Friday, August 26, 2022

A Sojourner's Solace

 


Is an old love letter the key to her past… and her future?

When Kate Mallory’s mother is killed in a tragic car accident, she’s left with nothing but dead-end jobs, an on-again, off-again boyfriend, and a craving for something… more.

Despondent, she clears out her mom’s apartment and discovers an old love letter from a William Wheaton of Bell Buckle, Tennessee. Could this be the father her mom refused to discuss? With nothing left to lose, she decides to find out.

Noah Wheaton honed the gift of discernment the hard way—through a twenty-year military career and an unfaithful ex-fiancé. So, when gutsy Kate Mallory shows up at the family restaurant and applies for a waitressing job, his internal lie-detector flies off the charts. Why would a native New Yorker seek out a job in small-town Tennessee? Whatever she’s up to, messing with his family is not an option.

Kate could never have imagined that a spontaneous journey to search out an absentee dad was not spontaneous after all. A force bigger than both Kate and Noah is at work, and they may get more than they bargained for.

 My thoughts: I have enjoyed many of Jennifer Sienes' other stories, so I was excited to pick up this one! I enjoyed the story of Kate, and her quest to figure out who her father is. I can only imagine what it would be like to not know who one of your parents is as you are growing up! So, when she finds a photo that points her to a small town in Tennessee, she takes the leap and moves there. I enjoyed the characters in this story, as well as the way the story unfolds. This is an excellent book to pick up and enjoy!

I received this book from Celebrate Lit. This is my honest review.

Click here to get your copy! This post contains affiliate links.

 

About the Author

Jennifer-SiennesJennifer Sienes holds a bachelor’s in psychology and a master’s in education, but discovered life-experience is the best teacher. She loves Jesus, romance and writing—and puts it altogether in inspirational contemporary fiction. Her daughter’s TBI and brother’s suicide inspired two of her three novels. Although fiction writing is her real love, she’s had several non-fiction pieces published in anthologies including several in Chicken Soup for the Soul. She has two grown children and one very spoiled Maltese. California born and raised, she recently took a step of faith with her real-life hero and relocated to Tennessee.

 

More from Jennifer

I grew up with three sisters and a brother, and although life could be chaotic and a little crowded, I can’t imagine any other childhood. We spent summers camping with my grandparents and great uncles, and holidays with lots of cousins, aunts, and uncles. Being part of a large family was central to my life. I thought about this as I created the Wheaton family for my Bedford County summer novella. Four siblings—two sons and two daughters—who often rub each other the wrong way, but at the same time, would lay down their lives for one another.

 

Noah is the oldest sibling in the Wheaton clan—retired military who’s been badly burned by a woman in the past. Trust doesn’t come easy, and he’s as loyal to his family as they come. Born and raised in the small Middle Tennessee town of Bell Buckle, he’s not a fan of the big city—or of people from the big city. His family owns and operates a restaurant in a nearby town where everybody knows everybody. He’s suspicious of outsiders, especially those of the female persuasion.

 

And that’s where our heroine, Kate Mallory, comes in. A native New Yorker, raised by a single mother, she never knew who her father was. She arrives in Bell Buckle on a quest to find what she’s missed all her life—family. What she discovers is far more than she bargained for, and her mother’s words come back to haunt her—“Be careful what you wish for.”

 

You may wonder why I chose New York City for Kate’s upbringing. My son lived in Tokyo for five years—a city of almost 14 million people. He told me on several occasions that living there, he never felt more alone or isolated. I wanted Kate in A Sojourner’s Solace to experience the same thing. Plopped into Middle Tennessee, she discovers a world as foreign to her as Tokyo was to my son—just in the opposite way.

Blog Stops

Book Reviews From an Avid Reader, August 24

Christina’s Corner, August 24

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 25

Texas Book-aholic, August 26

Books, Books, and More Books., August 26

Inklings and notions, August 27

For Him and My Family, August 28

Genesis 5020, August 29

Book Looks by Lisa, August 29

deb’s Book Review, August 30

lakesidelivingsite, August 31

Sylvan Musings, August 31

Locks, Hooks and Books, September 1

Ashley’s Clean Book Reviews, September 2

Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, September 3

Back Porch Reads, September 3

Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, September 4

Splashes of Joy, September 5

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, September 6

Giveaway

To celebrate her tour, Jennifer is giving away the grand prize package of a $25 Amazon gift card & a copy of the book!!

Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.

https://promosimple.com/ps/210c7/a-sojourner-s-solace-celebration-tour-giveaway

4 comments:

  1. Thank you so much for reading and reviewing A Sojourner's Solace. I appreciate the time you took to do this. Blessings.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for sharing A Sojourner's Solace with me, Jennifer, your book sounds like a fantastic book for me to read!

    Thanks, Inklings and Notions, for sharing your thoughts!

    Have a marvelous weekend!

    ReplyDelete
  3. This book sounds like a terrific read.

    ReplyDelete