Tag: Christian Fiction

As long as said hero was safely ensconced in the pages of a novel, she was happy. That was how she liked her men—imaginary.

Book Review | When Stone Wings Fly by Karen Barnett

When Stone Wings Fly is a dual-timeline novel set in the Great Smoky Mountain National Park in the present, and in the 1930s when the park is still being established. One of the first Christian novels I read was Christy by Catherine Marshall, which was set in the Great Smokies before it became a National Park (and I also enjoyed watching the TV series in the 1990s).

So I was keen to read another Christian romance in the same setting.

The historic story is about Rosie McCauley who doesn’t want to sell her family land, the land where she and her sister were born, and where her parents and grandparents are buried. She meets Benton Fuller, who is studying birdlife in the mountains. They form a friendship.

In the present, Kieran Lucas is trying to make ends meet while working two jobs and taking care of her grandmother in her spare time. After growing up in care, she wants to learn more about her family while there is still time. After Granny Mac tells Kieran about her early years in the Smokies, Kieran tries to find her grandmother’s childhood home with the aid of National Park Service guide Zach Jensen.

I’ve read a few of Karen Barnett’s earlier historical novels, although I haven’t read any of her previous books about America’s National Parks. I enjoyed the historic aspect of When Stone Wings Fly, particularly setting up the National Park. I was interested in how the park was set up—by buying the land from the legal residents, using money donated from everyone from schoolchildren to the Rockefeller family.

I liked the romances—both of them—and I thought the novel dealt with the problems of age and dementia in a sensitive and appropriate manner.

There were a couple of plot points that I didn’t think were necessary. Sure, they needed to happen to set up the novel’s climax, but I didn’t think events had to happen the way they happened. I don’t want to say so much because that would be a #spoiler but it’s like baking. It’s not great if you take the cake out of the over before it’s cooked, but you can always put it back in the oven to finish cooking. Don’t leave it sitting on the the table then complain it’s not cooked.

But that’s a small issue overall. I liked all the characters – they were intelligent, hardworking, and willing to fight for what they wanted. The writing was excellent, and I was left feeling as though I knew the characters and had visited the Smokies, and seen the good and the bad.

Thanks to Kregel Publications and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Karen Barnett

Fueled by a passion for research and learning, and a secret desire to travel in time, author Karen Barnett creates historical romances that draw readers deep into a story. She’s fascinated that even though human history is constantly changing, Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). The point where those two facts collide forms the basis for her writing–finding those moments when an ordinary person brushes up against the eternal.

A graduate of Valparaiso University and Oregon State University, Barnett’s debut novel, Mistaken, was released in 2013 and earned her the Oregon Christian Writers “Writer of Promise” award and a Cascade Award for best historical fiction. She also won the coveted “Writer of the Year” title from the prestigious Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference in 2016. The Road to Paradise was a finalist for the American Christian Fiction Writer’s Carol Awards in 2018.

Karen spent several years working in outdoor education as a park ranger and naturalist for Mount Rainier National Park and Oregon’s Silver Falls State Park before becoming a stay-at-home mom and professional writer. She spends her free time hiking, taking photographs, and decorating crazy birthday cakes.

Karen and her husband live in western Oregon and are trying to adjust to the empty nest life now that both kids are in college. Well, their home isn’t entirely empty––they still have three mischievous dachshunds underfoot.

Find Karen Barnett online:

Website | Facebook | Goodreads | Instagram | Twitter

About When Stone Wings Fly

Kieran Lucas’s grandmother is slipping into dementia, and when her memory is gone, Kieran’s last tie to the family she barely knows will be lost forever. Worse, flashbacks of her mother’s death torment Granny Mac and there’s precious little Kieran can do to help.

In 1931, the creation of the new Great Smoky Mountains National Park threatens Rosie McCauley’s home. Rosie vows the only way the commission will get her land is if they haul her off in a pine box. When a compromise offers her and her disabled sister the opportunity to stay for Rosie’s lifetime, her acceptance sets her apart from the other mountain folk. And the bond she’s forming with ornithologist and outsider Benton Fuller only broadens the rift.

Eighty-five years later, Kieran heads back to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to find answers to her great-grandmother’s mysterious death and bring peace to Granny Mac before it’s too late. Park Historian Zach Jensen may be the key to locating both the answers. But what Kieran needs clashes with the government regulations Zach is sworn to uphold. Can she trust God for a solution to heal this generations-old wound?

