The Wood's Edge

A review by Spencer

“Now I make no claim to prophecy, but this I know: it is a matter of time before my waking eyes see that which haunts me in the night.”

Well, I’ve got to say, what initially drew me to read The Wood’s Edge, by Lori Benton, was the cover art. Lovely. It tells a story on its own. The blurb also intrigued me.

I have to admit it took me a little bit to get interested. Several chapters, in fact, but I resisted the urge to close the book and continue later. As the pacing picked up, and I became more familiar with the 1700 time period and the language nuances throughout, I became more absorbed.

Okay…as far as the plot, this story is strong. It has good pacing—at times intense, and others more subdued, but my mind tended to wander during the slower parts. Perhaps it was my frame of mind while reading it. (I’d heard from another reader that the ending leaves you hanging, so it lessened my interest.) But the characters are compelling and the storyline is fresh and captivating.

I’d have given this book a higher rating if the ending had been more satisfying. The author is a talented writer with a unique storytelling style that I grew to enjoy very much, but I yearn for a more satiated feeling upon closing the book.

Publisher: Random House LLC

Page Count: 400

Purchase Link: Amazon

Book Rating:

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Disclosure of Material Connection in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: BloggingForBooks has provided me a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

The Wood's Edge

A review by Abi

Remorse and self-loathing battered from within, tempting him to open his coat and invite this bloody-minded heathen staring him down across the embers to try for his heart.

The blurb of The Wood's Edge intrigued me. Living in Upstate New York, I'm aware of the plentiful history surrounding my neck of the woods. However, this book brought that history alive with splendor, grief, adventure and daily life in the 1700's. I loved the varied cast of characters, and though there are many, I never once got them mixed up. Every character is well-developed and believable. I became absolutely engrossed while delving into the world rich with history.

Sometimes the timeline had me going back a page or two in order grasp where I was, because it sometimes moved too swiftly. However it didn't take much to be invested again. I felt like I was living the story as it unfolded right with the characters…and I must admit, I'm a tiny bit in love with Two-Hawks, but I'm sure Anna won't have any of that nonsense, so I'll have to settle for swooning.

I won't reiterate the blurb, but I will say the choices Reginald made affected every character in the book, which goes to show how his decision to steal a child, no matter the reason, will have life-long repercussions.

Lori Benton's writing is visual, her voice soft and gentle. I loved this book.

In the interest of an honest review, I must also state what I found lacking, or didn't like about the book. The Wood's Edge kept me on the edge of my seat—then dropped me on my butt with the last scene. I was left blinking, wondering what the heck just happened. I needed closure and only then did I realize this story was left with a major plot unfinished. I love series books. Heck, I even write them. However, I prefer a book to have closure, series or not. The Wood's Edge left me hanging and to tell the truth, a bit frustrated.

 However, now that you know this will leave you hanging, you won't come across this by surprise. Therefore, I still highly recommend this book. Lori Benton's creation is amazing.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book from Blogging for Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The options I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255

Where Treetops Glisten

Review by Abi

When you're empty inside," Pastor Hughes said, "the best think you can do is give. Find a need, step outside of yourself, and give."

Excerpt:Where Treetops Glisten

Where Treetops Glisten is three novellas in one. All of them are about different family members in the Turner family. The settings vary from Lafayette, Indiana on a Christmas Eve in 1941, from to the Netherlands during the war. All of the stories are titled after Christmas songs of the WWII era.

I loved the premise of each story, but liked some more than others. The prologue, Winter Wonderland, was abrupt and rushed and I didn't connect with it at all. 

That being said, I still liked the connection between the stories in When Treetops Glisten. The entwining stories all would work as a stand-alone as well.

White Christmas, by Cara Putman, has a good storyline, but I found the repetitive "telling" in the story tedious at times. After initially telling the main character, Abigail Turner, is afraid to love there should've been more "showing" instead of repeating the fact over and over. I found it distracting and it made it hard for me to completely immerse myself in the story.

