Amanda Barratt: The Warsaw Sisters

By Kelly Bridgewater

On a golden August morning in 1939, sisters Antonina and Helena Dąbrowska send their father off to defend Poland against the looming threat of German invasion. The next day, the first bombs fall on Warsaw, decimating their beloved city and shattering the world of their youth.

When Antonina's beloved Marek is forced behind ghetto walls along with the rest of Warsaw's Jewish population, Antonina turns her worry into action and becomes a key figure in a daring network of women risking their lives to shelter Jewish children. Helena finds herself drawn into the ranks of Poland's secret army, joining the fight to free her homeland from occupation. But the secrets both are forced to keep threaten to tear the sisters apart--and the cost of resistance proves greater than either ever imagined.

Shining a light on the oft-forgotten history of Poland during WWII and inspired by true stories of ordinary individuals who fought to preserve freedom and humanity in the darkest of times, The Warsaw Sisters is a richly rendered portrait of courage, sacrifice, and the resilience of our deepest ties.

 

My Thoughts:

The Warsaw Sisters by Amanda Barratt is a heart wrenching taste of reality. Set during the occupation of Poland in 1939 through April 1945, Barratt follows the lives of twin sisters who fight individually against the Germans. Every time I read a World War II novel; I want to fight against the horrible Nazi’s. Makes me angry all that they had gotten away with. Reminds me slightly of what Biden tried to pull with his Covid vaccines in 2022. Not legal. I understand Hitler was worse, but if Americans did not stand up, I’m afraid the same thing will happen here one day. Anyways, as for the plot, Barratt did a good job of tugging at my heart a couple of times. I cringed. I wanted to cry. I was happy. The Teacher of Warsaw by Mario Escobar features inside the Ghetto that Barratt features in her story, but this time Barratt shows what the Polish people were doing to survive and fight on the outside. While the plot was nicely handled, Barratt has a skill at crafting characters that are three dimensional with pain, hurt, love, and strength. I wanted to see the girls succeed. Also, the setting was as much a character as the people moving through the story. Barratt showed the horror and destruction caused to the city and the buildings. Overall, The Warsaw Sisters by Amanda Barratt is a wonderful, yet haunting tale of Poland during World War II. I can’t wait to own this book in my library.

I received a complimentary copy of The Warsaw Sisters by Amanda Barratt from Revell Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating:   4.5 out of 5 stars

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Bible Verse: James 3 : 13 - 18

 By Kelly Bridgewater

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. ¹⁴ But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. ¹⁵ Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. ¹⁶ For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

¹⁷ But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. ¹⁸ Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.”

Lord, allow me to have the wisdom to seek you and not harbor angry toward anyone. Amen.

 

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=James+3&version=NIV

 

Jennifer Graeser Dornbush: Last One Alive

By Kelly Bridgewater

Dr. Emily Hartford is back in Chicago, ready to move forward and leave the past behind, until an unexpected request for help sends her deep into an investigation -- and into the path of a killer.

Seventeen months after the Parkman case, Dr. Hartford has returned to Chicago to finish her surgical residency. But when she is contacted out of the blue by Solange McClelland, the only survivor of a decade-old triple homicide, Emily is compelled to dig deeper. She doesn’t know the details of the event but remembers it as one of the few cases her deceased father never solved.

On her thirtieth birthday, Solange opens a long-forgotten safe-deposit box and is entirely baffled by what she finds. Inside are not only painful reminders of a once-happy youth but almost four million dollars -- enough to pursue and finally solve the mystery of who brutally murdered her family. It’s been over ten years, and Solange has built a new life in Detroit with her husband, Joseph. But there are certain disturbing questions about her past that she is determined to answer. So she reaches out to the only one who might know something about her family’s deaths and their possibly erroneous death certificates -- Dr. Hartford, the daughter of Freeport’s former medical examiner.

Finding it impossible to believe that her scrupulous father made a mistake, Emily joins Solange’s pursuit of the truth, and as subzero temperatures blanket snow-covered Michigan, the two women pursue justice in two very different ways. But lurking nearby in the frigid cold is a crafty, unrepentant killer, determined to finish what he started long ago.

