THESE BLUE MOUNTAINS By Sarah Loudin Thomas, Reviewed by Rebecca #ReleaseDay

 A Southern Fiction Novel with a Pianist Heroine for Book Clubs
set between WWI and WWII in 1930s Appalachia and Germany

 

REBECCA'S REVIEW:
" . . . she'd felt as if her life were a simple melody being played on a badly out-of-tune instrument."

Waiting month after month, year after year, Hedda Schlagel had finally stumbled across a photograph that offered a clue as to what may have happened to her fiance Fritz Meyer, who had ostensibly been sent to a German internment camp upon his arrival in New York, where he had died of typhoid if her source was correct. Determined to fit the remaining pieces of a somewhat murky puzzle together, Hedda travels to America to determine if it was "her Fritz" who was buried in a cemetery near Asheville, North Carolina.

Instead of finding answers, Hedda finds misunderstandings along with the remains of a woman's body in the casket marked to be that of Fritz Meyer. Working with local law enforcement to gain answers, Hedda uses her accomplished skills as a pianist to find a place to stay and earn money while she waits. Unfortunately, Hedda does not have the paperwork necessary for an extended stay, and the political unrest in Germany makes it even more dangerous to go home.

What an undertaking to suppose the years between two world wars by utilizing such an intriguing historical backdrop, while smartly including actual people and places along the way. Feeling the angst of each character, sharing their anxiety over every choice transforms this story into something deeply personal and memorable. There were a multitude of ways this story could have ended; happy ways, sad ways, hard ways, easy ways, right ways, wrong ways . . . but ultimately it finished in the best of ways . . . in the shadow of "these blue mountains".

*I voluntarily reviewed a copy of this book from Baker Publishing through Interviews and Reviews and purchased a copy. I was under no obligation to provide a positive review. 3.5 stars

BackCover Blurb:
A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda is stunned to see Fritz's name in a photograph of an American memorial for German seamen who died near Asheville, North Carolina. Determined to reclaim his body and bring closure to his ailing mother, Hedda travels to the US. Her quest takes a shocking turn when, rather than Fritz's body, his casket contains the remains of a woman who died under mysterious circumstances.

Local deputy Garland Jones thought he'd left that dark chapter behind when he helped bury Fritz Meyer's coffin. The unexpected arrival of Hedda, a long-suffering yet captivating woman, forces him to confront how much of the truth he really knows. As they work together to uncover the identity of the woman in the casket and to unravel Fritz's fate, Hedda and Garland grow closer. But with Hedda in the US on borrowed time while Hitler rises to power in Germany, she fears she'll be forced to return home before she can put the ghosts of her past to rest. 

 

Bethany House Publishers, July, 2025

Available in digital ebook, paperback, hardcover, and audiobook:

Buy THESE BLUE MOUNTAINS at Amazon, Christianbook .com, or Baker Book House