A Bend of Light: A Novel

Written by Joy Jordan-Lake

Narrated by Elizabeth Evans

A quiet coastal village in post–World War II America is shaken when the secrets of the past and present collide in a riveting novel by the bestselling author of Under a Gilded Moon.

Five years after the war, Amie Stilwell, a photo interpreter for an Allied unit in England, returns to her hometown in Maine. Jobless and discouraged but stubbornly resourceful, she’s starting over in the same coastal village where her life once went so wrong. Waiting for her is Shibby Travis, the surrogate mother with whom Amie never lost touch. But the unexpected also awaits…

A silent, abandoned boy is found with a note from a stranger pleading that he be watched over. Amie and Shibby take him in, but the mysteries multiply when a Boston socialite is found dead in a nearby barn and an old friend, believed to be a casualty of war, suddenly reappears.

Trained to see what others cannot, to scan for clues, and to expose enemies, Amie uses her skills to protect a child, solve a crime, and find the motive behind a veteran’s masquerade. But through the hazy filter of a town’s secrets, Amie must also confront her own painful past.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Sep 6, 2022
• ISBN: 9781713697961

Joy Jordan-Lake

Joy Jordan-Lake has written more than a half dozen books, including the novel Blue Hole Back Home, which won the Christy Award in 2009 for Best First Novel. The book, which explores racial violence and reconciliation in the post–Civil Rights South, went on to be chosen as the Common Book at several colleges, as well as being a frequent book club pick. Jordan-Lake holds a PhD in English, is a former chaplain at Harvard, and has taught literature and writing at several universities. Her scholarly work Whitewashing Uncle Tom’s Cabin draws on the narratives, journals, and letters of enslaved and slaveholding antebellum women, research that led her to the story behind A Tangled Mercy. Living outside of Nashville, she and her husband have three children. To learn more about the author and her work, visit www.joyjordanlake.com.

Reviews for A Bend of Light

[fredreeca · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Amie has returned from the war to her home town on the coast of Maine. She is reconnecting with her foster mother, Shibby, when sweet, silent little boy is abandoned with a note pinned to his chest. Amie and Shibby take him in and Amie goes to work trying to find out more about him. Then a socialite is found dead and everyone is a suspect!There are a lot of moving parts to this story and it just kept getting better and better as I moved along. I enjoyed the small town Maine setting in post war 50s. Plus, the mystery and all the secrets really keeps the reader guessing. And Amie….she is one of my favorite characters. She is tip top smart! I never knew about photo interpreters. I loved learning about this area of the war. And of course I had to look it up!Need a good mystery full of secrets…THIS IS IT! Grab your copy today!I received this novel from the publisher of a honest review.

[thepageladies · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Book Review…A Bend of Light by Joy Jordan Lake

Five years after the war, Amie Stilwell returns home. Jobless and discouraged but stubbornly resourceful. Waiting for her is Shibby Travis, the friend Amie never lost touch with. But the unexpected also awaits. An abandoned boy, a Boston socialite found dead in Amie’s barn and an old friend, believed to be a casualty of war, suddenly reappears. Trained to see what others cannot, to scan for clues, and to expose enemies, Amie uses her skills to protect a child, solve a crime, and find the motive behind a veteran’s masquerade.

This was an interesting story. Amie is a photographic interpreter. She would take pictures behind enemy lines and would then analyze each photo to see where weapons could be hidden or where soldiers could be hidden.i never knew they did this so it was really interesting to read about. The story flows really well, the characters are wonderful and I liked the touch of romance added to the mystery! It's an engaging historical fiction story that captures you till the very end! Thank you Get Red PR and Joy Jordan Lake for sharing this book with me!

[susan0316 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Five years after World War II ends, Amie returns to the small coastal Maine village where she grew up. During the war, she was a photo interpreter for the Allies and lived in England. Now that the war is over and her skills are no longer needed, she's fired from her job because of the belief that jobs should be given to men.She arrives in her home town not sure of what she wants to do with her life and quickly gets involved in a mystery when she finds a young boy with a note pinned to his coat requesting that he be taken to Shibby to be taken care of. Shibby took in lots of children who had no home over the years and raised them. In fact, Amie spent most of her growing years in her house because she had a father who didn't care for her emotionally. Amie and Shibby both try to talk to Chester but he refuses to communicate with them so they are left with the mystery of where he came from and who left him in town. Along with the mystery about Chester, there are several other occurrences that have her trying to solve -- what's the story behind the veterinarian with PTSD and what's his connection to the body found in his barn. Can the key to all of the mysteries be solved by finding out more about the hotel in town that is owned by a rich but cruel man. Amie wants the answers and is willing to stand up to the chief of police if it will help herThis book takes place in the 1950s and the author's research made it possible for her to create a real 50s feeling. The town, the characters all fit perfectly into this time period. This is a fantastic historical fiction that is also filled with mysteries that need to be solved. It's a book about love and trust, acceptance and forgiveness and is a story that I won't soon forget.