Find When Stone Wings Fly online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads

Read the introduction to When Stone Wings Fly below:

I did a lot of hard things. But hard things usually end up in the biggest blessings.

Book Review | The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs Kip by Sara Brunsvold

Aidyn Kelley is an ambitious junior journalist in Kansas, but when her ambition gets her in trouble, she finds herself relegated to writing obituaries. Her editor sends her to a local hospice to interview the somewhat eccentric Mrs Kip.

Clara Kip is seventy-nine years old, and an unexpected cancer diagnosis has left her not in hospital but in a hospice. Still, she is determined to die as she has lived – with Jesus.

Clara is immediately likeable as a character. She’s bubbly, bright, and determined to see the best in everything and everyone. Aidyn? Not so much. She’s self-absorbed and thinks she’s above the rules. That’s probably not too different to many other bright young graduates in their mid-twenties, but it didn’t help me like her.

Not liking Aidyn meant I found the first quarter of the book a bit of a struggle. I actually set the book aside for a couple of weeks. What got me reading it again were a few of the comments I saw online, readers praising the book as brilliant and heartrending.

So I picked the book up again, determined to give it another chance. But it wasn’t until Aidyn and Clara met for the second time that I found myself really being drawn into the story. And once I was drawn in, it was impossible to put it down.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot in case I give spoilers. But I can explain why I changed my mind.

The story flips between the present (well, the book is set in 2016) and Clara’s past. At first, the past stories seemed like random anecdotes, with no particular purpose. But as I kept reading, it became apparent that the past stories were tied up with the present, in that they were the stories Mrs Kip was telling Aidyn, the stories that show how ordinary can become extraordinary when walking with God.

The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs Kip is Christian fiction of the best kind.

Mrs Kip has been a Christian for decades, and she’s the kind of Christian we should all aspire to being: one who loves God and loves those people He puts in her path and loves them well.

The whole story took place over less than ten days in book time, but the changes Mrs Kip inspires in Aidyn made it feel like a much longer timeframe. I guess that’s because of the lesson of Mrs Kip’s extraordinary death—and life—which is one we can hear and adopt ourselves.

I always let the Lord guide me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. (Psalm 16:8)

Recommended for fans of authors such as Cynthia Ruchti, Sharon Garlough Brown, Elizabeth Musser, and Christine Dillon.

About Sara Brunsvold

Sara Brunsvold creates stories that speak hope, truth, and life. Influenced by humble women of God who find His fingerprints in the everyday, she does the same in her life and her storytelling. Sara’s recognitions include the 2020 ACFW Genesis Award for Contemporary Fiction. She lives with her family in Kansas City, where she can often be spotted writing at a park or library.

Find Sara Brunsvold online at

Website| Facebook | Instagram

About The Extraordinary Deaths of Mrs Kip

Aidyn Kelley is talented, ambitious, and ready for a more serious assignment than the fluff pieces she’s been getting as a cub reporter for the Kansas City Star. In her eagerness, she pushes too hard, earning herself the menial task of writing an obituary for an unremarkable woman who’s just entered hospice care.

But there’s more to Clara Kip than meets the eye. The spirited septuagenarian may be dying, but she’s not quite ready to cash it in yet. Never one to shy away from an assignment herself, she can see that God brought the young reporter into her life for a reason. And if it’s a story Aidyn Kelley wants, that’s just what Mrs. Kip will give her–but she’s going to have to work for it.

Debut author Sara Brunsvold delights with this emotional multigenerational story that shows that the very best life is made up of thousands of little deaths to self. You’ll want to be just like Mrs. Kip when you grow up!

You can find The Extraordinary Lives of Mrs Kip online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

Do you like Christian fiction with a strong Christian message?

Bookish Question #230 | Do you like Christian fiction with a strong Christian message?

Do you like Christian fiction with a strong Christian message?

Yes 🙂

And no.

Some novels marketed as Christian fiction have little or no faith content, but are still clearly Christian fiction because of their themes. An example is The Baggage Handler by David Rawlings. Anyone who reads the story will see it’s an allegory about how we need to let go of the unnecessary emotional baggage we carry through life. A Christian reader will understand we let go of that baggage by releasing it to God.

The story doesn’t mention God or Jesus.

