"A Gift in Time" by Shaen Layle

About this book:

  “It's opening day of Sarah Morgan's gifts and curiosities shop, Heavenly Presents. Not only are her family and friends there to support her new business, but a local television crew is on-site to interview her. Sarah decides her latest acquisition, an antique music box that supposedly belonged to Thomas Edison, is the perfect item to show off on television. They've only heard a few notes in the strange melody when an onlooker claims her great-grandmother used to play that same tune on the piano but was secretive about its origins.
     When Sarah discovers a hidden drawer on the box that requires a key to open, she is determined to unlock the box's secrets.
     Meanwhile, someone in the Port Huron community is also determined…to see Sarah's business fail.
    Can Sarah find out who is behind the troublemaking, or will she be forced to close the doors on her dream forever?”


Series: Book #1 in the “Gift Shop Mysteries” series.


Spiritual Content- James 1:17 at the beginning; Prayers & Thanking God; Church going; 'H’s are capital when referring to God; Sarah wonders why God would open doors for her dream, only to let her hopes be crushed by the negative things that have happened & wonders how He will make something good out of the situation; Sarah also wonders if God cares about the small problems in her life and while she knows the “pat answer” is “of course”, she doesn’t feel reassured; *Spoilers* Sarah soon learns that it’s true that God does give good gifts and brings good out of bad situations, even the small ones; At the end, Sarah knows that the next time she encounters hardship, she will hold tight to God *End of Spoilers*; Lorena believes that God brought Al (Thomas Edison) into her life and paired them together; Mentions of God, trusting Him, & Him bringing good out of every situation; Mentions of prayers, praying thanking God, & blessings over food; Mentions of churches, church going, services, a pastor, a sermon; Mentions of Easter, Palm Sunday, & Good Friday; A few mentions of blessings & being blessed; A mention of mission work; 
             *Note: A couple mentions of luck.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a form of ‘dumb’; Many mentions of rumors & gossip; Mentions of deaths & grief (including a young woman for her mother and father & a husband for his wife); Mentions of a child nearly being killed in an accident; Mentions of complications from Addison’s disease (including seizures and possible death); Mentions of stealing, stolen items, crimes, & criminals; Mentions of intruders, trespassing, break-ins, & thieves; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of jealousy & rivalries (including sibling rivalries); A few mentions of the Civil War, battles, & deaths; A few mentions of injuries & blood/bleeding; A few mentions of teens playing pranks; A few mentions of manipulators & manipulations; A couple mentions of fires; A couple mentions of threats; A mention of scarlet fever; 
             *Note: In the historical chapters, Lorena has a different opinion than her father of what her future should be (finishing school vs wanting to go to a music conservatory) which leads to her commenting negatively on what others think of women (such as some men believing that all women have silly interests and ideas) and keeping secrets from her father such as writing letters to a young man through a maid in hopes her father will later change his mind about the young man (Lorena feels smothered by her father’s protectiveness and plans for her); *Spoilers* Eventually, her father makes it known that he is aware of Lorena’s secrets and steals an item that the man gave Lorena to keep them apart; The relationship between Lorena and Thomas Edison does not go further which makes her cry when he is cold to her; Later chapters show her married to another man and seemingly happy in the marriage *End of Spoilers*; Many mentions of historical figures (Thomas Edison, Mozart, & Beethoven); Mentions of car brands; Mentions of an opera and a song from it (‘The Bohemian Girl’); A few mentions of brand names (Doxa & Rolex); A mention of the YMCA.
 
 
Sexual Content- A little bit of dancing & hand holding (barely-above-not-detailed); A little bit of noticing a man’s attractiveness & blushing over it (barely-above-not-detailed); Sarah tells others that she doesn’t have time to date as she is focused on her store; A few mentions of dating; A couple mentions of chaperones & reputations; A mention of a woman being accused of being a home-wrecker; A mention of a cute guy; 
             *Note: A mention of Sarah noticing a “bit of weight redistribution” after turning forty.
 
-Sarah Morgan
                                P.O.V. mostly of Sarah 
          Mostly contemporary, but also eight chapters from 1862-1865, 1867, 1886, & 1947
                                                        252 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

The beginning of a brand new cozy mystery series by Guidebooks! While I was planning on waiting to start this series until I finished the “Mysteries of Cobble Hill Farm”, I looked ahead and decided to begin the series due to holidays/seasons mentioned in upcoming books. This was a promising start to the series, even if it wasn’t a new favorite mystery. It took me a bit to keep track of all the new characters and how they are connected, but that’s common when starting a new series so I just made use of the search feature on my Kindle. 😉 I did find some of the side characters to have too much high school drama for women in their forties, so I hope the series will have less of that as it continues. 

