Walk to Paradise Garden
The world goes mad in 1914. And in the chaos, on the blood-soaked fields of the Ypres Salient, young humanitarian John Armitage meets a British nurse, Evelyne Grenville, a lady with admirable courage and a secret. Could they possibly make a difference, offering solace at the Western Front? Will Evelyne’s secret life bring calamity on them both?
Their ensuing philanthropic life course encounters joy, forgiveness, horrific tragedy and a special-needs boy who shows the way to recovery. It’s a ninety-year journey for the Armitages. It’s a Walk to Paradise Garden.
( Available as ebook and print)
“While serving as a stretcher bearer in World War I France, humanitarian John Armitage meets and falls in love with nurse Evelyne (Evie) Grenville. Unfortunately, she is married to another and soon leaves her assignment to help an ailing friend in Paris. Not long after, when Evie writes to John of her husband’s death, John rushes to her side. In a whirlwind turn of events, they marry in a matter of days. From there, Walk to Paradise Garden spans the subsequent 86 years of their lives, highlighting triumphs and heartbreaks through a series of vignettes. Although one might assume that Campbell’s style of presenting John and Evie’s story would create a choppy and disconnected reading experience, the opposite is true. Common threads woven through the plot provide continuity and stability to the story while adding depth and interest. Likewise, the artfully designed cover supports the plot with an aura of understated gentility. A story of enduring love and selflessness with a touch of mystery and suspense, Walk to Paradise Garden is a pleasant reading experience, like taking a stroll through a beautifully manicured garden.” –– Historical Novel Society Review
“Amid the chaos and turmoil of Belgium in the throes of the First World War, a young John David Armitage meets British nurse Evelyne Grenville while contributing to the war effort at the disastrous grounds of the Ypres Salient. The war wages terror, and although John and Evelyne cannot evade its effects they know nothing can stop a truly destined connection. John is the son of a Chicagoan father and a British mother, and Evelyne’s demure sensitivity obscures a trove of plaguing secrets: thus, the foundation is set for an engaging and truly epic saga as author John B. Campbell’s Walk to Paradise Garden unveils the story of two remarkable characters, their lives, and the legacy they leave behind.
“The novel takes John, Evelyne, a colorful cast of characters, and its readers through 1914 and the First World War, to Britain and Paris in the 1920s and 1930s, Chicago in the 1950s, and Madagascar in the 1970s while engaging multiple stories, scenes, and settings in between. John and Evelyne’s lives drive them to open an orphanage, an organization which soon takes the form of a living character as its own life and evolution is documented. As John and Evelyne begin to understand the power and purpose of their endeavor, they find themselves rescuing children from the streets and even the frightening grasp of Hitler’s reign of terror. What follows is a life of truly devoted philanthropic pursuits for our hero and heroine, and the result leaves the reader breathless as though they’ve just lived through this stirring and emotional saga themselves.
“Walk to Paradise Garden presents an amount of diverse genres, topics and emotions so staggering that it becomes almost impossible to classify it. It’s at once a period drama, a sweeping romance, a classic mystery, and a remarkable work of literary fiction; with the passing of time and the changing of the characters’ lives the book evolves, taking on new shapes and wearing each genre perfectly. What proves to be paramount in the novel is life, as simple and complex as it is. Life’s joys and tragedies, the loves and losses woven within the years, and the power of living with purpose, the contentment of fulfilling one’s personal aspirations in the world; this was the plight of Evelyne and John, and a thread that the novel reveals to be an everlasting piece of human character.
“I found Walk to Paradise Garden to be breathtaking in its scope, and I marveled at the author’s ability to maintain the intricate details of so many places and histories, as well as the detailed and heartwarming characters he created. In its grandeur the novel leaves the reader in a blissful state of unknowing through the passing of time, wondering if the next element to confront John and Evelyne’s lives will be one of happiness or sorrow, of mystery or suspense. And in yet another layer, the story unfolds to include a generation beyond its hero and heroine. In this way I felt that I was truly immersed in the history of real people – I’ll admit, by the end I had to remind myself that they were, sadly, fictitious – and that the story unfolding in front of me was one of notable importance. It’s as poignant and enchanting as a lifetime, and its message leaves the pages to take root in the heart of its reader.“––Casie Marie Literary Inklings
