Island of Refuge (by Abby Parks): Gripping from Beginning to End

Reviewed by Rita Gerlach
As a child, Tara Madison is given her own island on Tampa Bay. Over the years, her island serves as her refuge. It becomes a place of escape. The tirades of her abusive father are too difficult to bear, and the sorrow of watching her invalid mother waste away leave Tara feeling hopeless and alone.

One night when Tara is a young woman, she rows out to her island in hopes of finding solitude. Instead she finds something she never imagined. It is the eve of World War II, and it has come to invade her private world.

That night, Tara’s world changes forever when she discovers an escaped convict hiding in her island hut. Instead of reporting Tommy to the authorities, Tara insists on helping him prove his innocence.

Island of Refuge reminds me of those 1940's Hemmingway novels made into movies such as Key Largo and To Have and Have Not that, to this day, glue you to your seat. Island of Refuge is a tightly woven suspense mystery. It keeps you questioning with every turn of the page. You suspect that the book is about uncovering Tommy's innocence, but it is much more than that. Tara discovers the Truth that sets her free, and that God will always help those in need of finding it.

I enjoyed this novel very much and highly recommend it. It is a five star piece of literature.

Ms. Parks’ book, Island of Refuge, is published by Publish America. (ISBN: 1-59129-123-2)

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Reviewer's bio: Rita Gerlach is the author The Rebel's Pledge, a romantic historical novel of Colonial times that has been rated at five stars. She writes with an inspirational mindset. She has written several articles for The Christian Communicator Magazine, and is preparing to publish a historical series set prior to the American Revolution. These two new novels are entitled Thorns In Eden and The Everlasting Mountains.

Look for them soon!