Gilbert Morris (1929–2016)

This was my first time reading one of the novels Gilbert Morris coauthored with his daughter Lynn Morris. I've read some historical ChristFic books by the former Morris before, and while I can't say I'm really into the author's writing style, I enjoyed the overall story in The Winds of God from his Wakefield Dynasty series. So when The Creoles series' book covers called to the period fiction lover in me, I went ahead and picked up Book One.

I didn't come in looking for the most accurate or in-depth historical details, and unfortunately, I'm not surprised that some of the parts involving different peoples in the book didn't sit right with me. For instance, there's an evening scene where the enslaved people on Chantel's plantation are singing from their quarters, and Chantel, relaxing on her porch, says, "I like it at night like this, sitting here and just listening to the singing" in a moment portrayed as lovely—when actually that moment and others in this book gloss over the ugly reality of humans being owned as property. This scene treats their presence and their singing like pleasant "entertainment" there for the privileged heroine's benefit.

Also, various aspects of the story feel melodramatic and/or underdeveloped, the word choice and descriptions can be repetitive, and in general, the characters have a fairly unnatural feel, often with stilted dialogue.

Nevertheless, one characterization I mostly liked is of the heroine's main romantic interest. It's refreshing when such male characters aren't always tall, strapping, and dashing, and this particular man has ambition driven by his convictions.

Now, the core of his conviction comes from his faith, and spiritual themes have a prominent place in this book. However, it isn't my preference when spiritual themes in fiction come in the form of sermons and sermonizing. And if the characters' religious discussions and whatnot aren't fresh for me and don't necessarily seem like they're wholly organic parts of a novel, I tend to skim past them—as I did with the several extended Bible lessons in this book. I wanted to get back to the story.

And on the whole, it's the story that I was into, as it kept me interested enough to see how the events would play out. Because I'm not looking for more of a focus on slavery, I'll be skipping the second book in this series, but I may give Book Three a try.… (altro)