Follow Here To Purchase Return to Exile: A Novel (The Carthage Chronicles Book 2)

Author: Lynne Gentry
Publisher: Howard Books
ISBN: 978-1-4767-4636-4

“She hated the power of death. Wasn’t that why she was here? To stop a plague from killing innocent people in the future and prevent Cyprian’s senseless death in the past?

This historical Christian novel would be enjoyed by those who like time-traveling, especially back to third century Rome. With discussions on medical procedures, it may not be appropriate for immature readers.

The beginning has reviews for this book while the ending contains acknowledgments, discussion questions including for group use, a conversation with the author, an excerpt for the final in the series, and advertisements for other books by the author. Verses are taken from the New Living Translation of the Bible along with the New American Standard version.

Having written her second novel, Gentry is a professional acting coach, theater director, playwright, speaker and dramatic performer.

The main characters are thirty-five-year-old Dr. Lisbeth Hastings, her five-year-old daughter, Maggie, and Lisabeth’s husband, Cyprian Thascius. Also casted are Lisabeth’s parents, widowed Ruth and her family, and political power-hungry Aspasius to name a few.

Second in the Carthage Chronicles series, it has been six years that Dr. Hastings has been living in the twenty-first century again. Having returned from third century Rome where she met and married Cyprian, she is heartbroken her spouse does not know their daughter, Maggie, exists.

With the urging of her father, Lisbeth decides to return to a society of Roman rule where measles and typhoid have become rampant. While the ruling Aspasius wants to restore favor to the gods, he plans to purge the city of Christians. Cyprian, exiled years ago, returns when he is prompted to become bishop of a small local church.

When Lisbeth and Cyprian meet again, he may be happy to know he has fathered Maggie, but Lisbeth is hurt and fears failure knowing he has other plans. Aware of her husband’s future and her medical capabilities, she must make decisions that may change the past for her and her family.

Written with detail, the treatment of plagues such as measles and typhoid was approached differently over two thousand years ago. Gentry easily jumps from the present to the past where the reader does not get confused.

The protagonist seems to be in the perfect place at the perfect time with a young daughter that sometimes understands more than her comprehension and vocabulary level. This reader wishes all pronouns of God were capitalized for reverence.

More medically informative than the first in the series, Gentry weaves a story of a cross-temporal marriage about love, redemption, and acceptance that God is ultimately in control, no matter what century one lives.

Thanks to Howard Books for furnishing this complimentary packet in exchange for a review based on the reader’s honest opinion.