their is suspense woven throughout the story as well.  What happened to the woman that Meghan "replaced" when she traveled back to that field in 1858 Virginia?  Will the villain pursue Meghan now that she has entered this bitter feud between families?  Does the hero, Henry, simply feel obligated to protect her, or does he have deeper motivations?  The story just continually unfolds with the turn of each page, like peeling back the petals of a rose bud.The relationship between Meghan and Henry was romantic, and at times frustrating.  He thought to protect her by keeping her shielded from everything, and she chafed at not knowing what was going on.  He offered her his heart, but also told her she just "didn't need to know" about a great many things.  In turn, Meghan was tormented by what she knew lurked over the horizon, but was also afraid of all the unknowns of adjusting to life in this time period.  Her emotions would run riot and Henry had to just step away or hold her tight.  Several times I felt like shouting for them to just talk to each other, but the tension was worth it as revelations happened at the right time in the story.  The love scenes are achingly tender, sometimes bittersweet, but always loving without being explicit.The novel is told entirely from Meghan's viewpoint, in the first person, so we learn everything as she does.  In 2007, her existence was self-sufficient and solitary, and she has inherent sadness about her.  Meghan was a strong survivor out of necessity, but that hid a very tender heart.  Throughout the story I found myself agreeing with her assessment of situations and people - she was so relatable!  As Meghan is a history major, she recognizes little signs and events as she progresses in this new time period, but she's still disoriented as she tries to fit her 21st century lifestyle into the norms of the 1850s.  Circumstances might bend her, but she would not break.As for the hero, I think everyone needs a Henry in their life at some point; someone who will charge to the rescue without a moment's hesitation, just because he loves you.  He was impulsive and hot-headed, but not completely reckless - the very definition of loyal and true.  I wanted to Gibbs-slap him occasionally for being so "male," but it wasn't chauvinism, just protection, and his heart was in the right place.I loved that Ms. Bresse used vivid word pictures to set up situations and evoke feelings.  I could feel the smothering blackness of the night when Meghan time shifted.  The anxiety and strain when dealing with the villain felt so real that my stomach clenched at times.  The secondary characters were also fleshed out well, without so much detail as to confuse, but enough to add to the plot and further the storyline.  I loved Alice and Nathan especially; their lighthearted banter and quips always came at the right time in the story.The author has a unique writing style that works, somewhat of a rarity with a narrator in the first-person.  The action moves well and the characters are very engaging.  This is a long book, but don't be daunted by the number of pages.  It doesn't feel endless when read, and each chapter reveals something new that builds and builds on the storyline that much more: the leads grow closer together, the danger looms larger, and the political climate in the country stews.  So clear you schedule, find a comfortable spot, and settle in for an adventure in the turbulent mid-1800s along the Mason-Dixon Line.  You won't regret it.