However, the author sure has a way with character development and made me care what happened to Abigail Turner. She has decided she will not ever fall in love again because the man she loved died in the war. After meeting a man, Jackson Lucas, she is smitten, but fights it. Jackson is a brooding sort of fellow, but Abigail is intrigued and wants to find out what is underneath his sad demeanor…and he slowly creeps into her heart. Neither one of them knows how to handle the feelings for each other, and I found myself rooting for both of them to find their way into each other's arms

I also wanted to slap them. The repetitive "refuse to fall in love" plot was tiring. I struggled to finish the story. That doesn't mean I didn't relate to the characters, it's just that it seemed kind of juvenile and…well, a bit more of a read for a teenager. 

White Christmas is a story of courage, growth and trust.

I’ll Be Home for Christmas, by Sarah Sundin, is my favorite novella of the three. I loved every character, the setting and the storyline. This story is a mix of so many things, most of all faith and love. A pilot in the war, Pete Turner, returns to his home of Lafayette Indiana after completing his tour of combat. Like many soldiers, he is emotionally and physically scarred and looks forward to a calm life back home.

One day, while walking down the main part of his small town, he encounters Linnie, a high-spirted child. Alone. With no parent in sight. Linnie informs him that he is going to be her new daddy. He searches for the child's home, assuming the worst of her mother. Upon meeting Linnie's mother, Grace Kessler, he realizes how worried and caring she is, and feels bad for thinking ill of her. Grace and Linnie change his world to a brighter place—until everything comes crashing down.

I adored Linnie, her antics and honesty shone through. Grace's love for her child, and the fact she is a working single parent in the 1940's is a wonderful twist. She is doing it on her own, with no need for a man…yet can she welcome Pete Turner completely into her heart when she discovers he lied to her?

It seems both characters are strong, independent and intelligent, but Linnie wants them to be together as a family. At times, things run smooth and I was certain they would end up together. Then a twist…and another twist. Oh my gosh, how I loved this story!

I’ll Be Home for Christmas is a  charming, believable and heart-wrenching story. I adored it.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, by Tricia Goyer, is a story about Meredith, the youngest of the Turner family. Intent on setting herself apart as baby of the family she joins the war effort as a nurse in Nieuwenhagen, Netherlands on the frontlines. While nursing the soldiers, including the enemy, she also nurses a broken heart of her own. Left alone by the man she loves, all she has left is his abrupt goodbye letter. She and David had a budding romance, full of promise, and she has no idea where he is or why he left…or why he had Nazi pamphlets in his room. Was she in love with a traitor?

She leaves everything in the hands of God, and tries her best to move on. Until she thinks she spots him on the outskirts of town.

The constant surprises, trials, and passion is a page turning phenomena. The characters are well-developed, and their stories are beautifully told.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas is a well written and beautiful story.

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

Page Count: 368

Purchase Link: Amazon

Book Rating:

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Disclosure of Material Connection in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: BloggingForBooks has provided me a copy of this book in exchange for a review.

Where Treetops Glisten

A review by Spencer

by Tricia Goyer, Cara Putman, Sarah Sundin

“It’s amazing, don’t you think, that the holiday spirit can be so strong even in the midst of war?”

Where Treetops Glisten is a compilation of three novellas about the Turner family during the Second World War. The book, as well as each novella, is titled after timeless Christmas songs: White Christmas, I’ll Be Home for Christmas, and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. The stories are interconnected without a glitch; revealing the tragedies and triumphs the family endures during the early 1940s. The novellas, though intertwined, serve well as stand-alones, each centering on a Turner sibling.

White Christmas, by Cara Putman, takes place in Lafayette, Indiana, on Christmas Eve, 1941. Abigail Turner, a vivacious college student, has a chance meeting with Jackson Lucas, a mysterious young man who rescues her from being hit by a car. An attraction is evident almost instantaneously, but Abigail has vowed to guard her heart, still aching from the loss of her fiancé who died in the war. After getting to know each other, Jackson reveals a legal issue weighs him down. Abigail invites him to speak to her father, a successful lawyer, who may be able to help. This results in a tangle of issues and emotions.

