Chasing Shadows was an excellently crafted, well-researched novel. As I read, I was continually in awe of how much research must have gone into this book.
This WWII novel gives you a broad look at what life was like in the Netherlands starting right before the Nazi invasion, during the occupation, and finally it’s liberation. The book follows three characters, and through them, the reader is able to see the different aspects of life may have been like in the country, in the city working for the Resistance, and as a Jew having to go into hiding.
I love The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, so I loved learning more about what life was like in the Netherlands during that time, especially for the people who were willing to risk their lives to hide the Jewish people.
So many things in this book broke my heart: Miriam’s dad going to the labor camp to give his daughter and family a better chance; Miriam giving up her baby daughter to give her a better chance; Miriam and Avi having to be separated; Pieter leaving Lena; Wim being captured; the rampant starvation that happened; even Lena giving Bep back to Miriam. However, even though so many things were so hard to read, Lynn Austin did such an excellent job at finding the correct tension between suffering and hope, heartbreak and truth. One of the central themes of this book is trusting that God is in control in every situation, even during the most awful thing you could ever imagine happening to you. The characters struggle with their faith, yet they grow in their relationship with God, staying grounded on His truth, willing to do what He commands by loving others, even if doing so might mean death.
This is why I really appreciated this book: Austin is unabashed about exposing the most difficult truths about God in the most difficult of situations. She isn’t afraid of tackling the hard questions. However, she’s never preachy about it. She let’s her characters wrestle and grow. She uses her plot to reveal God’s goodness and faithfulness, and to me, that is the mark of a brilliant author.
I only had a few pet-peeves with this book.
First, I thought for the themes she was trying to get across and for how accurately she details the historical events, everything wrapped up a bit too nicely. Everyone significant survives. I was ready for Miriam, Avi, Ans, Pieter, or Wim not to make it. I honestly wished one of them hadn’t, because it would have hit closer to home and been more realistic. These characters went through grueling situations, encountering so many close calls, yet no one dies? It seems a little to neat and tidy.
Consequently, I would have been okay with Eloise’s husband dying. I loved Eloise’s character: her struggles, her growth, her willingness to serve others. I would have liked to see that final ‘she’s arrived and overcome’ moment by her ability to rise up and make it without her husband. I would have liked to see her growth as a Christian (she starts off completely against God, but starts praying), and her surrendering and giving over her mental illness to God. In saying this, I’m not making light of mental illness or not looking for a miraculous healing, but just a willingness to allow God to enter into the fight with her, to rely on Him as her strength and not herself, her husband, or Ans. (I would totally read a spin-off of Eloise and what happens to her after the war).
Second, this is a personal preference, but this book was much more plot-driven than character-driven. Obviously, this isn’t an issue, because plot-driven books can be fantastic, but I personally like character-driven books better. I didn’t feel super connected to any of the three characters. When they all went through really transformative moments (Lena realizing she can’t hate the Nazi’s; Ans saying no [FINALLY] to Erik) I wasn’t so invested in the characters that I really felt this happening. I wish there had been more dialogue, and not so many densely packed paragraphs; but again, this is a personal preference in writing style and type of plot.
Last, I thought that Ans staying with Erik for so long went against her character. I understand wanting to have someone in your life. I get wanting to be in love. However, Ans grew SO much in this book, and it seems off somehow that she wouldn’t have broken it off way before she actually did. For example, she was in the labor camp, scrubbing toilets and encouraging women… and then wanting Erik, even though she knows he personally rounded up people and put them in camps! Her wanting to be with him, despite the shallowness of their relationship, got old pretty quickly. I was honestly hoping she would meet someone who would show her what true love and companionship could be like. I was very glad when Eloise knocked some sense into her at the end.
Overall, despite these few things that irked me, this novel still has great themes, was incredibly well researched, and so well plotted out. On top of that, I learned so much reading this book. I really love Christian fiction that is honest and raw and not ‘fluff,’ that encourages my walk with the Lord, which this one did. I love that this book made me so painfully aware that my life is so good and easy compared to what people faced during this time, and are still facing today. It challenged me to be thankful, and to pray for those in persecution today.
Thank you, Lynn Austin, for writing a beautiful novel, exposing the atrocities and evils of this world, but showing that God’s love, goodness, and faithfulness overcomes every single time.
- Goodreads rating – 4.57
- REVIEW – Michelle Hernandez