That doesn’t make it any less Christian fiction.

Other Christian fiction doesn’t have clear faith themes, but the characters are Christian and their decisions and actions reflect their beliefs.

I enjoy reading these stories.

(In contrast, I loathe reading stories—general market or Christian—where the character’s problems could be solved by them getting right with God.)

I’m also not a fan of overtly Christian stories where the faith element seems forced or where the characters speak in Scripture all the time.

These stories often feel preachy, because the dialogue and actions don’t feel real.

That comes down to how well the author has created the characters. I know people in real life who do speak in Scripture and who punctuate every other sentence with “praise the Lord!” or something similar, and it sounds perfectly natural.

I’ve also met people who speak like this and it sounds forced, as though they’re speaking like that because they think that’s how a good Christian speaks … not because that’s how they speak. I can tell the difference in real life, and I can tell the difference in fiction.

So while I do enjoy fiction with a strong Christian message, I don’t want Christian fiction that crosses the line into preachy.

I want to see characters who live their faith throughout the novel, not just on Sunday.

What about you? Do you like Christian fiction with a strong Christian message?

Freedom isn't stagnant or guaranteed. It lives and breathes and must be defended constantly. Don't take it for granted. Fight for it.

Book Review | When the Day Comes by Gabrielle Meyer

Several years ago, I read Dreamlander by KM Weiland, a novel about a man who went to sleep in our world and woke up in another time and place. It was a fascinating concept, and I enjoyed the whole novel except for the end (which had exactly  the same problem as the end of the Divergent trilogy).

So when I read that When The Day Comes had a similar premise, I had to read it.

The book description gave me the impression Meyer had thought through the concept better than Weiland had, and gave me hope of a more satisfying ending:

Libby comes from a long line of time-crossers, identified by a sunburst birthmark over their heart. They live in two times at once, crossing between times when they fall asleep at night (with the added bonus of never being tired). Time-crossers live in two times until they turn twenty-one, when they have to choose one time to live in for the rest of their lives.

This means that at the age of almost twenty, Libby (aka Anne Elizabeth) has lived for almost forty years: nineteen in Colonial Williamsburg, shortly before the War of Independence, and nineteen years in the Gilded Age. As such, she’s more mature than most teenagers, because she has literally lived longer.

I found the whole idea fascinating, especially as it was clear from the beginning that Libby intended to stay in Colonial times, because her 1774 mother is also a time-crosser. This is the mother Libby loves, and the mother with whom she shares all the trials of her privileged life in  Gilded Age New York and London. My first thought would be that she’d stay in 1914 because her family is financially stable, and because she’d want to miss the war she knows is coming in America (and because I figured she wouldn’t know about the war due to start in Europe).

But I was wrong.

She actually had a lot more freedom in 1774, as well as not having a manipulative mother determined to marry her off to the most titled gentleman she can find. Of course, it helps that 1774 Libby is in love, even though she knows the difference in their stations means she’ll never be allowed to marry him.

As modern readers who know history (or who have access to the internet), there is always a sense of knowing where the story might be going in historical fiction. As such, it was fascinating to read a historical novel where the characters also knew some of what was coming—Libby and her mother both knew which side to choose in America’s upcoming War of Independence, and Libby’s time-crosser mother was from 1994, so also knew some twentieth century history.

When the Day Comes by Gabrielle Meyer is a speculative take on a split-time novel: one character living in two times. Recommended. #BookReview #ChristianFiction Share on X

The whole story is told in first person, from Libby’s point of view. But it flips between the two times and two families and two sets of supporting characters. As such, it reads a lot like a split time novel, but with the main character being the connecting factor between the two times.

A novel that’s effectively told from one point of view needs a strong and compelling narrator.

When the Day Comes definitely has that. There are a few times when Libby’s beliefs and attitudes seem very modern, perhaps too modern for 1774. But that’s explained by the fact  she also lives in 1914 and was raised by a woman who was born in 1973. As such, it’s not surprising that Libby and her mother have modern ideas about women’s rights and equal rights.

I thought When the Day Comes was excellent, particularly the ending. It definitely didn’t suffer from a weak or unbelievable ending. Even better, the ending hints at the possibility of a sequel. I suspect so, because the cover says “Timeless Book 1” which surely indicates there will be a Book 2.

Recommended for fans of historical fiction and especially split time.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a  free ebook for review.

