Castle of Refuge

There are no spoilers in this review. Spoiler free zone!

-Series: A Derricott Tale
-Author: Melanie Dickerson
-Overall: 5/5, 7.5/10
-Plots and storyline: 4/5
-Characters: 4/5
-Would I reread? Likely, as I would with all Melanie Dickerson books!
-Would I recommend? Definitely!
-Reading time for me: One day, split in two sittings!
-Will I continue the series? Absolutely!
-Short and sweet: Castle Of Refuge is an intriguing story, and I loved the themes of forgiveness and courage! The characters were likable and as with all other Melanie Dickerson books, I loved this book! It kept my interest the entire time, never having bleak moments where I wanted to put the book down!
-One word review: Awesome

I really liked this book, as I love all Melanie Dickerson books! They keep my interest, and I am in no way a romance person! I don’t read romance. But, for some reason I really really love her books! There are some moments where a character made a bad decision that didn’t seem super realistic, but that happens in every book so that doesn’t, in any way, take away from the joy of this book. I would totally recommend, and I’ve already gotten some friends hooked on Melanie Dickerson!

I read the entire book in a day, as I have with other Dickerson books. I thoroughly enjoyed this riveting tale of adventure, danger, and courage. I am quite impressed with how Dickerson has managed such epic stories that entertain a wide range of audiences! Melanie Dickerson is definitely one of my favorite authors, and I really adore her books!

So, what are you waiting for? Get reading! And seriously, don’t just go to the library and rent it, go buy it, or better yet, preorder it! You have my guarantee that you’ll enjoy it! I’m absolutely going to buy a paperback of this to see on my shelf everyday!

Much, much, much thanks to Melanie Dickerson for her lovely interactions with her fans and the publisher for giving me an ARC of Castle of Refuge. Thank you so much!

I received a complimentary copy of this book. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I was not asked or required to write a positive review.

This story is both character driven and plot driven. From the start, the primary characters were established, and the adventure began. I enjoyed following Audrey as she escaped her home due to her jealous sister’s, Maris, wrath. Even as Audrey was on her own, I felt the fear and urgency for her to make it to her destination.

When Audrey found herself at Edwin’s castle, the story didn’t slow down there. Gradually, Edwin and Audrey got to know and understand each other. Both had insecurities and concerns of acceptance. For Audrey, it was her facial scars, due to Maris. For Edwin, it was his missing arm, due to battle.

Both Audrey and Edwin struggled to believe that anyone could love them, including each other, due to their scars and losses, but the author did an excellent job communicating that it was those very things that made them human and humble, deserving of love. I believe that’s a message everyone can connect with in some way, because whether their shortcomings or insecurities are physical, emotional, or situational, most (if not everyone) have some.

Because of this, I found Audrey and Edwin to be likeable characters that were relatable. All the major characters were developed well and it was easy to tell them apart. The plot got more intense with higher stakes once Maris found Audrey.

Overall, this was not a dull story, it was an enjoyable fairytale with a satisfying ending that was believable. I especially loved Audrey as a character. Despite the turmoil Maris caused her, she dealt with her with patience and understanding. I walked away from the story with encouragement, and an overall, positive feeling.

I would recommend this story to those who enjoy Christian historical fiction that’s both character driven and plot driven, with relatable messages that are not told to you, but illustrated through the characters’ situation and journey.

***This book was given to me by Netgalley for an honest review.***

An engaging, charming, and gentle Christian historical romance novel. The "heroine", Audrey, lives with her elder sister and father who is the Lord of an estate. Her sister Maris is a plotter and seeks to ruin Audrey's life and her hope for a happy marriage. Throughout the story, Audrey is indominable in her positive attitude. The story is well written, paced well, and a pleasant read. It definitely puts across a Christian message and values that are gently woven throughout the story but not in a preachy way. I recommend this book especially for those who enjoy historical romance, I don't think you'll be disappointed. I think it's especially suited for young adults or late teens. I would rate this book as 5 out of 5.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."

I always did love a good fairy tale. I still do. That’s why I love Melanie Dickerson’s retelling of fairy tales with an inspirational bent. This second book in her Dericott series brings us her retelling of The Ugly Duckling. Audrey’s face is marred and Edwin is missing an arm lost in battle. Both feel abnormal but discover that God has plans for them. Dickerson tells this in such an interesting way and I was mesmerized. Recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson Publishers via Net Galley. The opinion in this review is expressly my own.