 

As a note about the historical chapters: I did have difficulty reading those chapters on my Kindle due to the font. I didn’t particularly care for the historical time period as the character then was deceiving her father about a relationship with a man and hiding about it from him. The man was Thomas Edison, who did not date a girl named Lorena according to some research I did while reading. I’m not really a fan of authors making up fictional events and love interests for an actual historical figure, so these parts weren’t the most enjoyable to read, personally. I preferred the contemporary time-period and meeting the woman who will be main character of the whole series. 

 

Overall, not a bad start to the series and I look forward to seeing what the future books will be about in the months to come. 🙂

 

 

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 Girl & The Green Hat" by Rachel Allord

About this book:

  “School’s out!
    Addie Brown has survived her first year in London. Now she can’t wait to ditch her tie, chuck her school shoes, “Mary and Jane”, under the bed, and forget all about Math(s) for six glorious weeks back home. As she flies off to Chicago to visit Aunt Becky and reconnect with best friend Lauren she wonders if this could be: The. Best. Summer. Ever?
    But nothing’s ever straightforward for Addie. Blindsided by Dad’s surprise new girlfriend, Addie arrives at summer camp only to discover London has followed her there. Join Addie as she navigates family dynamics, messy friendships and even a bear, all with a little help from the mysterious lady in the green hat.”


Series: The sequel to “The Girl on the Tube”. Review Here!


Spiritual Content- A handful prayers and talking to God (including apologizing to God for doing something bad); Church going (once); ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God; Addie and her father don’t go to church often after her mother died, but they go with her aunt (which Addie enjoys and listens to the preacher’s sermon about praying); Addie doesn’t know much about God, but knows He exists because of all the wonderful things in nature & notices that she has been praying to God in different moments because she doesn’t know “who else” would she be talking to; Addie recalls her mom praying with her before bed and feeling safe when she would do that; Addie wonders if she can pray about missing her mom and could tell God she’s angry at Him for “taking her away”; When in a dangerous situation, Addie prays to God for help and a sudden gust of wind leads her to a safe direction (and later says that she thinks God was watching over her); When her aunt accidentally swears, she apologize to Addie and to God, which Addie notes about it being like her aunt was talking to God as if He was right there with them (Addie’s aunt comments that she messes up every day, but “God is good…He forgives.”); Addie tells God all about her concerns and feelings despite thinking “He must know about everything already” because He’s God, but maybe He is interested in hearing about it all from her personally; Mentions of God; Mentions of prayers, praying, talking to God, & blessings over food; A few mentions of churches, church going on holidays, a preacher, & a sermon; A mention of an event in the Bible; 
             *Note: Addie wonders if someone has appeared in front of her like a fairy godmother or an angel; A woman is described as “otherworldly”; Mentions of luck & being lucky; A couple mentions of Addie being “spellbound” by something; A couple mentions of a Greek mythology character (Narcissus); A mention of a girl being in “heaven” when doing something she likes.

