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Southern Tides #2
Fateful Journeys
"Who knows what will happen when those journeys end, and we come home again?"asks Camellia York while the dark clouds of the Civil War gather around her South Carolina home.
In this second installment of the popular Southern Tides Trilogy, Camellia confronts the secrets of her startling past while half-brothers Josh Cain and Hampton York grapple with their deepest convictions during these desperate days of national upheaval.
A heart-rendering epic of triumph on the costly road to freedom, Fateful Journeys sweeps readers away to experience the painful consequences of choices, the depth of unwavering love, and the indomitable spirit to rise above oppression.
Advancing the major characters and storylines established in Secret Tides, this novel is a self-seller for fans of the genre as well as an obvious selection for those intrigued by the Civil War.
366 pages, Paperback
First published February 1, 2005
3 people are currently reading
41 people want to read
About the author
Gary E. Parker
31 books17 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
The only current Southern Baptist pastor to have written 11 novels, 4 novellas and 4 non-fiction books in the last twelve years, prolific best-selling author Gary E. Parker has combined his love of history and the Civil War era to pen his latest historical novel, Secret Tides.
The first novel from Southern Tides (Parker’s latest trilogy of sweeping family sagas), Secret Tides paints a true and compelling portrait of love and forgiveness in a stunningly authentic historical setting.
Selected as a Crossing Book Club featured fiction writer and named a Christy Award finalist for his previous historical series writing, Parker has seen his novels soar up the best-seller charts.
As a boy, long before he became a Christian, Parker read The Robe. That book became an early whisper of the Spirit in his life, driving his interest in spiritual things along with a love for writing. Within a couple of weeks after conversion at 18 years old, Parker felt called to Christian ministry, receiving his Master of Divinity and later his Ph.D. in historical theology from Baylor University.
Referring to his fictional writing as “faith-informed fiction,” Parker feels that his writing makes him a better preacher, and preaching a sermon regularly makes him a better writer. His goal is to tell a quality story and let the message come through the story and character development naturally, rather than trying to make some theological point.
Parker and his wife, Melody reside in Decatur, Georgia with their two teenage daughters. He is Sr. pastor of the First Baptist Church of Decatur, and a frequent conference speaker at seminaries, university campuses, national conventions and convocations. He’s a regular contributor to national Christian publications, and is currently writing Fateful Journey, the second book in the Southern Tides trilogy, along with four new novellas. In his spare time, he enjoys distance biking, golfing, and reading.
The only current Southern Baptist pastor to have written 11 novels, 4 novellas and 4 non-fiction books in the last twelve years, prolific best-selling author Gary E. Parker has combined his love of history and the Civil War era to pen his latest historical novel, Secret Tides.
The first novel from Southern Tides (Parker’s latest trilogy of sweeping family sagas), Secret Tides paints a true and compelling portrait of love and forgiveness in a stunningly authentic historical setting.
Selected as a Crossing Book Club featured fiction writer and named a Christy Award finalist for his previous historical series writing, Parker has seen his novels soar up the best-seller charts.
As a boy, long before he became a Christian, Parker read The Robe. That book became an early whisper of the Spirit in his life, driving his interest in spiritual things along with a love for writing. Within a couple of weeks after conversion at 18 years old, Parker felt called to Christian ministry, receiving his Master of Divinity and later his Ph.D. in historical theology from Baylor University.
Referring to his fictional writing as “faith-informed fiction,” Parker feels that his writing makes him a better preacher, and preaching a sermon regularly makes him a better writer. His goal is to tell a quality story and let the message come through the story and character development naturally, rather than trying to make some theological point.
Parker and his wife, Melody reside in Decatur, Georgia with their two teenage daughters. He is Sr. pastor of the First Baptist Church of Decatur, and a frequent conference speaker at seminaries, university campuses, national conventions and convocations. He’s a regular contributor to national Christian publications, and is currently writing Fateful Journey, the second book in the Southern Tides trilogy, along with four new novellas. In his spare time, he enjoys distance biking, golfing, and reading.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
May 29, 2023
Fateful Journeys (Southern Tides Book 2)
Reader beware, this book is set during the Civil War. The languages and acceptable behaviors of that time are reprehensible. They are accurately portrayed here.
I not only enjoyed this book for the captivating writing but for the closer look at the Civil War and what all of our families and peoples experienced. Regarding of any of our differences, we are all children of God.
