"In Too Deep" by Lynn H. Blackburn

About this book:

  “When the dive team is called in to recover a body from a submerged car, they aren't prepared to find an encrypted laptop--or an unsettling connection between investigator Adam Campbell and the dead accountant.
    Adam turns to his friend Dr. Sabrina Fleming--a professor at the local university with unparalleled computer security and forensics skills--to recover the files from the laptop. But the deeper they dig, the deadlier the investigation becomes. When evidence uncovers a human trafficking ring and implicates members of Adam's own family, he and Sabrina will have to risk everything to solve the case.”


Series: Book #2 in the “Dive Team Investigations” series. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- Psalm 19:14 at the beginning; Prayers & Thanking God; Talks about God, having faith through grief, & His plans; 'H’s are not capital when referring to God; Mentions of God, faiths, & forgiveness; Mentions of prayers & praying; Mentions of churches, church going, Sunday school classes, & services; A mention of mission trips; 
             *Note: Religious phrases “Thank heaven” and “Heaven help us” are both said once; Mentions of luck & being lucky; A few mentions of evil people & their evil actions; A mention of a wicked grin; A mention of fate.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: Two ‘dumb’s, two ‘stupid’s, and four ‘idiot’s; A mention of curses almost said; Eye rolling & Sarcasm; An explosion from a grenade, Being attacked, Gunfire, Being held at gun-point, Being shot and shot at, Concussions, Injuries, Pain, Blood/Bleeding, & Passing out/Being knocked unconscious (up to semi-detailed); Violent thoughts from the villain’s POV (including wanting to stab someone); Some grief & guilt (Adam for his younger brother & Sabrina for her complicated family); All about & many mentions of a murdered body being found in a drowned car, the killer and motivation, human trafficking (labor and sex) rings, & slavery; Mentions of suicides, possible suicides, & notes; Mentions of other deaths (cancer, a car accident, gunshot, & drownings) & grief (including for a younger brother & for a baby); Mentions of a serial killer & attacks (Book #1); Mentions of dead bodies, a shooter being shot and killed (including the brain matter being everywhere), & autopsies; Mentions of abuse, torture, beatings, & broken bones (due to the previous); Mentions of being shot, emergency surgery, & someone being on life-support; Mentions of attacks, injuries, pain, & blood/bleeding; Mentions of an explosion & grenade; Mentions of crime scenes, arrests, & jail/prison; Mentions of car accidents/wrecks; Mentions of embezzlement & money laundering; Mentions of threats (including of death and harming family members); Mentions of drugs, drug busts, being drugged, & being high; Mentions of nightmares; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of lies, lying, liars, & deception; Mentions of hatred; A few mentions of domestic violence by a man who “bought” his wife & her staying for the sake of their children; A few mentions of elder abuse & an adult child stealing money from his parents; A few mentions of drunks; A few mentions of divorces/separations; A few mentions of gossip & rumors; A few mentions of throwing up; A couple mentions of the deaths of pets (a dog that was accidentally poisoned & a cat that was ran over); A mention of a possible kidnapping; A mention of poker; A mention of tattoos;
             *Note: Sabrina has a strained relationship with her mother due to never meeting her mother’s expectations; *Major Spoilers* At the end, Sabrina’s mother (Yvonne) tells her that she is not her biological mother & that her father had an affair and got another woman pregnant around the same time as her; Yvonne lost her baby in premature labor; Sabrina’s father hired Sabrina’s biological mother to be her nanny and when Yvonne found out that the woman was pregnant again, Yvonne threaten to harm Sabrina to get the woman to leave *End of Spoilers*; Mentions of a parent having dementia (Sabrina’s father); Mentions of car brands; Mentions of brand names & items (Converse, iPads, PowerPoint, & Coke); A few mentions of therapy (including mentions of human trafficking victims needing therapy and counseling after what they have been through); A couple mentions of a woman going into premature labor, losing the baby, and hemorrhaging; A mention of an alien.
 