 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘duh’, a ‘rats’, four ‘dumb’s, and seven forms of ‘stupid’; A few mentions of a curse (said, not written; the adult apologizes to Addie and God for saying it); Eye rolling; Addie lies & gossip (including talking badly about a girl and saying that they aren’t friends; Towards the end, *Spoilers* Addie realizes she’s done more than just stealing, but also snapped and yelled at family members & gossip and lied *End of Spoilers*); Addie snaps at others & can be disrespectful and rude (including to adults like her dad, her aunt, and her dad’s girlfriend); Pain, Injuries, & Blood/Bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Crying & Grief (Addie for her mother and what their lives could have been if she was still alive; up to semi-detailed); A dangerous situation with being trapped between a mother bear and her cubs (which makes Addie and another girl think they could die or be seriously hurt, up to semi-detailed); Addie steals an item from someone and feels guilt about it (*Spoilers* She steals her dad’s girlfriend’s sunglasses and justifies it at first as taking something like the girlfriend stole Addie’s day with her dad & how it’s Addie “winning” against the woman; Addie denies knowing where they are, lies about them, & hides them for the summer; Addie starts to feel guilt about taking and hiding them; Addie has a couple moments to confess to the woman, but doesn’t until the very end of the book after talking to the woman in the green hat about it; Addie tells God she’s sorry for taking them and apologizes to her dad’s girlfriend for it when giving the sunglasses back; The girlfriend says it’s okay and Addie feels great relief (Addie’s father is not made aware of any of this) *End of Spoilers*); Addie feels jealous and left out when her old best friend is hanging out with another girl (feeling like she’s been ditched by her “former best friend”) & also when a different girl gets more attention at camp than her (a few different scenes); A girl accuses Addie of only thinking of herself, so Addie responds with words to “bite [the girl] back” and calls her a “bossy killjoy” and says she looks forward to having a break from her over the summer (Addie thinks that saying that feels good at first, but then sees the girl’s reaction and wonders if she went too far; Addie doesn’t apologize, but tries to give a peace offering); Later, Addie gossips and talks badly about the girl to a group of others (*Spoilers* which the girl finds out about and is very hurt by Addie’s words; Addie says she didn’t mean what she said and that sometimes the girl can be bossy; Addie says they are “friends who fight sometimes, but friends” and they grow closer as the book continues *End of Spoilers*); Mentions of deaths & grief  (including Addie for her mother & a woman for her father); Mentions of stealing, stolen items, thieves, & crimes; Mentions of a divorce, a girl having to choose which parent she will live with, & parents arguing (a side character/friend of Addie’s who discusses it with her); A few mentions of a car accident & death; A few mentions of injuries, pain, & blood/bleeding; A few mentions of when Addie went outside by herself in Book 1 & got lost; A few mentions of lies, lying, & liars; A mention of World War II; A mention of cheating on a test; A mention of throwing up; 
             *Note: Having a panic attack (being unable to breathe, up to semi-detailed); Addie’s mother died a few years prior and she greatly misses her; Addie is very upset at her dad for having a girlfriend and is mad that her mom could be replaced (this leads to Addie yelling at her dad, running to her room and slamming the door (x2), feeling like her dad is keeping secrets from her, lying, stealing, and being very rude to her dad’s girlfriend and being very mad at her dad; The girlfriend continues to get to be kind to Addie and try to get to know her; *Spoilers* Towards the end, the girlfriend tells Addie that no one can replace her mom and that helps Addie’s opinion on her dad’s relationship with the woman; By the end, Addie helps her dad plan the proposal and being okay with their relationship *End of Spoilers*); Addie doesn’t want to invite her dad’s girlfriend to her birthday party (despite being told it would be nice and the right thing to do) and decides not to invite her because it’s her birthday; Addie comments that because of her peanut allergy, if she ate one she could die, but her dad says that’s “rather dramatic”; Addie breaks her school’s dress code on the last day of school by removing her tie while still on school grounds (when leaving for summer vacation; another girl tells Addie that she will get in trouble, but Addie does not); Mentions of brand names and items (LEGO, Minecraft, Mad Libs, KitKat, & Tootsie Rolls); A few mentions of FaceTime; A few mentions of singers (Benny Goodman, Muggsy Spainer, Quincy Jones); A few mentions of a book Addie starts to read (‘Animal Farm’); A few mentions of a panic attack & anxiety; A mention of Uber; A mention of a musical (‘Oliver!’); A mention of stepmothers often being villains (Addie says this because of fairytales).
 
 
Sexual Content- Seeing a couple embrace; Addie is very upset to learn her dad has a girlfriend and dislikes the woman (calling her nothing special and will not allow the woman to “shove her way” into their lives; Addie’s aunt tries to talk to her about wanting her dad to be happy and for Addie to give the woman a chance; Addie’s cousin tells her to treat the woman like a random person instead of her dad’s girlfriend, which Addie does and the day goes better; Addie still hopes they won’t last due to having a long-distance relationship; *Spoilers* Towards the end, Addie overhears her father saying he is ready to propose and Addie is incredibly hurt and upset; After a conversation with the girlfriend, Addie starts to realize that maybe she isn’t so bad and the woman isn’t trying to replace her mom; The book ends with Addie helping her dad plan the proposal and being okay with their relationship *End of Spoilers*; Mentions of girlfriends/boyfriends, dating, & dates; A few mentions of blushes (between an adult couple & Addie friend and cousin when meeting for the first time); A mention of kissing; A mention of Addie and a friend talking about boys (which ones they like and don’t like); 
             *Note: A friend straightens Addie’s “frizz[y]” hair and Addie can’t take her eyes off herself in the mirror because of it.
 
