Becoming Calder (A Sign of Love) by Mia Sheridan
What it’s about
There is a place in modern day America with no electricity, no plumbing, and no modern conveniences. In this place, there is no room for dreams, no space for self-expression, and no tolerance for ambition.
In this place, there is a boy with the body of a god and the heart of a warrior. He is strong and faithful and serves his family honorably. But he dares to dream of more.
In this place, there is a girl with the face of an angel and a heart full of courage. To her family, she is the vision of obedient perfection. But she dares to want that which she has been told can never be hers.
Becoming Calder is the story of good versus evil, fear versus bravery, and the truth that the light of love has always found its way into even the darkest of places . . . From the beginning of time, to the end of the world.
Crista's Review
5 Huge Stars!!
As I sit down to write this review, I am cognizant of the fact (and you should be aware) that I have read BOTH books in this series. I was unable to stop reading and write a review after finishing Becoming Calder, and instead immediately read Finding Eden. The positive of this is that I just completed a truly profound reading experience, but the negative is that it’s now virtually impossible to see these two separate books individually. I will forever see these books as being one big, epic, and intense love story that has great power.
Becoming Calder’s setting is on the compound of a religious cult. It is obvious from early on that there is extreme abuse, brainwashing, and criminal activity happening on this compound. All of this is carried out under the guise and deception of fabricated religious freedom. If reading about a religious cult is a trigger, or not of interest to you, this is probably not the series for you.
If you are still reading this review, and choose to read this series, I am here to say that you are about to embark on a profoundly moving, uplifting, and gut-wrenching reading experience.
Calder Rayne lives in Acadia and is known as the “Water-Bearer”. He lives in a shack that has no electricity or running water. His life is a simple one where he loves his family, especially his little sister.
Eden comes to compound as the child “bride-to-be” of Hector, the leader of Acadia and “father” to all of its inhabitants. It is communicated to the community that she is an orphan who bears a birthmark, which identifies her as the “mother” of the community. She is only 9 years old.
Eden is pledged to Hector, and is thus “off limits” to anyone in the community. Calder and Eden meet early on and the connection they share is evident from the very start. The forbidden nature of this romance lends itself to amazing odds and lengths that this couple has to resort to in order to be together.
The atrocities that happen in the community of Acadia are detailed in this book and are truly horrific. The power that Hector has over the people of Acadia is scary, shocking, and highly disturbing. However, the love that is born between Calder and Eden in the midst of this evil is totally pure and completely untainted.
As Hector’s sanity continues to unravel, this book builds to a climactic ending that had me on the edge of my seat. I’m not sure how this author has the power to squeeze emotions out of me that I wasn’t aware exist, but that is the reality of the power in her writing.
I can’t say enough about this book other than to say…I absolutely loved it. I fear a large book hangover is approaching after reading these books. It’s going to take a miracle to find anything to read that comes close to impacting me the way these books had the power to.
If you read this book, make sure you also buy Finding Eden as well. In all fairness to the reader, these two books should’ve been one complete novel.
Check back on Thursday for Crista's review of Finding Eden!
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