"An Unconfirmed Report" by Stephanie Daniels

About this book:

  “Tucson, Arizona Territory, 1873
    Seventeen-year-old Sara Jane Carter would love nothing more than to succeed her father as editor of their fledgling Tucson newspaper, despite his wishes for her to marry. He's even chosen the ideal Keller Callahan, the charming apprentice who is now unattached after a recent relationship ended in disappointment and heartbreak.
    Courtship is the last thing on Sara Jane's mind when a health crisis and a nationwide financial panic leaves her to manage the paper's upkeep amid dwindling subscribers and supply shortages. Facing mounting debt, she dares to attract new readership by printing a big headline targeting the one man in town who could destroy her livelihood. As she delves deeper, Keller seems to oppose her at every step, though maybe not for the reasons she thinks.
    Will she forge ahead, risking Keller's friendship and the paper's reputation? Or will she rely on God despite the obstacles threatening her hopes and dreams?”


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


Spiritual Content- At beginning of each part (four in total), there is a Scripture; At the very end of the book, there is a section about trusting in Jesus Christ for your salvation; Scriptures are mentioned, quoted, remembered, & thought over; Many prayers & thanking God; Church going, services, sermons, & singing hymns; Talks about God, forgiveness, trusting Him, & having faith in God; ’H’s are capital when referring to God; While Sara Jane goes to church to keep a promise, she is used to doing things on her own and not needing God’s help; *Major Spoilers* Towards the end, Sara Jane realizes that she hasn’t given God her whole heart and wants to do better; Keller also prays with the pastor and becomes a believer; At the very end, Sarah Jane understands that the pain she’s inflicted on her mother never brought her joy “despite the devil’s prodding that it would” and that she has been withholding her unconditional love from her mother which isn’t how Christ loves her *End of Spoilers*; Many mentions of God, Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit, forgiveness, God’s will, trusting Him, His providence, God-given gifts, & having faith in God; Many mentions of prayers, praying, a prayer vigil, & a prayer chain; Mentions of Bibles, Scriptures, & a Bible study; Mentions of those, events, & places in the Bible; Mentions of churches, church going, ministries, revivals, pastors, services, sermons, & hymns; Mentions of blessings & being blessed; Mentions of miracles; A few mentions of Heaven and eternity; A few mentions of sins & sinners; A couple mentions of a cross necklace; A mention of a missionary; A mention of someone not being “partial to religion”; 
             *Note: Keller doesn’t believe another character is sincere about being a Christian and reminds the man of all his past sins that he did to others; A few mentions of luck; A mention of Santa Claus.
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: an ‘idiot’ and two ‘stupid’s; Some Eye rolling & Sarcasm; Sara Jane lies a couple times due to keeping a secret or chasing a story; Being held at gunpoint and thinking death is near, & gunshots (up to semi-detailed); Going to a saloon & an opium den for a story; Seeing someone attacked by a coyote and killed by a gunshot, someone held at gunpoint, & seeing another with a head injury (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of murders, a massacre of women and children, crimes, hangings, the murderer, & grief (including grief from a man for his late wife, borderline barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed); Many mentions of alcohol, drinking, drunks, saloons, & Keller trying to drink away his heartbreak; Mentions of the Chicago Fire, deaths, injuries, & fear (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of illnesses, stokes, head injuries, amnesia, pain, & blood/bleeding (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of weapons, gunshots, shootings, & fights/fighting; Mentions of stolen guns & gun smuggling; Mentions of jails/prisons & prisoners; Mentions of vandalism, break-ins, & threats; Mentions of opium, opium users, & opium dens; Mentions of cigars, tobacco (including for medicinal use), & smoking; Mentions of gambling & poker games; Mentions of bullies, someone being bullied, and gangs; Mentions of throwing up; Mentions of lies, lying, & liars; Mentions of gossip & rumors; Mentions of eavesdropping; Mentions of jealousy; Mentions of manure; A few mentions of wars & deaths; A few mentions of an almost drowning due to a bully’s prank; 
             *Note: Sara Jane doesn’t want to get married because of seeing her father’s heartbreak after her mother left and choose an acting career over them; Sara Jane thinks and says some hurtful things about her mother including that her mother doesn’t love her (and later apologizes for saying some of them to her mother’s face; Sara Jane thinks of her mother’s acting skills as being manipulative/lying and doesn’t want to be anything like her); A side character also feels like her mother doesn’t want her; Sara Jane faces from prejudice for working in the newspaper and also faces some men that do not want to do business with her because of her being a girl; Mentions of hatred & a child telling a parent she hates her (*Spoilers* Sara Jane when she was young to her mother after failing to preform like her mother and feeling pressure; Sara Jane knows really doesn’t hate her because otherwise she wouldn’t have tried so hard to please her mother; Sara Jane feels guilt over the fact that her declaration made her mother leave her and her father; Sarah Jane tells her mother that she loves her, but her mother only says “likewise” until the end of the book *End of Spoilers*); Mentions of a stillborn baby (Sara Jane’s older brother; Sara Jane fights against the lies in her head that tell her that her father would have rather had a son than her; *Spoilers* Halfway through, Sara Jane learns that her brother is actually alive and their mother gave him up because of her career; The brother reaches out and Sara Jane meets him *End of Spoilers*); A few mentions of books (‘The Deerslayer’ and ‘Pilgrim’s Progress’); A mention of discrimination towards the Apache.
 
