"Well, Gwen, what do you have to say for yourself?" Just weeks after assuming the position of junior specialist for art history and antiques at her grandfather's prestigious auction house in London, Gwen Morris makes a costly error. To distance her from continuing repercussions, she is assigned to assess valuable furniture and art holdings at Longdale Manor in Keswick, where the current owner and her grandson are preparing to raise cash in order to renovate the large estate into a luxury hotel. What Gwen discovers is far more valuable than anything money can buy, for the words from an antique journal, written by a young woman struggling with some of the same life issues as Gwen, turn her focus to the One who can provide "true peace of heart and mind, a peace much better than the world can give."
"When we choose to forgive others, we are not excusing what they did or saying it was right. We're releasing them into God's hands and allowing Him to deal out justice as He sees fit."
When Charlotte Harper's charismatic father dies unexpectedly, life as she knew it changed forever. In addition to the weight of grief, but she happens upon evidence that her father had been hiding a secret from his family, compromising Charlotte's ability to trust, much less forgive. Forced to leave their home in the city and travel towards their grandfather's Longdale Manor estate, she and her mother and sister must depend on the charity of neighbors due to a longstanding family rift. It becomes much easier to build walls than to move forward by faith, especially when a handsome shepherd vies to become a major character in her life story.
Using beautiful word flow and deep spiritual insights, the author shapes her story one chapter at a time, weaving together the lives of two young women at a crossroads; faith or flee? . . . the decision of the one will affect generations of those to come . . . including the other.
*I received a copy of this book from the publisher. I also purchased a copy. The opinions stated above are entirely my own. 3.5 stars
BackCover Blurb:
Two women--a century apart--embark on a journey to healing, faith, forgiveness, and romance.
In
2012, art historian Gwen Morris travels to England's Lake District to
appraise the paintings and antiques of an old family friend, hoping to
prove herself to her prestigious grandfather. While at Longdale Manor,
she meets David Bradford--the owner's handsome grandson--who is
desperate to save the crumbling estate by turning it into a luxury
hotel. When Gwen stumbles upon a one-hundred-year-old journal and an
intricately carved shepherd's staff similar to one in a photo of her
parents, she's left searching for answers.
In 1912, after her
father's death, Charlotte Harper uncovers a painful family secret she
can only confess to her journal. She and her family travel to the Lake
District to stay on a sheep farm, hoping eventually to find a home with
Charlotte's grandfather at Longdale Manor, but old wounds and bitter
regrets make it a difficult challenge. As Charlotte grows closer to
shepherd Ian Storey and rebuilds her shattered faith, she must decide
whether she will ever trust in love again.
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