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Book Review: Secrets in the Stones by Tessa Harris

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(Dr. Thomas Silkstone Mystery)

Pub Date: February 23, 2016 by Kensington

Secrets of the Stones is the second book on my backlog I’ve read since starting back reviewing books. I went way back on my list with this one. I can’t get over that it is from 2016! How in the world did I miss this? I know the answer but still…Glad I chose this to review next. Catching up with one book at a time. Be sure to read some of my thoughts on the story below.

Book Description:

Within the mysteries of the body, especially those who have been murdered, 18th-century anatomist Dr. Thomas Silkstone specializes in uncovering the tell-tale clues that lead towards justice…
Newly released from the notorious asylum known as Bedlam, Lady Lydia Farrell finds herself in an equally terrifying position–as a murder suspect–when she stumbles upon the mutilated body of Sir Montagu Malthus in his study at Boughton Hall.

Meanwhile Dr. Thomas Silkstone has been injured in a duel with a man who may or may not have committed the grisly deed of which Lydia is accused. Despite his injury, Thomas hopes to clear his beloved’s good name by conducting a postmortem on the victim. With a bit of detective work, he learns that Montagu’s throat was slit by no ordinary blade, but a ceremonial Sikh dagger from India–a clue that may be connected to the fabled lost mines of Golconda.
From the mysterious disappearance of a cursed diamond buried with Lydia’s dead husband, to the undying legend of a hidden treasure map, Thomas must follow a trail of foreign dignitaries, royal agents–and even more victims–to unveil the sinister and shocking secrets in the stones…

My Thoughts:

I absolutely love a good historical mystery thriller and this one fits the bill. I believe this story is the sixth in the series and I started with this one first. Why am I always doing that? Sigh. I don’t know. Well, I’m happy to report that after reading this book I want to go back and read the first five.

Eighteenth century anatomy interest me in several areas. Particularly the dissection of the human bodies and their analysis on how they died and perhaps leading to why and other considerations from scientific purview. The author certainly has a lot of material to work with when writing about crimes and mysteries in the eighteen-century due to the general public’s discovery of deaths through the publication of newspapers and such.

Dr. Thomas Silkstone is a fascinating character to say the least. He used scientist evidence and clues to help solve crimes. Which is refreshing when looking at how crimes are often concluded by ignorance, no evidence, convenience, mob rule and pure speculation throughout history. It makes me shudder to think how many innocent people have been convicted of crimes they did not comment and the punishments and the lifetime imprisonments they have endured.

I must admit, I was fascinated with the aspect of Silkstone’s method in investigating the crimes commented more so than his romantic involvement with Lydia- at first, I couldn’t see the attraction. Towards the end, she grew on me a little despite being in the background quite a bit more than I expected.

In this story, Lydia seemed to have the worse luck and finds herself in continual trouble at every turn. As I read this story I couldn’t help wonder if this was the case in the previous books. I cannot attest to the development of Lydia’s character since I haven’t read the other books in the series but I have my suspicions that she may be portrayed as a fragile woman and constantly needs recusing-you know, “Damsel in distress”. Towards the end of the story, there was an instance where Lydia was in the presence of Silkstone’s colleagues and one of the colleague’s brother discussing the crime(s) and their wary of Lydia’s “sensibilities” irked me a bit as they chose their words carefully or omitted them in her presence. Was it out of the “polite society” of the time, or was it because men considered women the “weaker sex” and felt the need to shelter them? Or it could be just plain out of respect for her that they guarded their tongue. I’m still undecided on that score. I will say that death was all too common during those times as it is in our century and women are made of tougher stuff than we are often given credit for in many situations. I can assure you this is not a slight on the author’s story-telling what-so-ever. On the contrary, she portrayed that quite well in the scene and has given me a lot of food for thought about certain topics and cultural norms when it comes to stuff like this. Again, keep in mind I’m not too certain of Lydia’s characterization.

I must say there were a lot of characters to keep up with and at times I was frustrated with that fact. Nonetheless, this story was well written, entertaining and a brilliant historical mystery read. As the clues were stacking up, the danger escalating, there was very little left to chance as Silkstone raced to solve the mystery before more people were murdered.

I must caution the reader and mention that there are gruesome details in how the crimes were commented. Beware of that fact.

Overall, the author does well in presenting multiple motivations for murder to have you fully immersed in the story to find out the conclusion.

Without a doubt, historical fiction mystery lovers will enjoy this adventure.

