Christian Contemporary Women’s Fiction – Babbling Becky L’s Book Impressions

About the Book

Title: Between the Sound and Sea

Author: Amanda Cox

Publisher: Revell

Releases: August 6, 2024

Genre: Inspirational Contemporary Women’s Fiction, Historical, Mystery

Every family has its secrets. Josephina Harris wouldn’t mind if her family still had a few of their own after a lawsuit tarnishes their name. When an opportunity opens to become a temporary keeper of a decommissioned lighthouse on a North Carolina island, she jumps at the chance to escape her small town to oversee its restoration.

As the work begins, “Joey” discovers strange notes tucked deep in the crevices of the old stone walls–pages torn from a lighthouse keeper’s log signed by someone named Mae who recounts harrowing rescues at sea. Fascinated by a woman lighthouse keeper, Joey digs into the past only to discover there’s never been a record of a lighthouse keeper by that name.

When things start to go amiss on the island, locals are convinced that it is the ghost of the lighthouse keeper and his daughter who were lost at sea during World War II. As Joey sifts through decades of rumors and legends and puts together the pieces of the past, what emerges is a love story–one that’s not over yet.

Multiple Christy Award winner Amanda Cox is your guide upon the raging seas of young love, heartbreaking loss, and learning to risk it all for a chance at happiness in this timeless novel.

About the Author

Before becoming a stay-at-home parent, Amanda Cox spent her time counseling children, families, and individuals through life’s challenging moments. Now she uses those same skills to develop layered characters and stories, bringing them on a journey of hope and healing. A journey she hopes her readers experience in their own lives as they read.

A few of her favorite things are the sanctuary of the great outdoors, the feeling of pen on paper, the sound of her children’s laughter, and exploring new places with her husband of 18 years. (Oh, let’s not forget good fiction and good coffee. She’s addicted to both.) You can stay connected with her latest writing updates at http://www.amandacoxwrites.com. You can find her on social media by searching Amanda Cox Writes

To get a free short story featuring characters from The Edge of Belonging visit: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/fuj7mlfd83

My Impressions

“Regret is a strange animal, son. It makes you create alternate realities inside your head with hindsight as your guide. You long for those imaginary outcomes until it’s a sickness. But there’s also another side to regret… I knew how much it cost to get it wrong.”

Indeed, this twisty, dual-time novel of Amanda Cox, Between the Sound and the Sea, is full of regrets. Walter is desperately trying to make up for his regrets from 60 years earlier. Finn doesn’t know how to step away from his broken past into a safe life. And Joey thinks she can somehow solve her problems by proving her worth to a town who has rejected her. Can these three work together to restore an old Outer Banks lighthouse and solve the mystery of the light keeper and his daughter who disappeared years ago?

Cheers for obscure history revealed! Never would I have guessed WWII was this close to our mainland! Why weren’t we taught this in US history?!

I found myself with the characters saying in my head, “I wish this or that would happen, or wouldn’t have happened.” Or I was guilty as I read, of saying, “Why? Why did [character] do that?!” Whether in reading or real life, it’s so easy to get caught up in the “if only” rut. You can see Amanda Cox’s background as a therapist come through as she explores the characters’ actions and feelings. “It was past time to leave behind the ‘if onlys.’ ‘I’m not sure going backward is ever the answer. We learn what we can from the hard times and keep moving forward.’”

This mesmerizing novel will have you reaching for the Kleenex more than once as Cox visits themes of regret, fear, and heartache. Is there a path for these characters I now love to find peace, forgiveness, hope, and restoration?

Because I love to spotlight secondary characters, I will name Pete as my fave such character. I loved how God used him in the narrative and also how he grew!

I received a copy of the book from the author and publisher via NetGalley. I also pre-ordered a pb for my keeper shelf. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables:

“But that’s the beauty of love and grace, Cay. The real kind. We don’t have to earn it.”

“God meets us right where we’re at. And maybe things in our lives get broken down and beaten up along the way. The good news is restoration work is kind of His specialty.”

“When people are hurt and scared, they aren’t always able to reason through things well. They can’t see past the pain and fear.”

“I feel like I’ve slipped and fallen into an episode of Scooby-Doo. Send help.”

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Magnificent! Cox proves once again why she is a multiple Christy award winner!