I have read 6 of Melanie Dickerson's previous novels. My favorite aspect of her writing is her use of scripture and love of Jesus to transform what are usually very magical, dark and shallow characters and plots into uplifting, redemptive and inspiring characters and stories. The Captive Maiden was my favorite of all her past books. Castle of Refuge follows the same template of being losely based on a fairy-tale, in this case, the story of the Ugly Duckling.

The main protagonist is Audrey, a girl of 15 (later 19 as the story jumps forward in time) who dreams of having a purpose bigger than being married off to whomever her father makes an agreement with. She is not ugly but very beautiful but through the actions of a jealous and very mentally unhealthy older sister, she is burned and though not completely scarred she believes the lie that she is ugly.

I appreciated Audrey's forgiving heart and her love interest Edwin's sacrificial heart. They both learn to see beyond the surface of our earthly bodies and love and value what God has placed within each other's hearts and souls.

Sadly, the antagonist Maris does not grow as a character. I would have loved to see the lies she believes be replaced with truth as well as for her mind to have found peace. I believe the story circles "around the mountain" of being kidnapped a few too many times, slowing the reading and interest in that part of the book.

I still enjoyed reading another one of Melanie Dickerson's creative books and look forward to her next!

The second book in Dickerson’s Dericott series retells “The Ugly Duckling” in her usual style. The author replaces all hints of magic or animal personification with human frailties, failures, and faith. Audrey and Maris, the daughters of the Viscount of Engelford have a relationship familiar from many folk tales. Maris, the elder sister, is cruel and evil while her younger sister Audrey is beautiful and kind. Maris despises Audrey and her jealousy and spite lead her to maim Audrey by forcing her to fall into the fire, scarring one ear and part of her face. The Viscount sends Maris to a convent where she cannot hurt others, but Audrey’s hopes of marrying well and doing good with her life are broke. Four years later Maris returns from the convent and the Viscount offers Audrey as bride to an elderly knight, thus removing her from Maris’ mad desire for revenge. Audrey cannot bring herself to marry a man over twice her age, so she runs away, trusting God to lead her to a place of safety and happiness. Misfortune and illness strike her, and she finds herself recovering at the castle of Edwin, Lord Dericott. The young lord is the eldest of the seven brothers from Dickerson’s first book in this series, Court of Swans, and is recuperating after losing his arm while escaping with his brothers from unjust imprisonment. Can these two help each other find safety and fulfillment, or will Maris bring them to ruin?

I have never read a Melanie Dickerson book but the description for this seemed appealing. I really enjoyed the story. The characters drew me into the story early on. I liked the message of how we see and deal with scars —both our own and others. I’d definitely like to read more from this author.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read and review.

I do enjoy books by this author and this one was no different. I only have a few quibbles about the story. The first is that the main character always seems so chipper even when her life is falling apart. The second is the description of the Edwin, it's overstated how kind and good he is. The third is that the sister obviously has some mental health needs, but is mainly vilified in the story.

Melanie Dickerson is one of my favorite authors to follow. Her books seem to consistently get better as they come out. Castle of Refuge is no different. Dickerson's writing is phenomenal as always and this book was just beautiful. The atmosphere that is painted is breathtaking and our characters are fantastic. Our heroine is strong and powerful just like all of Dickerson's previous heroines. That is another thing that you can count on when you pick up one of her books. Such an amazing addition to an already amazing series! Cannot wait to see where she goes next.

What a beautiful story that addresses what others see as ugly, physical scars. It also addresses emotional scars. I love the tone of the fairy tale and the hope of God through it's pages.

I found this story to be well written, imaginative, and believable. I have loved the fairy tale adaptations by Melanie Dickerson and this one is no different. A continuation of the Dericott stories as began in Court of Swans, this story falls after the adventure of that one. While it can stand alone, a reader would have more information if they read Court of Swans first.

Audrey and Edwin both face their own scarring events that give them a greater compassion for others. They both rely on God with faith that is inspiring. They are a shining example of how faith can be exercised and trust in God. I loved the inclusion of faith in the fairy tale as it added a depth that is so often missing.

The presentation of imperfect people made it easy to relate to the characters and find myself lost in this story, It was one I was willing to lose sleep to finish. This is an easy read, perfect for YA and yet in depth enough for the most seasoned reader to get lost in. A perfect addition to this series.

I was given a copy of the story through the publisher on NetGalley and this is my honest review.

