Book Review: All Through the Night by Tara Johnson

 My Rating: 2 stars

Cadence Piper longs to belong and to be needed. When the war between the North and the South breaks out, she answers the call for nurses. At first she is dismissed from the relief effort because she is far too young and pretty. She finally gets her wish when she is asked to help a local army hospital when they are short-staffed and at full capacity.

Dr. Joshua Ivy, brooding and passionate, oversees an army hospital in Washington, DC during the war over slavery. His life is full of secrets and he feels a deep sense of duty to help abolish the slave trade and the evil that it breeds. He doesn't care to have the pretty, altruistic nurse Cadence help him in his hospital, but realizes he needs her help, even if he doesn't want it.

Over time, Cadence and Joshua develop a bond, both in their professional and personal lives, that helps them find the hope that comes from Jesus' love amidst horrors of war, personal shortcomings, and evil men intent on destroying anything good.

I just have to begin this review by saying how I initially hoped to give this book a higher rating because it had so much potential. In the end, there are too many aspects of this book that disappointed me. I will get into that later. 

For now, I want to highlight some of the things I really appreciated about this book: the message, the setting, and the research that the author underwent to make sure this story has historicity and meaning. I loved those aspects. 

This book is set during the American Civil War and brings certain details to light about that time period that would likely be difficult to imagine unless you have experienced them firsthand. When the main character, Cadence, witnesses a slave auction, Tara Johnson effectively communicates the appalling lack of respect for humanity. When Cadence helps wounded and terrified soldiers on the battlefront, Johnson illustrates how so many real, everyday people have sacrificed so much for the cause of freedom, and that war has horrors that no person, however imperfect, should have to experience.

I also loved the message of God's love. This was a highlight for me because it resonated with me and also acted as a catalyst for some character development within the story. Cadence struggles with feeling like she is enough, but learns to rely on God's love as her source of worth, rather than people's opinions of her.

Although this book is primarily a romance, the romance itself disappointed me. From the outset the characters seemed very driven by physical attraction and physical chemistry. There were numerous incidents of passionate kissing and physical expressions of affection, and the beginning of a sexual encounter was described. Although the sexual encounter happened after the couple involved was married, it was still disappointing to me that something so sacred and private would be described in print. I also feel that the pre-marital passionate kissing was contrary to what the characters professed--discipleship of Jesus Christ. Galatians 5:22-23 says, "the fruit of the Spirit is...temperance." A synonym for temperance is self-control. Pre-marital passionate kissing walks along and pushes the boundary of self control. Any married couple can vouch that passionate kissing is the very threshold for sexual intimacy, and therefore passionate kissing should be saved for marriage if chastity is a person's goal.

Admittedly, I did not continue reading this book after it described the aforementioned beginning of a sexual encounter. I don't feel I can give this book a rating higher than 2 stars because I don't feel comfortable recommending it to someone to read. This is primarily because of the physical affection between two of the characters--outside of that, I felt the story was compelling and I enjoyed learning more about life during the Civil War.

Content Guide:

Sex & Affection--Passionate kissing, beginning of a sexual encounter described, physical tokens of affection (kissing a lady's hand, etc).

Language--None

Drugs, Alcohol, and Substance Use--Tobacco use, alcohol consumed in social settings, coffee consumed.

Crime & Violence--Descriptions of wounded soldiers and the horrors of slavery and war, a man is murdered, a man and his family are threatened multiple times, a secret society tries to manipulate and undermine the Union.

I received a complimentary ARC from the publisher. All opinions are entirely my own.