 
Sexual Content- A hand kiss, three cheek kisses, an almost kiss (barely-above-not-detailed), and a semi-detailed kiss; Seeing a couple kiss (barely-above-not-detailed); Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Tingles, Flutters, Nearness, & Smelling (up to semi-detailed); Blushes; Noticing & Staring (barely-above-not-detailed); Sara Jane uses her mother’s “thespian training” to disarm a man and coax him to do her bidding (which she doesn’t want to do, but has to for the situation); Sara Jane has a “crawly feeling” at the thought of her mother having interest in a young man her age because her mother is “ancient”; Many mentions of courting, rejection, & broken hearts; Mentions of kisses & kissing; Mentions of flirting, winks, & blushes; Mentions of jealousy; A handful of mentions of possible adultery & affairs (but a woman says she’s been faithful to her marriage vows); A few mentions of being sweet on someone already in a relationship or married (which is showed as wrong); A few mentions of chaperones & reputations; Love, falling/being in love, & the emotions;
             *Note: Sara Jane doesn’t want to get married due to believing that “love ends in disappointment” after seeing her parents’ relationship.
 
-Sara Jane Carter, age 17
                                1^st person P.O.V. of Sara Jane  
                                          Set in 1873
                                                        450 pages
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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating-

After greatly enjoying the first book in this series, “The Uncertainty of Fire”, I’ve been eager to read the next book in the series—even if it was featuring a side character that stressed me out. That man was still called an idiot at least twelve times by me while reading this sequel, but the last one was with fondness at the end. I’ll admit that I wasn’t sure about him for the majority of this book, but that last 25% really sold me on his change, Sara Jane’s faith realization, and definitely ramped up my reading speed to—hopefully—see everything work for these characters. I finished the book with a smile on my face, if that gives you any indication.

 

I’ve been vocal before that I don’t personally like it when a main character or love interest drinks—whatever genre, whether Christian or Clean fiction. That said, the love interest does drink in this book and gets drunk (with mentions of this happening in the past as well). I think it ought to be noted that we never get his perspective at all in this book, which did make a difference for me in this element. It’s still harming his liver, don’t get me wrong, but it was part of his story—his “pruning” moments—that eventually leads to better decisions being made. Eventually. Like I said, it took a while to get there, but I was very happy to see his change. 

 

As for our main character, I really liked Sara Jane. I think it is so easy for a character like her to come across as “feminist” or a “woman before her time” in a historical setting, but I don’t feel like she was either of those. She had a passion for the newspaper and a strong love for her father that implored her to act in ways that may not have been common for young women like her in that time period, but she wasn’t doing it because she thought she could do better or be better than any man. She had a passion for it that showed more than anything, in my opinion. She was stubborn and headstrong, for sure, but not to a completely detrimental amount—just something that can be a flaw if used incorrectly, but also can be a strength when it matters. She’s learning that and overall, I really liked her as our main character. 

