1st Line/1st Paragraph: What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon

June 25, 2019

1st Line/1st Paragraph: What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon

I’m linking up this week with Vicki @ I’d Rather Be At The Beach who hosts a meme every Tuesday to share the First Chapter/First Paragraph of the book you are currently reading.

I’m pleased to share the first line and first paragraph of What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon. If you love historical fiction, a love story, and time travel, this may be a good read for you.

From Amazon: Anne Gallagher grew up enchanted by her grandfather’s stories of Ireland. Heartbroken at his death, she travels to his childhood home to spread his ashes. There, overcome with memories of the man she adored and consumed by a history she never knew, she is pulled into another time. Caught between history and her heart, she must decide whether she’s willing to let go of the life she knew for a love she never thought she’d find. But in the end, is the choice actually hers to make?

What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, Love Story, Time Travel

1st Line/1st Few Paragraphs:

“Grandfather, tell me about your mother.” He was silent as he smoothed my hair, and for a long moment, I thought he hadn’t heard me.

“She was beautiful. Her hair was dark, her eyes green, just like yours are.”

“Do you miss her?” Tears leaked out the sides of my eyes and made his shoulder wet beneath my cheek. I missed my mother desperately.

“Not anymore,” my grandfather soothed.

“Why?” I was suddenly angry with him. How could he betray her that way? It was his duty to miss her.

“Because she is still with me.”

This made me cry harder.

“Hush now, Annie. Be still. Be still. If you are crying, you won’t be able to hear.”

“Hear what?” I gulped, slightly distracted from my anguish.

“The wind. It’s singing.”

I perked up, lifting my head slightly, listening for what my grandfather could hear. “I don’t hear a song,” I contended.

“Listen closer. Maybe it’s singing for you.” It howled and hurried, pressing against my bedroom window.

“I hear the wind,” I confessed, allowing the sound to lull me. “But it isn’t singing a very pretty song. It sounds more like it’s shouting.”

“Maybe the wind is trying to get your attention. Maybe it has something very important to say,” he murmured.

After reading From Sand and Ash last year, I declared Amy Harmon a favorite author. I’m eager to dive into her new title after reading a few glowing reviews. I’m not that enamored with time travel but I do love a good love story, so we’ll see how this goes!

QOTD:

Have you read From Sand and Ash?

Do you love time travel stories?

Looking Ahead:

Coming next week! A special collaboration post with twelve other bloggers as we each give our recommendation for ONE great summer book!

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Resistance Women: A Review

June 28, 2019

Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

Genre/Categories: Historical Fiction, Pre WW11, WW11, Jewish, German

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

Summary:

Mildred Fish, an American College graduate, meets the love of her life, Arvid Harnack. After they fall in love, they marry and make their home in Arvid’s homeland of Germany. Mildred and Arvid thrive there, forming new friendships, and enjoying the intellectual and artistic offerings of 1930s Berlin. As Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party become more popular and powerful, Mildred and Arvid and their friends are compelled to resist. For years, Mildred and Arvid and their cohorts risk their lives to gather intelligence to bring down the Third Reich from within. Sadly, their sincere efforts don’t result in the help they desired or envisioned. This is a story of ordinary people who, while they should be enjoying their carefree youth, give their best efforts to fighting evil and saving their country.

My Thoughts:

Jennifer Chiaverini puts history back into historical fiction!

(more…)

1st Line/1st Paragraph: Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

June 18, 2019

1st Line/1st Paragraph: Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

I’m linking up this week with Vicki @ I’d Rather Be At The Beach who hosts a meme every Tuesday to share the First Chapter/First Paragraph of the book you are currently reading.

I’m pleased to share the first line and first paragraph of Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini. If you appreciate an abundance of history in your historical fiction, this may be the read for you.

From Amazon: From the New York Times bestselling author of Mrs. Lincoln’s Dressmaker, an enthralling historical saga that recreates the danger, romance, and sacrifice of an era and brings to life one courageous, passionate American—Mildred Fish Harnack—and her circle of women friends who waged a clandestine battle against Hitler in Nazi Berlin. Inspired by actual events, Resistance Women is an enthralling, unforgettable story of ordinary people determined to resist the rise of evil, sacrificing their own lives and liberty to fight injustice and defend the oppressed.

Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links

Genre/Categories: Contemporary Southern Fiction, Women’s Fiction, Family Life, Mothers/Daughters

1st Line/1st Paragraph:

The heavy iron doors open and for a moment Mildred stands motionless and blinking in the sunlight, breathless from the sudden rush of cool, fresh air caressing her face and lifting her hair. The guard propels her forward into the prison yard, his grip painful and unyielding around her upper arm. Other women clad in identical drab, shapeless garments walk slowly in pairs around the perimeter of the gravel square. Their cells within the Hausgefangnis of the Gestapo’s Prinz-Albrecht-Strasse headquarters are so cramped that they can scarcely move, and now the prisoners spread their arms and lift their faces to the sky, like dancers, like dry autumn leaves scattered in a gust of wind.

How many of them would never again know more freedom than this?

I have read about 25% of Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini. So far, this is a leisurely paced histfic and not a page-turner. While some hisfic reads like women’s fiction in an historical setting, this is packed with vivid historical details and history takes center stage. In addition, there are interesting characters, and it prompted me to ask my husband this morning to refresh my memory between the exact differences of Communism, Socialism, and Fascism. Chiaverini’s prose is lovely and it’s easy and smooth reading, except when stopping to ponder political parties and the gravity of what’s happening. Often in WW11 histfic, we get thrown into the middle of the story. Chiaverini starts this story in 1929 so that we can experience the build-up to the war. Fans of Dietrich Bonhoeffer will appreciate references to him in the reading because one of the main characters, Mildred, marries Bonhoeffer’s cousin. I’m looking forward to continuing to learn about the brave actions of these three inspiring women, but at 600+ pages, it will take some time!