-Adelina “Addie” Brown, age 12-13
                                1^st person P.O.V. of Addie 
                                                        160 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

It’s been a while since I read the first book about Addie, so I think it would be best to read them close together because there’s not a lot of “catch up” to remind the reader of prior events and characters. Because of this, I didn’t remember the issue Addie had with a classmate, Victoria, so I was very disappointed in Addie when she spoke harsh words to her. I didn’t love Addie’s attitudes towards different topics in the beginning (how she treated some other girls, her reaction to her dad having a girlfriend, and then stealing something), but at the same time, her emotions, thought process, and overall lack of thinking did make sense because she’s hurting. She was honestly acting like a brat at times (especially towards those she didn’t like), so I was eagerly looking forward to her much-needed character development to happen. I would have personally preferred Addie to apologize for some of comments or actions, but it was good to see a change in her by the end of the book. I’m not sure if there will be a book 3 in this series and while I hope so because of the woman in the green hat and I would like to see more faith content, it was a satisfying ending for this book’s plot.

 

 

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.

*I received this book for free from the Publisher (10Publishing) for this honest review.

"Archer" by Quinn Knightly

About this book:

  “Raina Swiftmain can outride hunters, outfight soldiers, and do what no man can—win the trust of Raven, the savage black stallion stolen from her enemy’s keep.
    But saving a kingdom will demand more than courage. It demands trust.
    Raina carries the last clues to Andrea’s lost prince, the rightful heir hidden since birth. King Sangor wants her silenced. Regelian wants the missing royal signet ring. And the only things standing between Raina and capture are her bow, her faith, a mysterious beast… and the wilderness she knows better than any court.
    Then Torin finds her.
    He is the enemy captain who should deliver her in chains—yet every step closer to the truth reveals he has been hunting the same secret. As midsummer approaches, a coded riddle leads them toward Lionsbreath, an ancient mountain stronghold where a forgotten lie may finally be exposed. But the closer Raina rides beside Torin, the more dangerous he becomes—to her mission, her hard-won independence, and the guarded heart she can no longer afford to lose.
    In a kingdom built on blood and betrayal, one woman may hold the power to restore the crown.
    If she dares trust the wrong man.”


Series: Book #1 in the “Stallion’s Quest” series.


Spiritual Content- Scriptures are mentioned, read, & discussed; A Psalm is sung; Prayers & Thanking God; Most ’H’s are capital when referring to God; Raina feels thankful to God for saving her life, but does feel a little bitter as well because she thinks He could have made it a little easier; Halfway through the book, Raina shouts at God for letting the deaths of her parents happen and allowing evil to happen, *Spoilers* but quickly realizes that while she’s been taught about God being good her whole life, she’s also began to believe that following God would be easy, so when suffering happens, she feels like God has deserted her; She realizes she’s been wrong in thinking this and that God’s plan for her is good *End of Spoilers*; Mentions of God, Jesus Christ, His plans and will, & faiths; Mentions of prayers, praying, answered prayers, & blessings over food; A couple mentions of “the King’s Book” (The Bible); A couple mentions of those & events in the Bible; A couple mentions of sin; A mention of a blessing from Heaven; A mention of a brooch with a cross in its center; 
             *Note: Religious phrases: a ‘what on God’s green earth’ and a ‘for heaven’s sake’; Raina is told a story about a man who struggled about trusting God after the death of his younger brother and was transported into another realm/world where he sees fantasy creatures worshiping God, feels free there, and is told about rejoicing through pain and suffering (*Spoilers* He also is told about and witnesses a patch of flowers that reflect how some people will come to God and others will fade away (an allegory); He sees a young crystal horse die after not listening to it’s mother and later sees the mother still worship through her grief; He also meets a talking lamb and lion, which are implied to be God and Jesus; The lamb says he gave the mother horse the life of her son (the young crystal horse who died), but it’s life was destroyed due to not heeding it’s mother’s warning and adds that the young horse was outside of the lamb’s protection and will be remade in the lamb’s “everlasting kingdom”; The man finds healing and realizes that he only believed in the lion (Jesus) halfway; The man wakes up in the forest after this realization and prays for God to sustain him in all things *End of Spoilers*); Torin thinks of Raina looking like a angel; Raina says she lives in a “superstitious generation” and hears whispers of people talking about demons, dragons, and “the very devil himself”; Mentions of fantasy creatures like dragons & transparent crystal horses.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: an ‘idiot’ and two ‘stupid’s; Fighting, Punching/Hitting, Being hit/slapped, Being threatened with harm and death, Being trapped in mud, Injuries, Pain, Blood/Bleeding, & Passing out (up to semi-detailed); Shooting a deer for food (and seeing a large cat eat some of it; up to semi-detailed); Grief (Raina for her parents, up to semi-detailed); A man orders for a horse to be killed and gives suggestions on how to do it, but it does not happen (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of deaths & grief (including Raina for her parents, a man for his younger brother, & also the death of a baby who was said to be stillborn); Mentions of fights/fighting, weapons, injuries, pain, & blood/bleeding; Mentions of thieves & stolen horses; Mentions of prisoners, dungeons, & torture/beatings; Mentions of lies & lying; Mentions of hatred; Mentions of rumors; Mentions of hunting, blood, & skinning/preparing animals for food; A few mentions of war; A few mentions of someone being poisoned (and killed); A couple mentions of threats; A mention of public executions; 
             *Note: Mentions of a mother and child who are believed to have died in childbirth.
 