My thoughts on this story of finding the courage to love are mixed. The story is nostalgic, innocent, and charming. Abigail is likable, and Jackson, somewhat dreamy, yet it was difficult for me to become totally immersed in the story. It felt very “vanilla” and needed a little more punch, a little more spice, or a little more…something. This isn’t to say I wasn’t invested in Jackson’s dilemma, or Abigail’s struggle to protect her heart, I was. The feel of this novella is somewhat young, as if it were written more for a teen. That probably has to do with the nostalgic, more simplistic time of the 1940s.

White Christmas is a saccharine sweet story of love and courage.

I’ll Be Home for Christmas, by Sarah Sundin, is multi-layered with hope, faith, forgiveness, and peace. Lieutenant Pete Turner returns to 1943 Indiana, after his combat tour piloting a P-47 Thunderbolt fighter plane over Nazi-occupied Europe. He’s burdened with the ravages of war and hopes to gain some calm and quiet in his life. When he encounters Linnie, a lost little girl, on the snowy streets of Lafayette, the opposite of calm enters his world. After his search to find Linnie’s mother, Grace Kessler, his heart finds its smile. Grace is much different than he expected, and his burdens become lighter—for a little while, anyway. An unexpected time in the past finds its way back into Pete’s relationship with Grace, and everything gained could soon be lost.

I love this story of finding love! Grace Kessler is intelligent and fervent, and her relationship with her daughter, though wearisome, is incredibly touching. I like that Grace, though a widow struggling to keep things together for her daughter, isn’t portrayed as a weak woman in need of a rescuer. I also like that Pete has his own weaknesses and might need a rescuer of his own. I was totally absorbed in this triangle of a story. Grace, Pete, and little Linnie are complex characters with vibrant personalities. The secondary characters are colorful as well and add to the charm of this Christmastime tale.

I’ll Be Home for Christmas is a captivating, delightful treat that leaves me fully sated.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas, by Tricia Goyer, shows that overcoming our fears, and trusting God, will see us through even our darkest hours. It opens during the winter of 1944, in Nieuwenhagen, Netherlands in the frontlines of the war. Meredith (Merry) Turner currently works at a makeshift hospital (formerly a schoolhouse) where she prays for and nurses injured American and German soldiers. Not only is this youngest sibling of the Turner family burdened with the ravages of war, but also the heartbreak from being lied to and abandoned by her former love, a music teacher named David. God works in mysterious ways, but can Merry find peace amidst so many injuries and death?

This story centers on Meredith, the youngest of the Turner siblings, and her search for truth and healing. In my opinion, it’s the most heartrending of the three. Meredith, David, and the secondary characters jump off the page, full of passion, grief, and even joy and tenderness. I became immersed in Meredith’s story—In her range of emotions, her strength, her weaknesses, and her longing for home. This story is a memorable one, and provides a rewarding closure.

Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas moved me to tears, and brought the trio of novellas full circle.

Overall, Where Treetops Glisten is a fulfilling holiday book, readying me for the approaching Christmas season. I love how the authors were inspired by the Christmas songs of the WWII era, capitalized references to God, and imparted a familiarity of days gone by that gives a wistful, realistic portrayal of life in the 1940s.

Book Bonus (in the back of the book):

          ·      Cookie Exchange: Four Christmas cookie recipes.

          ·      Readers Guide: Questions for book clubs and personal introspection.

          ·      A Chat With Authors: Revealing a behind the scenes of this collaboration.

          ·      About the Authors: Photos, bios, social media pages, and websites.

Publisher: Waterbrook Press

Page Count: 368

Purchase Link: Amazon

Book Rating:

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Disclosure of Material Connection in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: BloggingForBooks has provided me a copy of this book in exchange for a review.