A Sound Among the Trees by Susan Meissner

A house shrouded in time.
A line of women with a heritage of loss.

As a young bride, Susannah Page was rumored to be a Civil War spy for the North, a traitor to her Virginian roots. Her great-granddaughter Adelaide, the current matriarch of Holly Oak, doesn’t believe that Susannah’s ghost haunts the antebellum mansion looking for a pardon, but rather the house itself bears a grudge toward its tragic past.

When Marielle Bishop marries into the family and is transplanted from the arid west to her husband’s home, it isn’t long before she is led to believe that the house she just settled into brings misfortune to the women who live there.

With Adelaide’s richly peppered superstitions and deep family roots at stake, Marielle must sort out the truth about Susannah Page and Holly Oak— and make peace with the sacrifices she has made for love.    

Susan Meissner has been feeding her love of writing all her life. Her first novel,Why the Sky is Blue, was released in 2004, after she resigned her post as editor for a local newspaper in a rural Minnesota town. Since that time she has had several books published and moved to San Diego, where she lives with her family.

Heidi Says . . . My love for Susan Meissner and her writing started with The Shape of Mercy. It’s been 3 1/2 years since I read that book, but I still list it among my favorites and have been hard-pressed to find another book that I have enjoyed as much. Here’s a quote from that original review, that totally fits for A Sound Among the Trees as well:

This book is a perfect blend of contemporary and classical and it draws the two together in such a way that I was hooked from the very first page!

The following year, I had opportunity to read and review White Picket Fences.  Once again, I found myself totally drawn in to the book, it’s characters, and the historical content.  I ended that review with these words:

I am impressed, once again, with Susan's ability to share about a true historical event, while sharing a fictional story.  So far, both of her books have left me longing to know more about these stories of our history, and sent me in search of further information.  Since I'm a researcher at heart, these books are right up my alley!

Lady in Waiting arrived last year, at a time when I was too busy to do the review, so I passed it along to my mom.  Once again, Susan has woven a modern day story with historical facts to create a book that my mom could not put down. In her words:

This was a very good, very exciting book.  I must say it is one of the best books I have ever read!  It will be hard to follow this one up!

So, that brings me to A Sound Among the Trees . . . and Susan has done it again!  She has certainly created a place for herself on my list of favorite authors.  I absolutely adore history; but so many of the more recent historical fiction books that I have read are all the same story, just with different names, locations, etc.  Not so with Susan’s books. 

She has a unique way of telling a historical story – in this case it’s the Civil War – yet weaving it with a modern-day fictional tale. So, we find several generations of women residing in this old home that has weathered the war.  And we’re introduced to the possibility of haunting and ghosts.  Yet, in the end, we find that none of those things are the issue at all – it’s really a matter of the heart (and mind). 

I loved each and every character in this book.  Marielle, who just “happened” upon this house, through marriage.  Adelaide, who is haunted by the past and the decisions of her ancestors.  Susannah, who we come to know intimately through letters she wrote to her cousin during the war.  And all the supporting characters as well – even they play a significant role in combining past and present. 

I am now anxiously awaiting Susan’s next book – The Girl in the Glass – set to release this September.

Susan – you have a real gift for storytelling!  I hope you continue to write great tales of love, loss, history, and healing.  I will continue to read your books as long as you write them!

Lady in Waiting by Susan Meissner

Love is a choice you make every day.

Content in her comfortable marriage of twenty-two years, Jane Lindsay had never expected to watch her husband,  rad, pack his belongings and walk out the door of their Manhattan home. But when it happens, she feels powerless to stop him and the course of events that follow Brad’s departure.

Jane finds an old ring in a box of relics from a British jumble sale and discovers a Latin inscription in the band along with just one recognizable word: Jane. Feeling an instant connection to the mysterious ring bearing her namesake, Jane begins a journey to learn more about the ring—and perhaps about herself.
~
In the sixteenth-century, Lucy Day becomes the dressmaker to Lady Jane Grey, an innocent young woman whose fate seems to be controlled by a dangerous political and religious climate, one threatening to deny her true love and pursuit of her own interests.

