|
|
Christian Fiction May 2025 |
|
|
|
|
Check These Out From Your Library! |
|
|
|
Some like it Scot : a novel
by Pepper Basham
"She lives her life on the fly. His heart is double-knotted to home. Can two different souls create a life together?"
|
|
|
|
The accused
by Cara C. Putman
"When a popular college student is murdered, her international roommate, Anneliese, becomes a prime suspect. But law professor Margeaux Robbins is convinced the killer can't be the quiet, lonely German in her class. Chase Crandall is a burned-out defense attorney ready to extricate himself from the grind of criminal law. After the loss of a client to tragedy, he's ready for an in-house corporate position. When Chase is assigned to Anneliese's case, Margeaux is horrified. She doesn't want him to provide legal counsel, not after what happened to his past client. And not with the evidence implicating Anneliese. The lawyer and professor reluctantly pair up to find the killer and prove Anneliese's innocence.?"
|
|
|
|
The pharisee's wife
by Janette Oke
"Like most young women in ancient Israel, Mary has little control over her own destiny. When Enos, a rising Pharisee, sees her one day in the market--the most beautiful woman he has ever laid eyes on--and determines to make her his wife, Mary's fate is quickly sealed. His exorbitant bride price is the only hope her parents have of escaping abject poverty, but surely the fact that such a devout and esteemed man has chosen a girl of her station must be a sign of blessing. When Mary enters training to become the proper Pharisee's wife, it is as though she has been abandoned in a foreign land, where one misstep could cost her greatly. Then rumors of a miracle-working, traveling Prophet change everything, and Mary and Enos are swept up in events that will challenge all they hold dear and forever alter both their futures"
|
|
|
|
The Light on Horn Island
by Valerie Fraser Luesse
When Edie Gardner's life in New York comes crumbling down, her grandmother Adele "Punk" Cheramie urges her to return to Bayou du Chêne, a tiny hamlet in coastal Mississippi where Edie spent many happy summers growing up. Punk and her three closest friends introduce Edie to the Trove, a fascinating gallery and antique shop that seems to have appeared out of nowhere.
|
|
|
|
Every Hour Until Then
by Gabrielle Meyer
As a time-crosser, Kathryn Voland lives in 1888 England and pre-World War II Washington, DC. In the 1930s, when she curates a museum exhibit about Jack the Ripper, she discovers that her sister will become his last victim in 1888. Kathryn must race against time to save her, knowing it will cost her everything--including the only man she's ever loved.
|
|
|
|
A Lesson in Propriety
by Jen Turano
With her father dead, her fortune stolen, and her fiancé casting her aside, Miss Drusilla Merriweather has one option: to open a finishing school on the only property she has left--an allegedly haunted castle. But first she'll have to contend with unscrupulous developers and a dashing architect who seems to have found his way into her heart.
|
|
|
|
Across the crying sands
by Jane Kirkpatrick
"Married at sixteen, Mary Gerritse thought she knew everything she wanted - a husband and a family. So why doesn't that satisfy her soul? When the chance comes to take on a treacherous mail route along the Oregon coast, she wonders if this will be the adventure she longs for. Inspired by a true story"
|
|
|
|
A Wager With the Matchmaker
by Jody Hedlund
Kiernan Shanahan is intent on establishing his name apart from his father by seeking a wealthy bride with a sizeable dowry. But when he finds a position for Alannah Darragh in his household to keep her safe from a dangerous family situation, the sparks that fly between them are only the start of a wily matchmaker's scheme--no matter how much both fight it.
|
|
|
|
The marriage pact
by Kathleen Fuller
"Perry and Daisy's fake relationship is fooling everyone . . . but they're the ones who might be getting fooled"
|
|
|
|
Capture the Moment
by Suzanne Woods Fisher
Kate arrives in Grand Teton National Park on a mission to capture a one-in-a-million photo of the world's most famous bear. She's ready for adventure--isn't she? When a handsome park ranger offers to lend a hand, Kate is grateful, attracted--and conflicted. There's the small matter of the unresolved relationship she left back home . . .
|
|
|
Christine's Library Journal Reviews
|
|
|
|
The Indigo Heiress
by Laura Frantz
This review by librarian Christine Barth was first published in the December 2024 issue of Library Journal.
Juliet Catesby holds the dubious title of "Indigo Heiress," which should help in making a profitable marriage match. Virginia, however, is a hotbed of political unrest in 1774. Plus the plantation is broke, and her soul cannot abide slavery any longer, leading her to secretly help enslaved families get to Pennsylvania. Then Juliet's father makes a marriage arrangement for her to one of Scotland's notorious tobacco lords. At first, Leith Buchanan seems like a heinous and oppressive man, but when Juliet is caught in a midnight rescue, his estate an ocean away seems like a refuge. As affection slowly develops in the arranged marriage, someone is trying to undermine the Buchanan name, and the Catesby family is caught in the crosshairs.
