Every Fixed Star

Tender Ties Historical #2

by Jane Kirkpatrick

Continuing the Tender Ties Historical Series, Every Fixed Star brings readers more of the dramatic, fictionalized account of Marie the real-life woman who was the first mother to cross the Rocky Mountains and remain in the Northwest. In Book Two of the series, Marie learns the value of a tender heart, the faith of distant friends, and the act of holding life’s circumstances in open hands.

Following the family tragedy, the great battle for survival, and the test of faith described in A Name of Her Own , Marie relocates her family to the Pacific Northwest territory’s Okanogan settlement. The year is 1814 and, as is customary of her life out West, Marie faces constant challenges simply to keep her children clothed and fed.

Yet inside each challenge awaits a gift to be unwrapped. Countless times, Marie has proven herself a survivor. Incredibly, she must now endure further realizations of a woman’s an abrupt ending to love, distance from friends, the disappearance of one child, the consequences of another’s poor choices.

Through it all, Marie is tempted to believe that she doesn’t deserve God’s love in the everyday places. When blessings arrive, she struggles to accept them, fearing they will be followed by more difficult challenges. But ultimately, the threads of past friendships and their prayers, a faithful love, and her own service to others all lead her to God’s gift of a full and abundant life.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Christian Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Historical, Native American, Westerns

422 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Kirkpatrick brings us a story of one woman's restoration from personal grief to the meaning of community."

Reviews

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this book and can't wait to finish the series! Marie Dorian Vernier Toupin was an amazing woman by historical accounts and this fictionalized account of her life and struggles is a great read!

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent Pacific Northwest history!

[Sue Barden · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book had me asking, several times, how much of this is documented fact because the story flows and seems seamless. Jean Kirkpatrick writes the last chapter explaining how she made her decisions for writing this story. Her reasoning is sound to me and it won me over for a 5 star rating.
There are so many hardships throughout this story so I was cheering at the ending that had Marie changed in such a positive way.

[Rusty · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the first book in this series ok and wasn't sure I would read the second but it was so much better. The story has been well written with none of the rambling the first novel exhibited. I chose to follow through as I needed a book for a challenge and this one was on my shelf. In addition, I quite like Marie as portrayed in the first book. The author reviews her extensive research in her notes at the back. While I did not always agree with the liberties she took in writing the tale, I did enjoy it. Marie has changed and becomes a rather inflexible and rigid person in this novel. Not sure I like that but there is another novel to come in this trilogy so I may follow through when I can obtain it.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn't my favourite read from Jane Kirkpatrick. It might be because it is the second book of 3 and I haven't read the first. There were parts that were a bit confusing, hard to navigate at times. But Marie's story, her pain, her loss, her sense of being unworthy of joy, or love or blessing, was very poignantly set into the race to claim land and control resources in the west. I was so surprised to find the voyagers of the Hudson Bay Company traveling down into what would become Oregon, Idaho and California! I always love how well researched Kirkpatrick's books are, and how she does her best to truly paint the faith journey of her protagonists from their point of view ~ gender, heritage, strengths and weaknesses.
I am now looking for the 1st and 3rd books in this series!

[Astrida · Rating 3 out of 5]

This inspirational story is based on truth. By 1814, the Astor expedition Marie had joined with family has disintegrated. New trials confront Marie: an abrupt end to love, separation from friends, disappearance of a child and a painful division from another. Through it all she struggles to know her purpose. She ultimately discovers that gifts come in many forms and are to be accepted and treasured.
"My mother always said to keep my eyes open for the unexpected good, the little treasures."

[Lorraine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is #2 from Jane Kirkpatrick's "Tender Ties Historical Series". The story of Marie Dorion, of the Iowa Tribe, (who, like Sacajawea, who led the Lewis and Clark Expedition 6 years prior) is remembered for leading white men to the Oregon Territory. She was the only woman in the 11 month, gruelling 3500 mile Astoria Expedition which ended in 1812. This woman's strength, perseverance and survival instincts are legendary.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked that although it is a work of fiction, it is based on facts from that time period/area. It was a bit slow at times, but overall an interesting read. Being as it is the second in a three book series and I haven't read the other two, I could still follow the story without being totally lost. I thought she did a good job of bringing closer to the story, although their is obviously more to be told in book three and one unanswered question in particular.

[Betty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this book. I found the story of Marie very interesting even though it is a historical fiction book.
Marie's parenting of her rebellious, younger son frustrated me; and her older son, Baptiste' blaming his mother for the death of his first first wife and separating himself from her was disappointing to me.
I especially enjoyed, and was surprised when Marie's third husband chose not to follow his employer's order to do something stupid and dangerous.

[Toni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another excellent book from Jane Kirkpatrick and a great series. This the second book in the Tender Ties Historical series from Jane. Once again this is a wonderful and inspiring book about the struggles of Marie Dorion. This book finds Marie and her two sons living in the Pacific Northwest territory’s Okanogan settlement in 1814. Marie proves to be a survivor.

[penelopewanders · Rating 3 out of 5]

After a long bookcrossing journey, this finally made its way to me. I had read the first a while ago, so it took me some time to find my way back into the story, the atmosphere, and the rhythm of the writing. At first this was difficult, but gradually I got into the book and enjoyed it. The heroine is often irritating, but the story is fascinating.