Stephanie Hopkins

I obtained a galley copy of this book from the publishers through NetGalley for an honest review.

A Never-Ending Compilation of Books Part I

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It has been quite sometime since I browsed NetGalley for new and upcoming titles and it was delightful to search and discover books to add to my sorely neglected wish-list or to consider reviewing. I felt as if I was visiting a long-lost friend and we literally picked up where we left off as if it didn’t seem we were ever separated but for a short time.    

I came across five books that sparked an interest and I look forward to further investigating and perhaps read in the future. Hopefully, read sooner rather than later. For now, I must purchase a new Kindle so that I may access my books on NetGalley. I definitely want to work on catching up to date on books that need to be reviewed or books I need to decide if I still want to review them before accepting new ones. Meanwhile, I’ll gleefully explore their galley of books to blog about and perhaps read one day.

Do these below titles interest you as well? There are so many reasons why these stories interest me and can’t wait to talk more about them!

Stephanie Hopkins

The Sinners All Bow

Two Authors, One Murder, and the Real Hester Prynne by Kate Winkler Dawson

Description

Acclaimed journalist, podcaster, andtrue–crime historian Kate Winkler Dawson tells the true story of the scandalous murder investigation that became the inspiration for both Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and the first true-crime book published in America.

On a cold winter day in 1832, Sarah Maria Cornell was found dead in a quiet farmyard in a small New England town. When her troubled past and a secret correspondence with charismatic Methodist minister Reverend Ephraim Avery was uncovered, more questions emerged. Was Sarah’s death a suicide…or something much darker? Determined to uncover the real story, Victorian writer Catharine Read Arnold Williams threw herself into the investigation as the trial was unfolding and wrote what many claims to be the first American true-crime narrative, Fall River. The murder divided the country and inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter—but the reverend was not convicted, and questions linger to this day about what really led to Sarah Cornell’s death. Until now.

In The Sinners All Bow, acclaimed true-crime historian Kate Winkler Dawson travels back in time to nineteenth-century small-town America, emboldened to finish the work Williams started nearly two centuries before. Using modern investigative advancements—including “forensic knot analysis” and criminal profiling (which was invented fifty-five years later with Jack the Ripper)—Dawson fills in the gaps of Williams’s research to find the truth and bring justice to an unsettling mystery that speaks to our past as well as our present, anchored by three women who subverted the script they were given.

Save Our Souls

The True Story of a Castaway Family, Treachery, and Murder by Matthew Pearl

Description

From the bestselling author of The Taking of Jemima Boone, the unbelievable true story of a real-life Swiss Family Robinson (and their dog) who faced sharks, shipwreck, and betrayal.

On December 10, 1887, a shark fishing boat disappeared. On board the doomed vessel were the Walkers—the ship’s captain Frederick, his wife Elizabeth, their three teenage sons, and their dog—along with the ship’s crew. The family had spotted a promising fishing location when a terrible storm arose, splitting their vessel in two and leaving those onboard adrift on the perilous sea.

When the castaways awoke the next morning, they discovered they had been washed ashore—on an island inhabited by a large but ragged and emaciated man who introduced himself as Hans. Hans appeared to have been there for a while and could quickly educate the Walkers and their crew on the island’s resources. But Hans had a secret . . . and as the Walker family gradually came to learn more, what seemed like a stroke of luck to have the mysterious man’s assistance became something ominous, something darker.

Like David Grann and Stacy Schiff, Matthew Pearl unveils one of the most incredible yet little-known historical true stories, and the only known instance in history of an actual family of castaways. Save Our Souls asks us to consider who we might become if we found ourselves trapped on a deserted island.

A Feast of Folklore

The Bizarre Stories Behind British Food

by Ben Gazur

Description

Folklorist Ben Gazur guides you through the dark alleys of British history to uncover how our food habits have been passed down through generations of folklore.

Who was the first person to throw salt over their shoulder? Why do we think carrots can help us see in the dark? When did we start holding village fairs to honour gigantic apple pies? Or start hurling ourselves down hills in pursuit of a wheel of cheese? Gazur investigates the origins of famous food superstitions as well as much more bizarre and lesser-known tales too, from what day the devil urinates on blackberries to how to stop witches using eggshells as escape boats.

Hilarious and fascinating, A Feast of Folklore will introduce you to the gloriously eccentric folk who aren’t often noticed by historians. Here lies a smorgasbord of their dark remedies and deadly delicacies, waiting to be discovered.