As the stories of both Janes dovetail through the journey of one ring, it becomes clear that each woman has far more infl uence over her life than she once imagined. It all comes down to the choices each makes despite the realities they face.

Roxie’s Review . . . By a unique set of circumstances, the reader is dramatically transported from modern-day Manhattan to 16th century England.  The reader experiences the sadness of a current marriage breakdown to the world of kings, queens, deaths by execution, and the love of a young girl’s life.

This was a very good, very exciting book.  I must say it is one of the best books I have ever read!  It will be hard to follow this one up!

You can get a sneak peek at the first 4 chapters of Lady in Waiting here.

NOTE: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

The Pirate Queen by Patricia Hickman

Treasure is found in the most unlikely places.

The envy of all her friends, wife and mother Saphora Warren is the model of southern gentility and accomplishment. She lives in a beautiful Lake Norman home, and has raised three capable adult children. Her husband is a successful plastic surgeon--and a philanderer. It is for that reason that, after hosting a garden party for Southern Living magazine, Saphora packs her bags to escape the trappings of the picturesque-but-vacant life. 
Saphora’s departure is interrupted by her husband Bender’s early arrival home, and his words that change her life forever: I’m dying.

Against her desires, Saphora agrees to take care of Bender as he fights his illness. They relocate, at his insistance, to their coastal home in Oriental—the same house she had chosen for her private getaway. When her idyllic retreat is overrun by her grown children, grandchildren, townspeople, relatives, and a precocious neighbor child, Saphora’s escape to paradise is anything but the life she had imagined. As she gropes for evidence of God's presence amid the turmoil, can she discover that the richest treasures come in surprising packages?

PATRICIA HICKMAN, author of acclaimed novel Painted Dresses, is an award-winner, speaker and humorist who has won two Silver Angel Awards for Excellence in Media as well as a Romantic Times Reader’s Choice Gold Award for her novel Katrina’s Wings. Patricia holds a master’s degree in creative writing from Queens University and enjoys biking, hiking, and mapping out the Southern towns where her novels are set.

Heidi Says . . . I really, really enjoyed this book.  There was a lot going on in the storyline – and I loved it all!  I got so caught up in Sephora’s life – her husband’s cancer, her children and all of their issues, her attachment to the little neighbor boy, etc.  I enjoyed following her through her issues and seeing her come out on top at the end.

I’ll definitely be sharing this book as I think it’s well worth reading. 

NOTE: I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group for this review.

The Miracle of Mercy Land by River Jordan

Mercy Land has made some unexpected choices for a young woman in the 1930s. The sheltered daughter of a traveling preacher, she chooses to leave her rural community to move to nearby Bay City on the warm, gulf-waters of southern Alabama. There she finds a job at the local paper and spends seven years making herself indispensable to old Doc Philips, the publisher and editor. Then she gets a frantic call at dawn—it’s the biggest news story of her life, and she can’t print a word of it.

Doc has come into possession of a curious book that maps the lives of everyone in Bay City—decisions they’ve made in the past, and how those choices affect the future. Mercy and Doc are consumed by the mystery locked between the pages—Doc because he hopes to right a very old wrong, and Mercy because she wants to fulfill the book’s strange purpose. But when a mystery from Mercy’s past arrives by train, she begins to understand that she will have to make choices that will deeply affect everyone she loves—forever.

River Jordan is a southerner with a global perspective. She began her writing career as a playwright and spent over ten years with the Loblolly Theatre group, where her original works were produced, including Mama Jewels: Tales from Mullet Creek, Soul, Rhythm and Blues, and Virga.

The Miracle of Mercy Land, a novel set in 1938 along the Gulf waters of Alabama, debuted September 7, 2010 and has been painted as ‘A triumph of beauty,”.

Ms. Jordan teaches and speaks around the country on “The Power of Story”, and produces and hosts Clearstory Radio on WRFN, 107.1fm Nashville.

When not traveling the back roads of America, River lives with her husband Owen Hicks, and their Great Pyrennees lap dog, Titan in Nashville, Tennessee. She thinks about where stories come from – places and people and moods of the heart while rocking on her front porch. And long after the sun sets over the ridge, she waits for the moon to rise, watches the stars come out, and stares off into the blue-night sky believing with all her might.

You can read an excerpt of The Miracle of Mercy Land on the author’s website. 

Heidi Says . . . It didn’t take me long at all to get sucked into this book, my first by River Jordan.  The characters were so well-thought-out and described that I found myself instantly attracted to all of them and wanting to learn more. 

My daughter so the book laying around one day and said “I can tell you don’t like this book, Mom,” to which I asked, “Why do you say that?”  She went on to explain that it was taking me way too long to read it.  I usually zip through books.  This one, I was savoring in small bites.

I was drawn into the storyline and wanted to learn more.  However, I am not a fan of the fantasy genre, and the fantastical aspects of  this book just made it a little too over-the-top for me.  So, I chose to read it more slowly so that I could better digest what I was reading and process it. 

I think that Ms. Jordan is  wonderful author and there’s probably a message in this book deeper than my brain was able to dig.  But, I did definitely walk away having learned a few things and I did enjoy the book.  I will consider picking up more of Mr. Jordan’s books in the future and would totally recommend The Miracle of Mercy Land for those of you who like a bit of fantasy mixed in with your fiction. 

NOTE: I received a free copy of this book from Waterbrook Multnomah in exchange for my sharing an honest review of it.  I was not compensated in any other way.

Bridegrooms by Allison Pittman

  It Only Takes an Instant for Love to Strike

Tragedy hits the Allenhouse family on a hot summer night in Ohio when a mother of four vanished. Eight-year-old Vada virtually grew up overnight and raised her three younger sisters while her father lost himself in his medical practice in the basement of their home.

Now, Vada is a grown woman, still making her home with her father and sisters. Her days are spent serving as an errand girl for Cleveland’s fledgling amateur orchestra; her evenings with Garrison Walker, her devoted, if passionless, beau.

Dizzying change occurs the day the Brooklyn Bridegrooms come to town to play the Cleveland Spiders and a line drive wallops the head of a spectator. The fan is whisked to the Allenhouse parlor, and questions swirl about the anonymous, unconscious man.

Suddenly, the subdued house is filled with visitors, from a flirtatious, would-be sports writer to the Bridegrooms’ handsome star hitter to the guilt-ridden ballplayer who should have caught the stray shot. The medical case brings Dr. Allenhouse a frustration and helplessness he hasn’t felt since his wife’s disappearance. Vada’s sisters are giddy at the bevy of possible suitors. And Vada’s life is awakened amid the super-charged atmosphere of romantic opportunity.

Allison Pittman is the author of Stealing Home, the Crossroads of Grace series, and her nonfiction debut, Saturdays With Stella. A former high-school English teacher, she serves as director of the theater arts group at her church. Allison makes her home in Texas with her husband and their three boys. Learn more about the author at www.allisonpittman.com.

This was the first of Allison’s fiction books that I have had opportunity to read.  I previously read (and reviewed) Saturdays with Stella (which I really enjoyed).  I enjoyed Bridegrooms.  I loved meeting and getting to know the Allenhouse sisters.  Their story is touching. The fact that their mother left them when they were all so young is sad; but it also played a large part in shaping the characters that they have become as adults/young adults.  I was quickly pulled into the world of Vada and her younger sisters.  At no point in the story did  I feel that it was predictable – I honestly didn’t know how the story would end until the last page!  (I like that!)  I will definitely be picking up more books by this author!

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Forget Me Not by Vicki Hinze

Crossroads Crisis Center owner Benjamin Brandt was a content man—in his faith, his work, and his family.  Then in a flash, everything he loved was snatched away.  His wife and son were murdered, and grief-stricken Ben lost faith.  Determination to find their killers keeps him going, but after three years of dead ends and torment, his hope is dying too.  Why had he survived?  He’d failed to protect his family.  