 
Sexual Content- Three hand/finger kisses, two head/forehead kisses, a handful of not-detailed kisses, four barely-above-not-detailed kisses, four border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kisses, & a semi-detailed kiss; Remembering kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to kiss & Staring at lips (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Dancing, Hand holding, Warmth, Shivers/Tingles, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Noticing & Staring (barely-above-not-detailed); A man asks if Sabrina and Adam are staying the night at a place tonight (they are, but it will be with others; Adam is upset at the man’s inappropriate remark); Sabrina and Adam stay the night at Leigh’s house (multiple times, usually with other friends) to protect her (they all sleep in separate rooms with the opposite gender on a different floor); Some of them fall asleep in the living room & there’s noticing of how attractive the other looks in the morning; In order to snoop at a party, Adam and Sabrina go off by themselves and make it look like they want to be alone; When Adam pulls out a key for Sabrina’s house, another character makes a comment that they’ve moved “awfully fast”, but Adam says it’s “not like that”; A ‘babe’ and a ‘baby’; Mentions of human trafficking, sex-trafficking rings, & victims being killed or sold to their abusers (no details); Mentions of affairs & a husband cheating and getting another woman pregnant; Mentions of kisses & kissing; Mentions of boyfriends/girlfriends, dates, dating, & break-ups; Mentions of flirting; Mentions of crushes; Mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of sexual predators; A couple mentions of someone being “amorous”; A couple mentions of an engaged couple kissing and cuddling; A mention of a possible rape; Love, falling/being in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A mention of a revealing dress.
 
-Sabrina Fleming
-Adam Campbell
                                P.O.V. switches between them & another (x5)
                                                        352 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

Like the previous book in this trilogy, this book also has some hard topics and elements to it (especially towards the end) that make me not recommend it for most of my readers. It’s definitely better for ages 17+ in my opinion—perhaps a bit younger if the girl is majorly interested in the criminal justice field—but it has been a really interesting series so far. 

 

“In Too Deep” had an emphasis on human trafficking, particularly in the labor variety. I’ll admit that I did figure out the connections to everything pretty quickly into the book which made me question how Sabrina and Adam didn’t see it, but they had a lot going on. They had some cute moments and then humor throughout the book with their friends that help lighten the tone of the plot when it would have felt heavy without it. 

 

The ending was a bit rushed and also after some intense action parts there were “catch-ups” about what had happened since the previous big event sometime prior. I didn’t love those parts, personally, but it made sense for everything that has to happen police-department (and their paperwork) wise. 

 

It was good to see Adam and Sabrina in this book after glimpses of how bad he had it for her in Book 1. Adam was a great male lead and such a gentleman to her that was precious to read. It was also really nice to see both of the main characters having a strong faith! Now I’m looking forward to reading Anissa and Gabe’s story next month!

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"Until Leaves Fall in Paris" by Sarah Sundin

About this book:

  “When the Nazis march toward Paris, American ballerina Lucie Girard buys her favorite English-language bookstore to allow the Jewish owners to escape. The Germans make it difficult for her to keep Green Leaf Books afloat. And she must keep the store open if she is to continue aiding the resistance by passing secret messages between the pages of her books.
    Widower Paul Aubrey wants nothing more than to return to the States with his little girl, but the US Army convinces him to keep his factory running and obtain military information from his German customers. As the war rages on, Paul offers his own resistance by sabotaging his product and hiding British airmen in his factory. But in order to carry out his mission, he must appear to support the occupation—which does not win him any sympathy when he meets Lucie in the bookstore.
    In a world turned upside down, will love or duty prevail?”


Series: Book #2 in the “Friends in Resistance” series. Review of Book #1 Here!


