In The Maid of Fairbourne Hall by Julie Klassen, Margaret Macy is a well-to-do young woman in London whose mother has remarried a man only interested in the family’s wealth. He had thought Mrs. Macy was the one to receive an inheritance, but it is actually Margaret who will come into it on her next birthday. So Margaret’s step-father, Sterling Benton, brings his nephew in to woo Margaret, planning to “manage” their finances after they marry. But Margaret can easily see that Benton’s nephew is no better than he is, and after overhearing their unscrupulous plans, she escapes, hoping to hide out a few months until her next birthday when she comes into independence.

She disguises herself and travels as far away as what little money she has in hand will take her. She finds a hiring fair, hoping to find work as a maid, even though she has never done any such labor in her life. She is hired by a kindly steward and doesn’t learn til they are on their way that the home they are going to is one in which two brothers who had been former suitors of hers live.

Her disguise seems to work, though, and Margaret learns over time that she may have misjudged both the brother she spurned as well as the one she preferred. She also learns much about herself and life “below stairs.”

This was a delightful book. It didn’t take long for me to get hooked and then look for nooks and crannies of time beyond the norm to get a few pages read.

I’ve read books about maids before, but this one incorporated a lot of information that was new to me.

I had seen Julie Klassen’s books but hadn’t yet read one. When this one was free for the Kindle app (at the time, it no longer is), I decided to try it, and now I’ll be looking for Julie’s other books as well!

The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis is the second in her Home to Hickory Hollow series, and some characters are in both books, but each can easily be understood alone.

Joanna Kurtz is close to suffering from the old cliche, “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride.” She is 24, which by her community’s standard sets her in danger of being an old maid, and there are no prospects of a suitor in site. But an out-of-town trip for a relative’s funeral leads to a meeting with Eben Troyer, a young Amish man near her age.

The two hit it off immediately, but their relationship is beset my many problems. Besides living in different states and only communicating by letter and an every-other-week phone call, Eben is responsible for helping his father on the farm. The farm would go by rights to his younger brother, Leroy, but Leroy is off “in the world,” getting higher education and learning to fly planes, both taboo to the Amish. All of Eben’s hopes are tied up in Leroy’s coming “back to the fold,” which humanly speaking does not look likely.

Joanna has a semi-secret hobby: she loves to write stories. While not expressly forbidden, it is frowned upon. When news of it reaches the bishop’s ear, he pays a visit to warn her against it. Innocently she asks about the difference between writing stories and telling them, as there are famed Amish story-tellers, but she is threatened with shunning if her impertinence continues. If Joanna is in trouble with her bishop, that would not only affect her own life and her family, but it would likely prevent her from being able to move out of state as well.

Just as these problems  and others for Joanna and Eben come to a head, another young man from Joanna’s community, who seemed undesirable before, begins to show her attention, and she wonders whether God might be leading her toward him.

A relative gives Joanna a quilt stitched by her namesake, and as Joanna learns the story behind the quilt, it inspires her to trust the Lord for her future.

I enjoyed this story and Joanna’s journey. I especially appreciated that in this series, each plot wraps up instead of being held over until the sequel. I always enjoy Beverly’s books. There is something cozy about them, and I admire the industriousness and gentleness of the Amish women. Beverly does not gloss over the problems the Amish face, though, especially the legalism that varies from church to church. I’m looking forward to the next book in the series in April.

In The Discovery by Dan Walsh, famous author Gerard Warner has just passed away. Though well-loved, he was reclusive, not allowing photographs of himself on his book covers, only granting print interviews, never going on book tours. No one knew him like his family, especially his grandson, Michael, who is also an aspiring author.

At the reading of the will, the family members discover that they are each now ridiculously wealthy, and Michael has been willed his grandfather’s beautiful home in Charleston, SC. Michael can begin in earnest now to pursue his own dreams of writing.

In his grandfather’s office Michael discovers a previously unpublished manuscript from his grandfather along with a note indicating that he had intended for Michael to find it. As Michael becomes engrossed in the WWII spy novel, he begins to realize the impact this book will have on his family. And since his grandfather’s manuscript is published as a book within this book, readers can follow along as well.

I can’t say too much more about the plot without spoiling it, and some readers may be able to figure out the main thrust of it just from these few words. But even though I figured things out way before Michael did, this was still a very intriguing read.

My only real criticism of the book is that the spiritual truth in it comes through a character who is a part of what I would consider to be a works-based denomination (though one is not saved by denomination but by personal repentance and faith in Christ). This is the second book in which Walsh has done that. I wouldn’t have a problem with it if this was a secular novel, but in Christian fiction I am dismayed to see such lines blurred.

But overall I really enjoyed the story. Charleston is one of my all-time favorite cities, and I loved the scenes there. The dilemma that Ben, the character in Gerard’s manuscript, finds himself in is heart-wrenching, and  making sacrifices for one you love is displayed on several levels.