Now, a mysterious woman appears at Crossroads seeking answers and help—a victim who eerily resembles Ben’s deceased wife, Susan.  A woman robbed of her identity, her life, of everything except her faith—and Susan’s necklace.  

The connections between the two women mount, exceeding coincidence, and to keep the truth hidden, someone is willing to kill.  Finding out who and why turns Ben and the mystery woman’s situation from dangerous to deadly.  Their only hope for survival is to work together, trust each other, and face whatever they discover head on, no matter how painful. But will that be enough to save their lives and heal their tattered hearts?

Vicki Hinze is an award-winning author of twenty-three novels, three nonfiction books, and hundreds of articles. Selected for Who’s Who in America in 2004 as a writer and educator, Hinze is active in Romance Writers of America and serves as a Vice President on the International Thriller Writers Board of Directors. Vicki lives in Florida with her artist husband, a retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel. Visit www.vickihinze.com to learn more about Vicki’s books, blogs, and writing programs.

Every once in awhile, I get a hankering for a good mystery/suspense.  I don’t like the really scary ones, though.  My favorites are the ones that Mary Higgins Clark writes (though she’s not a Christian author). Anyway, I was excited to see the opportunity to review a Christian suspense book.

Though Forget Me Not really held my interest and I read through it quite quickly, I found it to be a bit confusing at times.  There were so many characters being introduced that it was, at times, hard to keep track of everyone.  I just kept reading, hoping that I’d eventually be able to tie it all together.

I liked the book enough to consider picking up other books by this author in the future.  If you’d like more information on how to purchase this book, click here.

This was book was provided for review by WaterBrook Multnomah.

This Little Prayer of Mine by Anthony DeStefano

Author Anthony DeStefano’s adult books, The Prayers God Always Says Yes To and A Travel Guide to Heaven, have sold a quarter-million copies. Illustrator Mark Elliott’s cherished artwork has appeared in popular picture books and novels for young readers, including Gail Carson Levine’s ever-popular Princess Tales series.

Now, these acclaimed inspirational experts have come together to create This Little Prayer of Mine, a beautiful and alluring book designed to guide children into a very simple, real and expressive relationship with God.

Through engaging  rhymes and alluring illustrations, This Little Prayer of Mine shows children—and their parents and grandparents—that complete dependence on God is what brings peace and fulfillment. It invites children to know and believe that God is always  just a simple prayer away and that He longs to respond to them with a resounding, “Yes!”

This Little Prayer of Mine appeals to readers from all different faiths. Easy-reader format allows children to read alone, or with someone older, and encourages them to openly express their fears, thanks, and needs directly to God.

Anthony DeStefano is the author of The Prayers God Always Says Yes To and A Travel Guide to Heaven. He has received prestigious awards from religious organizations worldwide for his efforts to advance Christian beliefs in modern culture.

Mark Elliott’s brilliant illustrations have appeared in popular picture books and novels for young readers, including Gail Carson Levine’s Princess Tales series. His acclaimed artwork delivers inspiration, wonder, and timeless beauty on every page.

No matter how many books I read, children’s book always remain my very favorite, especially those that are set to rhyme. The first time I picked up This Little Prayer of Mine, I was excited to see the rhyming verse. I read it to myself the first time through, and shared it with my soon-to-be 4-year-old the second time. I enjoyed this little book both times. Though the target audience is young children, there’s a message in this book that all of us can learn from. I really appreciated This Little Prayer of Mine and will gladly add it to the children’s book collection at my house.  This book would make a great book for the little one(s) in your life.

For purchasing options or for more information, click here.

This book was provided for review by the
WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

An Absence So Great by Jane Kirkpatrick

Inspired by the engaging stories told through her grandmother’s photographs taken at the turn of the century, award-winning author Jane Kirkpatrick provides a portrait of the tension between darkness and light in the soul of a young woman pursuing her  professional dreams.

Despite growing in confidence as a photographer, eighteen-year-old Jessie Ann Gaebele’s personal life is still at a crossroads. Hoping she’s put an unfortunate romantic longing behind her as “water under the bridge,” she exiles herself to Milwaukee to operate photographic studios for those ill with mercury poisoning. 

Jessie gains footing on her dream to one day own her own studio and soon finds herself in other Midwest towns, pursuing her profession. But even a job she loves can’t keep those painful memories from seeping into her heart, and the shadows of a forbidden love threaten to darken the portrait of her life.

Jane Kirkpatrick is an award-winning author of sixteen historical novels, including A Flickering Light, the first part of Jessie Gaebale’s story, and three nonfiction titles. Known for her unique insights into the exploration of community, family and faith of actual historical women, the Wisconsin native and her husband have called their ranch in Oregon home for the past 25 years.

  I previously had the opportunity to review A Flickering Light; so I was excited when this sequel was available as well.  I enjoyed the  book – I like the approach Ms. Kirkpatrick took to writing this book about her grandmother, and I enjoyed the photographs that were included throughout. I must admit that, if this were purely a work of fiction, I would have been disappointed by the way things turned out toward the end of the story. However, since it is based on the events of her grandmother’s life, I appreciate her taking the time to share the story.  It’s very obvious that much time and research went into the writing of this book.

For more information about this book click here.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Start Here by Alex and Brett Harris

At the age of eighteen, Alex and Brett Harris wrote Do Hard Things—and launched a movement that would change a generation. Young people around the world were ready to be inspired, ready to move beyond complacency, ready to rebel against society’s low expectations.
Now the highly anticipated companion book, Start Here, answers the questions Alex and Brett have received from thousands of teens on their worldwide conference tour and popular online community: How do I get started? What hard things does God want me to do? How do I keep from getting discouraged or burned out? What is the best way to inspire others?
Filled with stories and insights from Alex, Brett, and other real-life rebelutionaries, Start Here is a powerful and practical guide for young people who are ready to take the next step and blast past apathy. Let the rebelution continue.
Alex and Brett Harris are the coauthors of the best-selling book Do Hard Things, which they wrote at age eighteen. Today the twins speak regularly to audiences of thousands on The Rebelution Tour, maintain a hugely popular online presence through their blog, TheRebelution.com, and have been featured on CNN, MSNBC, NPR, and in the New York Times. Raised in Portland, Oregon, the brothers currently attend Patrick Henry College in Virginia.
  I have not had time to so much as pick up this book.  The past few weeks have been out of my control, with Sue’s sickness, hospitalization, and going home to heaven.  This book arrived on my doorstep in the midst of all of that, so there just hasn’t been time to read through it.  For that reason, my review isn’t very educated!
I will say, though, that we LOVED Do Hard Things at our house!  So much so that we ordered the audio version, along with enough copies of the hardback book to give out to all of our junior and senior high Sunday School students.  We went through it over a course of many weeks, and I know that it made an impact on the kids (even if some of them wouldn’t want to admit it).  I firmly believe that Do Hard Things should be required reading by EVERY SINGLE “teenager” in the U.S. 
With that being said, I’m very excited about Start Here and can’t wait to make the time to read it now that things are starting to slow down around here.  Ashley, too, is anxious to see what Alex & Brett have to say in this follow-up to Do Hard Things.  I think that we will work through this new book together so that we can discuss what we are reading.  Maybe we’ll make it a school project!
We no longer work in youth ministry; but I plan to introduce both of these books to the youth leaders at the church we are currently attending.  I hope Alex & Brett are planning to continue their writing, as their books are an amazing ministry to youth (and those who love them!) 
For more information or to purchase, click here.
This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Mother Daughter Duet by Cheri Fuller & Dancing With My Father by Sally Clarkson

When a daughter is born, her mother has a thousand hopes and dreams for her, especially that they will be best friends one day.