About Gabrielle Meyer

Gabrielle Meyer

Gabrielle lives on the banks of the Upper Mississippi River with her husband and four children. As an employee of the Minnesota Historical Society, she fell in love with the rich history of her state and enjoys writing historical and contemporary novels inspired by real people, places, and events. The river is a constant source of inspiration for Gabrielle, and if you look closely, you will find a river in each of her stories.

When Gabrielle is not writing, you might find her homeschooling her children, cheering them on at sporting and theatrical events, or hosting a gathering at her home with family and friends.

Find Gabrielle Meyer online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

About When the Day Comes

How will she choose, knowing all she must sacrifice?

Libby has been given a powerful gift: to live one life in 1774 Colonial Williamsburg and the other in 1914 Gilded Age New York City. When she falls asleep in one life, she wakes up in the other. While she’s the same person at her core in both times, she’s leading two vastly different lives.

In Colonial Williamsburg, Libby is a public printer for the House of Burgesses and the Royal Governor, trying to provide for her family and support the Patriot cause. The man she loves, Henry Montgomery, has his own secrets. As the revolution draws near, both their lives–and any hope of love–are put in jeopardy.

Libby’s life in 1914 New York is filled with wealth, drawing room conversations, and bachelors. But the only work she cares about–women’s suffrage–is discouraged, and her mother is intent on marrying her off to an English marquess. The growing talk of war in Europe only complicates matters.

But Libby knows she’s not destined to live two lives forever. On her twenty-first birthday, she must choose one path and forfeit the other–but how can she choose when she has so much to lose in each life?

Find When the Day Comes online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

Book Review | Feathers of Hope by Sharon Garlough Brown

Feathers of Hope is the story of three women: Katherine Rhodes, the preacher who is about to retire from her role as director of the New Hope Retreat Center, Wren Crawford, her great-niece, an artist and social worker turned cleaner, and Sarah, Katherine’s daughter and the mother of two teenage girls. It’s a novel about relationships: the relationships between the characters, and their relationships with God.

This is the first book I’ve read by Sharon Garlough Brown, although I’ve often seen her novels recommended as novels with solid Christian content and spiritual depth, and I have to agree with that assessment.

Brown’s characters follow Biblical Christianity, not the me-me-me self-help variety often portrayed in the media. It’s both challenging and refreshing.

I especially liked the way feathers of Hope addressed some difficult issues that aren’t often addressed in Christian fiction, issues like mental health, women preachers, and racism inside and outside the church. They are all big issues with no easy answer, ant it was refreshing to see them tackled fairly, but without trying to find an answer for the unanswerable.

Feathers of Hope by Sharon Garlough Brown is a refreshing yet challenging novel, Christian fiction with depth and truth. #BookReview #ChristianFiction Share on X

Feathers of Hope is the third book in the Shades of Light series, following Shades of light and Remember Me. I do recommend reading the series in order. I didn’t – I haven’t read either of the other books, and I found the early part of the story difficult because I didn’t know the characters or understand the relationships between them.

(I’ve just found Shades of Light on my Kindle. Oops. But guess what’ I’ll be reading next?)

Recommended for Christians who want to read Christian fiction with depth and truth.

Thanks to InterVarsity Press and NetGalley for providing a  free ebook for review.

About Sharon Garlough Brown

Sharon Garlough BrownSharon Garlough Brown is an author, spiritual director, and retreat leader who is passionate about shepherding others deep into the love of God. She and her husband, Jack, have served congregations in Scotland, Oklahoma, England, and West Michigan, and currently direct Abiding Way Ministries, providing spiritual formation retreats and resources. Sharon enjoys all things British–especially tea–and loves when her son says, “Mom, would you like me to put the kettle on?”

Find Sharon Garlough Brown online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram

About Feathers of Hope

In a season of loss and change, Wren Crawford and her great-aunt, Katherine Rhodes, share the journey as companions in sorrow and hope. As Katherine prepares to retire as the director of the New Hope Retreat Center, she faces both personal and professional challenges―especially after the arrival of the board’s candidate to replace her. Not only must she confront more unresolved grief from her past, but she’s invited to embrace painful and unsettling insights about her own blind spots. How might disruption become a gift that opens the way to new growth?