Reader beware, this book is set during the Civil War. The languages and acceptable behaviors of that time are reprehensible. They are accurately portrayed here.
I not only enjoyed this book for the captivating writing but for the closer look at the Civil War and what all of our families and peoples experienced. Regarding of any of our differences, we are all children of God.
June 16, 2022
Let's get my most pessimistic opinion out of the way first: the author boasts of his college history major to be instrumental in writing this series ... yet I am not convinced of his impressive historical knowledge. I hesitate to decry any specific things as historically "unrealistic"--I am not the expert here--but the story didn't have a great historical feel to it, not the least of which is the use of Christian names for married women, or the comfortable conversations between overseer and slave, or slow manner in which certain men prepared to shoot someone (after having read Louis L'Amour, it's like these characters moved through molasses the way it took so long to aim and fire).
But, don't get me wrong: I enjoyed the book. I just find it entirely easier to pick apart the flaws. So let's keep going. I was quite bothered by the way the characters (particularly Josh and Camellia, but disturbingly also the less-noble characters) were so free with their mouths. Some might be bothered by the possibility of using deceit in various ways, but I was worried about the safety of the main characters' loved ones. Could Josh just stop sharing his moral/political opinions with every Southerner whom he deems trustworthy after mere minutes of encountering them? Blabbermouths don't survive long--except in this book, where everyone is pretty sympathetic. Nah, strong political beliefs? Few people had them.
Another complaint I had was the "you're a good person sometimes/deep down" spiel, which is unfortunately all too common in Christian novels. No, York was not a good person. Never was, and never will be until he's converted. Can we stop with the sugar-coating, and just love the person because God loves him?
All that to say: York was probably my favorite character, although I wish he had been written better. His solider-focus established his personality well. And I appreciate that he's always called by his last name. Makes it feel more historical, you know? I just didn't need to continual reminder that he didn't love Katherine. That she really wasn't pretty.
It was also too bad the war was rushed over; the book started in May 1861, when the war hadn't yet affected the characters; and ended in the beginning of April 1865, just reviewing the highlights of the war during the characters' reflective dialogue. From York's perspective, it wasn't a problem--but Josh? He had real issues with fighting, and therefore I felt that his character arc had a couple holes in it. For that matter, sometimes the plot itself felt choppy.
Wow. This review was rather rant-filled. It may come as a shock, but I enjoyed reading the book. Interesting storyline. Era-specific. A good romance that nevertheless did not overwhelm the whole plot. I'll pick up the next book because of York.
But, don't get me wrong: I enjoyed the book. I just find it entirely easier to pick apart the flaws. So let's keep going. I was quite bothered by the way the characters (particularly Josh and Camellia, but disturbingly also the less-noble characters) were so free with their mouths. Some might be bothered by the possibility of using deceit in various ways, but I was worried about the safety of the main characters' loved ones. Could Josh just stop sharing his moral/political opinions with every Southerner whom he deems trustworthy after mere minutes of encountering them? Blabbermouths don't survive long--except in this book, where everyone is pretty sympathetic. Nah, strong political beliefs? Few people had them.
Another complaint I had was the "you're a good person sometimes/deep down" spiel, which is unfortunately all too common in Christian novels. No, York was not a good person. Never was, and never will be until he's converted. Can we stop with the sugar-coating, and just love the person because God loves him?
All that to say: York was probably my favorite character, although I wish he had been written better. His solider-focus established his personality well. And I appreciate that he's always called by his last name. Makes it feel more historical, you know? I just didn't need to continual reminder that he didn't love Katherine. That she really wasn't pretty.
It was also too bad the war was rushed over; the book started in May 1861, when the war hadn't yet affected the characters; and ended in the beginning of April 1865, just reviewing the highlights of the war during the characters' reflective dialogue. From York's perspective, it wasn't a problem--but Josh? He had real issues with fighting, and therefore I felt that his character arc had a couple holes in it. For that matter, sometimes the plot itself felt choppy.
Wow. This review was rather rant-filled. It may come as a shock, but I enjoyed reading the book. Interesting storyline. Era-specific. A good romance that nevertheless did not overwhelm the whole plot. I'll pick up the next book because of York.
February 18, 2023
The second installment of a civil war trilogy, I am glad I am reading this series. York is an interesting character; he vacillates between being evil and good. I am interested to find out what kind of person he really turns out to be in the final book. This author focuses on characters and what they go through during the war and not detailed battle scenes. I definitely plan to read book 3.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews