Happy Friday! This week I am featuring South of Somewhere by T. I. Lowe, a book that’s on my Summer TBR list since my book club is reading it in July. I was thrilled to meet the author earlier in the year when she was a featured author at the book festival in my home town. Have you read it yet?
Here’s the first line:
I died once, and I didn’t find it all that unpleasant.
When Juniper Wilder’s grief spiraled into addiction, leading first to an arrest for drunk driving, then jail and court-ordered rehab, she lost the most important thing in her life: her baby girl. Now, sober and on probation, Junie is determined to prove she can be the mother Fern deserves. But she’s burned a lot of bridges, ones that can’t be easily rebuilt.
Not every road is closed to her, however. Exiled to her late grandmother’s South Carolina beach house, Junie starts over, ready to pay off her debts and prove to her brother that he can safely return custody of Fern. She works hard and finds surprising grace in an eclectic recovery community. There’s an unexpected friendship, too―and maybe more―with her neighbor, Henry, a quirky college professor who helps her believe in second chances.
Still, it’s hard for Junie to imagine ever forgiving herself, let alone receiving forgiveness from those she’s hurt . . . particularly when her past rears its ugly head and threatens to undo every bit of progress she’s made.
T. I. Lowe is an ordinary country girl who loves to tell extraordinary stories. She is the author of 21 novels, including the #1 international bestseller and critically acclaimed Under the Magnolias and her debut breakout Lulu’s Café. Her novel Indigo Isle won the prestigious Christy Award in the contemporary romance category and was subsequently named Christy Award Book of the Year. She lives in coastal South Carolina with her husband and family.
I am a big fan of Chanel Cleeton. I love learning about the Cuban-American experience, as well as the history of Cuba itself. My book club chose The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes for this month’s discussion. It follows 3 women separated by time, place, and experiences, but bound by the power of story. On the surface it is about a specific book written by a young Cuban woman in the early 1900s that has been lost to time. But it is so much more than a treasure hunt for a valuable item. The story itself, hence the title, is what gives the lost book its importance. I loved all the women portrayed: Eva, a teacher in the 1900s, Pilar, a librarian in the 1960s of revolutionary Cuba, and present-day seeker of lost items, Margo. But Pilar really stole my heart. It is her determination to do even the smallest thing to thwart the totalitarianism of the Castro regime that made a big impression. She risked everything for what some would consider a trivial cause. If you love books, you will love this novel! It has romance, adventure, mystery, suspense, heartbreak, and redemption — a 5-star in my book!
(Please note this is a general market novel, but generally a clean read.)
Highly Recommended.
Audience: adults.
(I purchased the ebook from Amazon. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)
A mysterious book with a legacy spanning from the beginning of the twentieth century to the present day unites three women—and their secrets—in this unforgettable novel from New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton.
London, 2024: American expat Margo Reynolds is renowned for her talent at sourcing rare antiques for her clients, but she’s never had a request quite like this one. She’s been hired to find a mysterious book published over a century ago. With a single copy left in existence, it has a storied past shrouded in secrecy—and her client isn’t the only person determined to procure it at any cost. Havana, 1966: Librarian Pilar Castillo has devoted her life to books, and in the chaotic days following her husband’s unjust imprisonment by Fidel Castro, reading is her only source of solace. So when a neighbor fleeing Cuba asks her to return a valuable book to its rightful owner, Pilar will risk everything to protect the literary work entrusted to her care. It’s a dangerous mission that reveals to her the power of one book to change a life. Boston, 1900: For Cuban school teacher and aspiring author Eva Fuentes, traveling from Havana to Harvard to study for the summer is the opportunity of a lifetime. It’s a whirlwind adventure that leaves her little time to write, but a moonlit encounter with an enigmatic stranger changes everything. The story that pours out of her is one of forbidden love, secrets, and lies… and though Eva cannot yet see it, the book will be a danger and salvation for the lives it touches.
Chanel Cleeton is the Cuban American New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of many novels, including Reese’s Book Club pick Next Year in Havana. Originally from Florida, Chanel studied in London where she earned degrees in international relations and global politics. In law school, Chanel discovered her passion writing novels and embarked on a new adventure following her lifelong love of books.
I am excited to take part in the Book Bee’s Bloggers Choice Tour today. Bloggers are featuring books that they love and warrant some special attention. Every Life Treasured is a 3-novella collection from Jennifer Q. Hunt, Hannah Hood Lucero, and AubreyTaylor that celebrates the value of life. 10% of the proceeds from the sale helps to support LoveLine, an organization that helps women reclaim motherhood. Each story is a different genre and a unique perspective from the authors. Give it a look!
A Mother’s Tender Hand by Jennifer Q. Hunt
While others praise her kindness as a social worker, for Alice Vogel it will never be enough. The needs brought on by the Great Depression are as endless as the guilt she can never outrun. Then she meets the Tanner family, who value people—even those the rest of society scorns. With her growing attraction to Seth Tanner and her unexpected admiration for his mother Milly, everything she believes is turned upside down. Will these new friendships that have transformed her life survive the truth of her story?
The Missionary and the Marine by Hannah Hood Lucero
Since her conversion from Islam, Nadia Hamdan has made it her life’s purpose to share the hope she has found in Jesus. As surprising as her new faith is the man she’s fallen in love with–a Marine who spent his career fighting men like her terrorist father. When Nadia vanishes without a trace, Walt nearly loses his own faith. But the aftermath of her captivity will demand a reckoning from them both in what they truly believe about God, life, and unconditional love.
Born for Adversity by Aubrey Taylor
A child grows in Lani’s womb, a constant reminder of the young man she loves and will never have. The handsome François Durant fancies her, and would give her a safe and comfortable life–if only she’ll have ‘it’ taken care of. Instead, Lani seeks solace with her family in Bavaria. There, she will not only face the decision whether to keep the child or give him up for adoption, she will also be challenged to overcome the desire for a man’s love–a challenge made more difficult by the kind young farmer down the road.
10% of all profits will go to the non-profit organization LoveLine which helps women reclaim motherhood.
Excerpts
A Mother’s Tender Hand by Jennifer Q. Hunt
Wednesday, September 19, 1934
Alice Vogel stood before a mill cottage in need of fresh white paint and a new tin roof. It would get neither, she knew, for the inhabitants hadn’t enough to eat. And that was why she was here.
She checked her Manila folder. The Tanner family. Father and Mother, both aged 44. He’d lost an arm in the Great War but had been working in Lindale’s textile mill until an injury last month. Nine children, six still at home. The youngest, Bobby, aged three, was listed as retarded.
She walked up the concrete steps from the street into the front yard. An old tire had been made into a swing that hung from a towering oak, and two gray rockers on the porch gently swayed in the breeze of the autumn day. The sounds of children playing and a rooster crowing came from the backyard. Alice marched up the brick porch steps and rapped on the screen door.
The Missionary And The Marine by Hannah Hood Lucero
12 Months and Three Days Ago
New Orleans, LA
” . . . Happy birthday, dear Walt. Happy birthday to you!” DuWayne Walters beamed at his makeshift family as they concluded the obligatory serenade. His facial muscles strained to maintain the expression when his friends and girlfriend transitioned into an off-key rendition of For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow. They meant well, but the reminder of his involuntary medical retirement from Marine special operations took a sizable chunk out of the enjoyment of being the center of attention.
Iris Jones had one hand resting on her swollen abdomen, fork hovering in her other as if she might stop the cake before it was even cut. Her husband, Barrett Jones, Esquire, draped his arm around her shoulders, restraining her and gently prompting her to lower the fork. They were liked night and day, not just because she was the scrappy street rat while he was from more refined stock.
Walt cleared his throat, pulse ticking up when his girlfriend of three years Nadia Hamdan, slid her hand into his. He automatically met her dark brown eyes which were glinting at him in the candlelit private room of the swanky French Quarter restaurant. Her bright red lips parted, but she didn’t get a word out before Iris spoke loudly across the table.
“You gonna blow that candle out before the whole top of the cake is coated with wax, birthday boy?”
Born for Adversity by Aubrey Reiss Taylor
Lorraine, France
(Formerly Lothringen of the German Reich)
April 1920
My sister grabs my hair as I heave forward into the basin. There is nothing left in my stomach. Monika coughs and waves a hand over her face. “Ugh, could you at least eat something?”
“I’ve tried.”
She tends to the bucket while I splash water on my face and rinse my mouth. I slump to the floor and run a hand over my hair. Monika reappears. “Lani, you have to tell Mama.”
“There is no way.”
“What are you going to do, you can’t hide it forever?” She pinches my side. “You know you can’t do that.”
“No, I know.”
“Once you start to show she’s going to send you away.”
“Would she really do that?”
“Why do you think Käthe went to Switzerland?”
“Because she got married.”
“Not at first.”
“Why did no one ever tell me?”
“Because you weren’t around.” She washes her hands. “Once you came back, it was old news.”
“So, what? We just don’t talk about it? I have a niece or nephew out there no one’s ever told me about?”
“The baby died,” Monika says matter-of-factly, “which for Käthe’s sake is good.”
About The Authors
A lifelong storyteller, Jennifer Q. Hunt has worked as a writer of both fiction and nonfiction, as well as an editor and ghostwriter. She has over twenty-five years of ministry writing experience for churches, pastors, and Christian ministries.
Jennifer writes fiction with faith and purpose. Her Sorrow and Song trilogy shows multi-generations as they wrestle with their place in history and following the Lord through challenging circumstances.
Back in north Georgia after several years away, Jennifer is a happy wife to Christopher and homeschool mother to four elementary-aged children.
For history tidbits, deleted scenes, and more “extras” as well as information about upcoming releases, visit jenniferqhunt.com or follow Jennifer on Facebook at Jennifer Q. Hunt, Author or Instagram @jennifer.q.hunt.author.
Hannah Hood Lucer0 is a wife, mom of three, Army veteran, and self-proclaimed word-slinger. While it is the brackish waters of the Mississippi Sound that flow through her veins, western North Carolina holds her heart. Her love for storytelling is the fruit of a lifetime of cultivation in the vibrant cultures of the Gulf Coast and the Blue Ridge Mountains. She currently resides in South Mississippi with her husband and three children on their ten-acre homestead. They have a dog, thirteen chickens, and at least fifty species of mosquitos, depending on the month of the year. When she isn’t in the garden, at the stove, or homeschooling, she can be found at her computer—just follow the sound of frenetic typing. Her motto is, “Draft, edit, read, repeat.”
In her Gott Mit Uns Series, and her new Separate Ways Series, Aubrey Reiss Taylor unites a fascination for history with a passion for redemption, creating a unique brand of gritty, honest wartime sagas, written from the German perspective. She is the mother of three, and married to her best friend Brian. When she’s not writing or taking care of home and family, she enjoys making music, dancing, reading, and spending time with friends.
Tour Giveaway
(1) winner will receive a $30 gift card (winner’s choice of Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Christianbook, or Baker Book House)!
Be sure to check out each stop on the tour for more chances to win. Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway began at midnight June 8, 2026 and lasts through 11:59 PM EST on June 15, 2026. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Happy Tuesday! While you certainly shouldn’t judge a book by its cover 🙂 , we all know that compelling cover design is what attracts a reader. There are so many elements to a great cover design — I commend those who produce these works of art. The title font is one such element, and the sky is the limit to types that can be used. Today TTT bloggers were tasked with showcasing fonts that mimic handwriting. I have chosen some books I have read/reviewed that fit that bill, those that have partial or full titles that look handwritten. There are a lot of different genres; I hope you find a book and a cover to pique your interest.
Happy Friday! A few days ago I mentioned that my book club is reading the gothic suspense novel, The Bookshop of 99 Doors by Jaime Jo Wright. I cannot wait to dig in, and the first lines are fabulous, so it is definitely calling me.
Here are the first lines:
A person hopes they can lead a quiet and simple life, one that isn’t shrouded in secrets and suffocated by lies. This is what I had hoped for. It was not to be. — Minnie Tipton, aged 91
The manor’s rumored one-hundredth door may conceal secrets hidden as deep as the estate’s bookshelves extend high . . . but the haunted past has a way of ensnaring curious souls.
In 1888, Minnie Tipton finds herself beset by the dark superstitions that envelop the Pennsylvania mansion her father bought. Convinced the vengeful spirit of a Civil War captain haunts the house and worried by her father’s rapidly worsening illness, Minnie delves into the home’s fraught past in an effort to bring him peace. Yet the lingering impact of the war and the gruesome tale of murder she uncovers only foster more fear and threaten to unravel Minnie’s own sanity.
In the present day, Triss Bellamy eagerly steps into the role of bookshop manager in the mansion-turned-museum boasting ninety-nine doors. But Triss’s dream job turns into a nightmare when havoc breaks loose with the arrival of her brother’s team of self-proclaimed paranormal investigators. Their determination to find a rumored one-hundredth door–a dangerous portal to the madness long said to plague the mansion–results in calamity, leaving Triss no choice but to hunt down the truth or watch her brother slip forever beyond her reach.
An atmospheric dual-time Gothic suspense masterfully penned by acclaimed author Jaime Jo Wright with themes of a Civil War-era ghost, a possible hidden door, and unexplained mysteries at a historic mansion’s bookshop with a troubled past.
Jaime Jo Wright, multi award-winning author–including the Christy and Daphne du Maurier awards–is a coffee-fueled and cat-fancier extraordinaire. She has entwined her life with the legendary Captain Hook, residing serenely in Wisconsin’s rural woodlands. Her literary vocation involves penning chilling Gothic tales, a baffling change from that of Austenites, with a strong preference to the master of dark, Edgar Allan Poe. Two mischievous urchins adorn their family, who keep their mother on her toes – providing an exhilarating amount chaos.
Welcome to the Blog Tour for Sunflowers in Paris by Ashley Rescot, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
About The Book
Title: Sunflowers in Paris Series:The Strings of Sisterhood #2 Author:Ashley Rescot Publisher: Rescot Creative Release Date: April 7, 2026 Genre: Clean Contemporary Split-time Romance
After a career-altering injury, violist Adrienne Pearson digs deep into her French roots. As the second of five sisters, she seeks individuality. But when several of her family members and friends decide to join her on a French excursion, she must navigate old and new relationships while finding her place in a foreign land. Will she rediscover her voice in the home of her ancestors?
Jean-David Béranger, a brooding, reclusive French journalist, finds his life upturned when his eccentric godmother invites an entourage of American students to live with them while studying music at the local conservatoire. Can Adrienne, a beautiful American sunflower girl, dismantle the fortress surrounding his heart and convince him to turn toward the light?
Sunflowers in Paris takes the reader on a journey through the Loire Valley, Versailles, and Paris, the City of Light, weaving elements of historical and contemporary French life with a centuries-old cold case about a real, 18th-century composer.
Excerpt
Jean-David sighed as he drove in search of a parking place, which was nearly impossible in Paris, especially on a holiday. Several blocks down, he finally found one next to the Seine River. A glance at his watch showed he’d better hurry. Cici had chosen the late afternoon service so that everyone could still admire the stained glass windows before it grew dark.
The previous night, he’d re-read his article about his last visit to Notre Dame, the day of the fire. The images still blazed in his memory. How could they have rebuilt it in five years?
His steps slowed as the 800-year-old cathedral rose in front of him. Wow, it looked incredible. The west rose window glistened in the afternoon light between the majestic towers. The bells of Notre Dame chimed, calling parishioners to join in the Christmas Eve concert and mass. People poured inside, and yet he stood, rooted to the spot. Could he brave the memories?
“Amazing, isn’t it,” a vaguely familiar voice sounded behind him. He turned around to see an elderly woman. At first glance, she looked like Cici; their features resembled each other.
