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Chautona Havig

Chautona Havig

Using story to connect YOU to the Master Storyteller

Discerning Readers Need a Great Read Like This One

by Chautona Havig · 4 Comments

Amy Lynn Green has written a phenomenal, gripping, insightful novel that every lover of good fiction should read. Not bad for a debut author, is it? via @chautonahavig

When you see a cover that won’t leave your mind, sometimes you just have to go find out what it’s all about. Well, that’s exactly what I did last fall, and what I found… Whoooeee! Yeah.

Debut authors are a penny a dozen these days. Phenomenal debut authors with novels you can’t put down and can’t stop thinking about, on the other hand… oy.

I actually quit editing one episode slated for today and went to record this one. Why? Because I just couldn’t wait one more minute to gush–erm, talk about Things We Didn’t Say by Amy Lynn Green.

Amy Lynn Green

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Discerning Readers Need a Great Read Like This One

There’s nothing more wonderful than a new release that keeps you riveted to the page–or the audiobook app–from the first word to the last.

Unless it happens to be by a debut author.

That’s right, Amy Lynn Green has written a phenomenal, gripping, insightful novel that every lover of good fiction should read.

The story behind this book goes way back to when a friend recommended the novel The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society a few years ago. I spend about 5 minutes talking about #thatguernseybook as a way to set up how I found this book and why I consider those books comparable. So, if you want to skip that, start around the 5-minute mark.

In fact, I’m calling this book “The American Guernsey Book” because it’s got a similar feel.

So what is so great about Amy Lynn Green’s, Things We Didn’t Say?

So many things.

A linguist, Johanna Berglund is called home to translate for German prisoners of war, censor their letters, all the stuffness.

This epistolary novel opens with a treason trial and someone has collated all of Johanna’s correspondence. Letters to the editor, notes at work, writing to friends–everything.  So, between learning to see the Germans as people and trying to treat them as such, and having a Japanese-American friend, she’s looking guilty when things go south.

There are so many perspectives shown through all of these notes and letters.

Furthermore, the way the character arc transforms Johanna’s character is brilliant. You see Amy Lynn Green pulling Johanna out of her shell and into her own person throughout the story.

As I say in the episode, Johanna’s growth reminds me of an old Jimmy Stewart movie, No Highway in the Sky.  This is the aftermath of the scene I mentioned where Stewart realizes he’s become personally involved… or vice versa.

The book is well written and full of great characters whose personalities shine on the page. Additionally, there are strong spiritual elements that show faith in action, faith growing. If that werern’t enough, Amy Lynn Green addresses and explores difficult political and ideological issues of the day–both from objective and subjective viewpoints. This adds depth and richness to her story.

Did I love it?  Oh, yeah. Am I disappointed that I don’t see more available by her? Definitely. Do I stalk Amy Lyn Green’s Amazon page for preorder links to another book?  Yep. Sure do.

A five-star read all the way. Things We Didn’t Say better win awards. I’m just sayin’

Also… I shared news about the podcast!

In addition to this gush about Amy Lyn Green’s book, I announced that we’re going to expand the episodes to two types.

Tuesdays: These episodes will be just like the ones we’ve been having all along.

Saturdays: These will be genre-specific (Historical, Contemporary Romance, Spec Fic, etc) episodes featuring short interviews (8-10 minutes) with approximately 3 authors. We’ll discuss upcoming or newly released books. And with these, we’ll keep the chit-chat to a minimum.  Still, I plan to read most of if not all of the books so I know what questions to ask, etc.

Oh, and watch for the winner of the giveaway from Episode 44.

Things we Didn't Say Amy Lynn GreenPublisher’s Synopsis:

Headstrong Johanna Berglund, a linguistics student at the University of Minnesota, has very definite plans for her future . . . plans that do not include returning to her hometown and the secrets and heartaches she left behind there. But the US Army wants her to work as a translator at a nearby camp for German POWs.

Johanna arrives to find the once-sleepy town exploding with hostility. Most patriotic citizens want nothing to do with German soldiers laboring in their fields, and they’re not afraid to criticize those who work at the camp as well. When Johanna describes the trouble to her friend Peter Ito, a language instructor at a school for military intelligence officers, he encourages her to give the town that rejected her a second chance.

As Johanna interacts with the men of the camp and censors their letters home, she begins to see the prisoners in a more sympathetic light.

But advocating for better treatment makes her enemies in the community, especially when charismatic German spokesman Stefan Werner begins to show interest in Johanna and her work. The longer Johanna wages her home-front battle, the more the lines between compassion and treason become blurred–and it’s no longer clear whom she can trust.

