Scruples on the Line

Authentic voices shape this fresh look at a familiar story, the American Civil War, beginning with the rapid buildup of tension between North and South and continuing into early summer of 1862. But the narrative grip comes through the eyes of civilians, trapped in the conflicts of obedience to government and historic refusal to participate in warfare. Their options press with insistence (enlisting, fleeing, buying a substitute, or paying a fee) as the demands intensify.

From the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia to Chicago and Iowa, five narrators tell the experiences of Amish, Mennonite, and German Baptist communities of conscience. Whether following an inquisitive girl in the mountains, an eager young man transplanted in the city's promise, or a bishop determined to hold the line with pioneers in Iowa, readers will choose their heroes- and villains-in-the-making.

In this opening book of the series the ominous shadows of duty and belief intertwine with characters' desires and fears, leading toward restless resolutions.

"In Shadows, Miller illuminates a little-known perspective on the Civil War while deftly bringing to life highly individualized characters caught in the crucible of war. Here we meet the people with scruples who struggle to follow their faith when God's words conflict with orders from their government. How can they follow Jesus while marching to war against fellow citizens? Such complex, nuanced insights into our American history are embedded in this riveting story."
--Marilyn Durham, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

"Through the contrasting points of view of her protagonists, Evie Yoder Miller marvelously calls to life the mounting uncertainties that emerged for peace church people in a nation descending in Civil War. Along with military and political perils, there is family tumult, church conflict, and neighborhood tension. An evocative portrait of ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances."
--Steven Nolt, co-author of Mennonites, Amish, and the American Civil War

Evie Yoder Miller is retired from teaching, most recently at UW-Whitewater in Wisconsin. Her new trilogy carries elements of her previous fiction: historical, Eyes at the Window (2003), and literary, Everyday Mercies (2014).