Ashley Rescot is a professional violinist, educator, writer, and Fulbright Scholar. An aficionado of music, pedagogy, family, faith, and language, she writes about her life as a musician. With degrees in both violin performance and French literature, she hopes her stories will inspire the next generation of musicians, encourage music professionals, and educate others about the exciting world of music.
Connect with Ashley by visiting rescotcreative.com to follow her on social media and subscribe to email updates.
Tour Giveaway
(1) winner will receive French chocolates and a copy of A Change in Tune and Sunflowers in Paris!
Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight June 1, 2026 and will last through 11:59 PM EST on June 8, 2026. Winners will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US/CAN only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
Welcome to the Takeover + Review Blitz for The Brunswick by Callie Murray, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!
About The Book
Title:The Brunswick Author: Callie Murray Publisher: Revell Release Date: May 19, 2026 Genre: Christian Historical Romance
When Cora provides a safe haven for Jewish refugee children, she discovers that opening her doors means risking everything, including her heart.
In 1939 Georgia, far removed from the war brewing overseas, Cora Cain’s world feels small–and shrinking. There, she runs The Brunswick, her family’s once-grand hotel, which is now struggling as the town’s general store. When Thomas Watkins arrives seeking work and solace after his mother’s death, a connection sparks between them. Through Thomas, Cora glimpses a life beyond obligation and her war hero father’s unpredictable moods.
But everything changes when Cora is asked to turn The Brunswick into a sanctuary for Jewish children fleeing persecution in Germany. As Cora and Thomas prepare for the children’s arrival, they struggle to confront their pasts–and the prejudice of their neighbors–as their fragile hope is put to the test.
Meanwhile, in Vienna, ten-year-old Charlotte is offered refuge in America. But even with the horrors she sees around her, she wonders how her parents could possibly send her away. As war’s shadow begins to reach small-town Georgia, each person must face what love demands and decide what to hold on to and what to let go.
Excerpt
She had been born the very month her father, Ralph Cain, opened The Brunswick. “My twins,” he sometimes said of them. The Brunswick quickly became a well- known destination for those escaping the bustle of Atlanta, balancing Parisian drama with Southern charm.
The hotel was a two- story colonial with ironwork balustrades encasing each floor’s wide porch, and it was situated just across the street from the train station. For the first ten years of Cora’s life, The Brunswick provided for her family in abundance, its twenty rooms rarely vacant. Guests poured in, as did money, and Cora fell asleep each night to the clinking of glasses in the lobby, the sounds of happy tourists drunk on leisure and smuggled alcohol. But as the realities of the Great Depression settled in, the guests stopped coming, and Cora’s father slipped into a depression of his own.
Standing now at what used to be the hotel’s registration desk, Cora opened and quickly scanned a letter from the bank before pushing it aside with a sigh. She then fumbled through a mess of delivery tickets so she could determine what she needed to package and load into the truck. Today’s route would be a busy one, taking her into the farmlands east of town and then back, where she would return to do paperwork until she went to bed and could start all over again in the morning.
When she and Billie used to dream of their futures, Cora never imagined staying at The Brunswick to manage the family business like she was. They were both supposed to fall in love at the same time, go to college together, move away.
Billie was following the plan, but Cora had detoured unwillingly.
She slumped behind the desk and sat on the floor, resting her head against the wood, coveting her friend’s nap, but she was interrupted by the scraping of the front door. From her hidden spot, she called, “I’m sorry, but we’re closed for afternoon deliveries!”
An unfamiliar voice called back, “But what if you didn’t have to be?”
Cora craned her neck around the desk and was met with leather loafers just ten feet away. Tracing the tall frame upward, she found tweed trousers and a white linen shirt, its sleeves rolled up to the elbows, hugging the arms inside tightly. The top button of the shirt hung open, and then there was the day- old scruff of a beard and a slight scar on lips that, as she rested her gaze on them, quirked into a grin.
“I’m looking for a job,” the stranger said. “Perhaps if I worked here, I could keep the store open while you make deliveries. Or I could make deliveries while you keep the store open.”
Cora nodded mutely, though she was unsure he could see her from her position behind the desk. In all the years she had managed The Brunswick, she had not once considered hiring help. That would require money, and that resource was in perpetually short supply.