Sisters in Science

How Four Women Physicists Escaped Nazi Germany and Made Scientific History by Olivia Campbell

Description

The true story of four women pioneers in physics during World War II and their daring escape out of Nazi Germany

In the 1930s, Germany was a hotbed of scientific thought. But after the Nazis took power, Jewish and female citizens were forced out of their academic positions. Hedwig Kohn, Lise Meitner, Hertha Sponer and Hildegard Stücklen were eminent in their fields, but they had no choice but to flee due to their Jewish ancestry or anti-Nazi sentiments.

Their harrowing journey out of Germany became a life-and-death situation that required Herculean efforts of friends and other prominent scientists. Lise fled to Sweden, where she made a groundbreaking discovery in nuclear physics, and the others fled to the United States, where they brought advanced physics to American universities. No matter their destination, each woman revolutionized the field of physics when all odds were stacked against them, galvanizing young women to do the same.

Philadelphia (A Narrative History) by Paul Kahan

Pub Date Oct 29 2024

Description

Philadelphia is famous for its colonial and revolutionary buildings and artifacts, which draw tourists from far and wide to gain a better understanding of the nation’s founding. Philadelphians, too, value these same buildings and artifacts for the stories they tell about their city. But Philadelphia existed long before the Liberty Bell was first rung, and its history extends well beyond the American Revolution. In Philadelphia: A Narrative History, Paul Kahan presents a comprehensive portrait of the city, from the region’s original Lenape inhabitants to the myriad of residents in the twenty-first century.

As any history of Philadelphia should, this book chronicles the people and places that make the city unique: from Independence Hall to Eastern State Penitentiary, Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross to Cecil B. Moore and Cherelle Parker. Kahan also shows us how Philadelphia has always been defined by ethnic, religious, and racial diversity—from the seventeenth century, when Dutch, Swedes, and Lenapes lived side by side along the Delaware; to the nineteenth century, when the city was home to a vibrant community of free Black and formerly enslaved people; to the twentieth century, when it attracted immigrants from around the world. This diversity, however, often resulted in conflict, especially over access to public spaces. Those two themes— diversity and conflict— have shaped Philadelphia’s development and remain visible in the city’s culture, society, and even its geography. Understanding Philadelphia’s past, Kahan says, is key to envisioning future possibilities for the City of Brotherly Love.

Paul Kahan is an expert on U.S. political, economic, and diplomatic history. He earned his Ph.D. in U.S. history from Temple University and lives outside of Philadelphia with his family.

A Journey Worthwhile: New Beginnings

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I’ve taken quite an extended leave of blogging and writing posts. That is not to say I haven’t been reading, writing or creating art. On the contrary, my journey steered me to a road of a deeper and more meaningful contemplation and study. The endeavor also brought reflection on how and when I was ready to blog again. This past Monday was the start and I began with sharing an art theme of “Weave” that I’m conducting on my YouTube channel and my thoughts on the project.

I have been a blogger for many years and it has had its highs and lows. It is thus for many, I’m sure. That subject may be for another time. While the absence of posting on this public forum may have injured my viewership, it has in no way dampened my love of sharing art, crafts, stories, and the written word nor does it discourage me to start anew while being aware of the time it will take to renew or reach an audience of like minds. I look forward to this new journey with you and may it inspire you.

Without further delay, I’m sharing two books I’m currently reading and highly recommend them to all you history lovers. What an adventure!

Stephanie Hopkins

The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey by Candice Millard

Book Description:

At once an incredible adventure narrative and a penetrating biographical portrait, The River of Doubt is the true story of Theodore Roosevelt’s harrowing exploration of one of the most dangerous rivers on earth.

The River of Doubt—it is a black, uncharted tributary of the Amazon that snakes through one of the most treacherous jungles in the world. Indians armed with poison-tipped arrows haunt its shadows; piranhas glide through its waters; boulder-strewn rapids turn the river into a roiling cauldron.

After his humiliating election defeat in 1912, Roosevelt set his sights on the most punishing physical challenge he could find, the first descent of an unmapped, rapids-choked tributary of the Amazon. Together with his son Kermit and Brazil’s most famous explorer, Cândido Mariano da Silva Rondon, Roosevelt accomplished a feat so great that many at the time refused to believe it. In the process, he changed the map of the western hemisphere forever.