Spiritual Content- Prayers & Thanking God; Church going & a Hymn is sung; Talks about God, praying, gifts and talents from Him, & His creation; ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God or Jesus; Paul stopped going to church after others started to snub him for his work, but starts going again (*Spoilers* Later, the temporary pastor tells Paul that others are opposed to his presence at church because of his work appearing to be sympathetic to Nazis, but Paul tells him a bit about his true intentions and the pastor explains to the congregation that sinners cannot be banned from the church or the pews will be empty *End of Spoilers*); Paul crosses himself and dips his hand in holy water at a Catholic church (having previously been coached on what to do); Mentions of God, Jesus, gifts from Him, & His creation; Mentions of prayers, praying, & thanking God; Mentions of Bibles; Mentions of churches/cathedrals, church going, services, hymns, pastors, & sermons; Mentions of Christians, Catholics, & Jewish people; Mentions of sin & sinners; A few mentions of monasteries & monks; A couple mentions of those in the Bible; A mention of synagogues (that were bombed); 
             *Note: Religious exclamations such as “heavens” and “for heaven’s sake” are both said once; Mentions of evil (mostly referring to what the Nazis are doing); A couple mentions of luck & being lucky; A mention of a French writer (Henry de Montherlant) believing that that Germany’s conquest of France is the “inevitable triumph of paganism over Christianity”; A mention of a food being described as “heavenly”; A mention of a little boy listening to stories with “worshipful fascination”.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blasted’ and seven ‘stupid’s; A couple mentions of curses (said, not written); Lying (due to government secrets and protecting others; also including getting fake papers/IDs); Eavesdropping; Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Being held at gun-point, Being shot at, Being on a sinking ship, & Preparing to possibly die (up to semi-detailed); Grief (Paul for his late wife & him remember her dying, barely-above-not-detailed); Seeing a shooting/attack, people shot, & a bomb/explosion (up to semi-detailed); Seeing a murdered body & blood (border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Paul is given alcoholic drinks at parties, but does not drink them; Set during World War II, this book frequently mentions the war, deaths, fighting, battles, violence, Hitler, Nazis, boats and planes being shot/destroyed, weapons, explosions and bombs, internment camps, prisons of war, spies, arrests, jails/prisons, executions, firing squads, & torture; Mentions of the bombing of Pearl Harbor; Mentions of a murder, murderer, the body, & blood (deemed an accident, border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Mentions of deaths (including from cancer and the Spanish Flu) & grief (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of possible drownings; Mentions of terrorists, vandalism, sabotage, & workers’ strikes; Mentions of blackmail & threats; Mentions of injuries & pain; Mentions of a little girl being snubbed because of her father’s work & her sadness; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip, rumors, & eavesdropping; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, & drunks; Mentions of cigarettes & smoking; A few mentions of other wars & the Great Depression; A few mentions of abductions; A few mentions of stealing & thieves; A mention of vomit; 
             *Note: Due to a lack of schooling and not feeling like she is smart, Lucie calls herself “stupid”, but Paul encourages her and says she is not stupid; Prejudice towards Jews is shown on-page (by side characters, including German soldiers); Mentions of Jewish people being forced to close or sell their businesses, being rounded up by the Nazis, & taken to camps; Mentions of communists, fascists, antisemitic laws, & hatred for capitalism; Mentions of ballets (‘Giselle’, ‘La Princesse au Jardin’, ‘Le Chevalier et la Damoiselle’, ‘Sleeping Beauty’, & ‘Swan Lake’); Mentions of authors, books, & fictional characters (Ernest Hemingway, Ellery Queen, Alfred Tennyson, Walt Whitman, Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, John Greenleaf Whittier, Henry de Montherlant, ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, ‘Hamlet’, ‘Othello’, ‘The Sun Also Rises’, ‘The Greek Coffin Mystery’, ‘Moby-Dick’, ‘Pride and Prejudice’, ‘Barnaby Rudge, ‘A Tale of Two Cities’, ‘Great Expectations’, ‘Oliver Twist’, ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’, & ‘The House of the Seven Gables’); Mentions of BBC; A few mentions of actors/actresses (Arletty, Danielle Darrieux, & Sacha Guitry); A mention of a painter (Edgar Degas); A mention of a brand name (Necco wafers).
 