 
Sexual Content- Noticing & Staring (including muscles, up to semi-detailed); Raina is taking a bath in a river (naked) when Torin comes after her trail (he does not see anything, but it is a tense moment for her and she tries to avoid being seen); A couple mentions of blushes; 
             *Note: Raina kicks a man in a place “where it counts the most” when trying to get away from him; A friend of Raina tells her that she could easily get a man because she’s gorgeous, but perhaps wearing a dress would help with that; A mention of breeding horses.
 
-Raina Swiftmain
-Torin Hammaguard
                                1^st person P.O.V. switches between them 
                                                        235 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

This was very different from what I was expecting—I would consider it non-magical in a knight/swords kind of setting, but there mentions of creatures like dragons and transparent crystal horses that add more of a fantasy aspect to the story. No magic is shown or mentioned in this book.

 

It was a little heavy on the play-by-play or sharing each action of the main characters, but the writing style was very unique in the way that it didn’t make it seem slow. It felt like I was with the characters and watching them from a distance, taking it all in.

 

I will note that there were a few comments that felt a little out of place for the setting (such as Torin thinking that rabbits are God’s insurance plan for him to keep from starving—would they really have knowledge of insurance in this medieval-like setting?) and a chapter about a story that was very heavy in an allegory with talking animals. I didn’t love that chapter as I found it a bit confusing and I’m not sure I fully agree with some of the theology in it, but I did enjoy the other faith content shown throughout the book. Especially the scene of Raina realize that she’s been expecting an easy life with following God when we’re not really promised that. I’ve seen a gazillion characters over the years be mad at God, but not come to that proper conclusion, so that was really good to see. 

 

Not a ton happens in this 235-paged length story in regard to the whole plot and finding the lost prince, but it was a good introduction to the world, characters, their motivations, and setting the stage for more to come about that element in the next books. Overall I enjoyed this book and would be interested in continuing the series to see what happens in the hunt for the hidden prince.

 

 

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.

*I received this book for free from the Author for this honest review.

"Attack at Pearl Harbor" by Nancy LeSourd

About this book:

  “Two close friends, Catherine Clark and Meredith Lyons, share in the trials involved in having their fathers in the war. Catherines father has recently been called as a naval officer to Pearl Harbor from Washington, but because of her brothers illness, the rest of the family stays behind. This disappoints the girls, as Merediths family has just moved to Honolulu. Both girls involve themselves in the war effort and their friendship proves to be invaluable.”


Series: Part of the “Liberty Letters” series, but does not seem to be connected to the other books in the series.


