Because of its subject matter, this book was extremely difficult to read, but the story was worth every second.
Barratt is a master at educating readers about the past while also putting human faces and emotions to events often regulated to the pages of textbooks. Transportive, moving, and skillfully written, Within These Walls of Sorrow is the most poignant account of the Holocaust—both the tragedy of collective evil and the triumph of individual good—I have ever read.
I picked this audiobook up on a whim as I was looking for something light-hearted to occupy my mind on my morning runs, and I was pleasantly surprised by it.
I actually couldn’t wait for my work-out time so I could spend more time with these characters. The narration was excellent, the plot well-paced, and the message of the gospel and its transformative power in people’s lives resonated deeply. A beautiful story of redemption and the power of prayer—especially over those who do not yet know Jesus.
"Mondragon debuts with this charming tale of knitting, faith, and change. . . . Inspirational fans who enjoy the work of Rachel Hauck will love this story." --Publishers Weekly
Margaret, Rose, Jane, and Fran had a good thing going: meet every week in the quiet of their peaceful chapel and knit prayer shawls. No muss, just ministry. That is, until their pastor boots them out of the church in his last-ditch effort to revive the dwindling congregation.
Uptight Margaret isn't having it. Knitting prayer shawls where people can watch is the most ridiculous idea she's ever heard of, and she's…
I grew up in the 1980’s so I’ve always found stories about the Cold War to be especially fascinating since so much of it occurred during a childhood in which I was blissfully ignorant.
Reay does a fantastic job humanizing the Soviets, helping the reader see them not as history paints them—shadowy, evil monsters—but as human beings, acting on what they believe is best for themselves and their country. I learned so much from this book, and it left me thirsty to know more, which is the hallmark of really great historical fiction.
In the thick of the Cold War, a betrayal at the highest level risks the lives of two courageous female spies: MI6's best Soviet agent and the CIA's newest Moscow recruit.
Vienna, 1954
After losing everyone she loves in the final days of World War II, Ingrid Bauer agrees to a hasty marriage with a gentle Soviet embassy worker and follows him home to Moscow. But nothing within the Soviet Union's totalitarian regime is what it seems, including her new husband, whom Ingrid suspects works for the KGB. Inspired by her daughter's birth, Ingrid risks everything and reaches out in…
Beatrice Carraway has dreams. Although she’s aged out of the childhood pageant circuit, she’s intent on carrying her talents to the big screen―if only she can escape the poverty of West Dallas first. But as the Great Depression drags the working class further and further under, Beatrice struggles just to keep herself, her mother, and her younger sister afloat. After a string of failed auditions, she feels defeated.
And then in walks Jack Turner. It isn’t long before Beatrice is swept into an exciting and glamorous life of crime beside the man she loves. Keeping one step ahead of the law, she sees her dreams of fame come true when her name and picture are plastered in newspapers across the country. As their infamy grows, the distance between them widens.
