What if You Had a Heartbreaking History You Didn't Even Know about?

When Liz Tolsma told me about her trip to Greece and all that it entailed, I watched eagerly for information. We saw the places she went, the things she ate–everything on Facebook. She’s a great traveler who shares everything, and now the research has paid off. Though the paperback doesn’t release until January 1, 2023, the eBook is even here already! EEEP. So if you need a last-minute Christmas gift, What I Would Tell You makes a great gift. Send the Kindle from Amazon or print out her fun notices of a coming paperback from her website and wrap that! How fun would that be?

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What if You Had a Heartbreaking History You Didn’t Even Know about?

I can’t even imagine, but with What I Would Tell You, Liz Tolsma has written a DNA surprise story that will rip your heart out, fill it with hope and love again, and just might teach you a bit about little-known Greek WWII history. Perfect for readers who loved Lilly’s Promise.

What I Would Tell You by Liz Tolsma

Determined to resist the invading Nazis, a Greek Jewish woman’s greatest dream has become her worst nightmare, and now she faces an impossible choice whose consequences echo across the generations.

1941—The pounding of Nazi boots on the streets of Salonika, Greece, reverberates in Mathilda Nissim’s ears, shaking her large community of Sephardic Jews to its core and altering her life forever. If only her people would rise up and resist their captors. At great risk to herself and those around her, she uses the small newspaper she publishes to call them to action, all to no avail. Her husband encourages her to trust God to watch over them, but God has once again deserted His people. Amid the chaos, Mathilda discovers she’s expecting a longed-for child. Still, nothing stops the occupiers’ noose from tightening around their necks, and she may have to resort to desperate measures to ensure her daughter’s survival.

2019—

College student Tessa Payton and her cousin take a popular DNA heritage test only to discover they don’t share any common ancestors. In fact, the test reveals Tessa is a Greek Sephardic Jew. This revelation threatens her tenuous faith. Always the overlooked child in her family, she empties her savings account and jets off on a journey to Greece to discover where she belongs and which God demands her allegiance. The enchanting curator at the Jewish museum guides her as she navigates life in Thessaloniki, helps with her genealogical research, and loans her a fascinating journal written by a Jewish woman during WWII. Tessa’s search, however, may open old wounds and uncover long-hidden secrets that could fracture her family forever and leave her with more questions than when she started.

Based in part on true accounts of Jews in Salonika, Greece, What I Would Tell You traces two women’s journeys, delving into what faith looks like and where it leads us as they navigate difficult circumstances and impossible choices that have ripple effects across the years.

Split time fiction: WWII and 2019
Stand-alone novel
Approximate book length: 91,000 words
Includes author’s notes

If you want to learn all about this book, get the bonuses, and find out about upcoming books (including Liz’s “little French secret”) then you’ll want to sign up for her newsletter on her WEBSITE.