Spiritual Content- 2 Corinthians 3:17 at the end; Scriptures are read, quoted, prayed, & shared; Prayers; Church going & part of a sermon; Talks about God, His peace, & forgiveness; Most ‘H’s are not capital when referring to God; Mentions of God, His plans, trusting Him, receiving His peace, His creation, & forgiveness; Mentions of prayers, praying, & thanking God; Mentions of churches, cathedrals/chapels, church going, Sunday school, ministers, sermons, & services; Mentions of Bibles & Bible reading; Mentions of Bible studies & memorizing Scriptures; Mentions of Christmas & Easter; A few mentions of missionaries; A couple mentions of the resurrection; A mention of eternity; 
             *Note: Religious phrases: “for heaven’s sake” is said twice; A few mentions of being lucky; A couple mentions of cavemen; A mention of hero worship; A mention of someone being spellbound by seeing the First Lady.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘darn’, a ‘dumb’, a ‘good grief’, a ‘gosh’, an ‘oh my gosh’, two ‘gee’s, two ‘geez louise’, two ‘golly’s, and six ‘stupid’s; Some eye rolling & sarcasm; Meredith calls two older woman “old bats” (twice); Meredith lies to her parents regarding her location after school for a while (later noting when directly asked about something that she didn’t lie, but didn’t tell the truth either to her mother); Meredith pretends she doesn’t see a sign that says “Personnel Only” on a ship so she can explore the area & doesn’t take no for an answer when wanting to see the cockpit (which later gets her into seeing the cockpit and her mother furious at her for bothering the pilots; When her mother is furious at her, Meredith blocks out her voice and then apologizes for her actions (but is still glad she got to see the cockpit of a plane)); Explosions, Bombings, Fires, Blackouts, & Grief (up to semi-detailed); Seeing deaths & grief (up to semi-detailed); Helping others badly injured and bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Anxiety for injured and missing family members; Set prior and during the Pearl Harbor Bombing, this book frequently mentions and shows scenes of war, fighting, attacks, bombings (including on top of hospitals), planes being shot down, evacuations, fires, injuries, deaths, & bodies (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of injuries/wounds (including gunshot wounds and burns), missing limbs due to bombings, amputations, blood/bleeding, & surgeries (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of polio, Catherine’s brother being in the “iron lung” for polio treatments, the doctors implying he won’t be able to walk again (which makes Catherine upset as this is kept from her brother), his pain due to friction massages and tight braces, & the grief from their family because of it all (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of hatred; Mentions of lies & lying (including to parents); Mentions of rumors; A few mentions of cigars, cigarettes, & smoking; A mention of an execution (historical figure); 
             *Note: Some comments of prejudice/racism by side characters (such as a woman telling Meredith that the “Jap girls” are the best maids and that her maid hasn’t stolen anything from her jewelry box (as the woman checks each time), but Meredith is shocked by the woman saying that (calling the woman a “pompous old bat”); Meredith is displeased by the woman and others referring to the maids as some kind of possession; Meredith meets teens from a Japanese-American High School becomes friends with a girl who has both a Japanese name and an American name (which Meredith wishes the new friend would call herself by her Japanese name because it’s beautiful, but the girl makes it clear she prefers her American name); A girl tells Meredith to be more careful around a Japanese-American girl, but Meredith doesn’t think that makes her the enemy or a spy as the girl can’t help her family being Japanese; Meredith is told by the girl that the Japanese-American kids are only studying English so they can “take over the positions Americans are supposed to have” and witnesses the girl being rude to her family’s Japanese “servant” (which Meredith bristles at and tries to talk kindly to the maid); Other girls do not want to be around the Japanese-American girl, which irritates Meredith; After the bombing, some Japanese-Americans are held under suspicion in Hawaii due to potential ties to Japan and coded messages); Meredith is upset when her mother answers for her and pushes her to be a nurse (like her) and Meredith says that she’s done sharing about her dreams with her mother because “she just doesn’t get it”; Meredith wishes her parents would accept her dream and aches when seeing someone else get that support from his parents; Meredith’s parents tell her they can’t afford flying lessons despite her saying she would pay for them and she is very upset at the conversation (adding that it’s “not fair” and then running to her room and slamming the door; She is determined to find a way to fly and *Spoilers* tells her parents she’ll be at the library, but actually goes to the hangar to work for flying lessons; She knows her parents would kill her for going up in a plane without permission, but eventually does (avoiding telling the pilot that her parents wouldn’t allow her to be doing this) and lies to her parents about where she’ll be (feeling some guilt for lying to them), but forgets about her guilty conscience once in the air; Catherine tells her to confess to her parents before they find out from someone else, but Meredith’s parents find out first and she knows she lied and snuck around to be able to fly; Meredith realizes her actions were wrong and apologizes to them and others involved; Her parents have lost their trust in her, so she is grounded and made to volunteer for the Red Cross to be able to think about putting others first; After volunteering, Meredith realizes her parents were right about learning to be prepared for emergencies and becomes more serious; The following fall, Meredith’s parents have noticed the change in her and gift her flying lessons with an instructor for her birthday (this takes place about halfway through the book) *End of Spoilers*); Meredith wants to be a pilot, but is often told that girls can’t be a pilot or learn aviation (this includes scenes of her think being a girl shouldn’t matter and meets a girl a bit older than her who is a pilot; Meredith says she’ll “just die” if she can’t take an aviation class; Meredith is angry at hearing a male pilot disregard the idea of girls being pilots one day and wants to prove him wrong); Meredith thinks rules are “silly and stupid and meant to be broken” (regarding the rule that girls can’t take an aviation class); Mentions of singers, bands, & songs (Glen Miller, Tommy Dorsey, & ‘Blueberry Hill’); Mentions of celebrities (Amelia Earhart, Amy Johnson, Jackie Cochran, Red Skeleton, Lana Turner, Maureen O’Hara, George Raft, & Wayne Morris); Mentions of sport teams & athletes (Lou Gehrig & Joe Dimaggio); Mentions of brand names (Ovaltine, Coca-Cola, Spam, & Monopoly); Mentions of a car brand; A couple mentions of a “crippled” horse (Sea Biscuit); A mention of a store (Sears); A mention of Boy Scouts.
 