CASTLE OF REFUGE, by Melanie Dickerson, is a beautiful heart-touching and sad story about a Viscount's daughter! A beautiful castle wherein a sad lord of the manner abides. A story filled with revenge, jealousy, and hurtful intent. Will Lord Dericott never know the true love of a woman because of what happened to him? Why must Audrey suffer ridicule from her own family, let alone the village people, because of what happened to her? What was she being blamed for? Will she be able to escape her suffering? If so, will she be found and dragged back home and made to suffer even more? Or worse? Will everyone around her have to suffer too? Why would her father allow this to happen? So fast-paced I couldn't read fast enough. The plot was deep and intriguing! Kept my interest all the way to the end. Will there be a happy ending? Only the reader will know.

This is the second novel in the Dericott series. It involves Edwin who lost his arm defending his brother and Audrey who was burned in a fire. Both are facing uncertain futures and are unsure how they view themselves. Audrey fears for her life and escapes her home, while managing to end up at Edwin's castle, where he is now the Earl.

Although I liked the book, I was troubled by some of plot twists.. Some situations seemed easily resolved and others just kept going on and on. It also bugged me that she was hardly ever angry and her sister was always angry. I questioned some of what happened in the story because I was unsure of the characters. I did it enjoy it, but I have read better by this author.

Another enjoyable story from Dickerson with an immersive settings, compelling characters, and a heart warming message.

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 4.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

From the writing style and the simplicity of it, I can immediately tell that it's a YA/Teen novel. I liked the fact that Dickerson made Audrey and Edwin somewhat developed characters that had their own relationships with Jesus, but I found them kind of unrealistic at times. Audrey is almost too good, all the time. After being abused by her sister Maris for years, she isn't bitter or angry, but actually happy. I was also bothered by Maris' development. I truly was expecting her to come to her senses, have her father finally listen to her, and have some kind of redemption with that relationship. Instead, Maris was just raving mad for no reason. Any logic presented to her was thrown out. I really would have liked to see Maris reformed at the end, but that's not what happened. I also don't understand why there were so many kidnappings surrounding Audrey. Edwin really didn't get the hint that he needed to guard her better until the end, after the both of them were almost killed by Maris.


I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Castle of Refuge had me hooked from the very beginning. My heart just ached for Amalie and for the torment she had to go through. She very easily could have been resentful but stayed true to who she was. I have always enjoyed Melanie Dickerson’s books, now this one included!!
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Melanie Dickerson is the author of an excellent YA medieval series, full of faith and clean romance. In "Castle of Refuge", Audrey is a viscount's daughter who dreams of marrying a man she loves and finding her God-given purpose in the world. When her ill-mannered, deranged sister injures her and causes her to be disfigured, Audrey thinks her life is over. Running away from home, she takes shelter in Lord Dericott's kingdom and discovers that he is a kind, humble man who can overlook her scars because he has suffered his own. I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading the next novel by Melanie Dickerson!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

First sentence: Audrey hid behind a tree and watched a knight and his squire riding down the lane.

Melanie Dickerson's newest historical romance is a 'retelling' of The Ugly Duckling. Audrey, our heroine, has believed herself to be ugly--because of her sister's cruel words--most of her life. Even more so after her sister (totally on purpose) "accidentally" pushes her face first into a fire. (I'm assuming fire place). Fortunately, it was just her ear/neck that was burned/scarred. So she can 'hide' her damaged face relatively easily--especially if she remains pulled back--out of sight--from society. If up to Audrey, perhaps, she'd never have left her home. But Maris, her cruel older sister, is returning from the convent, and Audrey, well, she's afraid for her life, afraid that her father cannot--will not--protect her.

So Audrey runs away...she finds refuge...in...you guessed it... a castle. But not just any castle, the castle of Lord (Edwin) Dericott. (The two had met oh-so-briefly in the prologue.) Readers first met Edwin in Court of Swans.

Will she finally be safe at last?

Looking just on the surface, you would think this book HAD to be a perfect match for me. Set in England in the Middle Ages (prologue 1378, rest of the novel 1382). A retelling of a fairy tale. Not just any fairy tale but The Ugly Duckling. A romance. How could it ever go wrong?

But. I didn't like it. I really didn't like it. The characterizations are weak, in my opinion, and the plot ridiculous.

I'll do my best to explain why. But I'm going to throw out a spoiler warning so I can talk freely.

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You've been warned now. I can relax my guard a bit with details.