Rare Earth by Davis Bunn is the sequel to The Lion of Babylon (linked to my review), but it could easily be read as a stand-alone book.

A former operative for State department, Marc Royce drops into the middle of a crisis in Africa under cover as the employee of Lodestone, a for-profit U. S. company contracted to bring in emergency supplies. A volcano near the border between Kenya and Uganda has erupted onto land “already devastated by drought, famine, and civil war.”

It’s just a bit confusing at first because as readers we don’t know what Marc’s real mission is, why people react negatively to him at first, and what the reasons are for the tensions among different people. But we trust all will come to light soon, and we are rewarded.

And since “rare earth” is in the title and the back-of-the-book description, it is not a spoiler to say that the minerals called by that name are the prize for which someone has been exploiting the area. An aide is missing, many villagers have been forced from their land, and something seems fishy within Lodestone. But discerning what is actually going on, whom to trust, and how to help the situation are reasons Marc has been called in.

This book is well written, the characters are fully rounded, the story is suspenseful, and an area unfamiliar to most is well-described. For those who are familiar with the TV program 24, Marc is much like what I imagine Jack Bauer would be if he was a Christian. 🙂 The latter part of the book is a bit heavy on the hero accolades for me, but otherwise it was an engaging read.

For those who like book trailers, here is the one for Rare Earth:

The folks at 5 Minutes For Books host What’s On Your Nightstand? the fourth Tuesday of each month in which we can share about the books we have been reading and/or plan to read.

It has been a busy month, but I’ve enjoyed getting some reading in.

Since last time I have finished (all links in this section are to my reviews):

The Horse and His Boy by C. S. Lewis

Not By Chance: Learning to Trust a Sovereign God by Layton Talbert. Excellent.

Roots by Alex Haley, audiobook, traces the boyhood and journey of Kunta Kinte and his descendants after he is brought to America as a slave. Gripping, fascinating, heartbreaking.

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption by Laura Hillenbrand, audiobook. True story. Excellent.

Safely Home by Randy Alcorn. Two former college roommates, one in America and one in China, get reacquainted and are surprised at each other’s lives. Good.

With Every Letter by Sarah Sundin. A nurse and a soldier with reasons to want their identity hidden begin an anonymous correspondence and teach each other about faith, identity in Christ, openness, and forgiveness. Excellent.

Never Again Good-bye by Terri Blackstock, audiobook. A man observes a woman seeming to stalk his daughter, has her arrested, and finds out she’s the child’s biological mother. Good, though the rest of the plot is a bit unrealistic.

The House at Riverton by Kate Morton. Not reviewed. Beautiful, excellent writing, but a sordid, soap-operaish plot-line and an unnecessary vulgar word that I just will not tolerate in fiction.

I’m currently reading:

The Disciplines of Grace by Jerry Bridges with Challies‘ “Reading Classics Together” group.

Unless It Moves the Human Heart: The Craft and Art of Writing by Roger Rosenblatt

Rare Earth by Davis Bunn

Uncle Tom’s Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe, audiobook, in preparation for Carrie‘s Book Club which I am hosting in October (feel free to join in!)

Next up:

The Bridesmaid by Beverly Lewis, due out in September.

The Discovery by Dan Walsh

Audiobooks of C. S. Lewis’s Space Trilogy.

Thriving at College: Make Great Friends, Keep Your Faith, and Get Ready for the Real World! by Alex Chediak, since my youngest just started college yesterday!

What’s on your nightstand? Happy reading!

Sarah Sundin was my favorite new author of 2010, and I eagerly awaited her new Wings of the Nightingale series. I pre-ordered the first book, With Every Letter, and was surprised and happy when it arrived a month before it was due!

In this book, Philomela “Mellie” Blake is a flight nurse during WWII. Her exceptional shyness is exacerbated by her unconventional (for that time) heritage and looks, making it extremely hard for her to find friends. When a morale-building program of writing anonymously to soldiers begins, she participates, at first because her supervisor wants her to, but later because of the freedom anonymity gives her.

Her corresponding soldier is a Lt. Tom MacGilliver, and anonymity appeals to him, too, because his name has been a burden to him most of his life: his father was a famous killer, and people are wary of him. He can’t let down and be real with anyone…except Mellie.

As friendship begins to blossom into something more, they both wonder whether breaking their anonymity would destroy the relationship they are building.

Though this is a romance, it isn’t just a romance. Susan has a way of integrating a lot of detail and research about the era, locale, planes, etc., without making it seem encyclopedic or dry. Her details enhance the story. But ultimately, the highlight of the story is what the characters have to learn spiritually: the willingness to open oneself up to being known and the risk of rejection and betrayal, the realization of their own faults and shortcomings, not letting those faults  keep them wallowing in the mire but letting them drive them to seek God’s mercy and grace and allowing them to work compassion for others into their hearts, and the need for forgiveness.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to the next in the series.