Books for Christian Girls: "Family Secrets" by Becky Melby

About this book:

“Welcome to Marietta, Ohio, where the past is never far away and the present invites adventure and intrigue. Bring together three reunited friends, a historic building-turned-inn, and mysteries past and present. Blend in the century-old story of Prudence Willard and her clandestine work with the Underground Railroad, and you'll begin to discover the Secrets of Wayfarers Inn.”

Series: Book #1 in the “Secrets of Wayfarers Inn” series.

Spiritual Content- Many Scriptures are mentioned, read, remembered, referenced, & quoted; Bible reading; Prayers & Blessings over food; Talks about God; Most ‘H’s are capitalized when referring to God; Mentions of God, gifts, & witnessing; Mentions of praying, prayers, & blessings over food; Mentions of Bibles & Bible reading; Mentions of those & events in the Bible; Mentions of Bible studies, small groups, & support groups; Mentions of churches, church going, & pastors/reverends; A few mentions of Quakers; A Mentions of Christians; A mention of a hymn; A mention of baptisms; A mention of the Sistine Chapel;

*Note: Many mentions of ghosts (and not believing in them), dead/lost spirits, & places that look haunted; A few mentions of a man humming in a place his believes there to be lost spirits; A few mentions of evil men; A couple mentions of Pandora’s box; A mention of a mug that said “sarcasm is my spiritual gift”.

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘blah blah blah’, a ‘shut up’, two ‘stupid’s, and ten ‘dumb’; A short elderly woman (under five feet tall) is called a ‘midget’; Some eye rolling & sarcasm; Seeing someone have an allergic reaction (peanuts) & helping them (barely-above-not-detailed); Many mentions of wars, slavery, slaves, bounty hunters, & prejudice; Mentions of murders; Mentions of a man’s wife & daughter being killed in a drunk-driving accident; Mentions of injuries & being shot at; Mentions of the mob & organized crime; Mentions of break-ins, jail time, & prisons; Mentions of lies, lying, liars, & deception (in the historical diary parts, Prudence says that “deception was what God had called her to” in regard to the underground railroad); Mentions of rumors & gossip; Mentions of tattoos & piercings; A few mentions of thinking a note is a suicide note; A few mentions of a man losing a hand in an IED explosion; A few mentions of criminals, crimes, & crime scenes; A few mentions of gambling & poker; A few mentions of alcohol, drinking too much, & an AA meeting; A couple mentions of con-artists; A couple mentions of loan sharks; A couple mentions of pipes & smoking; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of drug smugglers; A mention of bootleggers;

*Note: Many mentions of others grieving the loss of a spouse and/or child; Mentions of LuAnn’s father disappearing when she was young; Mentions of old songs, movies, TV shows, actresses, & fictional characters; Mentions of authors, books, & characters; Mentions of car brands; Mentions of brand name products (food & tech); Mentions of social media sites (Pinterest, Facebook, & Twitter); A few mentions of singers (Elvis, the Beatles, and the Piano Guys); A mention of Angie’s List; A mention of Steve Jobs; A mention of a Disney character; A mention of the Broadway play, Hamilton.

Sexual Content- Some Nearness & Smelling; Mentions of a lovers’ triangle featuring a letter from a married woman to another man that she would leave her husband for him, the possible affair, & a man receiving unwanted advances from a married woman; Mentions of LuAnn finding out her first love was actually a married man & the unfaithfulness; Mentions of dates & dating; A few mentions of kisses (most by a married couple); A couple mentions of blushes & a first kiss; A couple mentions of jealousy; A mention of some salesmen taking off their wedding rings when they meet with female clients; A mention of flirting;

*Note: A couple mentions of a young woman being interested in a man’s muscles; A mention of a curvy figure; A mention of hormonal teenagers.

-LuAnn Sherrill, age 63

P.O.V. of LuAnn

284 pages

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Pre Teens-

New Teens-

Early High School Teens-

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My personal Rating-

I really struggled with this book, personally. LuAnn was super cynical towards Brad and while yes, she’s been hurt a few times before (a long time ago), has she treated every man like this since then? And then her “super close” friends are trying to push them together when it’s really obvious she can’t stand him? It was a bit much with that and all her fantasies and going off into historical la-la-land/romanticisms all the time, so I didn’t like her, sadly.

The historical (1850s) diary parts had a lot of “thee”s and “thou”s between a married couple that threw me off when reading, but maybe it’s historically accurate? Hmm. Don’t know about that.

(Also, just a note: You don’t “slam” an EpiPen into a person’s thigh. Which is what LuAnn does to a girl having an allergic reaction.) This was only one of the many things I found unrealistic.

I had the hardest time following the secrets of the different family trees and keeping track of all the people mentioned. I kind of gave up towards the end on keeping everyone straight.

Unfortunately, this first book was a major miss for me. I will try the second book in the series because I own it, but it’s unlikely that I’ll continue past it.

See y’all on Friday with a new review!