 
Sexual Content- Blushes & Crushes (that do not go farther than that, no dating/relationships); Meredith writes to Catherine about a boy that could be her type, but the boy doesn’t know she exists (later referring to him as “the boy I like” and wishing she could get to know him better; They eventually become friends); Catherine writes to Meredith about an article in her school’s paper about “Advice to Girls on the Right Technique to Use with Boys” (partially written out on-page with tips on how to attract a boy like flattering, being fun, and learning about his interests to gain his attention; Catherine thinks this is a stupid article); A girl tells Meredith to show her prettiness more (by wearing lipstick and her hair down) to gain her crush’s attention (Meredith wonders if the girl is right as she hasn’t been asked out by the guy and does like feeling pretty); Mentions of handsome guys, boyfriend/girlfriends, dances, dates, & having a type; Mentions of crushes & being sweet on someone; A mention of a couple making goo-goo eyes at each other; 
             *Note: A mention of teen boys whistling at a young woman, but a teacher putting a stop to it and telling them to respect her.
 
-Meredith Lyons, age 17-18
-Catherine Clark, age 17-18
                                P.O.V. switches between them 
                                         Set in 1940-1941
                                                        224 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

It feels fitting to read and review this book shortly before the 250th Birthday of the United States of America. While this book is set about 85 years ago and not 250, it still installed a patriotic theme in my heart while reading. 

 

Unlike the other books in this series, there’s a mental countdown when reading this book—the countdown to when these characters’ lives and many others are going to change when Pearl Harbor is bombed. Because of this, there was some suspense while I read as the dates of the letters get closer and closer to December 7th, 1941. Despite reading many books set around and during World War II, I’ve always thought that the bombing of Pearl Harbor was sudden, but this book and research I did while reading taught me that it wasn’t—that there were hints and preparing for such an attack. Just like every war, there’s a lot of political details and differing feuding governments that add a lot more layers to the history. 

 

Out of our two main characters, I definitely liked Catherine more, which was surprising as I expected to enjoy the Hawaii setting more before I started reading. Meredith drove me crazy, but I think it’s fully because of her strong willed personality and avoiding (or straight-up lying) to her parents. My parents have always been super supportive, so I can’t imagine being in Meredith’s shoes and having a dream my parents didn’t support and thus her actions felt painful to read at times. She didn’t handle things well and showed how she wasn’t ready for the responsibility of flying or learning about aviation, so I found her frustrating to read about—until some very much needed character development and lessons happened to her. Once those happened and we got closer to the bombing, I found myself unable to put the book down.

 

I do want to give a note to parents that there’s more about boys and crushes in this book than any of the other books in this series. I think the prior books could work for 12+ depending on the girl and her sensitivity level. And while I would still mark this book for ages 13+, I want to mention that content and how it doesn’t go farther than that (which felt appropriate for the characters’ ages and then being thrown into a time of war) for parents that prefer to avoid the topic for their younger readers. 

 

I’m honestly a bit sad that this series is done! I wish there had been more time periods covered as these four books were well-done with historical details and good faith content. It’s hard for me to say they were enjoyable as each book dealt with harsh realities the characters face, I did find these books valuable and great for learning more about these time periods.

 

 

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.