Light Through a Fractured Lens follows Monique Joubert, a brave eighteen-year-old girl navigating the perils of 1940s Nazi-occupied France. After fleeing a psychiatric institution overtaken by German forces, Monique searches for her brother Marcel—now a resistance fighter—while avoiding the sinister grip of Vichy police and the brutality of war.

From Parisian backstreets to the far reaches of occupied Europe, Monique and her family are caught in a web of tragedy, resistance, and redemption. Based on real historical events, this novel delivers a moving portrait of human strength and survival against incredible odds.

Christmas Eve, Ardennes Forest. The Battle of the Bulge is raging. The small town of Eschdorf, Luxembourg is under German control. As SS soldiers interrogate townspeople, Andre Verhoeven—a village elder—escapes with his pregnant niece Elise Lambert into the woods to seek refuge in their family farmhouse.

Meanwhile, nineteen-year-old American Private William Conley becomes separated from his unit in the snowy wilderness. Lost and freezing, he captures a wounded German soldier, Eric Mueller, hoping to orient himself. They stumble upon a barn—but the arrival of Elise, about to give birth, forces an unexpected truce between enemies to preserve life, not take it.

As both Allied and Axis forces converge on the area, the barn becomes a battleground. Ruthless characters like SS Lieutenant Adolf Wolf, vengeful Private Stephen Ryan, and desperate German commander Peter Decker bring death ever closer to the fragile sanctuary.

When Night Awakens is inspired by true events—a story of survival, love, and unlikely alliances in the face of horror. It’s a tribute to the human spirit and the hope that flickers even in the darkest moments of war.

Praise for When Night Awakens:
“A chilling wartime thriller that will have you gripped.” – Matthew Lynn