 

Sara Jane has a lot of hurt because of her mother’s choices and that’s kept her from wanting to ever marry because of believing that all love ends in disappointment. And honestly, I can’t blame her for coming to that thought based on her parents’ relationship. There’s a special moment towards the end of the book where Sara Jane has beautiful character development in this regard that nearly made me tear up because of the faith content involved. The faith content throughout this book felt very natural and I really enjoyed seeing it weaved in at different parts. 

 

I don’t think I could pick a favorite between this book or the first one as they both had elements to their stories that I greatly liked and also parts that made me a bit stressed while reading. One thing that stood out to me with both novels, however, is the strong faith content discussed and shown throughout the plots which made the stories have the important of following Jesus Christ, which I love to see in a YA book especially.

 

 

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 Uncertainty of Fire" by Stephanie Daniels

About this book:

  “What price will she pay for following her heart?
   Chicago, 1871. Sixteen-year-old Whimsy Greathart would rather fight against Chicago’s child labor practices than attend her privileged family’s high society events. And a very public social blunder only strengthens her resolve to use her influence for good.
   On the night of the Great Chicago Fire, her tenderhearted choice leads her into danger and results in life-changing consequences.
   With her world turned to ash, she must rely on the mercy of poor relations to rebuild her future and is forced into the very labor system she wished to fight against. As Whimsy staggers under the weight of street gang violence and hazardous working conditions, a chance at deliverance persuades her to make a promise. One she intends to keep. But now she must determine whether it’s God’s heart she’s following or her own.”


Series: Book #1 in the “Uncertain Riches” series.


Spiritual Content- At beginning of each part (four in total), there is a Scripture; Scriptures are quoted, read, & remembered; Prayers; Church going, services, sermons, & hymns; Many talks about God, why God allows things to happen, His plans/will for us, being called by Him, callings, trusting Him, listening to God, praying, & forgiveness; 'H's are capital when referring to God; Whimsy struggles to understand why God allowed something to happen & why she’s alive (there’s quite a few discussion about this and the answer is that God has a plan for her, even if she doesn’t want to hear that); Whimsy doesn’t want to pray at one time because she’s weary of being told no; In a couple possible dying scenarios, Whimsy thinks that if she surrenders to death, she’ll be in Heaven, but remembers a conversation about there being a reason she’s alive and doesn’t give up; Whimsy doesn’t believe that someone that has caused her pain and trouble has accepted God; When asked to forgive that someone, Whimsy lies and says she does (*Spoiler* Someone else tells her that she’ll regret not forgiving him, but it takes conversations and for her to realize that she needs to forgive the man for her own peace before she actually forgives him *End of Spoiler*); Whimsy wants someone who is cynical about God and religion to turn to Him (*Major Spoiler* She realizes at the end, though, that she can’t live with God only being a small part of her life, which would be the case if she stayed in a relationship with him; Also knowing that he will act the part to please her, but that he won’t be actually saved and that she cares about his eternal future; She regrets that it went this far and caused the man pain *End of Major Spoiler*); Many, many mentions of God, Jesus, trusting Him, His will, listening to God, callings, & forgiveness; Many mentions of prayers, praying, answered prayers, blessings over food, & Thanking/Praising God; Many mentions of Bibles, Bible reading, & Bible studies; Many mentions of churches, church going, church meetings, services, pastors/reverends, & hymns; Mentions of those & events in the Bible; Mentions of Heaven; Mentions of missions & missionaries; Mentions of a conversion & a new believer in God; Mentions of Christians & faiths; Mentions of Protestants, Baptists, & Methodists; Mentions of someone’s distain for Christianity & preachers (including calling the “religious folks” that didn’t like saloons “dippers” (called that because they’re “the ones who say you gotta get dunked underwater”), pointing out religious hypocrisy (of Christians converting Indians but then rejecting their children to be able to come to school), saying he’d prefer the company of an outlaw than a preacher, that a preacher’s charity baskets had a double-meaning about wanting the people to give money to the church, and wanting to prove that a preacher is a con-man); A few mentions of paintings of those & events in the Bible; A few mentions of sins & sinners; A couple mentions of testimonies & praises; A couple mentions of a man wondering if God is punishing him for his past actions when something terrible happens (Whimsy tells him that’s not true); A couple mentions of the Catholics crossing themselves & mass; A mention of being baptized; A mention of a Catholic shrine; A mention of sisters at a church; 