VERDICT Frantz (The Seamstress of Acadie) always provides an exquisitely researched historical setting; here she deals unflinchingly with the controversial legacy of the tobacco lords and the early stages of rebellion in the American colonies. Those who like to read beyond the victor's perspective in history will also enjoy A River Between Us by Jocelyn Green and The Tea Chest by Heidi Chiavaroli.
|
|
|
|
Midnight on the Scottish shore : a novel of World War II
by Sarah Sundin
This review by librarian Christine Barth first appeared in the January 2025 issue of Library Journal.
Plenty of readers will be hooked at the idea of Scottish romance; add in spies and little-known World War II history, and Sundin (Embers in the London Sky) has penned another historical hit. Cilla van der Zee chafes as a Dutch citizen under Nazi rule but gets in over her head when she infiltrates the Nazi party on behalf of the Resistance. To get herself out of a jam, she agrees to train with the Abwehr in Germany, planning all along to escape to England and disappear for the war's duration. Landing near Skapa Flow in the Orkney Islands, she is greeted by a grumpy Scot in a kilt who promptly turns her in as an enemy combatant. Forced to help with MI5's Double Cross program, Cilla is less free than ever. VERDICT With shifting loyalties, a global geopolitical stage, family feuds, the legend of the Scottish selkie, and a forbidden romantic attraction, this novel has many of the best elements of historical fiction. Readers will also notice a few cameos from Sundin's previous novels. For read-alikes, try the sweeping historical dramas of Amanda Dykes and Cathy Gohlke.
|
|
|
|
A constant love
by Tracie Peterson
This review by librarian Christine Barth first appeared in the January 2025 issue of Library Journal.
No one is prepared for the winter of 1886–87 in Cheyenne, WY. Unimaginable blizzard conditions and subzero temperatures, following a summer of drought, will cause many cattle and people to lose their lives, and the season will come to be known as the Great Die-Up. Micah Hamilton and his father brave a February blizzard to find their friends and neighbors, but the devastation of their ranching livelihood later drives Micah's father to take his own life. Fearful of judgment from neighbors and the church, Micah and his friend Charlotte cover up the death, attributing it to the wicked weather. Years later, they are both still dealing with the shame and grief from that terrible winter, but Charlotte's persistent-to-the-point-of-harassment suitor Lewis Bradley forces them to confront the matter head-on. VERDICT Peterson ("Heart of Cheyenne" series) always finds something new to highlight about the western United States, even with her prolific repertoire. She pens excellent villains who serve as foils for her romantic heroes, and each book is like a deep dive into the human psyche. Suggest read-alikes by Amanda Cabot and Sandra Dallas.
|
|
|
|
From the valley we rise
by Elizabeth Musser
"In WWII France, Isabelle Seauve is dedicated to risking her safety for the protection of Jewish children. As a US Army Chaplain, a teenage rebel, and a Jewish orphan join her ranks and face increasing danger during the Allied invasion of Provence, theseunlikely heroes must first find freedom in their souls before they can rebuild what has been destroyed"
|
|
|
|
The codebreaker's daughter
by Amy Lynn Green
"Once, Lillian cracked ciphers during WWI. Now, her daughter, Dinah, is trapped doing clerical work for the WWII OSS even as Lillian herself, hesitant to return to wartime work, is drawn to Washington, D.C., by an old friend. Yet mother and daughter soonfind D.C. has its own secrets, ones they must come together to protect"
|
|
|
|
Designed With Love
by Tracie Peterson
After being widowed on her wedding day, Emma Johnson moves to Cheyenne with her sister-in-law to start over. When her deceased husband's brother travels with her to help her get established, she finds herself drawn to him. But is he only after his brother's inheritance, or does he truly care for her in return?
|
|
|
|
The Atlas of Untold Stories
by Sara Brunsvold
With everyone's lives in turmoil, two sisters--who couldn't be more different--and their ever practical mother set off on the literary road trip of a lifetime. Inspired by their favorite books and the lives of the authors, they begin to discover that for all the stories between them, the best ones are yet to be written.
|
|
|
|
Unshaken
by Shelley Shepard Gray
Stephanie Miller's world is shattered when she witnesses a murder that could get her killed--and the help of rancher Hardy Anderson just might keep her safe. But how will an Amish woman ever blend in enough to stay hidden?
|
|
|
|
Where secrets lie
by Colleen Coble
"Colleen Coble and Rick Acker deliver the second book in their compelling Tupelo Grove series (following What We Hide), where a crumbling university, stolen artifacts, deep family secrets, and deadly ambitions all stand in the way of a second chance at happiness"
|
|
Contact your librarian for more great books!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|