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Veiled Halos: A Saga of Betrayal And Redemption
362 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 10, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
Veiled Halos is the kind of slow-burn novel that burrows into your heart and makes a home there.
Inger E. Johnson has written a sweeping, beautifully layered family saga that spans generations, continents, faith, loss, love, violence, and all the complicated baggage families have a remarkable talent for handing down, whether we want it or not.
At its core, this is a story about how the things we inherit often have nothing to do with money or land. The Rendón family carries its history in everything: in faith, duty, silence, resentment, sacrifice, illness, love, and in the roles each child learns to play within the family long before they are old enough to understand what those roles will cost them.
Leandro's journey was captivating. He learns early to make himself useful, dependable, indispensable—and, in the process, almost invisible. It tugs at the heart, because the qualities that make him so valuable to his family are also the very things that eventually isolate him from it. Johnson understands that people don't simply outgrow childhood wounds. Sometimes they build entire adult lives around them.
And then there's Franco, whose story I found especially moving. His relationship with music, his illness, his determination never to become a burden, and his complicated place within his family all feed into one another in ways that make him feel wonderfully human. There is something particularly poignant about a man who has spent his life trying to be strong finally having to reckon with what that strength has cost him.
I also loved the way Johnson handles Regina and César. Their marriage isn't reduced to a simple battle between faith and reason. They love each other, respect each other, and build a life together, while never quite seeing the world through the same lens. Regina finds certainty in faith; César finds it in knowledge and preparation. The accumulation of those differences over the years gives the family history so much of its emotional weight.
And the setting! Colombia isn't simply a backdrop here. The finca, Cali, the changing political landscape, the violence creeping into the countryside, the religious traditions, the music, the heat, the bells, the flowers, all the way to the American West—all of it becomes part of the story's fabric, as if each location is a character inhabiting the pages. There is a wonderful sense of place throughout, and the history feels immersive and present rather than merely researched.
What I appreciated most, though, is that Veiled Halos understands that families are rarely broken by one enormous moment. Sometimes the fracture begins much earlier—a choice made with the best of intentions, a silence that lasts too long, a wound nobody knows how to name, a belief held so tightly that there is no room left for anything else. And then, years later, everyone must live with the consequences.
This is a thoughtful, richly drawn, deeply human story about family, faith, love, identity, inheritance, and the terrible, sometimes beautiful, things we do in the name of protecting the people we love.
There is a lot here to lose yourself in and a lot that will stay with you after you've turned the final page. Highly recommended.
Inger E. Johnson has written a sweeping, beautifully layered family saga that spans generations, continents, faith, loss, love, violence, and all the complicated baggage families have a remarkable talent for handing down, whether we want it or not.
At its core, this is a story about how the things we inherit often have nothing to do with money or land. The Rendón family carries its history in everything: in faith, duty, silence, resentment, sacrifice, illness, love, and in the roles each child learns to play within the family long before they are old enough to understand what those roles will cost them.
Leandro's journey was captivating. He learns early to make himself useful, dependable, indispensable—and, in the process, almost invisible. It tugs at the heart, because the qualities that make him so valuable to his family are also the very things that eventually isolate him from it. Johnson understands that people don't simply outgrow childhood wounds. Sometimes they build entire adult lives around them.
And then there's Franco, whose story I found especially moving. His relationship with music, his illness, his determination never to become a burden, and his complicated place within his family all feed into one another in ways that make him feel wonderfully human. There is something particularly poignant about a man who has spent his life trying to be strong finally having to reckon with what that strength has cost him.
I also loved the way Johnson handles Regina and César. Their marriage isn't reduced to a simple battle between faith and reason. They love each other, respect each other, and build a life together, while never quite seeing the world through the same lens. Regina finds certainty in faith; César finds it in knowledge and preparation. The accumulation of those differences over the years gives the family history so much of its emotional weight.
And the setting! Colombia isn't simply a backdrop here. The finca, Cali, the changing political landscape, the violence creeping into the countryside, the religious traditions, the music, the heat, the bells, the flowers, all the way to the American West—all of it becomes part of the story's fabric, as if each location is a character inhabiting the pages. There is a wonderful sense of place throughout, and the history feels immersive and present rather than merely researched.
What I appreciated most, though, is that Veiled Halos understands that families are rarely broken by one enormous moment. Sometimes the fracture begins much earlier—a choice made with the best of intentions, a silence that lasts too long, a wound nobody knows how to name, a belief held so tightly that there is no room left for anything else. And then, years later, everyone must live with the consequences.
This is a thoughtful, richly drawn, deeply human story about family, faith, love, identity, inheritance, and the terrible, sometimes beautiful, things we do in the name of protecting the people we love.
There is a lot here to lose yourself in and a lot that will stay with you after you've turned the final page. Highly recommended.
