Away from the Dark (The Light, #2)

by Aleatha Romig

Nine months ago, Sara Adams awoke with no memory. The man holding her hand told her she’s a member of The Light, a tight-knit religious group led by the terrifying and charismatic Father Gabriel. As a woman in the community of The Light, her duty is to be unquestionably obedient and to submit to the will of her husband.

But as Sara’s memory starts to return and she remembers her past, she sees that everything she’s been told is a lie. The Light is an insidious and dangerous organization, and its corrupting influence reaches well beyond the confines of the remote campus where Sara is being held.

With everything at stake, Sara struggles to sort out her true memories from her indoctrination. The desire to escape consumes her, but who can she trust? And which other followers of The Light were forced into this life, brainwashed to believe they belonged? The more she remembers, the more it becomes clear that Jacob, the man who calls himself her husband, is keeping shattering secrets of his own.

But Sara cannot flee alone, leaving innocents behind. She must fight to extinguish The Light.

• ISBN10: 1503938727
• ISBN13: 9781503938724
• Publish Date: 18 October 2016
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 2 April 2024
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Thomas & Mercer
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 363
• Language: English

Reviews

[kimbacaffeinate]

The author provided us with the last chapter of Into the Light, and I loved this refresher as it brought Sara and Jacob's story back. The story Romig has created is a suspense thriller with a romance that offers a bit of a twist. Sara awoke with no memories and found herself married to Jacob, a member of the Light. The Light is a religious cult, where men rule, and women never question.

In Away from the Dark, Sara begins to regain her memories, and finds herself confused, especially when it comes to her feelings for Jacob. We as the listener/reader know all about Jacob, but Sara only knows what he and those from the Light have shared. Their attraction and feelings are genuine only complicating things, particularly for Jacob. Romig does an excellent job of fleshing out the characters and making their actions believable.

I found myself holding my breath as the author notched up the tension. She drew the characters closer together as they faced exposure. The twists and turns kept me listening into the wee hours. I was anxious about the couple and feared for their very lives. It was brilliant and addictive.

I enjoyed the suspense angle immensely. Those dealing with the inner workings of the cult were downright chilling. It provided us with an inside look into these groups and the tactics they use. I appreciated that the author showed why people are drawn to them in addition to showcasing the corruption at the head of these groups. Father Gabriel and his disciples gave me the chills, and I hung on every morsel.

David LeDoux, Erin deWard, and Kevin T. Collins narrated giving us the perspectives of Jacob, Sara and those of Dylan. They were all impressive allowing me to connect to each character.

Do not skip the Epilogue...OMG. While the story of Sara and Jacob is over, I am sincerely hoping we get more stories about the Light.

Audio provided by publisher. This review was originally posted at Caffeinated Book Reviewer

[Melanie]

My review and an extended sample of the audiobook are posted at Hotlistens.com.

This is a very hard review to write. There are SOOOO many spoilers from book one. I will do my best to keep it spoiler free. So, in book one, Into the Light, we meet Sara. She has just woken up from a horrible injury. Her eyes are bandaged and she is badly bruised, but remembers nothing. She is told that she is a member of The Light. She lives in a remote Alaskan village where everyone else that lives there is part of The Light too. She also learns that she is married to Jacob. Now, because this series is told from multiple POVs, the reader learns very quickly that Sara is a new initiate and that she is being forced into this new life. Many brides are “acquired” this way and brought into The Light. We learn this from Jacob’s POV.

There is also a third POV, Stella. She is an investigative reported. She’s also looking for her best friend who’s gone missing. Stella lives in Detroit. She’s dating a cop and has a fish named Fred.

Now, this story picks up right where Into the Light ends. It ended with a big cliffhanger end to it. We start to get answers right from the beginning of this book. Many of the questions that come up in book one are answered relatively quickly, but there are also new questions. Jacob has know from the beginning what he was a part of. However, things to take a turn for the worse, not just for Jacob, but also Sara and others in this cult.

In the first book, everything takes place at the Northern Light, the Alaska camp. In this book, we get to see more of the Eastern Light, that is located in Detroit. It is also the place where The Light does a lot of it’s “recruitment”. Some people do join willingly, though most of those are men. We also learn a lot more about the leader of this sect, Father Gabriel.

I know that I haven’t given much detail on this book. I really can’t without giving HUGE spoilers of book one. Just know that this series is a twisted tale of a cult and the people within it and some people who aren’t in it at all. This entire series is full of suspense with several twists and turns. Things seem to go in a completely different direction that you think they will go.

This is a duology, so this is the last book in this series. While most things are answered, there are a few strings left open. Not so much that it feels unfinished or unsatisfied. More like, there is an opening for a spin off. Aleatha Roming could also be allowing readers to come to their own conclusions about a few things. Whether or not there is another book set in this world, I’m happy with how this series played out. I loved the entire journey.

Narration
This book did have a change in one of the male narrators. That didn’t hurt the narration of this story at all. We did get different POVs in this story, so the second male narrator got more page time than in the first book. I think the trio did a great job with the entire story. I loved the voices, pacing and tone. All fit well with the current scene. I would highly recommend this series on audio.