Wren’s world is shifting and expanding as she presses forward in recovery from a period of deep depression. Still processing open questions around the death of her best friend, Casey, Wren stewards her grief by offering compassionate care to the residents of the nursing home where she now works. But the shedding of her old life is exhausting―especially as she doesn’t yet see what new life will emerge. How might art continue to provide a pathway for deepening her awareness of God’s presence with her?

In this sequel to Shades of Light and Remember Me, fans of the Sensible Shoes series will not only be able to attend Katherine’s final retreat sessions at New Hope but also encounter old and new friends along the way.

You can find Feathers of Hope online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

First Line Friday

First Line Friday | Week 232 | Feathers of Hope by Sharon Garlough Brown

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from Feathers of Hope by Sharon Garlough Brown, the third book in the Shades of Light series. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

When the cardinal landed at their bird feeder early that morning, its eyes bulging, its head stripped of red crest feathers, leaving it black and bald, Wren Crawford was sure the poor creature was either sick or wounded.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

About Feathers of Hope

In a season of loss and change, Wren Crawford and her great-aunt, Katherine Rhodes, share the journey as companions in sorrow and hope. As Katherine prepares to retire as the director of the New Hope Retreat Center, she faces both personal and professional challenges―especially after the arrival of the board’s candidate to replace her. Not only must she confront more unresolved grief from her past, but she’s invited to embrace painful and unsettling insights about her own blind spots. How might disruption become a gift that opens the way to new growth?

Wren’s world is shifting and expanding as she presses forward in recovery from a period of deep depression. Still processing open questions around the death of her best friend, Casey, Wren stewards her grief by offering compassionate care to the residents of the nursing home where she now works. But the shedding of her old life is exhausting―especially as she doesn’t yet see what new life will emerge. How might art continue to provide a pathway for deepening her awareness of God’s presence with her?

In this sequel to Shades of Light and Remember Me, fans of the Sensible Shoes series will not only be able to attend Katherine’s final retreat sessions at New Hope but also encounter old and new friends along the way.

You can find Feathers of Hope online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

Click here to check out what my fabulous fellow FirstLineFriday bloggers are sharing today.

And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

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What books are you looking forward to reading in 2022?

Bookish Question #211 | What books are you looking forward to reading in 2022?

My TBR list has a lot of books that I want to read, and which I am slowly (very slowly) making my way through.

The speed at which I crawl through the to-read pile may or may not have anything to do with the speed at which I also purchase new books. As I have recently heard, buying books and reading books are two separate hobbies.

If I tell you some of the books I especially want to read from my to-read pile, maybe I’ll actually read them! Here goes …

  • Desert Willow by Patricia Beal, because I enjoyed A time to Dance, so really should read this.
  • Why I Still Believe by Mary Jo Sharp, because so many people leave the faith as adult,s and I’d like to understand that better …. which includes understanding why people stay.
  • Over the Waters by Deborah Raney, because it was recommended to me.
  • The Holy Bible (English Standard Version), because I try and read a different version each year and the ESV is new to me.
  • The Bible Recap by Tara-Leigh Cobble, a one-year chronological reading plan based on the ESV (and which has a Bible app plan and a daily podcast, so I can chose to read or listen each day).
  • Daring Greatly by Brenee Brown, because she’s an author who has been recommended to me by both Christians and nonChristians, so she seems to have bridged the Christian/general market divide.
  • Forgiven by Carol Ashby, another book/author that’s been recommended to me.
  • A Lowcountry Bride by Preslaysa Williams, which I keep meaning to read yet somehow haven’t.
  • Canyon War by Sarah Elizabeth Sawyer, because it’s got a great opening line, and features a nineteenth-century female doctor.
  • Operation Romance Books 1-4 by Elizabeth Maddrey. I’ve actually just read the first two and discovered the box set while researching this post … so please excuse me while I read #3 and #4.

I will also be reading the next releases from some of my favourite contemporary and historical romance authors, including:

  • Carolyn Miller
  • Becky Wade
  • Tari Faris
  • Meredith Resce (her Luella Linley series is brilliant)
  • Elizabeth Camden
  • Elizabeth Musser
  • Christine Dillon
  • Carla Laureano
  • Lynn Austin
  • Janet W Ferguson
  • Susan Meissner
  • Courtney Walsh
  • Mila Holt

And, of course, all the books from debut and new-to-me authors I’ve yet to find out about.