             *Note: A couple mentions of a near-perfect memory being a curse or a blessing; A mention of that in some countries, it’s considered demonic to be left-handed; A mention of a spiritualist’s candlelit skull; A (teasing) mention of a magic spell being casted on someone (because they did something that is not normal for them); A mention of a Greek Mythology character (Odysseus). 
 

Negative Content- Minor cussing including: a ‘bosh’, a ‘drat’, a ‘dumb’, an ‘idiot’, a ‘sissy’, and three ‘stupid’s; Mentions of curses; Whimsy says “flumadiddle” when she drops something or something unexpected happens (as opposed to a curse word, said six times); Some eye rolling & Sarcasm; Fires, Close calls, Being caught in a fire, Being lost in a crowd, Fights/Fighting, Being beaten/attacked (Whimsy is beaten by a gang of young men because she told on them, happens a few times), Running away from a gang, Being attacked by a drunk and Being held at knife-point (the man intends to kill Whimsy), Pain, Injuries, Blood/Bleeding, & Passing out (up to semi-detailed); Helping someone who is injured & their blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Throwing up; Grief, Grieving, & Guilt for loved one’s deaths (parents and family members, *Spoiler* Whimsy’s parents, older sister, and brother-in-law all perish in the fire, she grieves for them and also feels guilt after finding out how they died (looking for her) *End of Spoiler*); In a couple possible dying scenarios, Whimsy thinks that if she surrenders to death, she’ll be in Heaven, but remembers a conversation about there being a reason she’s alive and doesn’t give up; Whimsy imagines punching someone (she does not, however the thought brings a smile to her face) & later pushes the annoying person; Whimsy lies (a couple times to throw her cousin off of her trail and another time to keep from explaining about someone she doesn’t want to tell others about; She has opportunities to correct it all, but does not and this bothers and causes her guilt; *Spoiler* She realizes towards the end that the messes her lies created were all her fault and that the lies she’s told have punishments *End of Spoiler*); Whimsy says doesn’t care if a man dies after being tormented by him (*Spoiler* Forgiveness eventually happens towards the man, see Spiritual Content Spoilers for more information *End of Spoiler*); All about many mentions of fires, smoke, crowds, screams, injuries, deaths, & bodies/remains (up to semi-detailed); Many mentions of fights, fighting, a gang, that gang beating others, the head bully, stabbings, attacks, pain, injuries, & blood/bleeding (up to semi-detailed); Mentions of a woman being murdered due to a man’s animosity towards her picking another man to marry (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a murder & someone trying to see the murderer hung; Mentions of wars, fighting, injuries, & deaths (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a massacre, raids, fights against the Indians in the West, & deaths of mostly women and child; Mentions of riots, violence, injuries, & deaths; Mentions of child labor, accidents, injuries, blood/bleeding, & deaths (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a man willing to kill another man for hurting his girl; Mentions of stealing, crimes, thieves/robbers/criminals, & seeing a group of men attacking a delivery wagon; Mentions of cons & swindlers (including children and a man posing as a preacher); Mentions of bets, gambling, & horse races; Mentions of explosions/TNT; Mentions of saloons, alcohol, drinking, drunks, & temperance laws (also including a man saying he’s been drinking since he was ten and trying to fight the addiction); Mentions of cigars, tobacco, & smoking; Mentions of grief (parents, mother, sister, wife, other family members) & guilt over deaths; Mentions of nightmares (including ones of being attacked and threatened, barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of lies, lying, liars, & deceit; Mentions of gossip, rumors, & eavesdropping; Mentions of slaughterhouses & pigs going to the slaughter pins (barely-above-not-detailed); Mentions of a dead rodent & the smell (barely-above-not-detailed); A few mentions of President Lincoln’s funeral; A few mentions of bribes & dirty police officers; A few mentions of bar fights/brawls; A few mentions of throwing up; A few mentions of malnutrition; A few mentions of hatred; A few mentions of jealousy; A couple mentions of a family’s infants/children dying young; A couple mentions of malaria & a death; A couple mentions of a jail & prisoners; A couple mentions of hunting & hunters; A couple mentions of boys messing with & trying to kill a tarantula; A mention of a doctor being killing for helping another man; A mention of a young man wanting to kill his father because of the way he and his mother were treated by him; A mention of diarrhea; A mention of manure;

