Hope Inspired Stories: Burning Sky

Welcome. This week it is my very great pleasure to celebrate debut author Lori Benton and her novel Burning Sky. Coincidentally its release date was August 6th, the anniversary of the Battle of Oriskany, which plays an important part in the backdrop of Lori's book. Included in this post is a short video of the Battle scenes illustrated by Don Troiani, an historical artist who has captured a sense of early America and its rugged frontiersmen. Hope you enjoy this post and reading about Lori's new book!

Please try these links to meet with Lori and read about God's guidance and blessings on her journey to publication:

Website: http://loribenton.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLoriBenton#
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lorilbenton/

Burning Sky and the Battle of Oriskany ...

Lori, what affect did the Battle of Oriskany have on the characters in Burning Sky?

Burning Sky is set in 1784, seven years after the Battle of Oriskany, but the settlement of Shiloh, New York, is located near enough to Fort Stanwix and Oriskany Creek that the men from this fictional village would have been part of General Nicholas Herkimer’s mixed force of militia and Oneida warriors that fought against the British and other Iroquois Nations on that day.

In the pages of Burning Sky, those members of the militia who survived that battle and the rest of the war still live daily with its repercussions. The Warings, a prominent family in Shiloh, lost two of their members in that battle. Those who survived it were never the same for the brutality they witnessed and committed, or for the losses they sustained. Although it wasn’t called Post-traumatic Stress Disorder in the 18^th century, my goal was to portray these characters, and the long-term consequences of war upon their bodies and souls, as honestly as I could in light of our current understanding of this disorder.

Publishers Weekly, in their review of Burning Sky, had this to say: A bruised reed He shall not break, and a smoking flax he shall not quench: that's the theme resonating through this lovingly rendered historical-romantic homage to the men and women of the American frontier after the Revolutionary War. That is part of what I hoped to accomplish with this novel, to honor those of all nations who fought on the New York frontier during the Revolutionary War, or suffered loss and endured to rebuild and reshape their lives.

I thought it very fitting that the release date for Burning Sky “happens” to fall on August 6, the anniversary of the Battle of Oriskany.

Title: Burning Sky

Author: Lori Benton

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

Lori Benton

“I remember the borders of our land, though I have been gone from them nearly half the moons of my life. But who there will remember me? What I have seen, what I have done, it has changed me.

I am the place where two rivers meet, silted with upheaval and loss.

Yet memory of our land is a clear stream. I shall know it as a mother knows the faces of her children. It may be I will find me there.“

Abducted by Mohawk Indians at fourteen and renamed Burning Sky, Willa Obenchain is driven to return to her family’s New York frontier homestead after many years building a life with the People. At the boundary of her father’s property, Willa discovers a wounded Scotsman lying in her path. Feeling obliged to nurse his injuries, the two quickly find much has changed during her twelve-year absence—her childhood home is in disrepair, her missing parents are rumored to be Tories, and the young Richard Waring she once admired is now grown into a man twisted by the horrors of war and claiming ownership of the Obenchain land.

When her Mohawk brother arrives and questions her place in the white world, the cultural divide blurs Willa’s vision. Can she follow Tames-His-Horse back to the People now that she is no longer Burning Sky? And what about Neil MacGregor, the kind and loyal botanist who does not fit into in her plan for a solitary life, yet is now helping her revive her farm? In the aftermath of the Revolutionary War, strong feelings against “savages” abound in the nearby village of Shiloh, leaving Willa’s safety unsure.

Willa is a woman caught between two worlds. As tensions rise, challenging her shielded heart, the woman called Burning Sky must find a new courage--the courage to again risk embracing the blessings the Almighty

wants to bestow. Is she brave enough to love again?

My Review of "Burning Sky":

As I read this book, the word haunting came to mind ... not only in the lovely, lyrical writing, but in the characters of Willa, Neil, Joseph and Francis. They've stayed with me well after I've closed its covers. To me that's haunting--like friends who have never left you.

There are a few books I've returned to; the Bible, and some of the classics. This well-crafted story will be one of them. This story, with its depth and layers, will always seem fresh to me as I discover more from each read. I've always marveled at the mental, physical and spiritual toughness of our frontier forebears in times of triumph and tragedy; Ms. Benton has captured these unique qualities in "real" people, not just as romantic heroes of fiction.

I'd not call this first book by Ms. Benton a success, I'd call it a triumph.

Along with a copy of "Burning Sky", our giveaway will include a "Willa" doll (with her unusual eye coloring, dressed in colonial day dress and moccasins), a silk fan, a packet of Twinings Tea, and a botanical print of "Wild Rose", by the 18th century French artist Pierre Joseph Redoute suitable for framing; perhaps Neil MacGregor might have done a similar botanical study! Please leave your e-mail address when making your comment so we can contact you if you are the winner! (you must live in U.S. to be eligible for book and giveaway).