What books are you looking forward to reading in 2022?

What do you recommend I add to my to-read pile?

Our story is one shared by many women. We've suffered from words spoken carelessly over us. We've been defined by what we're not—married, acceptable—rather than by who we are.

Book Review | Every Word Unsaid (Dreams of India) by Kimberly Duffy

I thought Kimberly Duffy’s first two novels (A Mosaic of Wings and A Tapestry of Light) were excellent.

Every Word Unsaid is outstanding.

Augusta Constance Travers, better known as Gussie, is the odd one out in her upwardly mobile family. Her family want her to return to New York and become a respectable member of society. But Gussie revels in her secret role as writer and photographer Miss Adventuress, the most popular columnist for the Lady’s Weekly. Yes, she’s the leading travel blogger of 1896, living the “perfect life”.

Kodak has created the Kodak girl. She is modern and wears a fashionable dress. Her curls are always shiny and her cheeks always pink.

But her identity is exposed, so her parents plan to send her to her aunt in Chicago until the fuss blows over. Instead, her editor sends her to India for six months a country she’s always wanted to visit. It’s also the home of her childhood friends, twins Catherine and Gabriel MacLean.

The story truly takes off once Gussie reaches India. She stays with her childhood friends in Poona, where she sees a different side of India – the wealth and the poverty, the beauty and the ugliness.

One of the signs of outstanding historical fiction is when the author manages to make the plot and characters compelling in their own timeline at the same time as making the plot relevant to readers in the present. Kimberly Duffy has done this brilliantly, particularly in terms of Gussie’s spiritual journey. There are also more than a few nods to lockdowns and quarantine in the plague scenes.

While Every Word Unsaid is definitely the story of Gussie’s personal and spiritual journey, there is also a lovely romance (and a few kissing scenes).

Kimberly Duffy has done a huge amount of research, and it’s woven beautifully throughout the story in both the language and the description. It leaves me wanting to visit India. I hope to see more books set in India, as it’s obvious Duffy has a passion for the country and the people.

The novel is entirely written from Gussie’s point of view—something I didn’t realise until I’d finished reading. While she’s a little annoying (and possibly immature, even at the age of twenty-five), her voice was compelling and it kept me turning the pages. That’s largely because of the writing, which was excellent. There were wonderful descriptions, unique turns of phrase, intertwined with deep spiritual truths that show our modern problems are actually age-old problems.

Every Word Unsaid by Kimberly Duffy is an outstanding novel, with brilliant writing, and an encouraging Christian message. #BookReview #ChristianFiction Share on X

I highly recommend Every Word Unsaid, especially for the wonderful locations, and the encouraging Christian message.

Thanks to Bethany House Publishers and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Kimberly Duffy

Kimberly Duffy enjoys writing historical fiction that takes readers back in time and across oceans. Her books often feature ahead-of-their-time heroines, evocative settings, and real-life faith. When not writing or homeschooling her four children, she enjoys taking trips that require a passport and practicing kissing scenes with her husband of twenty years. A Long Island native, she currently resides in southwest Ohio.

Find Kimberly Duffy online at:

Website | Facebook | Instagram

About Every Word Unsaid

Augusta Travers has spent the last three years avoiding the stifling expectations of New York society and her family’s constant disappointment. As the nation’s most fearless–and reviled–columnist, Gussie travels the country with her Kodak camera and spins stories for women unable to leave hearth and home. But when her adventurous nature lands her in the middle of a scandal, an opportunity to leave America offers the perfect escape.

Arriving in India, she expects only a nice visit with childhood friends, siblings Catherine and Gabriel, and escapades that will further her career. Instead, she finds herself facing a plague epidemic, confusion over Gabriel’s sudden appeal, and the realization that what she wants from life is changing. But slowing down means facing all the hurts of her past that she’s long been trying to outrun. And that may be an undertaking too great even for her.

You can find Every Word Unsaid online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

I stare at my brain and wonder if God took a piece of it away every time I sinned.

Book Review | A Flicker of Light by Katie Powner

A Flicker of Light is set in the small Montana town of Moose Creek, population 756, and features three generations of the same family.

Juniper (June) Jensen is sixty-three, and showing signs of early-onset dementia. Not that she knows that, but her husband and son have certainly noticed.

