Tag Archive | A Festival Of Carols

When Herald Angels Sing by Scott R Rezer

Dec8

A Time For Miracles

When Herald Angels Sing by Scott R Rezer is a most charming contemporary Christian Christmas novel that I really loved. It is the second book in A Festival Of Carols series but can be read as a stand-alone.

The novel is set in present day and 1863 in America, a time when the American Civil War was still raging. The location is Philadelphia, still recognizable to the characters in both time periods. It is set just before Christmas and the reader is treated to snow and a simpler Christmas when Jesus’ birth was celebrated.

We see the devastating effects of loss on characters who feel utterly alone and stuck in a moment in time. However, “you are never truly alone… God is always nearer than you think.” God is as close as the prayer that our hearts utter. God is as close as we want Him to be. “He [God] hasn’t been near me… That’s because you have kept Him at arm’s length.”

Lives are lost in the past, trying to alter what cannot be changed. “The past isn’t about mourning what you have lost, it’s about celebrating what you had.” We celebrate the lives we knew rather than mourn their passing.

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One Silent Night by Scott R Rezer

Nov29

A Timeless Appeal

One Silent Night by Scott R Rezer is the most charming dual timeline Christian Christmas novel that I absolutely loved. It is the first book in A Festival Of Carols and I cannot wait to read the subsequent books.

One Silent Night is beautifully written. There is a serenity to it and an air of wistfulness. The story has a timeless appeal. This is a book that could be read as part of a Christmas tradition.

The novel is set in the Ardennes, Belgium in 1944 and also in small town America in 2012. Both stories are set just before Christmas and are similar but different as we follow two serving soldiers – one in World War II and the other invalided out after an IED in Afghanistan.

Obviously in 1944 there was much loss of life as a bitter battle raged as the American soldiers fought the Nazis. In 2012 in his hometown, the veteran is returning home following the death of his grandparents three years earlier. The memories are all around. His heart has been locked away. “By shutting away Christmas, I was shutting away… my memories.” Memories should keep us warm, not cause us pain.

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