Shadows: a novella

by Alex Chappell

When he signed up to be a medical volunteer at a Romanian orphanage, Daniel Palmer didn't plan on falling in love. It would be a betrayal to his recently deceased wife. The empty place in his heart can never be filled. But there's something about St. Nicandru's mysterious director that inexorably draws him to her. He'll only be at the orphanage for a few short months, but each new day with Elena and her "children" makes thoughts of departure harder and harder to bear. When he got on the airplane, he thought he was leaving his pain and problems behind him; but he may have just exchanged them for fresh heartbreak.

Elena Cartianu lives with dark secrets—secrets that bind her to St. Nicandru with invisible chains. For as long as she can remember, the orphanage has dominated her life. She has no time for romance; but, even if she did, she would be hesitant to take another risk. The last time she trusted a man, it nearly destroyed her, and God is still letting her suffer for that mistake.

Set in the infamous orphanage system of post-Ceausescu Romania, SHADOWS is a novel about guilt, sorrow, and redemption. It is the story of God's power to lift even the most anguished soul out of darkness.

115 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 3, 2015