 

My Thoughts:

Last One Alive by Jennifer Graeser Dornbush has plenty of thrills and clue hunting for the biggest fans of suspense novels. As for the plot, the concept of being the last one alive when your whole family has been killed has been done before. Dornbush does a wonderful job at inviting the readers into Dr. Emily Hartford’s internal dialogue as she struggles with her career choices, relationships, and trying to solve the current mystery. Since this is the third novel with Dr. Hartford, readers will become more familiar with her personality, her work ethic, and her background. As a word of caution, there are a couple of cuss words in the story and Dornbush does have the characters have sex even though they are not married or even in a relationship. It is one sentence, so readers do not have to worry that they will see anything, but some readers might not want to follow a character that does that type of thing. As for the climactic moment, it felt like a little bit of a letdown. I wanted more. I wanted more explanation of some of the clues that were given. Overall, Last One Alive by Jennifer Graeser Dornbush is suspenseful enough to keep the readers trying to figure out who the villain is with a familiar character.

I received a complimentary copy of Last One Alive by Jennifer Graeser Dornbush from Blackstone Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating:   4 out of 5 stars

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Irene Hannon: Into the Fire

By Kelly Bridgewater

As a former smokejumper, arson investigator Bri Tucker knows her way around fires. But after a mysterious blaze takes the life of a former colleague, Bri inherits a curious puzzle from him that raises questions about several fiery deaths. Someone, however, doesn't want her picking up where he left off in search of answers.

When she teams up with ATF Special Agent Marc Davis to solve the puzzle, the danger escalates. But will they manage to track down the person behind the mysterious deaths before their budding romance--and maybe even their lives--go up in flames?

The bestselling and award-winning queen of romantic suspense is back with a brand-new series that is sure to get your adrenaline pumping as you burn through the pages to discover the truth.

 My Thoughts:

Into the Fire by Irene Hannon dives into the world of Fire inspectors. From the first page, readers are introduced to the hero and the heroine as they try to investigate a fire scene. Hannon does a wonderful job at crafting a suspense element that keeps readers guessing and hoping for more. I have only seen one other story that featured fire inspectors, and that was Dee Henderson's The Protector. I love the past and the hard reality of the heroine's past. Domestic abuse and violence was brought to reality in this story. The faith element was not really an element in the story. Hannon did not have the characters have some faith driven moment of reality. Instead, they had a reality of what love is and how that will affect their future relationship. The heroine is part of a trio of adopted siblings that I think Hannon will feature in the next two stories. Already readers will see their deep relationship and what bonds them together. Overall, Into the Fire by Irene Hannon is a good introduction to the Tucker family, and I can't wait to meet Jack and Caroline in a more personal close way. 

I received a complimentary copy of Into the Fire by Irene Hannon from Revell Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.  

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars 

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Happy Halloween

By Kelly Bridgewater

freepik.com

 

Happy Halloween!

I love the spookiness of the season.

Cooler temperatures.

Costumes.

Candy.

Watching the Halloween episodes of Roseanne. Even though I have seen them a million times, I look forward to seeing all of them during Halloween.

Have a great weekend!

 

Elizabeth Goddard: Shadows at Dusk

By Kelly Bridgewater

Montana Detective Trevor West is desperate to learn what happened to his sister, who went missing in Alaska over a year ago, leaving nothing but a few photographs as clues to her whereabouts. At the advice of Police Chief Autumn Long, Trevor enlists the help of an experienced bush pilot. If Carrie James can't help him find the places in the photographs, no one can.

But Carrie has her own agenda. Grieving the death of her closest friend and the only person she could trust, Carrie will help Trevor find his sister on one condition--that he help her track down her friend's killer.

As the two close in on the answers they crave, they'll face dangers and connections they could not have imagined. They'll have to learn to trust one another--and face the dark secrets of the past--if they are ever to discover the truth and bring a killer to justice.

 

My Thoughts:

Shadows at Dusk by Elizabeth Goddard took a while for me to get into. Right from the beginning, there was a high octane moment, but then when the story moved into Alaska, it took a little bit of time to dive into the actual story. A lot of flying over places. Questioning locals with the image of Jennifer in Trevor's pocket. While the heroine and hero expressed they were falling in love, I, personally, had a really hard time buying it. Yes, they had a past, but then they wanted to trust each other and fell in love way too quickly. Personally, if I was running for my life, I would not stop think of my feelings for this other person were real or not. As for the plot, it was okay. Not really that exciting until the characters landed on Jacob's Mountain. I did find it odd that as they were searching for answers people would come out of the woodwork and hit them, sabotage their plane, and simple things to keep them from looking. Because not even the characters knew what they were looking for. Pictures that Jennifer left were the only clue, but they honestly were not clues, in my book. Overall, Shadows at Dusk by Elizabeth Goddard needed more depth to the plot and the suspense element. I found the romance unbelievable too.