Bea Michaels finds out she is pregnant just as her husband loses his job. The logical decision is to go back to Moose Creek and stay with her father— the last thing she and her young husband want to do.

Mitch Jensen was none too happy when his daughter dropped out of college and got married. He’s even less happy to find the husband is now unemployed, living in his house, and not making any effort to find a real job. He’s also worried about his mother—something is wrong.

The story starts in June’s point of view, which is written in first person. I know some readers don’t like first person. If you’re one of those readers, I’d encourage you to keep reading, as the other two points of view (Bea and Mitch) are both written in the more common third person, and they are the main viewpoints.

A Flicker of Lights is a strong and thought-provoking family drama.

I once read that all great characters have a secret, and the characters in A Flicker of Lights certainly have secrets, and those secrets provide the basis for the novel.

It’s an easy read with no high angst (I don’t like angst for the sake of angst). But there are plenty of problems and plenty of emotion. There are real characters with  real problems – unemployment, unplanned pregnancy, death, dementia. But it’s through the problems that the characters grow emotionally and spiritually, reminding readers that there is always a way through the hard times, even if it doesn’t always look like what we’d expected.

A Flicker of Light doesn’t have the rose-coloured glasses of many novels set in small towns.

Bea especially is all too aware of the downsides of small-town living. But there are also moments of levity—a cat named Steve, the busybody neighbour, the small-town “moosevine”.

A Flicker of Light by @Katie_Powner is a Christian family saga that's realistic without being depressing, and ultimately uplifting. #ChristianFiction #BookReview Share on X

I think that’s what I liked about it. It was realistic without being depressing. In fact, it was ultimately uplifting—which is what I want in a novel.

Recommended for readers looking for a realistic yet uplifting Christian novel that’s not a romance.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

About Katie Powner

Katie Powner

Katie Powner is a lover of red shoes, Jesus, and candy. Not necessarily in that order. Passionate about reading books and writing books and talking about books and posting about books … She is an award-winning author who writes contemporary fiction about redemption, relationships, and finding the dirt road home.

Katie lives in rural Montana where cows still outnumber people. She is a two-time OCW Cascade Award and ACFW First Impressions Award winner. Katie is a biological and adoptive mother of three and foster mother to many more. She and her husband have been in youth ministry for over a decade

Find Katie Powner online at:

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About A Flicker of Light

For generations, the Jensens have raised their families in the small Montana town of Moose Creek, where gossip spreads faster than the wind. Yet some secrets need to be told.

When twenty-one-year-old Bea discovers she’s pregnant on the heels of her husband losing his job, she’s forced to admit she needs help and asks her dad for a place to stay. But past resentments keep her from telling him all that’s going on.

Mitch Jensen is thrilled to have a full house again, though he’s unimpressed with Bea’s decisions: dropping out of college, marrying so young–and to an idealistic city kid, of all things. Mitch hopes to convince Bea to return to the path he’s always envisioned for her, but she’s changed since her mom died. And he refuses to admit how much he’s changed, too, especially now that he might be losing his mother as well.

Grandma June is good at spinning stories, but there’s one she’s never told. Now that her mind is starting to fade, her time to tell it is running out. But if she reveals the truth before her memories are gone forever, the Jensen family will never be the same.

You can find A Flicker of Light online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

First Line Friday

First Line Friday #211 | A Promise to Remember by Kathryn Cushman

It’s First Line Friday! That means it’s time to pick up the nearest book and quote the first line. Today I’m sharing from A Promise to Remember by Kathryn Cushman, another new-to-me author. Here’s the first line from the Chapter One:

Andie Phelps could not put the brush to the canvas. The blue paint seemed wrong against the sable bristles.

What’s the book nearest you, and what’s the first line?

 

About A Promise to Remember

When a car accident kills two teens from opposite sides of the tracks, the aftermath threatens to tear a community apart. On one side, Melanie Johnston–a grieving single mother–is convinced her son will be forgotten. On the other is Andie Phelps, a reserved woman who retreats even further into herself with grief.

Readers’ emotions are torn between these two sympathetic characters as each fights her way through grief and pain–sometimes wisely and sometimes with choices that have the power to divide family, church, and even their small, sea-side town.

You can find A Promise to Remember online at:

Amazon | BookBub | ChristianBook | Goodreads | Koorong

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And you can click here to check out my previous FirstLineFriday posts.

Share your first line in the comments, and happy reading!

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