Books for Christian Girls: "A Silken Thread" by Kim Vogel Sawyer

About this book:

“For readers who love a heartwarming romance and a rich historical setting comes a tale of a young woman with a heavy burden, the International Cotton Exposition, and the pursuit of true love.
Eighteen-year-old Laurel Millard, youngest of seven children, is expected to stay home and "take care of Mama" by her older siblings, but Laurel has dreams of starting her own family. Operating a silk loom at the Atlanta Exposition will give her the chance to capture the heart of a man wealthy enough to take care of Laurel and any children she might bear, as well as her mother.
Langdon Rochester's parents have given him an ultimatum: settle down with a wife or lose his family inheritance. At the Exposition, Langdon meets Laurel. Marrying her would satisfy his parents's command, she would look lovely on his arm for social events, and in her besotted state, he believes she would overlook him continuing pursuing rowdy adventures with his unmarried buddies. Langdon decides to woo Laurel. Willie Sharp is not well-off and must take on an extra job at the Atlanta Exposition as a security guard. When mischief-makers cause trouble in the Women's Building, Willie is put in charge of keeping the building secure. He enjoys visiting with Laurel, who seems like the little sister he never had, but his feelings for Laurel change to something much deeper. Can Willie convince Laurel that he can give her better life--even with so little to offer?”

Series: As of now, no.

Spiritual Content- Luke 6:31 at the beginning; Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, read, & discussed; Prayers & Thanking God; Church going & sermons; Many talks about God, His will, & praying; ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to God; Many mentions of God & His will; Many mentions of prayers, praying, blessings over food, & thanking God; Mentions of Bibles & Bible reading; Mentions of those & events in the Bible; Mentions of faiths; Mentions of churches, church going, sermons, services, hymns, tithing, & pastors/preachers; A few mentions of blessings & being blessed; A couple mentions of angels; A mention of Heaven; A mention of sin;

*Note: Quincy wonders at a couple points if God loves the white folks a bit more than the black folks because it seemed like the white people had it easier (his momma boxed his ears for wondering that out loud).

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a form of ‘dumb’, two ‘shut up’s, and three ‘stupid’s; Some eye rolling; Mentions of curses (said, not written); Being beaten/attacked, Injuries, & Pain (Willie, barely-above-not-detailed); Being threatened by weapons & held in jail (Quincy); Facing prejudice & Hearing prejudice comments; All about many mentions of slavery, slaves, the Civil War, deaths, prejudice, & prejudice comments (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of break-ins, vandalism, thieves, stealing, & stolen items; Mentions of crimes & criminals; Mentions of being arrested & in jail; Mentions of threats & threatening; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of alcohol, drinking, & drunks; A few mentions of an accident & death; A few mentions of accidents & injuries; A few mentions of card playing/gambling; A few mentions of hunting; A couple mentions of blackmail; A few mentions of lies & lying; A couple mentions of cigars & smoking; A couple mentions of killing worms for their silk; A mention of men being lynched.

Sexual Content- two hand kisses and a semi-detailed kiss; Touches, Embraces, & Blushes; Mentions of flirting & playing with others’ hearts; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of blushes; A few mentions of men fathering children out of wedlock & having to get married; A few mentions of kisses & kissing; A couple mentions of romance books; A mention of women being molested (doesn’t happen, not-detailed); A mention of ruined reputations; A mention of swooning; Love, falling in love, & the emotions;

*Note: Mentions of Laurel’s mother nearly dying while delivering her and her twin (the twin did not make it); A couple mentions of miscarriages; A mention of breastfeeding; A mention of butting heads.

-Laurel Millard, age 18

-Langdon Rochester, age 23

-Willie Sharp
P.O.V. switches between them & Quincy

Set in 1895
333 pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

Older High School Teens-

My personal Rating-

When I first started this novel, I wasn’t sure what I would think about it by the end as it felt pretty slow to me at times. Because of the four point of views, I don’t think we really got to know any of the characters very well or see their character development.

Laurel was a bit flat with her emotions, but I think that may have been because of her not socializing much. Her goal for getting a job was to meet a man. She was okay, but not my favorite main heroine.

Langdon was the typical player/flirt but not so much in the sexual side of those kinds of characters. He was more deceiving and manipulative with Laurel than interested in ruining her reputation, so the book was cleaner in those regards and I appreciate that very much. The ending made my rating go up a full star.

Willie & Quincy were friends and I liked hearing about their backstories together. The prejudice plot was very important to this story, but there were no mentions of gruesome actions which continued making this book cleaner than most on these topics.

See y’all on Friday with a new review!