Fire by Night: (Dramatic Civil War-Era Fiction) (Refiner's Fire) Paperback – March 18, 2014

Great read! Must read all three in the series.

I did not want to put the book down from page one. Lynn Austin is a terrific writer. I have enjoyed everyone of the books I have read by her. The first book "Candle in the Darkness" was fabulous from the Confederate point of view. This book is written during the Civil war period from the Union point of view. The characters are all believable and you begin to visualize their life during that period of time. Julia Hoffman a very rich girl who becomes the person the Lord wanted her to be when she became a nurse for the Union Soldiers. She realized what Nathaniel Greene said about Julia. " The true assessment of most of the young ladies in Miss Hoffman's social position. They can't or won't do a thing for themselves, whether if it's combing their own hair or fixing a cup of tea. And their works of charity are always about themselves, done for selfish motives. " etc. Julia lies to become a nurse, but she wanted to prove Pastor Greene wrong. Instead she finds out his words could never be truer. The war and the events that happen through the war change her life and motives to be the clay in the Lords hands. While reading about Julia's life, their is a second story about Phoebe Bigelow whose three brothers leave her to take care of another ladies children while they fight for the Union Army. Phoebe can't take that life. She feels like she is ugly and no one would want to ever marry her. Her mother died when she was a baby. So she was brought up in a house hold of men. She did the cooking but they taught her to hunt, be an expert marksman, and do other ;work men do. She decided she would not stay with that lady and take care of her children. So Phoebe nicknamed "Ike" by her brothers cuts her hair, dresses like a man, and joins the Union Army in different state then her brothers. The men believe she is a man who likes her privacy. Ted and Phoebe become close friends. In fact Phoebe learns what is love. Her life is changed when Nathaniel Greens gave her a Bible. "Ike" or Phoebe began to read i the Bible and the story tells how her life was changed. Julia and Phoebe later in the story, meet each other when Phoebe saved Ted's life and was shot. The Doctor knew she was a women and put her in and Julia's tent. Julia becomes her nurse. In the story, Julia finally wins Nathaniel's respect but she doesn't know if she wants to marry him. She loves someone else that is married and she knows nothing can become of that relationship.The reader also learns that Nathaniel Greene motives as a minister is not the pure motives of the Lord. He is always wanting Julia to think about what others will think of her being unmarried and working as a nurse. He feels it is wrong for her to be a nurse. Julia feels it is the Lord's will for her life. What happens keeps you guessing.

Fire by Night is a wonderful follow-up to Lynn Austin's Candle in the Darkness. Fire by Night follows the story of Julia Hoffman, the rich young cousin of Caroline Fletcher (the main character in Candle in the Darkness). Julia is besotted with anti-slavery pastor Nathaniel Green and in order to impress him, she joins the war effort.The book gives deep insight into the social mores of the mid-19th century and the gulf between the social classes. Julia has to lie in order to become a nurse because single women were not allowed to nurse male patients. Her family and social circle to not support her in her desire to minister to others. They all agree it is much beneath her station in life. Although she struggles with feeling the oppression of her social class and wanting something more for her life, Julia quickly realizes how much she has taken for granted. She clashes with the brash doctor who hires her and the antagonism between the two are some of the highlights of the book.Meanwhile, as Julia faces herself, her patients, and the hardships of the battlefield, Phoebe Bigelow, the second main character of the novel, is posing as a man and joining the Union army. Some of her story is a bit unrealistic but will appeal to all those who enjoy a "woman masquerading as a man" plot lines. I really liked Phoebe's character and found myself cheering for her throughout the book.I did not care for Nathaniel Green at all, in many respects he was shallow and legalistic. I was positively disgusted when Julia agrees to his marriage proposal.If I had one major complaint about this book, it would be the ending, which I found to be rather abrupt. After all the wonderful narration and building to the climax, I felt it was all wrapped up in just one or two paragraphs, which left be feeling a bit disappointed. All-in-all though, it's a fabulous read. Lynn Austin is one of my favorite authors and this book was very hard to put down. I'm looking forward to the third book in the series - A Light to My Path.

This book has 2 main characters, Julia Hoffman and Phoebe "Ike" Bigelow. In book one of the series, we met Caroline Fletcher, who lived in Richmond, VA and experienced the Civil War from the confederate side. Caroline's cousin Julia lives in Philadelphia, and is privileged, beautiful and shallow. Her main focus is to find a husband, and she is determined to win Reverend Nathaniel Greene's attention.After watching a battle (with other society member, not because she was caught in it), Julia panics and does not want to offer help to the wounded soldiers. She then overhears Nathaniel talk about how shallow she is and that he'd never marry a woman like Julia, so she decides to prove herself worthy of Nathaniel, to win his heart and to then reject him. The novel follows Julia as she works on changing who she is - first superficially and then because she wants to change. She becomes a nurse with a few little white lies, followed by some blatant disobedience in regards to her father/and eventual fiance. Julia is not the most likable character to me, she often regresses to the shallow petty person she was in the beginning of the book, but she does undergo a great transformation.The far more interesting character is Phoebe, She lives in what will soon be W. Virginia with her 3 brothers. Her parents are dead, and she's a complete tom boy. Even her brothers call her "Ike". After her brothers send her to town to live with a family (and care for their children) while they go to war, Phoebe decides to disguise herself as a man and enlist herself. Her journey is a great read, as she lives as a soldier for over a year, is wounded, and eventually becomes a nurse.