 
Sexual Content- Fingers-to-lips touches, two hand/fingers kisses, a nose kiss, a cheek kiss, two forehead kisses, two jaw kisses, two shoulder kisses, a not-detailed kiss, ten barely-above-not-detailed kisses, four border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kisses, and a semi-detailed kiss; Remembering kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to kiss & embrace (barely-above-not-detailed); Staring at lips (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Shivers, Warmth, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to touch & embrace (barely-above-not-detailed); Noticing & Staring (barely-above-not-detailed); Paul is flustered when seeing Lucie remove her wraparound skirt and show her skirted black leotard (when she is teaching ballet); *Spoiler, but sharing a bed while unmarried* Paul and Lucie share a bed with his daughter, Josie, between them but it’s said that it “[didn’t] seem improper” *End of Spoiler*; Lucie has to lie that she is an unmarried mother at one point (for her and someone else’s safety); A man teases about being alone with his wife caused her to become pregnant; A reference to a wedding night (the previous comment spurs a thought about it); A male friend teases Lucie about wanting to see her legs on stage (she notes that he is harmless as long she kept away from his quick hands); Later, the man leers at Lucie’s legs again; A roommate of Lucie’s is dating a married German soldier (who says he’ll leave his wife for her, but the roommate doesn’t believe it; Because of (implied) “sleeping with” him, she receives extra food; *Spoiler, but possible out-of-wedlock pregnancy* It’s later hinted that Lucie’s roommate could be pregnant when Lucie notices the woman has gained weight *End of Spoiler*; Mentions of prostitutes, brothels, lovers, & cheating (including married German soldiers cheating on their wives when abroad); Mentions of kisses & kissing; Mentions of dates, dating, boyfriends/girlfriends, & chaperones; Mentions of flirting & jealousy; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: A couple mentions of Frenchwomen dining with German officers to get a good meal and “maybe more”(Lucy thinks she would rather starve than do this); A mention of French women sleeping with German soldiers to receive food.
 
-Lucille “Lucie” Girard, age 26-27
-Paul Aubrey, age 31-32
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                          Set in 1940-1942
                                                        403 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

Reasons I could never be a spy (especially in wartime):

1- the anxiety of it all would make my stomach a wreck

2- my knees would pop when I’m sneaking around and give me away

 

Thankfully, these two main characters didn’t have these problems because they had secrets and lives depending on them. The last quarter of this book was way more intense than I was expecting and lots of suspenseful moments happened that made me able to put this book down. 

 

For the first chunk of this book, I was mostly just doing my best to follow along. You definitely ought to have some historical background on France during World War II—or be prepared to do bunny trails of research I like did while reading! With some fiction books set in this time period, you can get by with basic knowledge and what is shared in the story, but I’ve noticed in past books I’ve read by this author (and this book as well) that there was a lot about the history of the time period and setting. To the point it can be a little overwhelming and/or had to keep up with, but I feel like I just read a very engaging history lesson! Like all World War II books, I learned even more about the time period and all the different countries’ dynamics in this book. 

 

I don’t know how much teen readers would enjoy this book, unless it’s an older teen who is very interested in WWII. The main characters kissed quite a bit towards the last half of the book, but it didn’t feel like a lot of details despite being a lot of kisses. Maybe a little soon after the death of his wife (😅) but content wise wasn’t one I would firmly recommend against—besides a few suggestive comments (such as German soldiers visiting prostitutes when already being married & a married man making a comment about his wife becoming pregnant; There is also a scene of the main characters sharing a bed with his young daughter between them, but it was not a sexual scene due to the circumstances around it). I would suggest 17+ probably in general due to all the elements of history, war details, and the romance elements, but slightly younger could potentially be okay with it as well if highly interested in the time period.

 

 

See y’all on Wednesday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"A Lighthouse Legacy" by Jo James

About this book:

  “Gift shop owner Sarah Morgan is helping Justine Hendricks, a young scholar, with a research project―but then a nineteenth-century logbook and diary entrusted to the student disappear! Since Justine is part of a group volunteering at the lighthouse, there are plenty of possible suspects around her who could be responsible for the theft. To make matters worse, rumors are swirling that the lighthouse is haunted―a thing Sarah does not believe for a moment.
    Soon Sarah and Justine are drawn into the compelling story of a nineteenth-century woman who may well have been Michigan's first official female lighthouse keeper. Sarah will need all her sleuthing skills if she is to uncover the surprising connections between the modern-day theft, the strange happenings at the lighthouse, and this dauntless woman from the past.”


Series: Book #5 in the “Gift Shop Mysteries” series. Click on the numbers to be taken to the prior books’ reviews: Book #1, Book #2, Book #3, and Book #4.


