Book Spotlight Fridays! What I Would Tell You

 

Book Beginnings and Friday56

Book Beginnings is a weekly meme hosted by Rose City Reader that asks you to share the first sentence (or so) of the book you're reading. Friday 56 is hosted by Freda's Voice and asks you to grab a book (any book), turn to page 56 or 56% in your e-reader and share a non-spoiler sentence or two.  First Line Friday is a weekly meme hosted by Reading is my Superpower that asks you to share the first sentence of the book you're reading.

A dual-time story between featuring WW2 in Greece.

What I Would Tell You

About the book:

Determined to resist the invading Nazis, a Greek Jewish woman's greatest dream has become her worst nightmare, and now she faces an impossible choice whose consequences echo across the generations. 
 
1941—The pounding of Nazi boots on the streets of Salonika, Greece, reverberates in Mathilda Nissim’s ears, shaking her large community of Sephardic Jews to its core and altering her life forever. If only her people would rise up and resist their captors. At great risk to herself and those around her, she uses the small newspaper she publishes to call them to action, all to no avail. Her husband encourages her to trust God to watch over them, but God has once again deserted His people. Amid the chaos, Mathilda discovers she’s expecting a longed-for child. Still, nothing stops the occupiers’ noose from tightening around their necks, and she may have to resort to desperate measures to ensure her daughter’s survival.
 
2019—College student Tessa Payton and her cousin take a popular DNA heritage test only to discover they don’t share any common ancestors. In fact, the test reveals Tessa is a Greek Sephardic Jew. This revelation threatens her tenuous faith. Always the overlooked child in her family, she empties her savings account and jets off on a journey to Greece to discover where she belongs and which God demands her allegiance. The enchanting curator at the Jewish museum guides her as she navigates life in Thessaloniki, helps with her genealogical research, and loans her a fascinating journal written by a Jewish woman during WWII. Tessa’s search, however, may open old wounds and uncover long-hidden secrets that could fracture her family forever and leave her with more questions than when she started.
 
Based in part on true accounts of Jews in Salonika, Greece, What I Would Tell You traces two women’s journeys, delving into what faith looks like and where it leads us as they navigate difficult circumstances and impossible choices that have ripple effects across the years.
Split time fiction: WWII and 2019
Stand-alone novel
Approximate book length: 91,000 words
Includes author’s notes

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Book Beginnings

This is the day I dreaded, the day I feared might come, the day I prayed never would.

Friday 56

I have sat by idly for far too long. I allowed the Nazis to take my husband away. Who knows if he's even alive?

My thoughts so far

This is one of the best WW2 stories I've read. The past POV is so good!                  

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Review: Distant Echoes

Distant Echoes by Colleen Coble
My rating: 💛💛💛💛

I enjoyed the second read of this story just as much as I did the first time. This time I connected Bree and Samson from the Rock Harbor series, so it was fun to be more in the know of who they were.

I loved the dolphins as part of the mystery and how everything evolved.

*I listened to the audiobook on Scribd.*

View all my reviews

About the book:

In the land of aloha and paradise, dark secrets lurk just below the surface.

When a tragic accident downs a tourist boat off the coast of Hawaii, dolphin researcher Kaia Oana is one of the first in the water, risking her own life to try and save others. She’s enlisted to help the U.S. Navy find out what really happened – utilizing her specially trained dolphins to help

Kaia and Lieutenant Commander Jesse Matthews team up in the investigation – but as they edge closer to the truth about the incident, their own lives are threatened. Will a spirit of grace and forgiveness prevail or will it be overshadowed by the distant echoes of past pain and the imminent danger from a cold-blooded killer?

Set on the breathtaking Hawaiian island of Kauai, this novel provides an intoxicating mix of romance and suspense with the rhythms of island life.

About the author:

USAToday bestselling author Colleen Coble lives with her husband, Dave, in Indiana. She is the author of

dozens of novels including the Rock Harbor Series, the Aloha Reef Series, the Mercy Falls Series, the Hope Beach Series, the Lonestar Series and two Women of Faith fiction selections, Alaska Twilight and Midnight Sea. She has more than 2 million books in print.

Review: The Max Lucado Christmas Collection: The Christmas Child, the Christmas Candle Cosmic Christmas

The Max Lucado Christmas Collection: The Christmas Child, the Christmas Candle Cosmic Christmas by Max Lucado
My rating: 💛💛💛

A sweet collection of Christmas stories with a surprising story about the supernatural events leading up to Christ’s birth and the effects thereof.

*I listened to the audiobook on Scribd.*

View all my reviews

About the book:

Come along as Max Lucado takes us on a journey into three of his bestselling Christmas classics: The Christmas Child, The Christmas Candle, and Cosmic Christmas. 

About the author:

With more than 130 million products in print and several NYT bestsellers, Max Lucado is America's bestselling inspirational author. He serves the Oak Hills Church in San Antonio, Texas, where he lives with his wife, Denalyn, and their mischievous mutt, Andy. His next book is publishing August 2018 and is titled Unshakable Hope.

https://www.facebook.com/maxlucado/

https://twitter.com/maxlucado

https://www.instagram.com/maxlucado/

Review: Prisoner

Prisoner by Camille Elliot
My rating: 💛💛💛💛

This serial should be read in order, otherwise you will loose crucial facts and feel like you are watching the first episode of the 5th season of a series.

Warning: this story includes mention of abuse/torture.

I enjoyed getting to see more scenes with the enemies in this book, having quite a few scenes with the pale eyed man (who is still very intriguing) and Jack. We also discover more about Lady Wynwood’s dead husband’s past and also learn the inner strength she has.

So many possibilities of where the author will take the reader but still so many unknowns.

If you enjoy regency era with action, suspense and some speculative fiction, you should enjoy this serial.

*I received a complimentary copy from the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.*

Reviews for all the books in the series:

 0.5 The Spinster's Christmas       

0.5b The Gentleman Thief

1. Archer

2. Berserker

3. Aggressor 

4. Betrayer        

View all my reviews

About the book:

A Christian Historical Adventure set in Regency England with romance and a supernatural twist
Part five in an epic-length serial novel

Lady Wynwood’s team of aristocrat spies is shocked at the betrayal by one of their teammates and the kidnapping of a second. In a race against time, they must find the hiding place of the treasonous group that they call the Gentians in order to save one of their own.

However, they also face the threat of mysterious agendas within the secret government department, the Ramparts. The team is split apart by the Ramparts’ leaders, who seem overly interested in using the mysterious Root elixir for their own purposes.

While knowing that each day brings more suffering and torture for the prisoner, Lady Wynwood’s spies scramble to uncover any clues left behind as to where the Gentians have gone. But with their resources and abilities limited by the Ramparts, can they make it in time before the enemy accomplishes its perplexing goal?

PLEASE NOTE: Like the novels published in Jane Austen’s time, this is a novel in multiple parts. Each volume has a completed story arc, but this is NOT a stand-alone novel and the story continues in volume 6.

Can't Wait Wednesday: Under Fire

Can't Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights and discusses the books we're excited about that we've yet to read. Generally, they're books that are yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

The third and final book in the series, is coming March 2023!

About the book: Under Fire

USSS Special Agent Zane Fletcher has landed his dream assignment protecting the president of the United States. When the president plans a fundraiser at the exclusive estate of a political supporter in Raleigh, Zane is thrilled to be working again with Special Agent Tessa Reed, his best friend--and the woman he desperately wishes could be more.

Though Tessa almost lost everything, she battled her demons and came out on the other side healthy and healed. But when her role as the liaison between the Raleigh office and the president's protective detail wrenches her past back into the present, her greatest failure threatens to come to light.

Zane refuses to let Tessa go through this alone. But can he stand by the woman he loves and protect the president from a mounting threat at the same time?

Sparks fly as award-winning romantic suspense writer Lynn H. Blackburn closes out her Defend and Protect series with this explosive tale of secrets kept, lies exposed, and relationships restored.

What are you waiting on this week?

Can't Wait Wednesday! Cold Light of Day

Can't Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Wishful Endings that spotlights and discusses the books we're excited about that we've yet to read. Generally, they're books that are yet to be released. It's based on Waiting on Wednesday, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine.

Excited about this new series coming Feb 2023!

About the book: Cold Light of Day

Police Chief Autumn Long is fighting to keep her job in the quiet Alaska town of Shadow Gap when an unexpected string of criminal activity leaves her with a wounded officer, unexplained murders, and even an attack on her own father. Despite her mistrust of outsiders, she turns to Grier Brenner, a newcomer who seems to have the skills and training Autumn needs to face this threat to her community.

Grier is in Alaska for the same reason so many others are--to disappear--when Chief Long enlists his help. He emerges from the shadows and proves his mettle, but his presence in her life could be a deadly trap for them both. If his secret is exposed, all will be lost. And he's not sure even Autumn could save him.

As the stakes rise and the dangers increase, Autumn and Grier must rely on each other to extinguish the deadly threats.

What are you waiting on this week?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Hope Santa Brings This Year

 Join in the Top Ten Tuesday fun! Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

Bookish Wishes:  Oh my, which Avid reader do not have a long wish list of books to buy.  I have so many different lists on Amazon, but if I have to choose, this will be the top 10(ish), because it is books I would like to complete series I have started and having to put on hold because I do not have the next book in the series: Wishlist

1.  The Journey of Runs-Far

2.  Return to Boones' Hallow

3.  The Baby Rescue

4.  With Autumn's Return

5.  Deadly Intent

6.  Where Grace Appears

7.  All That's Fair

8.  All That's Fair

9.  Authentically, Izzy

10.  Dark of Night