She had also never met someone who caused her words to gum up in her brain like this. Pressure was building like a stream behind a dam.
The man continued, “I’ll come by tomorrow morning before you open, if that’s okay. For an interview. Does that work?”
The dam burst, and Cora blurted, “I’m all yours.” She felt her cheeks blush, and her brain fired off a list of much less embarrassing responses she could have given. “I’ll see you then.” “That works for me.” Perhaps a simple, “Sure.”
She watched the lips again lift into a smile. “Great,” he said, tipping his chin and returning to the porch, leaving Cora alone with the hall clock, which chimed the quarter- hour, reminding her she was late.
She stood and watched the man’s figure through the window as he crossed to the other side of the town. Who was that? Norcross was a tight- knit place, and Cora felt as if she knew everyone who called the small town home.
The man appeared to know a bit about The Brunswick— the fact that it was now a general store, that it closed each afternoon for deliveries, that she was the only one working. She wished she had asked for his story— or even his name. She wished she had tempered his expectations. She had no money for a new hire, after all. She wished she would have said just about anything other than what she had. Perhaps tomorrow morning she would be a little more coherent. At least by then she’d be standing.
Callie Murray is an entrepreneur who has been featured on The Today Show and in The New York Times. Her debut Southern fiction book delves into the lesser-known historical details preceding World War II. Callie and her husband live in Norcross, Georgia, with their seven children, four of whom came through the honor of foster care.
Connect with Callie by visiting calliemurray.com to follow her on social media or subscribe to email newsletter updates.
Tour Giveaway
(1) winner will receive a $50 Barnes & Noble gift card!
Be sure to check out each stop on the tour for more chances to win. Full tour schedule linked below. Giveaway began at midnight June 3, 2026 and lasts through 11:59 PM EST on June 10, 2026. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48 hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.
My full bookshelves, NetGalley shelf, and Kindle give testimony to my high hopes and TBR failures. 😉 I always have good intentions to read a book as soon as I take possession. Alas, I am an optimist when it comes to my free time and capacity to read all the books. Today TTT bloggers are urged to fess up to the few or many books that they have left unread. I went back to the past few years’ posts of Summer TBR Lists to discover what I really wanted to read and failed miserably to complete. I hope you (and I) discover a book we just can’t not read. Double negative there for fellow English majors.
How can it be June already?! This year is going so fast, and after checking my calendar, this summer looks like it will zoom past before I know it. But I always have time to read a good book. 😉 This month my book club is reading The Bookshop of 99 Doors — a bookshop and great gothic suspense from Jaime Jo Wright — it can’t get much better! Have you read it yet? We’d love to know your thoughts.
The manor’s rumored one-hundredth door may conceal secrets hidden as deep as the estate’s bookshelves extend high . . . but the haunted past has a way of ensnaring curious souls.
In 1888, Minnie Tipton finds herself beset by the dark superstitions that envelop the Pennsylvania mansion her father bought. Convinced the vengeful spirit of a Civil War captain haunts the house and worried by her father’s rapidly worsening illness, Minnie delves into the home’s fraught past in an effort to bring him peace. Yet the lingering impact of the war and the gruesome tale of murder she uncovers only foster more fear and threaten to unravel Minnie’s own sanity.
In the present day, Triss Bellamy eagerly steps into the role of bookshop manager in the mansion-turned-museum boasting ninety-nine doors. But Triss’s dream job turns into a nightmare when havoc breaks loose with the arrival of her brother’s team of self-proclaimed paranormal investigators. Their determination to find a rumored one-hundredth door–a dangerous portal to the madness long said to plague the mansion–results in calamity, leaving Triss no choice but to hunt down the truth or watch her brother slip forever beyond her reach.
An atmospheric dual-time Gothic suspense masterfully penned by acclaimed author Jaime Jo Wright with themes of a Civil War-era ghost, a possible hidden door, and unexplained mysteries at a historic mansion’s bookshop with a troubled past.