             *Note: Mentions of prejudices (towards the poor, the religious, & Indians/Native Americans and someone’s possible prejudice towards interracial marriages); Mentions of books (A couple of Charles Dickens’ books, Julius Caesar, and Little Women).
 

 

Sexual Content- Three hand kisses (one unwanted), a cheek kiss, four head/forehead kisses, two barely-above-not-detailed kisses, and a border-line barely-above-not-detailed // semi-detailed kiss; Recalling kisses (barely-above-not-detailed); A mention of a young man staring at Whimsy’s lips; Touches, Embraces, Hand holding, Warmth, & Butterflies (barely-above-not-detailed); Wanting to embrace; Blushes; Noticing, Nearness, & Smelling (barely-above-not-detailed); Whimsy makes a promise to be with a young man while she’s uncertain about her feelings for him; Whimsy lies to her cousin about a boy & being interested in him (twice); Mentions of mean leering at Whimsy and other young women with wolfish stares; Mentions of kisses & couples kissing; Mentions of blushes, crushes, flirting, & a flirt; Mentions of chaperones & reputations (Whimsy thinks often that her mother wouldn’t like her being alone with a young man); Mentions of girls giggling & staring at a young man; A couple mentions of jealousy; Love, wondering if she’s in love, falling in love, & the emotions;

             *Note: A mention of women wearing dresses that hug their curves; A mention of a neckline of a dress possibly being “too liberal” in a land full of men. 

 

-Whimsy Greathart, age 16-17
                                1^st person P.O.V. of Whimsy

                                         Set in 1871-1872 (Epilogue in 1873) 
                                                     372 pages

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Pre Teens- 

New Teens- 

Early High School Teens- 

Older High School Teens- 

My personal Rating- 

{Might be a hard (or comforting) read for girls who have lost their parents}

The sigh of happy relief I did once finishing this novel was probably heard a couple states over. 
What can I say? Love triangles make me nervous. And this one definitely did. 

Going back a bit, the beginning of this story really reminded me of an American Girl historical novel. I can’t place why exactly, because it was much better written, but perhaps because of the historical setting and this being one of the few Historical YA novels I’ve seen in the Christian Fiction genre? 

This novel is broken up into four parts and spans over a year in total. Which felt very realistic for all the things Whimsy goes through and has to learn. The last part really reminded me of a Janette Oke novel, with Whimsy having to learn and own up to her actions and past lies. 

On Whimsy, I really liked her and was honestly brought to tears at some points and events. I love her name, but also her compassion. I will admit that she frustrated and stressed me out at times because of her decisions, but every time was a learning experience for her and to help her grow. I have to find those parts relatable and wonder if the Lord’s felt the same way with me a times. (Sorry, Lord!) I also really liked the writing style and how different events or emotions were described. 

Back to the love triangle, not to sound dramatic or anything, but it was literally killing me. Okay, obviously not actually killing me, but it felt like it was for a chunk of the book. Those who enjoy love triangles will probably enjoy this element, but even me (the not-a-fan-of-love-triangles-tropes-because-I-hate-someone-to-be-dissappointed-and-hurt) thoroughly got involved into that element and was (very thankfully) satisfied at the ending. But, again, I did a sigh of (happy) relief when finishing this novel. I’m very curious about the next book in the series as it will be about a side character we met towards the end of this book and plan to anticipate reading it. 

 

 

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 Author for this honest review.