Spiritual Content- James 1:2-3 at the beginning & later quoted in the book; A few Scriptures are quoted & mentioned; Prayers & Thanking God; Church going & a sermon; Going to Bible study; Sarah asks her pastor his opinion on why people believe in ghosts (he gives some thoughts and says that sometimes “people search for answers in unusual places”due to pain and suffering not making sense from our human perspective); Sarah feels calm when near nature and thinks of her pastor previously saying that “that God’s presence didn’t exist just within the walls of the church but in living beings all around them”; Mentions of God, Jesus, & His timing; Mentions of prayers & praying; Mentions of churches, church going, services, pastors, & sermons; Mentions of Bibles, Bible studies, & devotionals; Mentions of blessings & being blessed; A mention of Heaven; A mention of Christians; A mention of a hymn; 
             *Note: Two new side characters are “ghost hunters”, run a social media platform about paranormal places, and the wife has the “‘gift’” to sense the “energy surrounding people and places” (which she says is not talking to ghosts, but picking on the “vibes” around certain humans, objects, or landmarks); Sarah and the other characters do not believe ghosts are real and often say so; Sarah strongly believes that there are reasonable explanations found in God’s laws of nature for all of the possible “ghosts” or “haunted” places; Mentions of “ghosts”, places being “haunted”, & people believing in both; Mentions of luck & someone crossing their fingers; A mention of Mother Nature; A mention of a food pairing being a “match made in heaven” (which Sarah says “Amen” about in agreement); A mention of food smelling “divine”.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘dumb’; Some eye rolling; Trespassing; Many mentions of stolen items, stealing, crimes, thieves, & a theft; Mentions of deaths (including by drowning) & grief (including for a wife & a husband); Mentions of a missing person; Mentions of break-ins, vandalism, & trespassing; Mentions of arrests & jails; Mentions of injuries & pain; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip & rumors; A mention of a fire; A mention of a divorce; A mention of the lottery; A mention of hunting; 
             *Note: Mentions of authors, books, & fictional characters (Shakespeare, Jane Austen, Walt Whitman, ‘Hamlet’, & Sherlock Holmes); Mentions of car brands; A mention of a painting (Mona Lisa); A mention of a baseball team; A mention of Halloween. 
 
 
Sexual Content- A few kisses from a married couple in the historical chapters (no details); Some embraces, touches, butterflies/flutters, nearness, & noticing (most in the historical time period; barely-above-not-detailed); A few winks & blushes; Sarah says she doesn’t have time for a romance right now, but does have flutters and feels delight when around Flint (this is a potential budding romance); In the historical time period, someone accuses an unmarried couple of “parading around as husband and wife” (by living in close quarters without being married), but the woman says “nothing of the sort” has happened between them; Mentions of flirting, blushes, & crushes; Mentions of dates, dating, & boyfriends/girlfriends; A few mentions of married couples sharing kisses; A bit of love, falling in love, & the emotions (in the historical time period). 
 
-Sarah Morgan
                                P.O.V. mostly of Sarah 
                                        6 chapters set in 1849, 1850, & 1855
                                                        257 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

Before starting this book, I decided that I wanted to go into it blindly by not reading the back cover blurb—I knew the mystery would center around a lighthouse because of the title and cover, but that was it! Which turned out to be kind of fun and I think I’ll be doing that again for this series. 

 

Once into the book, I wasn’t super sure about the “haunting”, “energies”, and “paranormal” parts of this book as I strongly do not believe in that kind of thing, but thankfully, the main character shares that same opinion! Basically her, all her friends, and the majority of side characters do not believe in ghosts, which was refreshing to see. A new side character that is introduced in this book (that I doubt we’ll see again in this series) says she has the ability to sense “energies” off of items (which I concur with another character about being a bunch of hogwash) and while Sarah disagrees with this being a thing, she is still kind and respectful to the woman. Usually, I do not like anything that hints to ghosts or whatnot being real, but I’m glad how the author handled it in this book and thought it was overall done well because it’s disapproved that any ghosts were involved in the mystery despite some silly rumors saying otherwise. (Which is what I wanted and expected from a Christian publisher!)

 

Speaking of this author, I’ve not read anything by her before, but I hope (and assume) she’ll be writing another book or two for this series. Even though the mystery wasn’t the most compelling or engaging for me personally, I found myself reading this book faster than all the previous ones in the series and enjoying the writing style. While it’s still a 3 star rating for me, I would say it’s my favorite of the series so far.

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.