I received a complimentary copy of Shadows at Dusk by Elizabeth Goddard from Revell Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

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Erica Vetsch: Children of the Shadows

By Kelly Bridgewater

Welcome to the Blog Tour for Children of the Shadows by Erica Vetsch, hosted by JustRead Publicity Tours!

About the Book

Title: Children of the Shadows
Series: Thorndike & Swann Regency Mysteries #3
Author: Erica Vetsch
Publisher: Kregel Publications
Release Date: October 23, 2023
Genre: Christian Regency Mystery

Detective Daniel Swann and debutante Juliette Thorndike once again team up to solve a dangerous mystery--while trying to keep their growing romance secret.

Someone is preying upon the street children of Regency London. They seem to think no one will notice when urchins go missing--and even if they are noticed, who will care?

Daniel needs to do something about the missing children. But with recent revelations about his past and an unexpected, somewhat unwelcome inheritance to deal with, this is a terrible time to dive back into the seedy underbelly of the crime world. Nevertheless, he's still a Bow Street runner, and his partner Lady Juliette is sensitive to the plight of these wayward youngsters. They're on the case, searching shadowed alleys and coal-drenched streets to find the missing.

But the tangle of expectation and the dynamics of power cannot be easily ignored, even if there are children in danger. When Daniel's past threatens to overwhelm his future, he will need a miracle and the help of his friends to both apprehend the villain and unravel his tangled family web. And it may be that his new responsibilities demand that he leave the children of the shadows to their terrible fate--or lose everything.

Erica Vetsch's popular Regency mystery series concludes with a bang, sure to satisfy readers who have hung on every page since book one.

 

My Thoughts:

Missing Children. Rightful heir to a name. Emotions running wild. These are some of the events that will happen when readers approach and dive into Children of the Shadows by Erica Vetsch. I enjoy the tame mystery element of the Regency era mystery. Nothing over the top, but enough of a head scratcher that readers will keep flipping through the pages to find out what is happening to the children. I love how seamless the story flows. Once I dove into the lives of Daniel and Juliette, it was like returning to friends that readers have not seen for a while. It was nice to play catch up and feel the hurt and love just alongside them. The setting is nicely handled and developed in my imagination as the characters roam through London from the wealthy to the poor side of town. Readers should definitely read the first two books in the series to help set up some of the backstory for Daniel. Not that this story cannot be read as a stand alone novel, but the first two stories give more information on what happens in this story. Vetsch does a wonderful job at crafting a couple of threads that has woven through all three stories and delivered them nicely to the readers like she promised. Overall, Children of the Shadows by Erica Vetsch is definitely a book that I want to own in my personal library and would recommend this story to young mystery lovers.

I received a complimentary copy of Children of the Shadows by Erica Vetsch from Kregel Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating:   4.5 out of 5 stars

PURCHASE LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | ChristianBook | Bookshop | BookBub

More in This Series

 

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About the Author

Erica Vetsch is a New York Times best-selling author and ACFW Carol Award winner, and has been a

Romantic Times top pick for her previous books. She loves Jesus, history, romance, and watching sports.

This transplanted Kansan now makes her home in Rochester, Minnesota.

Connect with Erica by visiting ericavetsch.com to follow her on social media and sign up for email updates.

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Tour Giveaway

(1) winner will win a complete paperback set of the Thorndike and Swann series, and a $10 amazon gift card

Full tour schedule linked below. The giveaway begins at midnight October 23, 2023 and will last through 11:59

PM EST on October 30, 2023. Winner will be notified within 2 weeks of close of the giveaway and given 48

hours to respond or risk forfeiture of prize. US only. Void where prohibited by law or logistics.

Giveaway is subject to JustRead Publicity Tours Giveaway Policies.

Enter Giveaway

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Follow along at JustRead Tours for a full list of stops!