[Partridge Public]

Kirkpatrick, Jane

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book. A little long with lots of characters to keep track of, but so interesting.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

I enjoyed the history and everything and getting to know the characters but it just got really long!! Don't think I"m going to try the third.

[Joy · Rating 5 out of 5]

See review on first book in the series

[Cws]

YA Kir

[Hollis Fishelson-holstine]

sequel to 'A name of her own'

[Susan LaVictoire · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just started this one.

[Liz Hedgpeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

Started it, and realized that it was #2 in a series. Wasn't understanding it. Should read #1 first I guess. Didn't finish it.

[Dawn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Continuing the fictionalized account of real person Marie Dorion. Her life in the Pacific NW and the trials she goes through.

[Kathy Swanson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tender Ties series #2.

[Marie Carmean · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finished this second in the Tender Ties series by Jane Kirkpatrick about Marie Dorion. Even better than the first in the trilogy! The themes that this book embraces were dear to my heart: learning you are worthy of God's love no matter what, that He wants all of us to accept that unconditional Gift; that forgiveness can come if we first forgive ourselves and we patiently wait with hope; that all the sacrifices a mother makes, peppered as her decisions are with mistakes because she is human, can be known and understood and finally appreciated. This book is about a strong woman who really lived in the early nineteenth century, following a husband overland to Astoria and fighting for her place in the world that existed in the west at that time, for her and her children. She is stubborn, and she makes some incorrect choices, but she came to be honored even in her own time in the book Astoria by Washington Irving and in countless journals written by people who knew her. Kirkpatrick has crafted an amazing series, filled with wonderfully researched detail and insight. I can't wait to read the final one in the series!

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

The continuation of Marie Dorion's life in the book,
Every Fixed Star was powerful.
The sheer determination just to keep going forward instead of giving up amazed me. The more I read of Marie Dorion's life the more I want to know about her. She put her children before herself added to the determination of their survival. Losing 1 husband was tragic enough, but to lose 2 as well as 2 of her grandchildren was heart-wrenching. The loss that this woman experienced was overwhelming and my heart ached for her. Her 2nd husband's death came with controversy as the only witness to his death was her mentally-challenged son, Paul who disappeared after an argument. Even her oldest son, Baptiste suspected his brother killed him. But even through these deaths, Marie endured and by the 2nd half of the book, she accepts a marriage proposal to a 3rd husband, Jean Toupin. I can't recommend this series enough. The books are based on the true story of Marie's life. I rate this book 5 stars.

[Gayle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a true story of a Native American Iowa Woman named Marie who lost two husbands, one was believed to have been murdered by one of her sons and the other blamed her for everything in his life that went wrong when she had done so much for them. She married a third time to a wonderful man much younger than her. It is the story of the time of the Hudson Bay Company and the forts in the west. At a time when there were very few cattle which were controlled by the Hudson Bay Co. They lived in Washington and Oregon (a place where my Great Great Grandmother and Grandfather settled in the Willamette Valley) and traveled at one time to French Camp in California to buy cattle from the Mexicans. It helped me to understand what my Grandmother must have gone through during this time.

[J Crossley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Marie Dorian makes a new life for herself and her growing boys after the death of her husband. She despairs over their attitudes and feels that she is a bad mother. I felt sad for her when she said that she believed her bad luck was due to her inadequacies.

I felt the author captured sibling rivalry well. In one scene, you see Dorian envying Paul because he made his mother laugh. Later, you see Paul envying his older brother because as first-born, he had so much given to him. Each felt the other had it better, and developed bad attitudes because of this.

Marie deals with more love and loss in this book, and continues to have the strength to keep moving forward.

[Suzanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much character growth by Marie. The author took us on a believable journey showing how Marie stopped living a life of regret, blaming her self and not feeling worthy to receive gifts or help from others.
Some parts were a little too churchy for me with Marie’s friends trying to get her baptized and married by a priest.
I’m not sure about the title. Does it mean that every star has a name and Marie so wanted to know she had a name based on who she was?
As in the first book, it was important to her that she was not just known as a woman, wife or a person that did certain work.
There are lots of stars, but to be a fixed star maybe meant it had a distinguishing name.
Marie wanted to be valued for the person she was, not to be namelessly clumped into a category.

[Lucinda Vinoski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoying this #2 of Tender Ties Series and meeting and traveling with this Indian Woman of History. Madame Marie Dorion is an inspiration to all women and mothers. Kirkpatrick tells the story well of the relationship between a woman and her family. Hardships are nothing new in any age and still hanging on to one's faith is the answer to getting through this world.

Looking forward to # 3 Hold Tight the Thread Wondering if Paul will ever be found and in what condition.

[Allyson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not enjoy this book - I mainly kept reading to see if my predictions about certain characters were correct. Admittedly I did not read the first book, so maybe that would have changed things, but I felt little connection with Marie and did not find her likeable or interesting. I had hoped for a much better story and character development.

[Dona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finding this series very interesting. Recently went on a river cruise on the Snake & Columbia Rivers so this fills in some of the history of the area. I saw the books in a museum bookstore and wrote down the titles to read later. Wish more of our countries history was taught in school, so that children understand how the mixing of all of us make up the whole.

[Ingrid · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have read many of this authors books and really enjoyed them.
however I did not care for the way this book was written and had a hard time reading it cause I just wasn't excited about picking up the book to continue reading.