A Tapestry of Light ~ Review with Giveaway

 

Welcome to the Blog Tour for A Tapestry of Light 
by Kimberly Duffy, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

A Tapestry of Light

By Kimberly Duffy

Ottilie Russell is caught between two worlds accepted by neither and rejected by both. Her mixed heritage is held in contempt and viewed with suspicion - the British reject her due to her clearly Indian heritage and the Indians disdaining her British ties as a betrayal of who she could have been. She is clearly Indian but too British to be accepted by those she calls neighbors.

She has lost the joy and peace that life once offered. Losing her parents, brother, and sister has left her in fear and doubt. Fear that she will lose what little family she has left and in doubt that God is indeed loving and concerned for her.

Using her skills as a beetle-wing embroiderer she manages to eke out a living that provides for the barest needs of her little brother Thaddeus and her grandmother. But life is anything but easy as she pushes herself to fulfill the work in the attempt to gain more. 

But she is adrift - when Everett Scott shows up claiming that he has been sent to bring Thaddeus back to England. But Ottilie cannot give up her brother her last reminder of her parents and their love. But Thaddeus has inherited a title and though he is only 6 he has a duty to fulfill. In the process of trying to convince Ottilie that Thaddeus's life will vastly improve if he is permitted to leave, Everett and Ottilie form a friendship of sorts. A friendship that has the potential becoming something more. 

When yet another tragedy strikes Ottilie agrees to Thaddeus's removal from India on the condition that she goes with him. As Ottilie faces the prospect of a new world so different from the one she's always known she finds herself adrift. The family that she prayed would accept her is shocked at her foreign appearance and ways. She is expected to reject the ties that bind her to England so as to not upset societal expectations and ruin her brother's future. Worse she faces betrayal once again from a man in whom she has placed her truth. Can she ever find a place to belong and find the answers she so desperately seeks?

A Tapestry of Light is a journey of faith and discovery. Who is God? Throughout Ottilie and various other characters find themselves in doubt as to who God truly is and what role, if any, His plays in their life? Is He loving? A cruel tyrant? An indifferent deity who demands everything? These are the answers that drive the story as much as the prejudices that drive Ottilie to make choices that set her life on an altogether different path she never anticipated following. These are truths that all readers can take to heart as something to ponder. This book takes the reader on a journey through heartbreak, sorrow, desolation, and joy. It is also a look at the world under British rule and it is disheartening that the prejudices that were are still such a very real part of life today. Ethnic and class snobbery is not unique to any particular era or people and yet it is equally painful and destructive. Kimberly Duffy brings Ottilie Russell life with all her complexities, fears, hopes, and dreams. This is the first work of Kimberly Duffy that I have had the pleasure of reading and I can assure you that it will not be the last and I highly recommend her work if you are looking for something that entertains while providing a multifaceted depth.

I was provided a complimentary copy with no expectations but that I provide my honest opinion. All thoughts expressed are my own.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Title: A Tapestry of Light
Author: Kimberly Duffy
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Release date: March 16, 2021
Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Calcutta, 1886. 

Ottilie Russell is adrift between two cultures, British and Indian, belonging to both and neither. In order to support her little brother, Thaddeus, and her grandmother, she relies upon her skills in beetle-wing embroidery that have been passed down to her through generations of Indian women. 

When a stranger appears with the news that Thaddeus is now Baron Sunderson and must travel to England to take his place as a nobleman, Ottilie is shattered by the secrets that come to light. Despite her growing friendship with Everett Scott, friend to Ottilie's English grandmother and aunt, she refuses to give up her brother. Then tragedy strikes, and she is forced to make a decision that will take Thaddeus far from death and herself far from home. 

But betrayal and loss lurk in England, too, and soon Ottilie must fight to ensure Thaddeus doesn't forget who he is, as well as find a way to stitch a place for herself in this foreign land.

PURCHASE LINKS*: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookDepository | IndieBound | Christianbook | BookBub

ALSO AVAILABLE

---

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

 

Kimberly Duffy is a Long Island native currently living in Southwest Ohio, via six months in India. When she's not homeschooling her four kids, she writes historical fiction that takes her readers back in time and across oceans. She loves trips that require a passport, recipe books, and practicing kissing scenes with her husband of twenty years. He doesn't mind.

CONNECT WITH KIMBERLY: Website | Facebook | Instagram

---

TOUR GIVEAWAY

(1) winner will receive a print copy of A Tapestry of Light, A Mosaic of Wings, and Recipes from an Indian Kitchen!

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway began at midnight March 22, 2021 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on March 29, 2021. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to the policies found here.

ENTER GIVEAWAY HERE

---

Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!

 

*NOTE: This post contains affiliate links.