I think the retelling is not set in the *right* time period. Dickerson's details on what life was like in the middle ages seems incredibly iffy at best. If it was say set anytime after 1611--or even after 1500--I would probably not worry about specifics. Two things stand out to me. One, Audrey (like Delia in book one) is a daughter of a noble man. She can read. She can write. She knows two to three foreign languages. (French, German, and presumably Latin?). Her education is not seen as out of the ordinary or uncommon. She starts a SCHOOL for girls--all backgrounds and classes including peasants. She stresses the importance of knowing how to read and write. All well and good. But I *don't* think education--public education--was that common, widespread, in particular when it comes to lower classes, in particular when it comes to girls and young women. I think education while not unheard of for some classes--the upper classes, the nobility, etc.--I don't think it was all that common for the rest of folks. Two, owning Scripture is taken for granted. Lord Dericott even has MULTIPLE COPIES of the Bible. IN 1382. Before the printing press. At a time when each copy would have been handwritten or copied out by a scribe. At a time when personal ownership of Scriptures would have been extremely expensive and probably not all that common. Perhaps the nobility did have enough money to have a copy of Scripture. Perhaps like Lord Dericott, they would have had a LARGE library with plenty of books--hundreds, thousands, etc. Then there's the fact that the Bible is in English. The first complete Bible--Old Testament and New Testament--had not been completed in English in 1382. From everything I've read--that's what I conclude. Psalms would have been translated into English earlier. Probably some of the gospels maybe even all the gospels. But the whole Bible had not yet been translated into English...another decade yes. But Dickerson is also not considering that AT THE TIME the English translations--by the Lollards--was seen as dangerous, illegal, frowned upon. Audrey wants to TEACH her students (all girls, all classes) to read using the Gospel of Luke. She wants Edwin to HIRE SCRIBES to copy out a copy for her students. You know, as you do. No biggie. Piece of cake, right. It couldn't possibly cost a lot of money or take a lot of time.

But let's say I can forgive and forget all that. I would still find the lack of inner motivations and flat characterizations a bit annoying. I know it is asking a lot of any writer/creator to flesh out the villain and make them have motivations that make sense. Readers are given a simplistic--too simplistic--explanation for THE VILLAINY VILLAIN. She's very one-note. Maris, the villain, is SUPER EVIL AND DEMENTED because she was physically abused as a toddler (think before the age of 3) by a nurse maid. Decades worth of being with her family after the nursemaid was dismissed hasn't erased her trauma. She's been allowed to verbally, mentally, psychologically, physically abuse anyone in all those years just because. Because her father feels guilty and ashamed he didn't know it was happening. Because her sister pities her. She has a whole household living in FEAR for at least two decades. Everyone says, well, it must be okay because she was abused and there you have it. That's why it's okay for her to act like this. Nothing I can do to make this situation better. Not gonna try. Not gonna intervene. Not going to parent.

One of my pet peeves in romance is KIDNAPPING. I usually find melodrama highly annoying and problematic. Audrey doesn't get kidnapped once or twice or even three times. She gets kidnapped by her evil sister and her GIANT COMPANION with the regularity that some people blow their noses. Okay, I exaggerate. Still. It happens way too frequently in this novel.

I love Melanie Dickerson's adaptations of fairy tales to Christian fiction for young adults, partially because I have never out-grown fairy tales and partially because I like keeping up with literature for children and young adults. While Castle of Refuge is not a specific fairy tale (that I can remember), it does draw the reader in like a fairy tale does. This book reminds me in so many ways of a book by Lori Wick called "The Knight and the Dove." There are many premises that are similar.
Audrey (CoR) has an older sister, Maris, who is her nemesis. Megan (KaD) has an older sister Marigold who plays the same part.
Maris and Marigold are sociopathic in their actions and attitudes.
Maris and Marigold also find men who are willing to do their bidding in their schemes.
Audrey and Megan, while victims of their sisters' machinations, find refuge in a Knight and his castle.
Their fathers are less than protective and fatherly toward their daughters.
Audrey and Megan find purpose in teaching the young girls in their respective villages to read.
Melanie has woven her own tale in this book and makes it an enjoyable read. I love reading medieval fiction and this book fits that bill quite nicely. It's just that from the outset, I could see similarities to a book written almost twenty years ago. It made me smile because it was like seeing an old friend after being apart for many years. Melanie has done a great job in creating a plot that moves along at a good pace. Her descriptive talents make the setting come alive and produce characters who are multidimensional.
Because Castle of Refuge is titled as being A Dericott Tale, I am assuming that there will be other books to come in a series. It intrigues me to think of whose story will be next and I am excited to see which one it will be.

This book earns four strong stars, only because I am so familiar with a similar tale by another author.

Thomas Nelson and NetGalley.com provided the copy I read for this review. All opinions expressed are solely my own.