September 2, 2026
They seem a close family, the Rendón family, with their three sons and a daughter, living the Colombian Valle del Cauca. But tragedies shape it, reshape it and eventually corrupt it. It is a slow process that Inger E. Johnson draws, following the individual members and their development. A mother who holds herself upright because of her faith, a father who looks for stability in books. And the sons, who deal with the loss of their little sister, with the widening gap between their parents, and with the violence forcing them to move from the paradise of their farm to the city life of Cali.
And when love knocks on the door, trouble starts. Why is one son refused the right to marry the girl he loves, while the other does get their mother’s blessings? That’s where the rift starts that will shape the rest of the book.
As a reader, you want to see what happens to each of the sons, and Johnson describes the process of change well for all of the family members. That makes the eventual outcome understandable, but not less tragic. We can see it coming, but the way it comes is still surprising. That’s the reason why you keep on reading: you want to know where the story will take you.
I liked the way the story is told against the backdrop of the developments in the past century in Colombia: la Violencia, the cartels, the political fights and corruption that have shaken the country for many years. Johnson is a master in weaving those two together: the situation in the country and the saga of the family.
I loved the story and was really sorry when the book was finished. And if the book would have had less repetitions, I would have loved this family saga even better.
And when love knocks on the door, trouble starts. Why is one son refused the right to marry the girl he loves, while the other does get their mother’s blessings? That’s where the rift starts that will shape the rest of the book.
As a reader, you want to see what happens to each of the sons, and Johnson describes the process of change well for all of the family members. That makes the eventual outcome understandable, but not less tragic. We can see it coming, but the way it comes is still surprising. That’s the reason why you keep on reading: you want to know where the story will take you.
I liked the way the story is told against the backdrop of the developments in the past century in Colombia: la Violencia, the cartels, the political fights and corruption that have shaken the country for many years. Johnson is a master in weaving those two together: the situation in the country and the saga of the family.
I loved the story and was really sorry when the book was finished. And if the book would have had less repetitions, I would have loved this family saga even better.
August 21, 2026
A gripping plot and visceral descriptions of Colombia
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 August 2026
Format: Kindle Edition
Veiled Halos, a tale of the insidious creep of treachery is beautifully told. Starting in 1923 in Colombia, it unveils the story of the Rendón family. Each of them displays emotional suppression in their own unique way, which Inger Johnson writes with meticulous care. The plot is superb. I loved the description of stealthy control which starts with Regina and her religious devotion, then manifests in different ways through her children. The reader is left in no doubt of the terrifying control that will inevitably consume the family.
The legal story towards the end was intriguing and gripping. I smiled as I watched the control and the treachery unfold, but I kept having to jump some of the emotional details because I literally 'lost the plot'. This may be my own personal experience but if you enjoy deep diving character motivations, this book is definitely for you.
I have not read any historical fiction based in South America and this thoroughly entertained me as my go-to bedtime read. Johnson’s use of the language and emotive descriptions kept me in the heart of this country. She expertly used music, language, smells, colour, heat and energy to hold me in Colombia.
Well done on your debut, Inger. Keep going!!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 10 August 2026
Format: Kindle Edition
Veiled Halos, a tale of the insidious creep of treachery is beautifully told. Starting in 1923 in Colombia, it unveils the story of the Rendón family. Each of them displays emotional suppression in their own unique way, which Inger Johnson writes with meticulous care. The plot is superb. I loved the description of stealthy control which starts with Regina and her religious devotion, then manifests in different ways through her children. The reader is left in no doubt of the terrifying control that will inevitably consume the family.
The legal story towards the end was intriguing and gripping. I smiled as I watched the control and the treachery unfold, but I kept having to jump some of the emotional details because I literally 'lost the plot'. This may be my own personal experience but if you enjoy deep diving character motivations, this book is definitely for you.
I have not read any historical fiction based in South America and this thoroughly entertained me as my go-to bedtime read. Johnson’s use of the language and emotive descriptions kept me in the heart of this country. She expertly used music, language, smells, colour, heat and energy to hold me in Colombia.
Well done on your debut, Inger. Keep going!!
August 31, 2026
It’s hard to believe that this is the author’s first book. It is so well written and Johnson’s writing style is unique and captivating.
From the beginning you will be drawn into a family saga, watching it blossom and expand and then wither and rot - all the while making you feel you are a part of it all. That’s when you can’t put the book down.
This tale of family love and dysfunction along with religious bigotry and revenge is great for book clubs. Lots to discuss and analyze within the book’s pages.
I highly recommend Veiled Halos.
From the beginning you will be drawn into a family saga, watching it blossom and expand and then wither and rot - all the while making you feel you are a part of it all. That’s when you can’t put the book down.
This tale of family love and dysfunction along with religious bigotry and revenge is great for book clubs. Lots to discuss and analyze within the book’s pages.
I highly recommend Veiled Halos.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews