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Raccoon Key by Donnah M Cole

Apr11

Engaging & Entertaining

Raccoon Key by Donnah M Cole is a powerful dual timeline novel that entertained me from the start.

The action is set in 1873 and 2023 in Raccoon Key. It is an isolated maritime community where life is hard as one battles the natural elements. The two time periods are linked by generational ancestors. People often did the same job as their father and his father before him.

An unexplained death in 1873 is still having ramifications one hundred and fifty years later. The coroner’s report at the time is at odds with present day thinking. An old diary recording the events leading up to the day is found – will this be the key to unlock the mystery?

Legends have sprung up, particularly around crows, and the significance of seeing one.

The American Civil War was over by 1873 but those in the South still faced prejudice and persecution as the Klu Klux Klan had sprung up. “Slavery had ended in ink and speeches… But fear still rode the back roads at night.”

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When I’m With You by Rachel Hauck

Apr5

The Heart Of The Father

When I’m With You by Rachel Hauck is the most delightful Christian contemporary novel that I adored. It is the first book in the Home To Hearts Bend series which promises to be fabulous.

Hearts Bend is the place where everyone knows your name. “Friends take care of friends in this town.” Where there are needs, they are met. The location feels familiar to readers of Rachel Hauck’s previous books as characters and locations have been met previously.

All the characters are wonderfully warm and welcoming. The reader really feels wrapped up in the tale as we receive a hug in a book.

We learn about what is really important – family. Friends. God. Love. “She [Granny] loved well.” We all need people to love us. Characters feel drawn back to Hearts Bend as it is the place that they call home.

A character has suffered from Epstein Barr Virus. “Broken things always needed love.” Her spirit doesn’t feel like she can love anyone for fear of passing on the Epstein Barr Virus – but God does not want us to live in fear. He wants us to trust His guiding and to live and love in freedom.

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Secrets Of The Desert Rose by Marilyn Turk

Mar31

The Bonds We Form

Secrets Of The Desert Rose by Marilyn Turk is a powerful Christian dual timeline novel that I thoroughly enjoyed.

The novel is set in 2019 America and Algeria, and during World War II in Algeria. The time periods are linked by a great grandmother and her great granddaughter as the latter wants to step into her great grandmother’s wartime footsteps.

We see that friendships formed in the early 1930’s between English Audrey and French Monique have strong bonds. They both share a secret which they keep for many years.

The two women are more like sisters than friends. Audrey spent years searching for love from her cold-hearted parents. It is in Monique’s family that she finds love.

Audrey is the more adventurous of the two. Monique prefers to watch from the sidelines. Monique’s family are wealthy. During the 1930’s there were many parties with a common goal “to find a husband.” This changes with the advent of war. Both women fight two very different wars but both are very brave.

In both time periods we hear of the archaeological digs and the landscape of Algeria. It is vibrant and comes to life under the author’s descriptive pen.

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The Shadow Twins by Fiona Holloway

Mar18

Wow! Just Wow!

The Shadow Twins by Fiona Holloway is a totally gripping psychological suspense that I could not put down.

We see the effects on three lives after a dreadful tragedy saw a young twin sister drown (before the book opened). The marriage has fallen apart as the mother and remaining twin sister move houses and schools for a fresh start. “Was this what she had wanted? A town where no one knew her name, where no one asked questions?”

What starts out as anonymity soon warps into notoriety as the lives of both mother and daughter begin to unravel.

The mother is eaten up with grief, sorrow and guilt. She is denying the need for help, whilst nursing a dreadful secret.

The remaining twin appears to be communicating with her dead sister – but is she? Or is it grief and denial talking?

A fresh start in a new school brings some shocking results. The mother doesn’t believe they need help – when they clearly do.

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