Monday, February 6, 2023

YESTERDAY'S TIDES by Roseanna M. White, Reviewed by Rebecca Maney


" . . . Evie Farrow wasn't an average innkeeper, clearly . . . what in the world was a North Carolina innkeeper doing with encoded telegrams?" But, let's back up to the beginning, shall we?

After hearing yet another distant rumble off the coast of her beloved Ocracoke Island, islander Evie Farrow knew in her heart what had happened . . . German U-boats . . . already dreading what it meant for the island's beautiful shore line. Casualties. Rarely survivors, only casualties . . . thus explaining Evie's startle when she happens upon a man who appears very much alive, although badly burned and injured, wearing civilian clothing; what secrets has this Englishman, who spouts barely coherent gibberish, carried to her island.

Years earlier, on the cusp of a different war, another Englishman arrived on the island, not as a survivor but as a summer guest at the lovely Ocracoke Inn. Remington Culbreth. Louisa Adair knew how foolish it was to form attachments to their patrons, however there was something curious about Rem that made foolishness seem practically normal; she couldn't help herself, she fell head over heels for her gallant, persistent admirer. Was it meant to be, had it ever been meant to be? Seemingly insurmountable odds were about to come between them.

What an extraordinary weaving process went into this story, its legacy carved upon the sands of time when past and present frolicked freely before transforming into something far more beautiful than its beginning. Women who loved fiercely, prayers that were as real as the jewelry they inspired, men who never gave up, and ancestry that colored the world with an entirely new shade of beauty. If there was any weakness at all, it would be that each story line was so richly written that one might wish that an entire book had been dedicated to each.

"They would survive the devastation of this war . . . They would all go on. All rebuild. All would find new life . . . that might cover those scars, but which couldn't obliterate them completely. . . They become part of the earth. Part of the people. Part of the story . . . The yesterday whose tides would carve tomorrow."
*I received a copy of this book from the author and publisher. I also purchased a copy. The opinions stated above are entirely my own. 4.5 stars
 
SEE REVIEWS BY WINNIE and PAULA

BackCover Blurb:

In two world wars, intelligence and counterintelligence, prejudice, and self-sacrifice collide across two generations

In 1942, Evie Farrow is used to life on Ocracoke Island, where every day is the same--until the German U-boats haunting their waters begin to wreak havoc. And when special agent Sterling Bertrand is washed ashore at Evie's inn, her life is turned upside down. While Sterling's injuries keep him inn-bound for weeks, making him even more anxious about the SS officer he's tracking, he becomes increasingly intrigued by Evie, who seems to be hiding secrets of her own.

Decades earlier, in 1914, Englishman Remington Culbreth arrives at the Ocracoke Inn for the summer, never expecting to fall in love with Louisa Adair, the innkeeper's daughter. But when war breaks out in Europe, their relationship is put in jeopardy and may not survive what lies ahead for them.

As the ripples from the Great War rock Evie and Sterling's lives in World War II, it seems yesterday's tides may sweep them all into danger again today.

Bethany House Publishing, January, 2023
Available in digital ebook, hardcover, and audiobook:
Buy YESTERDAY'S TIDES at Amazon, Christianbook .com, or Baker Book House  
 
 

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