About the Book

Book: Sabal Palms and the Southern Squall

Author: Terry Overton

Genre: Christian Contemporary Women’s Fiction

Release date: April 5, 2022

8976DCE1-8605-4C90-9F39-4FD7DFDA3644_4_5005_c

Elaine Smith lived in the small coastal town of Sabal Palms long enough to know when to worry about a squall and when to simply close the windows and wait for it to pass. This one would be significant. It would be significant in terms of damage, but that was to be expected. What no one expected was the profound effect it would have on the lives of people from the Texas coast to New York City. Positive qualities of humanity are often displayed during times of natural disaster.
But a supernatural power had attached to this storm and subsequently worked within the hearts of the most needy, the most lonely, and the most sinister. The lives of four delightful women, a homeless teen, a rebellious son, a grieving lover who is at the bottom, a son who lost his faith, and a hired murderer, are all intertwined in the aftereffects of a Category 3 hurricane thanks to a few passages written by one determined woman.

Click here to get your copy!

My Impressions

“I don’t write for the money, I write hoping to change people’s lives.”

Terry Overton presents a very unique, heartwarming story about four older, widowed women who take refuge together from a hurricane. We see four mismatched persons who are very different, yet work together to form a strong, safe friendship. But that friendship is subject to two dangerous cancers. One is gossip, and the other is not encouraging a friend in her chosen line of work, simply because the results are not obvious.

I enjoyed this in-depth look at a hurricane, something unfamiliar to me. I loved how people rallied around each other to rebuild and restore necessities after the damage of the hurricane.

Poor Elaine. She feels like her writing is making no difference, until she finally writes a small passage for Adrianna. Adrianna is much encouraged, but the other two friends feel Elaine is wasting her time and have no qualms about telling her so.

Then, something begins to change. One by one, we are introduced to several other individuals from various parts of the country, whose lives intersect with the four friends. After finishing the book, I am in awe of what God can accomplish through humble people who are determined to do what He has called them to.

I received a copy of the book through Celebrate Lit. No positive review was required, and all opinions are my own.

Notable Quotables:

“She wondered, as she did every night at the typewriter, if anything she wrote would make a difference for someone else.”

“Tamar wasn’t loved by God because she did good or bad things. She wasn’t loved by God because she had earned His love.” “I don’t understand what you are trying to say.” “Tamar was loved by God first, no matter what. He called her.”

My Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Great! God Rewards Those Who Quietly Do What He Calls Them to Do!

About the Author

Terry Overtonobtained her Ph.D. in Psychology and her Ed.D. in special education. She taught in public schools and was a school psychologist and a professor before retiring in 2016. Her university experiences included teaching at Longwood University in Virginia, the University of Texas-Brownsville, The University of Texas-Pan American, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, and Stephen F. Austin State University. She held positions as Dean and Department Chair during her tenure in higher education. Her areas of research included behavior disorders, learning disorders, autism, and research in higher education. She currently resides in Laguna Vista, Texas. She enjoys Biblical history and general Bible studies, writing, blogging, and visiting with friends and family. Her books have been recognized and received awards from Firebird Book Awards, American Writing Awards, and have earned five stars from Readers Views and Readers Favorites. Her books have been recognized Finalist for the International and National Book Awards.

More from Terry

This book will take the reader to the southern coast of Texas. In fact, this book happens at the very bottom tip of Texas. The reader will feel the warm sea breezes, view the coastal sunsets and sunrises, and experience the friendships of four close women friends. Here is a sample:

The women gathered at the swimming pool and shed their cover-ups. Next, each lady

took out her favorite sunscreen lotions and creams and sprayed and squirted so much on, they all

looked almost as pasty as a bottle of glue. No one talked at all during this process of slathering

on thick coats of varying SPFs. It was a polite, unspoken agreement that no forbidden words

were ever mentioned when the ladies were in swimwear. Words like cellulite, wrinkles, fat, fatty

tissue, weight, weight loss, weight gain, age spots, and—the worst words ever—skin cancer were

completely and totally off limits.

In times of crises, these four women always bind together and help each other. They have been friends for over twenty years. Here is an excerpt of one of their conversations during a pool party:

What strangers might not understand is the banter back and forth was exactly the only way they could get along. They enjoyed it. They thrived on it.

“Oh, fiddle-faddle, Bonnie, last week you told me you thought the salon was opening up

this week,” Mary jabbed. “It didn’t.”

“I didn’t say that. I said I heard it might be opening next month.”

“You said next week as sure as I am floating on this raft.”

“Had your hearing checked lately?”

“Right after you get yours checked.”

And they both laughed. It was always entertaining.

“Well, horsefeathers! I need to get this hair trimmed again. It is all cattywampus on the

sides.”

“What? You’ve got a cat in there?” Bonnie laughed.

“Feels like it,” Mary retorted.