Along the way, Roosevelt and his men faced an unbelievable series of hardships, losing their canoes and supplies to punishing whitewater rapids, and enduring starvation, Indian attack, disease, drowning, and a murder within their own ranks. Three men died, and Roosevelt was brought to the brink of suicide. The River of Doubt brings alive these extraordinary events in a powerful nonfiction narrative thriller that happens to feature one of the most famous Americans who ever lived.
From the soaring beauty of the Amazon rain forest to the darkest night of Theodore Roosevelt’s life, here is Candice Millard’s dazzling debut.

Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage

by Alfred Lansing

Book Description:

The harrowing tale of British explorer Ernest Shackleton’s 1914 attempt to reach the South Pole, one of the greatest adventure stories of the modern age.

In August 1914, polar explorer Ernest Shackleton boarded the Endurance became locked in an island of ice. Thus, began the legendary ordeal of Shackleton and his crew of twenty-seven men. When their ship was finally crushed between two ice floes, they attempted a near-impossible journey over 850 miles of the South Atlantic’s heaviest seas to the closest outpost of civilization.

In Endurance, the definitive account of Ernest Shackleton’s fateful trip, Alfred Lansing brilliantly narrates the harrowing and miraculous voyage that has defined heroism for the modern age.

Mending Heart

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This month on my YouTube channel we’ve been exploring weave stitching and creating various applications of the stitch. Despite only scratching the surface of this medium, we’ve covered a lot of ground and the ideas are flowing. Today, I’m sharing the image of a weaved piece I’ve started exploring this weekend. I’ve called it “Mending Heart” and this heart has different meanings. Most importantly the mending by weaving and stitching bringing the heart to completion or rather wholeness, gives a sense of spiritual healing-if you will.

The YouTube link to Part I of Mending Heart is HERE

Stephanie Hopkins

Book Stacks: A Never Ending Journey of Discovery, Collecting and Reading

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I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Some of you may know I’m currently reading, Martin Luther: The Man Who Rediscovered God and Changed the World by Eric Metaxas and I’m enjoying the biography so much, I’m taking my time and reading slowly through the pages. I’ve already marked quite a few passages for my annotating. Metaxas’s detailed account of Martin’s life and the period is exceptionally written. As I have been reading this book, I decided I must read all his works and shortly after, I remembered I have a paperback copy of, Amazing Grace: William Wilberforce and the Heroic Campaign to End Slavery! I will be reading that story next! I’ve had that book a few years and I know the history through other sources. I do remember leafing through its pages and reading a bit here and there. I had intended to read it straight away and I’m not sure what happened! No time like the present, I say. Maybe it was meant to be. Regardless, I’m delighted to already own two of Metaxas’s works.

After reading both books mentioned above, there are two other books I’ve already chosen to read. I discovered and Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy and Letter to the American Church on YouTube. Metaxas’s channel and his guest appearance at churches and various interviews suddenly appeared this past Tuesday on my feed. Algorithms are useful at times, interesting and a bit unsettling all at the same time.

Stephanie

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

Who better to face the greatest evil of the 20th century than a humble man of faith?

As Adolf Hitler and the Nazis seduced a nation, bullied a continent, and attempted to exterminate the Jews of Europe, a small number of dissidents and saboteurs worked to dismantle the Third Reich from the inside. One of these was Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a pastor and author.

In this New York Times bestselling biography, Eric Metaxas takes both strands of Bonhoeffer’s life–the theologian and the spy–and draws them together to tell a searing story of incredible moral courage in the face of monstrous evil.

In Bonhoeffer, Metaxas presents the fullest account of Bonhoeffer’s life, including his:

  • heart-wrenching decision to leave the safe haven of America to return to Hitler’s Germany
  • involvement in the famous Valkyrie plot and in “Operation 7,” the effort to smuggle Jews into neutral Switzerland
  • lifelong dedication to sharing the tenets of his faith

This edition, revised and with a new introduction from the author, shares the deeply moving story through previously unavailable documents, including personal letters, detailed journal entries, and firsthand personal accounts to reveal never-before-seen dimensions of Bonhoeffer’s life and work.

Letter to the American Church

In an earnest and searing wake-up call, the author of the bestseller Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy warns of the haunting similarities between today’s American church and the German church of the 1930s. Echoing Bonhoeffer’s prophetic call, Eric Metaxas exhorts his fellow Christians to repent of their silence in the face of evil before it is too late.

“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil.

Not to speak is to speak.

Not to act is to act.