Jaime Jo Wright, multi award-winning author–including the Christy and Daphne du Maurier awards–is a coffee-fueled and cat-fancier extraordinaire. She has entwined her life with the legendary Captain Hook, residing serenely in Wisconsin’s rural woodlands. Her literary vocation involves penning chilling Gothic tales, a baffling change from that of Austenites, with a strong preference to the master of dark, Edgar Allan Poe. Two mischievous urchins adorn their family, who keep their mother on her toes – providing an exhilarating amount chaos.
I loved my book club’s selection this month. Sarah Sundin is one of our favorite authors, and her books never disappoint. Her latest WWII-era novel, The Mists over The Channel Islands, presents a little known or talked about story — the German occupation of the Channel Islands, specifically Jersey. The subject matter is fascinating and the characters are special. Make sure to read this one soon.
If you have already read (and loved) it, check out a few more book recommendations.
Flame of Resistance by Tracy Groot
Years of Nazi occupation have stolen much from Brigitte Durand. Family. Freedom. Hope for a future, especially for a woman with a past like hers. But that changes the day American fighter pilot Tom Jaeger is shot down over occupied France. Picked up by the Resistance, Tom becomes the linchpin in their plan to infiltrate a Germans-only brothel and get critical intel out through Brigitte, a prostitute rumored to be sympathetic to the Allied cause.
D-day looms and everyone knows that invasion is imminent. But so is treachery, and the life of one American pilot unexpectedly jeopardizes everything. He becomes more important than the mission to a man who cannot bear to lose another agent and to a woman who is more than just a prostitute, who finally realizes that her actions could change the course of history.
The Guernsey Literary And Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows
January 1946: London is emerging from the shadow of the Second World War, and writer Juliet Ashton is looking for her next book subject. Who could imagine that she would find it in a letter from a man she’s never met, a native of the island of Guernsey, who has come across her name written inside a book by Charles Lamb. . . .
As Juliet and her new correspondent exchange letters, Juliet is drawn into the world of this man and his friends—and what a wonderfully eccentric world it is. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society—born as a spur-of-the-moment alibi when its members were discovered breaking curfew by the Germans occupying their island—boasts a charming, funny, deeply human cast of characters, from pig farmers to phrenologists, literature lovers all.
Juliet begins a remarkable correspondence with the society’s members, learning about their island, their taste in books, and the impact the recent German occupation has had on their lives. Captivated by their stories, she sets sail for Guernsey, and what she finds will change her forever.
Written with warmth and humor as a series of letters, this novel is a celebration of the written word in all its guises and of finding connection in the most surprising ways.
The Librarian of Saint-Malo by Mario Escobar
Libraries are being ransacked. France is torn apart by war. A French librarian is determined to resist. Told through smuggled letters to an author, an ordinary librarian describes the brutal Nazi occupation of her small coastal village and the extraordinary measures she takes to fight back.
Saint-Malo, France: August 1939. Jocelyn and Antoine are childhood sweethearts, but just after they marry, Antoine is drafted to fight against Germany. As World War II rages, Jocelyn uses her position as a librarian in her town of Saint-Malo to comfort and encourage her community with books. Jocelyn begins to write secret letters smuggled to a famous Parisian author, telling her story in the hope that it will someday reach the outside world.
France falls and the Nazis occupy Jocelyn’s town, turning it into a fortress. The townspeople try passive resistance, but the German commander ruthlessly begins to destroy part of the city’s libraries. Books deemed unsuitable by the Nazis are burnt or stolen, and priceless knowledge is lost.
Risking arrest and even her life, Jocelyn manages to hide some of the books while desperately waiting to receive news from her husband Antoine, now a prisoner in a German camp.
Jocelyn’s mission unfolds in her letters: to protect the people of Saint-Malo and the books they hold so dear. Mario Escobar brings to life the occupied city in sweeping and romantic prose, re-creating the history of those who sacrificed all to care for the people they loved.
Many of the books I review are provided to me free of charge from publishers, authors, or other groups in return for a review. The opinions expressed in the reviews are mine and mine alone. No monetary consideration is given. This disclaimer is in accordance with FTC rules.
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