Because of conscience

In Short

Set during the late seventeenth-century religious upheavals, this historical romance follows Alaine Hervieu, a French Huguenot maiden forced to flee her homeland. Her journey takes her through England to the raw frontier of colonial New York and into the wild borderlands of Canada. Harassed by persistent pursuers and caught in the geopolitical friction between French, English, and Native factions, Alaine must navigate perilous wilderness escapes and personal betrayals. Amy Ella Blanchard weaves a tale of spiritual endurance, cross-cultural alliances, and romantic devotion, showing how conscience shapes destiny when families are uprooted by intolerance.

The Story

The narrative opens in France, where young Alaine Hervieu lives under the looming threat of religious persecution following the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. When her noble background is endangered and her Catholic cousin Étienne Villeneau seeks to force her return, Alaine escapes disguised as a peasant. Aided by her faithful nurse, Michelle, she hides beneath produce in a market cart bound for the coast and takes ship to England. From there, the refuge of the New World calls, and Alaine arrives in colonial New York, where a settlement of Huguenot exiles attempts to build a new life amidst Dutch and English neighbors.

Danger follows her across the Atlantic. The manipulative François Dupont, acting on behalf of her French pursuers, tracks Alaine to the colonies. He orchestrates her abduction with the help of Native guides, intending to force her compliance. During her captivity and subsequent rescue, she meets Lendert Verplanck, a stoic young Dutch trader with an intimate knowledge of the frontier. Lendert shelters Alaine, and as they navigate the dense forest paths together, a profound mutual affection forms. However, political turmoil and internal feuds complicate their connection. The Mercier family—Papa Louis and Mère Michelle—provides a home for Alaine, but the household is quickly drawn into the dangerous conflicts between Leislerian political factions and border skirmishes.

As war between the French and English colonies intensifies, Alaine is separated from her refuge. Guided by the former Jesuit Father Bisset, she travels north into the Canadian wilderness to seek safety and trace her missing father, Theodore Hervieu. The journey through snow-bound forests and remote frontier posts exposes Alaine to severe hardship. She finds shelter with Jeanne Crepin and her brother Antoine, outcasts living on the margins of the wilderness. Through every trial, François Dupont remains a persistent threat until a violent encounter leaves him paralyzed, forcing him into a slow, bitter reckoning with his own misdeeds.

Meanwhile, Alaine’s former suitor, Pierre Boutillier, travels to the West Indies, where he discovers Alaine’s long-lost father serving as an un-free laborer. Pierre sacrifices his own independence to secure M. Hervieu’s freedom, ultimately winning the love of a wealthy widow, Felice. Reunited with her father and cleared of the shadows that pursued her, Alaine returns to New York. Rejoining Lendert Verplanck, whose steady loyalty has survived every rift, she marries him in the French church on Marketfield Street before a crowd of wilderness survivors and city burghers.

How It Unfolds

The flight from Dieppe Disguised in humble peasant garments, Alaine conceals herself beneath vegetable baskets in a market wagon to evade her cousin’s scouts, reaching a coastal fishing village where a boat carries her away from French soldiers to English shores.

Abduction in the woods While traveling a frontier trail in New York, Alaine is captured by Native allies working for François Dupont, who attempts to force her to reveal the whereabouts of hidden Huguenot sympathizers before she is spirited away into the deep forest.

Shelter at the farm Rescued and brought to the Mercier homestead, Alaine helps tend to both the wounded Lendert Verplanck and her captor François, maintaining a tense household peace while political rivalries simmer outside their doors.

Wilderness trek northward Guided by Father Bisset, Alaine journeys through northern territory toward Canada, braving winter snows, wild beasts, and the constant threat of border war-parties to reach the isolated cabin of Jeanne Crepin.

Reckoning and forgiveness In a frontier ordinary, Alaine confronts the crippled François Dupont; faced with his complete physical ruin and sudden remorse, she learns to release her hatred, choosing mercy over vengeance.

Reunion in Manhatte After her father is freed from island bondage through Pierre Boutillier’s intervention, Alaine returns to New York and marries Lendert in a public celebration that brings together Dutch, French, and wilderness friends.

The People

• Alaine Hervieu, a young Huguenot noblewoman of quiet strength and sharp moral clarity. She seeks safety for her faith and family, overcoming abductions, forest treks, and unwanted suitors to marry the man she loves.
• Lendert Verplanck, a steady, reserved Dutch trader. Driven by a quiet sense of duty, he protects Alaine through woodland ambushes and political unrest, eventually winning her hand in marriage.
• François Dupont, an opportunistic and charming agent of French interests. He pursues Alaine relentlessly to return her to France, but a severe injury leaves him paralyzed, forcing him to seek spiritual forgiveness before his death.
• Mère Michelle Assire, Alaine’s fiercely protective former nurse. She uses her practical sharp wit and maternal devotion to hide refugees, manage difficult guests, and preserve her family’s safety.
• Pierre Boutillier, a serious young Huguenot suitor. Unable to win Alaine's heart, he travels south, selflessly ransoms Alaine's father from indenture, and finds unexpected romance with a French widow.
• Father Bisset, a former Jesuit priest of broad sympathies. Guided by his conscience rather than strict dogma, he acts as a wilderness guide and protector for Alaine during her Canadian exile.

In Its Own Voice

“Nothing in the world smelled so sweet as fresh sun-dried linen, thought Alaine as she watched Michelle heaping the white pile upon her strong arms…”

Alaine enjoys a quiet moment of domestic peace before the sudden disruptions of persecution alter her life.

“I know the way well,” Lendert told her. “I travel here frequently. Half-way we are. There is a long straight path ahead; you can see where the sunlight comes through the trees all the way.”

Lendert offers steady reassurance to Alaine as they navigate the intimidating, shadowed paths of the American wilderness.

“Forgiveness is sweeter than revenge.”

François Dupont reflects on his past cruelty after physical suffering strips away his pride, echoing the lesson taught to him by the old priest.

What It's Really About

Beneath its romantic plot, the novel examines the heavy costs of religious intolerance and the nature of individual conscience. It explores how displacement strips away social rank, forcing aristocrats, peasants, and frontier traders to redefine their worth based on character rather than title. Blanchard contrasts institutional loyalty with personal morality, suggesting that true faith is measured by mercy, hospitality, and self-sacrifice rather than sectarian zeal. The wilderness acts as both a physical threat and a spiritual forge, stripping away prejudice and allowing diverse peoples—French Protestants, Dutch settlers, former Jesuits, and Native guides—to form unexpected bonds forged in shared survival. Ultimately, the story argues that forgiveness offers a deeper freedom than revenge.

Why Read It Today

Because of Conscience offers modern readers an engaging look at late seventeenth-century colonial life, capturing the cultural melting pot of early New York and the dangerous northern borderlands. Readers who enjoy classic historical adventures like The Last of the Mohicans or period romances will appreciate Blanchard’s warm storytelling, atmospheric descriptions of nature, and sincere moral focus.

The book moves at an leisurely, episodic pace characteristic of turn-of-the-century fiction, rich in quiet domestic scenes and detailed forest journeys. Modern readers should note period dialect choices, formal conversational styles, and vintage depictions of frontier clashes, which reflect early twentieth-century literary conventions. Despite these older stylistic rhythms, the story remains compelling through its resilient heroine and grounded historical detail. What stays with the reader is the novel's gentle insistence that integrity, quiet courage, and human kindness can survive even the most disruptive historic upheavals.