God will not hold us guiltless.”

Can it really be God’s will that His children be silent at a time like this? Decrying the cowardice that masquerades as godly meekness, Eric Metaxas summons the Church to battle.

The author of a bestselling biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Metaxas reveals the haunting similarities between today’s American Church and the German Church of the 1930s. Echoing the German martyr’s prophetic call, he exhorts his fellow Christians to repent of their silence in the face of evil.

An attenuated and unbiblical “faith” based on what Bonhoeffer called “cheap grace” has sapped the spiritual vitality of millions of Americans. Paying lip service to an insipid “evangelism,” they shrink from combating the evils of our time. Metaxas refutes the pernicious lie that fighting evil politicizes Christianity. As Bonhoeffer and other heroes of the faith insisted, the Church has an irreplaceable role in the culture of a nation. It is our duty to fight the powers of darkness, especially on behalf of the weak and vulnerable.

Silence is not an option. God calls us to defend the unborn, to confront the lies of cultural Marxism, and to battle the globalist tyranny that crushes human freedom. Confident that this is His fight, the Church must overcome fear and enter the fray, armed with the spiritual weapons of prayer, self-sacrifice, and love.

About the Author:

Eric Metaxas is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Bonhoeffer, Martin Luther, If You Can Keep It, Miracles, Seven Women, Seven Men, and Amazing Grace. His books have been translated into more than twenty-five languages. His writing has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, and the New Yorker, and Metaxas has appeared as a cultural commentator on CNN, Fox News, and MSNBC. He is the host of The Eric Metaxas Radio Show, a daily nationally syndicated show aired in 120 U.S. cities and on TBN. Metaxas is also the founder of Socrates in the City, the acclaimed series of conversations on “life, God, and other small topics,” featuring Malcolm Gladwell, Ambassador Caroline Kennedy, Baroness Caroline Cox, and Dick Cavett, among many others. He is a senior fellow and lecturer at large at the King’s College in Manhattan, where he lives with his wife and daughter.

Fabric Yarn Snippet Roll Bowl: Part I

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I am thrilled to be sharing pictures of this bowl I made for a dear friend. Her yarn looks great in the bowl! This is the first fabric bowl of the year I’ve finished and have quite a few more coming up. I share free tutorials on my YouTube channel on how to make fabric snippet bowls. They are a blast to make and you can get really creative with how to make the bowls. I hope you check it out!

Last year, I made quite a few scrappy ones with raw edges. This particular bowl does have raw edges but they are sewn a bit closer together. I have also explored with using yarn by couching the yarn to the bowl and creating a design. My journey is hand stitching so except that method in the tutorials. I do give tips on what part of the bowls you can machine sew.

Sometime this week, I will be sharing an intro video to the next bowl. Each tutorial includes tips and ideas in how to make them. This year, I’m exploring new designs with the bowls. A must watch because they will be unique and I will be expanding on a few methods I’ve already taught.

Stephanie

The name of my YouTube Channel is, “Stephanie’s Art Studio” or you can click on the link provided above to go straight to the channel. I hope you grab your fabric scraps, needle, threads, yarn-optional-and join me on this journey! You’ll love it!

Wish-List: Books on the Christian Faith

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I’ve been on the search for books on Systematic Theology, further Biblical teachings of Christ’s ministry and Christian application with a non-Calvinistic view point and came across Norman L. Geisler. I found information saying he is considered “moderate Calvinist,” and that he is not a “Five Point Calvinist.” I find that to be somewhat reassuring in my search for the reading material I’m looking for. I am definitely willing to give his books a read. You see, I’m not a Calvinist nor am I a protestant. That said, I am not closed minded from reading different viewpoints; I’m just looking for particular studies for the moment. Mater of fact, I respect and listen to a lot of what protestants have to say.

Also, I’m planning on reading the books in my father’s library on Systematic Theology as well as adding to my own library.

First, what is Systematic Theology according to Oxford Languages? The theology is “a form of theology in which the aim is to arrange religious truths in a self-consistent whole.” In a nutshell, the systematic view is to give an orderly format of the doctrines of Christian faith. And let me tell you, I have seen and heard many different viewpoints. Below are a few books by Geisler that I’m interested in reading.

