As the Tide Comes In by Cindy Woodsmall and Erin Woodsmall

   

Tara Abbott had lived a hard life, abandoned by her addicted mother and placed in foster care at a young age with only a painting from someone she once called Nana, but no longer remembered, to link her to her past. As a high schooler she met her two younger half-brothers, but saw them only that one time with their paternal grandmother. While she loved her two best friends, her roommates that became like sisters while in foster care, Tara missed being loved by family, missed having roots. So when, after graduating high school, she learned that her brothers' grandmother was dying and that they were likely destined to be separated and placed in foster care, Tara felt compelled to raise them as her own in the mountains of North Carolina.

Gavin Burnside, the man with four mamas, well one biological mama and her three best friends, is a firefighter with a problem. His dad had died in a fireworks accident that resulted in a personal injury lawsuit that caused the financial hole Gavin and his real mama found themselves in. There was only one possible way to pull themselves out, the dismantling and selling of an historical home on St. Simons Island, Georgia, an act that would have been legal if they'd only had a few more days to wait.

Cindy and Erin Woodsmall make the most of the grandeur of the mountain and beach settings in this story. They have placed unique, lovable characters in each, and orchestrated a story line that plunges the readers into the depths of grief and raises them into the heights of victory. This book itself is a vessel of love.

I highly recommend As the Tide Comes In. It is an equally great vacation read and rainy weekend read, and is equally filled with lighthearted goodness and deep, thoughtful lessons. I thank NetGalley and Waterbrook & Multnomah for providing me with a copy in exchange for an honest review. I was under no obligation to provide a positive review and received no monetary compensation.

Auschwitz Lullaby by Mario Escobar - A Book Review

Recently I watched an interview with a twin who was subjected to Dr. Josef Mengele's experiments at Auschwitz. Her voice rang in my head as I read Auschwitz Lullaby by Mario Escobar. The atrocities of which Mengele was guilty were great, and he was never brought to justice on this side of eternity. In this book Escobar tells the story of Helene Hannemann, largely adhering to the actual facts of her time at Auschwitz with her five children. Helene, an Aryan, voluntarily accompanied her Gypsy husband and their children when the soldiers came to take them away. Her determination to care for her children and those of other Gypsy families in the camp improved the circumstances for many during their imprisonment. Hannemann worked under the direction of Dr. Mengele, running a nursery and school for the Gypsy children, some who were then taken to be included in his experiments. Her goal remained the same throughout her time there, to protect and care for the children.

Escobar's well-written, somewhat fictionalized account of her life allows Helene Hannemann to be an inspiration to another generation of parents, a generation that may be in need of a lesson in sacrifice. Helene could have spared her life, could have walked away from the filth, disease and death that was Auschwitz, but instead she sacrificed each hour, each minute, for the children.

I highly recommend Auschwitz Lullaby not only for fans of historical fiction, but for all who have a heart for children, and those in this generation who may need to be reminded of the gift they are. Received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

The Patriot Bride by Kimberley Woodhouse - A Book Review

  

The Patriot Bride is the fourth book in the Daughters of the Mayflower series. Kimberley Woodhoue wrote the first and fourth books. In this most recent addition to the series, Faith Lytton, great-great-great granddaughter to William and Elizabeth Lytton, was orphaned at the age of ten and made ward of then twenty-year-old George Washington. Faith grew into a fine, Christian woman who embraced the Patriot's cause. Having been widowed after one week of marriage and having never remarried, Faith felt compelled to take on a dangerous mission as messenger between Patriot spies, sparing those women with husbands and children from the dangers involved. Matthew Weber, a close friend of Washington's and a thirty-six-year-old bachelor, was a Patriot spy among the Loyalists. It was to him that Faith carried coded messages while receiving messages in return. Neither anticipated the spark that became a flame growing between them, nor the consequences of the request of the Loyalists whom Matthew moved among that he spy on the Patriots.

Woodhouse provides her reader with an interesting historical romance with a dash of intrigue. While the book is one of a series, it works well as a stand-alone read. The book holds the reader's interest without a great deal of complexity; is is a simple, entertaining, quick read. For me books like this are akin to using a palate cleanser between courses.

I thank NetGalley and Barbour Publishing for providing me with a copy of The Patriot Bride in exchange for an honest review. I was under not obligation to provide a positive review and received no monetary compensation.