"The Sisters of Sea View" by Julie Klassen

About this book:

  “Some guests have come for a holiday, others for hidden reasons of their own . . .
    When their father's death leaves them impoverished, Sarah Summers and her genteel sisters fear they will be forced to sell the house and separate to earn livelihoods as governesses or companions. Determined to stay together, Sarah convinces them to open their seaside home to guests to make ends meet and provide for their ailing mother. Instead of the elderly invalids they expect to receive, however, they find themselves hosting eligible gentlemen. Sarah is soon torn between a growing attraction to a mysterious Scottish widower and duty to her family.
    Viola Summers wears a veil to cover her scar. When forced to choose between helping in her family's new guest house and earning money to hire a maid to do her share, she chooses the latter. She reluctantly agrees to read to some of Sidmouth's many invalids, preferring the company of a few elders with failing eyesight to the fashionable guests staying in their home. But when her first client turns out to be a wounded officer in his thirties, Viola soon wishes she had chosen differently. Her new situation exposes her scars--both visible and those hidden deep within--and her cloistered heart will never be the same.”


Series: Book #1 in the “On Devonshire Shores” series.


Spiritual Content- Psalm 90:14 at the beginning & Two chapters start with a Scripture; A handful of Scriptures are read, quoted, & mentioned; Prayers & Thanking God; A few talks about God, His will, & trusting Him; ‘H’s are capital when referring to God; Viola wonders why she was born with a cleft lip (and whether it was her mother’s fault, God’s, or her own); Viola admits that while she believes in God, she “doesn’t like all His ways”; Viola questions someone on why does “God protect some people and not others” & the person responds that she doesn’t know and that she “wishes He promised us all peace and safety, but He does not”; Sarah struggles trusting God with control of her life and family; Mentions of God, His will, & trusting Him; Mentions of prayers, praying, answered prayers, & thanking God; Mentions of Bibles & Bible reading; Mentions of churches, church going, services, sermons, church events, pastors/vicars/reverends, & different denominations; Mentions of blessings & being blessed; A few mentions of those & events in the Bible; A couple mentions of godsends; A mention of miracles; 

             *Note: Phrases like “heavens” (x8), “good heavens” (x8), “thank heavens” (x1), and “for heaven’s sake” (x1) are said or exclaimed; Some people or things are described as “devilish” and “the devils”; Mentions of superstitions & curses (regarding what others have said about Viola’s cleft lip); Mentions of mythical creatures (changelings, sirens, nymphs); Mentions of lucky, being lucky, & thanking lucky stars (the latter is refuted by a side character); A few mentions of mythology gods/goddess.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘shut up’ and six forms of ‘stupid’; “ass” is used twice when describing a donkey; Regency exclamations such as ‘botheration’, ‘dash it’, ‘losh’, ‘lawks’, ‘the devil’, ‘what the blazes’, ‘what the devil’, ‘balderdash’, ‘dashed’, ‘fiddle’ & ‘thunder and turf’ are said up to three times each; Some eye rolling & sarcasm; Eavesdropping (including being hurt by what was overheard); Some sister bickering, squabbles, & hurtful words; Nearly drowning, Pain, Injuries, & Blood/Bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Grief (for a father & for a fiancé); Many mentions of injuries, scars, pain, blood/bleeding, & surgeries (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of wars, battles, & deaths; Mentions of deaths (including from a possible suicide, an apoplexy, illnesses, & surgery), a body, & grief (including for wives, husbands, a daughter, & a brother); Mentions of a fire, an explosion, someone being shot, someone being attacked and left for dead, & related injuries; Mentions of a drowning & near drownings; Mentions of stealing, stolen items, thieves/criminals, & crimes; Mentions of alcohol/wine, drinking, drunks, & taverns; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip & rumors; A few mentions of an abusive husband & his drinking and gambling tendencies; A few mentions of gambling; A few mentions of bullies & being bullied (including Viola being bullied as a child); A few mentions of young boys being chased by vicious dogs; A few mentions of throwing up; A couple mentions of tattoos; A couple mentions of pipes & smoking; A mention of hunting; 
             *Note: Each chapter starts with a quote from a famous author (such as Jane Austen, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, & Lord Byron) or from a historical notice/ad (there are also two chapters that starts with a Scripture); Viola was born with a cleft lip and wears a veil often so others will not stare at her or make comments about her scar (this is a frequent part of her chapters due to mentions of her shame, her “deformity”, and “ugly” lip); Viola has signs of PTSD from past surgeries and a cruel surgeon (up to semi-detailed on her fear and remembering those events); Sarah cares take of her mother (who is poor in health) and is concerned about her health (including a time where her mother doesn’t answer and Sarah fears for the worst); Mentions of authors, books, & fictional characters (Frances Burney, Robert Southey, Walter Scott, John Bunyan, Jane Austen); Mentions of prejudice & shunning (due to someone’s skin color or scars); Mentions of depression (due to sicknesses and miscarriages) & a possible suicide; A few mentions of a husband feeling guilty about his wife’s possible suicide; A couple mentions of miscarriages; A couple mentions of a woman being unable to fully love her daughter due to being reminded of her cruel husband; The word ‘gay’ is used in its old meaning of ‘happy/carefree’.
 