The Big Book of Christian Apologetics: An A to Z Guide (A to Z Guides) 

The Big Book of Christian Apologetics is a comprehensive resource designed to equip motivated believers with information to help defend and explain their faith. Examining nearly every key issue, person, and concept related to Christian apologetics, this book clarifies difficult biblical passages, clearly explains various philosophical systems and concepts, examines contemporary issues and challenges, and offers classic apologetic arguments, all with the aim of giving readers the background to intelligently and persuasively talk about their Christian faith with skeptics. An expertly abridged version of the Baker Encyclopedia on Christian Apologetics, this resource brings leading apologist Norman L. Geisler’s seminal work to the masses.

A Popular Survey of the New Testament 

Understanding the New Testament is a daunting but exciting task. Our world is so different from that of the first century. Yet it is important to understand the context and content of the New Testament if we are to be faithful followers. Now in paper, this survey addresses the who, what, where, when, why, and how questions that readers of the Bible may have, such as: How can we tell if what is written in the New Testament is true history or just mythology? When were these books written and why? and What can today’s believers get out of letters addressed to people who lived two millennia ago? Written in an easy, informal style, this survey is accessible and enjoyable to anyone who wants to better understand the New Testament.

Defending Inerrancy: Affirming the Accuracy of Scripture for a New Generation

According to the authors, the doctrine of inerrancy has been standard, accepted teaching for more than 1,000 years. In 1978, the famous “Chicago Statement” on inerrancy was adopted by the Evangelical Theological Society, and for decades it has been the accepted conservative evangelical doctrine of the Scriptures. However, in recent years, some prominent evangelical authors have challenged this statement in their writings.

Now eminent apologist and bestselling author Norman L. Geisler, who was one of the original drafters of the “Chicago Statement,” and his coauthor, William C. Roach, present a defense of the traditional understanding of inerrancy for a new generation of Christians who are being assaulted with challenges to the nature of God, truth, and language. Pastors, students, and armchair theologians will appreciate this clear, reasoned response to the current crisis.

Note: Also, I would like to mention a book of his I’ve had on my wish-list and at first, the author’s name escaped my memory. I’m delighted to know he has written the book along with Frank Turek of whom I know his work.

I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist (Foreword by David Limbaugh) 

Geisler and Turek argue that Christianity requires the least faith of all worldviews because it is the most reasonable. A valuable aid to those interested in examining the reasonableness of the Christian faith.

Stories of World War II

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A few years ago now, Atria Books sent me an ARC of The Princess Spy by Larry Loftis to review and I immensely enjoyed the story. Since then I haven’t had a chance to look at Loftis other works and I’ve recently discovered another book by him I would like to read and have added it to my reading wish-list plus, The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. I can’t wait to read them! They look so good. I have a feeling I will be shedding quite a few tears reading them. World War II stories do that to me. Let me know in the comment area if you’ve read these stories!

Stephanie Hopkins

The Watchmaker’s Daughter: The True Story of World War II Heroine Corrie ten Boom by Larry Loftis

About the book:

INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER

New York Times bestselling author and master of nonfiction spy thrillers Larry Loftis writes the first major biography of Corrie ten Boom, a Dutch watchmaker who saved the lives of hundreds of Jews during WWII—at the cost of losing her family and being sent to a concentration camp, only to survive, forgive her captors, and live the rest of her life as a Christian missionary.

The Watchmaker’s Daughter is one of the greatest stories of World War II that readers haven’t heard: the remarkable and inspiring life story of Corrie ten Boom—a groundbreaking, female Dutch watchmaker, whose family unselfishly transformed their house into a hiding place straight out of a spy novel to shelter Jews and refugees from the Nazis during Gestapo raids. Even though the Nazis knew what the ten Booms were up to, they were never able to find those sheltered within the house when they raided it.

Corrie stopped at nothing to face down the evils of her time and overcame unbelievable obstacles and odds. She persevered despite the loss of most of her family and relied on her faith to survive the horrors of a notorious concentration camp. But even more remarkable than her heroism and survival was Corrie’s attitude when she was released. Miraculously, she was able to eschew bitterness and embrace forgiveness as she ministered to people in need around the globe. Corrie’s ability to forgive is just one of the myriad lessons that her life story holds for readers today.

Reminiscent of Schindler’s List and featuring a journey of faith and forgiveness not unlike Unbroken, The Watchmaker’s Daughter is destined to become a classic work of World War II nonfiction.

