About the Book

An impossible decision in the chaos of D-Day. Ripples that cascade seventy-five years into the present. And two lives transformed by the tenuous resolve to reach out of the darkness toward fragments of light.

Cancer stole everything from Ceelie—her peace of mind, her self-image, perhaps even her twenty-three-year marriage to her college sweetheart, Nate. Without the support of Darlene, her quirky elderly friend, she may not have been able to endure so much loss.

So when Darlene’s prognosis turns dire, Ceelie can’t refuse her seemingly impossible request—to find a WWII paratrooper named Cal, the father who disappeared when Darlene was an infant, leaving a lifetime of desolation in his wake.

The search that begins in the farmlands of Missouri eventually leads Ceelie to a small town in Normandy, where she uncovers the harrowing tale of the hero who dropped off-target into occupied France.

Alternating between Cal’s D-Day rescue by two young French sisters and Ceelie’s present-day journey through trial and heartbreak, Fragments of Light poses a timeless question: When life becomes unbearable, will you press toward the light or let the darkness win?

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In My Opinion

If you are looking for a story that will suck you in and wring you out emotionally, look no further. In Fragments of Light, Michele Phoenix pulls no punches when it comes to ugly, difficult, draining, and disappointing moments in life.

And just when you grasp a little bit of hope, the author hits you again with another life-changing event.

Yet she does all of it in a way where you just cannot look away. No matter the pain, the heartache, the loss, or the grief, you keep turning pages, holding on to hope that somewhere along the way the tide will turn for these characters.

Ceelie and Darlene’s friendship was my favorite part of this. Everyone needs a Darlene who teaches you life lessons with a bit of flair and spunk thrown in. It’s easy to see the impact Darlene has made on Ceelie and the strength of the bond between these two women.

The parallels between the modern day story and the one set around D-Day are well constructed and natural, and again kept me turning pages to discover what happened to Hal right alongside Ceelie.

It’s been almost three years between Phoenix’s last release and this one, but this powerful and evocative story was more than worth the wait.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.