Unfortunately, even the best of intentions can go awry. There are so many challenges on the journey to adult friendship that the reality is fraught with friction

and frustration. But a harmonious relationship is possible.

Award-winning author Cheri Fuller and her daughter, Ali Plum, have been there and have discovered the keys to a healthy relationship. In Mother-Daughter Duet they share their story—each from her own perspective—in which they have experienced distance and tension, growth and challenge, and, ultimately, acceptance and harmony. Filled with personal anecdotes and based on several basic principles (letting go; listening; respect; setting boundaries; and more), Mother-Daughter Duet helps moms repair the breach so that daughters want to draw close.

The mother-daughter dynamic is intense, personal, complex, and unique. But mothers and daughters can achieve mutual respect and learn to celebrate their differences when they learn the two-part harmony of the mother-daughter duet.

Cheri Fuller is a best-selling, award-winning author whose books have sold more than one million copies. She speaks to a wide range of women at women’s conferences and is a frequent guest on national radio and television programs.

Ali Plum is Cheri’s daughter, a writer and songwriter, a wife, and a mother to Noah and Luke. She and her mom have weathered the ups and downs of their relationship to find one of the most treasured, honest relationships of their lives. Ali has recorded background vocals for popular musicians, and Mother-Daughter Duet marks her debut into book publishing.

  This book is more geared toward Mother-ADULT Daughter relationships. I’m not quite to that stage yet, though it’s coming quickly. I did start reading this book, and wish that it had been available back when I first got married – that was a really rough time for my mom and I and a book like this would have surely helped us both to understand each other better and to “readjust” our relationship with one another.  We did, eventually, figure it out on our own; but I would certainly recommend this great resource to any mother and adult daughter who are struggling through this very difficult adjustment period.

For more information on this book, or to purchase, click here.

 

The reality of living in a broken, fallen world can leave women feeling overcome by fear, guilt, and weariness. Many develop “sawdust souls,” numb to any sense of joy.

In this warm and wise book, author Sally Clarkson invites readers to take God’s hand and let Him lead them into a life of anticipation, passion, and purpose. With the voice of a trusted mentor, she reveals how, by getting in tune with the rhythm of God’s presence, women can nurture an inner attitude of anticipation and celebration even in the stressful seasons of life.

Through rich biblical insights woven with real-life stories, women will be inspired to recapture a spirit of joy as they follow God’s lead on the dance floor of life.

Sally Clarkson is a popular speaker, known across the nation and internationally for her work with women. She is the author of several books, including The Mission of Motherhood, The Ministry of Motherhood, and Seasons of a Mother’s Heart. She has worked in various ministries, including Campus Crusade for Christ. With her husband, Clay, she is cofounder of Whole Heart Ministries, which encourages and equips Christian parents. The Clarksons, parents of four, live near Colorado Springs, Colorado.

I am currently reading through this book and enjoying every minute of it.  I don’t want to just sit down and read through it quickly because I want to savor it and ponder on it.   This is the first of Sally Clarkson’s books that I have had opportunity to read, though I’m very familiar with the Clarks’ presence in the homeschooling community and have previously had opportunity to use and review some of their homeschooling/family resources.

This book came to me at a perfect time.  I have some serious things going on in my life right now, and I want nothing more than to learn how to “dance with my heavenly father – into a life of grace and joy”.  One thing that I’ve particularly enjoyed about this book is the thought-provoking questions provided at the end of each chapter.  These would be beneficial to use in a group setting; but are also quite appropriate for individual study as well.  They have really encouraged me to take a closer look at how I’m living my life and to think about what I might do to improve.  Mrs. Clarkson’s honesty and transparency are also very refreshing.  I would highly recommend this book to any woman – no matter where you are in your walk with the Lord.

For more information, or to purchase, click here.

NOTE: I was provided with free copies of both of these books, compliments of WaterBrook Press, in exchange for my honest thoughts on them.  I also received complimentary giveaway copies, which I intend to donate to my church library.