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, Elizabeth Sherrill, and John Sherrill

“Every experience God gives us . . . is the perfect preparation for the future only He can see.”–Corrie ten Boom

About the book:

Corrie ten Boom was a Dutch watchmaker who became a heroine of the Resistance, a survivor of Hitler’s concentration camps, and one of the most remarkable evangelists of the twentieth century. In World War II she and her family risked their lives to help Jews and underground workers escape from the Nazis, and for their work they were tested in the infamous Nazi death camps. Only Corrie among her family survived to tell the story of how faith ultimately triumphs over evil.

Here is the riveting account of how Corrie and her family were able to save many of God’s chosen people. For 35 years millions have seen that there is no pit so deep that God’s love is not deeper still. Now The Hiding Place, repackaged for a new generation of readers, continues to declare that God’s love will overcome, heal, and restore.


Biographies & Memoirs

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This past Sunday, I met a dear friend at a local coffee shop and what a treat it was! We talked about many topics and our mutual love for nonfiction. My friend is currently listening to Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer and she highly recommend it to me. Later on, when I got home, I sent her a picture of the nonfiction book I’m reading. The title is, The Neighborhood Project by David Sloan Wilson. I received the book as an ARC many years ago.  

This led me to further explore more nonfiction books to add to my to-read wish-list. Below are five new titles I have added. My wish is for you to be encouraged and inspired to read more and to explore nonfiction in a broader sense-if you haven’t already.

Stephanie Hopkins

The Book-Makers

A History of the Book in Eighteen Lives

by Adam Smyth

Description

The five-hundred-year history of printed books, told through the people who created them

Books tell all kinds of stories—romances, tragedies, comedies—but if we learn to read the signs correctly, they can tell us the story of their own making too. The Book-Makers offers a new way into the story of Western culture’s most important object, the book, through dynamic portraits of eighteen individuals who helped to define it.  
 
Books have transformed humankind by enabling authors to create, document, and entertain. Yet we know little about the individuals who brought these fascinating objects into existence and of those who first experimented in the art of printing, design, and binding. Who were the renegade book-makers who changed the course of history?  
 
From Wynkyn de Worde’s printing of fifteenth-century bestsellers to Nancy Cunard’s avant-garde pamphlets produced on her small press in Normandy, this is a celebration of the book with the people put back in. 

Twenty Years

Hope, War, and the Betrayal of an Afghan Generation

by Sune Engel Rasmussen

Description

An intimate history of the Afghan war—and the young Afghans whose dreams it enabled and dashed.

No country was more deeply affected by 9/11 than Afghanistan: an entire generation grew up amid the upheaval that began that day. Young Afghans knew the promise of freedom, democracy, and safety, fought with each other over its meaning—and then witnessed its collapse. In Twenty Years, the Wall Street Journal correspondent Sune Engel Rasmussen draws on more than a decade of reporting from the country to tell Afghanistan’s story from a new angle. Through the eyes of newly empowered women, skilled entrepreneurs, driven insurgents, and abandoned Western allies, we see the United States and its partners bring new freedoms and wealth, only to preside over the corruption, war-lordism, and social division that led to the Taliban’s return to power.

Rasmussen relates this history via two main characters: Zahra, who returns from abroad with high hopes for her liberated county, where she must fight to escape a brutal marriage and rebuild her life; and Omari, who joins the Taliban to protect the honor of his village and country and winds up wrestling with doubt and the trauma of war after achieving victory. We also meet Parasto, who risks her life running clandestine girls’ schools under the new Taliban regime, and Fahim, a rags-to-riches tycoon who is forced to flee. With intimate access to these and other characters, Rasmussen offers deep insight into a country betrayed by the West and Taliban alike.

Warsaw Testament

by Rokhl Auerbach, Translated by Samuel Kassow

Description

Born in Lanowitz, a small village in rural Podolia, Rokhl Auerbach was a journalist, literary critic, memoirist, and a member of the Warsaw Yiddish literary community before the Holocaust. Upon the German invasion and occupation of Poland in 1939, she was tasked by historian and social activist Emanuel Ringelblum to run a soup kitchen for the starving inhabitants of the Warsaw Ghetto and later to join his top-secret ghetto archive, the Oyneg Shabes. One of only three surviving members of the archive project, Auerbach’s wartime and postwar writings became a crucial source of information for historians of both prewar Jewish Warsaw and the Warsaw Ghetto. After immigrating to Israel in 1950, she founded the witness testimony division at Yad Vashem and played a key role in the development of Holocaust remembrance. Her memoir Warsaw Testament, based on her wartime writings, paints a vivid portrait of the city’s prewar Yiddish literary and artistic community and of its destruction at the hands of the Nazis.