 
Sexual Content- Fingers-to-lips touches (up to semi-detailed), a hand kiss, a barely-above-not-detailed kiss, and three semi-detailed kisses; Wanting to kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Staring at lips (up to semi-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Dancing, Hand holding, Tingles, Warmth, Nearness, & Smelling (x3, up to semi-detailed); Remembering touches & nearness (up to semi-detailed); Wanting to touch (up to semi-detailed); Blushes; Noticing & Staring (including at muscles, bare chests, and arm/chest hair & men who are partially dressed, x3, up to semi-detailed); Remembering seeing men’s bare chests & in the state of partial undress (barely-above-not-detailed); Two of the sisters see men undressing to go swimming (they close their eyes when the men start to take off their trousers); A misunderstanding/comment about an unmarried woman sneaking into a man’s room; Mentions of kisses, almost kisses, & seeing a couple kissing; Mentions of elopements, couples going to an inn alone, & reputations being ruined; Mentions of flirts, flirting, blushes, & winks; A few mentions of married couples having separate bedchamber; A few mentions of chaperones; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of some men trying to sneak a peek of scantily clad women at a bathing machine; A mention of a man one day asking a woman to share his “life and bed” (through marriage); Love, falling in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Because of her cleft lip, Viola doesn’t believe she should have children (adding that physicians do not know a great deal about it, but most people blame the mother assuming she “must have had impure thoughts or seen a hare or someone with a cleft lip”; Someone argues this with her because God must allow it for a reason, but she doesn’t think there’s any good reason); A young teen girl starts her menstrual cycle and believes she is going to die due to not knowing what is happening (a female main character explains it to her and gathers what she needs; Mentions of the blood and bleeding “down there”); *Slight Spoilers, but about a woman being deemed ruined* The Summers’ girls have an older sister named Claire who was sent to Scotland to be a companion for a great aunt; However, later, it is revealed that she tried to elope with a man and when the marriage did not happen, her reputation would be ruined so the father sent her to Scotland and said she was dead to him (forbidding any contact with her) *End of Spoilers*; A few mentions of men swimming with no clothes or “au naturel”; A mention of woman not being able to have children at “any age” (unlike a man who can).
 
-Sarah Sumers, age 26
-Emily Summers, age 21
-Viola Summers, age 21
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                          Set in 1819
                                                        448 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

I was in the mood for a slower paced book and decided to pick this one up—it has been sitting on my TBR for probably years, but never read due to the length (450+ pages!) and the fact I knew it would be a bit slow and long like most of this author’s books I’ve read.

 

I went back and forth between which sister was my favorite as I read. I’ll end the book saying it was Viola, but the other Summers girls were good to read about as well. I did make the mistake of reading the back covers of the next books in the series, though, about halfway through which ruined some elements of the three potential romances that happen in this book. So, don’t be like me and avoid those blurbs until it’s time to read those books! My other favorite character was Mr. Hornbeam because he was a kind dear (and not one of the potential suitors).

 

I enjoyed quite a few parts of this story, particularly all the historical information and details. That said, I would hesitate to recommend this book to teens because there are three potential romantic relationships in this one book and there’s a decent amount of noticing muscles/bare chests and men’s physical appearances that I didn’t care for. I would say ages 16/17+ for sure, personally, because of these parts. Definitely more romance content, emotions, and noticing physical appearances than the one Jane Austen book I’ve read (so far).

 

 

See y’all on Friday with a new review! 

*BFCG may (Read the review to see) recommend this book by this author. It does not mean I recommend all the books by this author.