The Great Mosquito Hunt and Other Adventures

by Elizabeth Manson-Bahr

Description

This book is the author’s answer to the question Who do you think you are? set in China, Russia, Egypt, Kenya, Fiji and the US during the 18th to 20th centuries. It describes the battle to discover the causes of malaria. Sir Patrick Manson, the author’s great-grandfather, known as Mosquito Manson, was the first scientist to prove that insects were vectors of disease, a discovery which led to the detection of the malarial parasite. He founded the Chinese Medical School in Hong Kong and the London School of Tropical Medicine. Among his pupils was Sun Yat-sen, the first President of modern China.

It is the story too of plagues and pandemics, of Scottish and German merchants who made their fortunes in 19th century Egypt and 18th century Russia. The author’s mother, orphaned by the Spanish flu, made her way to Africa where she served as a FANY in 1942, marrying Clinton, the third in the family line of tropical medical specialists. The chapters are interspersed with the author’s own childhood memories growing up in Fiji and Kenya.

The Demon of Unrest

A Saga of Hubris, Heartbreak, and Heroism at the Dawn of the Civil War

by Erik Larson

Description

The #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Splendid and the Vile brings to life the pivotal five months between the election of Abraham Lincoln and the start of the Civil War—a simmering crisis that finally tore a deeply divided nation in two.

One of Time’s Most Anticipated Books of the Year

On November 6, 1860, Abraham Lincoln became the fluky victor in a tight race for president. The country was bitterly at odds; Southern extremists were moving ever closer to destroying the Union, with one state after another seceding and Lincoln powerless to stop them. Slavery fueled the conflict, but somehow the passions of North and South came to focus on a lonely federal fortress in Charleston Harbor: Fort Sumter.

Master storyteller Erik Larson offers a gripping account of the chaotic months between Lincoln’s election and the Confederacy’s shelling of Sumter—a period marked by tragic errors and miscommunications, enflamed egos and craven ambitions, personal tragedies and betrayals. Lincoln himself wrote that the trials of these five months were “so great that, could I have anticipated them, I would not have believed it possible to survive them.”

At the heart of this suspense-filled narrative are Major Robert Anderson, Sumter’s commander and a former slave owner sympathetic to the South but loyal to the Union; Edmund Ruffin, a vain and bloodthirsty radical who stirs secessionist ardor at every opportunity; and Mary Boykin Chesnut, wife of a prominent planter, conflicted over both marriage and slavery and seeing parallels between them. In the middle of it all is the overwhelmed Lincoln, battling with his duplicitous secretary of state, William Seward, as he tries desperately to avert a war that he fears is inevitable—one that will eventually kill 750,000 Americans.

Drawing on diaries, secret communiques, slave ledgers, and plantation records, Larson gives us a political horror story that captures the forces that led America to the brink—a dark reminder that we often don’t see a cataclysm coming until it’s too late.

Winter Musings and Spring Projects

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It is hard to believe that December 6, 2022 was the last postdate! I had decided to take a much-needed break but wow! Time flies! I have missed blogging exceedingly and I am delighted to be back at it. What have I been doing meanwhile? Well, there is so much. I have been story writing a bit, crafting a lot, creating art, reading some and writing in my journals quite a bit. Needless to say, I have been hunkered down this winter. Not that the south sees extreme cold winters mind you. I just use that as an excuse. Ha!

Lately, I’ve been making miniature wood houses, dioramas and dollhouse accessories. I’m having a blast! Back in the mid to late 1990’s I collected miniature tea sets and whatnot. I must confess, I miss those days of collecting miniatures. The combination of that past love and seeing people’s new works of dioramas sparked a fire in me to start creating miniatures. Was it a couple years ago or maybe it was last year, I had worked on a few miniature wood houses but nothing really came of it until now? Yes, indeed.

I’ve got so many ideas and I’m just getting my feet wet. Recently, I’ve made quite a few and I do have many of them available in my Instagram shop for sale. Plus, I have five Book Nook’s I’m creating for family this year. Excited! You should see my list of everything I want to create and the list keeps getting longer. There is simply not enough time on the day! I look forward to sharing more with you all and if you haven’t already, please follow my blog and stop by on Instagram to say hello or you may do so in the comment area below! Blessings to you and yours!

Stephanie Hopkins

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I will be restocking my Ebay shop this coming Monday!