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Comments

  1. Bethany says

    February 3, 2021 at 4:42 am

    Hold placed at my library! I’m always excited when the library is actually carrying a book I like that isn’t on KU. : )

    Reply
  2. Emma says

    February 2, 2021 at 1:46 pm

    I got that book from NetGalley, but haven’t read it yet. Now I really want to!

    Reply
  3. Cheryl Arcemont says

    February 2, 2021 at 7:11 am

    Wow, this definitely sounds like a book to add to my TBR mountain! Thank you for sharing, I tend to get it when you say this is a winner or when you have issues with a book. Sounds like we have very similar likes and dislikes! Have a terrific Tuesday!

    Reply
  4. Andrea Stoeckel says

    February 2, 2021 at 6:57 am

    “Guernsey” was a sensation…this one will go into my library queue

    Reply

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Episode 48: A Chat with T.E. Price
by Chautona Havig

What happens when you combine domestic violence with suspense?  A hair-raising ride you won’t want to miss.

On March 2, T.E. Price ‘s book, Take Flight, releases on eBook, and boy is this one excellent story.  Join me as I talk with Tiffany about her book, the inspiration, and all the excellence you’ll find within the can’t-put-it-down pages.

Note: links may be affiliate links that provide me with a small commission at no extra expense to you!

The 3 Best Things about This Domestic Abuse Suspense Novel

A new author to me, T.E. Price knocked her suspense (and almost thriller) out of the park with three excellent elements to the book.  

Aside from wonderful and realistic characterization and edge-of-your-seat storytelling, T.E. Price also digs deep into a subject Christians sometimes like to pretend isn’t a thing.  And boy does she do it well. 

So if a great story that grips you and won’t let you go isn’t the best thing, what is?  Well… I’ve got three.

First, the writing is stellar.

Let’s face it, domestic abuse victims have cyclical thought patterns and actions that can feel redundant and become boring when you see it on the page, but Tiffany managed to avoid that while still showing how real and confusing it can be both for the person going through it and for those watching from the outside.

Second, her laser focus on her subject.

Domestic abuse is a multi-layered and faceted subject that spans so many different aspects of life. It would be easy and natural, even, to try to show it all with the one person who experienced it all, but T.E. Price keeps her focus on one woman’s escape from that life and how it affects her relationship with the Lord and others. That’s it.  

Third, T.E. Price shows her heart for the Lord and His people in every word on the page.

While not preachy at all, and while often just the undercurrent of the story, there is no doubt in the reader’s mind that Price wants the reader to learn both how to overcome as the victim of domestic violence and how to aid others in the church going through it.  Additionally, that steady reminder of Who the only true support we truly have touches every aspect of Hallie McClain’s life.

There are so many other excellent elements to Take Flight, but I’d be chatting all day with Tiffany (and nearly did!) if I kept going.

Don’t forget!

T.E. Price’s book releases March 2, 2021 and on March 5, 2021  from 7-8 pm (EST) she is having a Facebook launch party with prizes and lots of information about it.  HERE is a link to that party and I hope to be there to celebrate with her!  Please join her and maybe you’ll win an eBook copy of Take Flight!

You can find more about T.E. Price (Tiffany) at her WEBSITE where you can also find her other novel, Love’s True Colors.

Title:  Take Flight Author: T.E. Price Synopsis:  

Within Take Flight, readers follow Hallie McClain as she is faced with numerous fight-or-flight decisions in her attempt to escape her abusive husband, Jonathan McClain.

Hallie has made the decision to leave him for good, but Jonathan has no intentions of complying. During their separation, Hallie grapples with trusting those closest to her, the gossip-mill of her small town, and her wavering trust in God. Living alone in a secret, secluded cabin in the woods, she is thrust into multiple circumstances where she has to balance her safety with the reality of inescapable encounters with her soon-to-be ex-husband. Jonathan soon discovers Hallie’s whereabouts, forcing her to escape to the city while awaiting the divorce, but her move isn’t the solution as her safety is still compromised.

Hallie has to learn to trust God with her safety while leaning on the church body for support. The tantalizing storyline of Take Flight weaves through one “fight-or-flight” scenario after the next, filling Hallie with angst regarding her constant need for escape. Take Flight addresses the ugliness of domestic abuse and the need for support from the church community. Furthermore, it affirms God’s trustworthiness in the midst of difficult, sometimes even life-threatening, situations.

Like to listen on the go? You can find Because Fiction Podcast at:

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You can find the Blog post HERE.

Episode 48: A Chat with T.E. Price
Episode 48: A Chat with T.E. Price
February 23, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 47: The Drew Farthering Mysteries
February 16, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 46: What Romances Do I Think Are Perfect for Valentine's Day?
February 9, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 45: A Gush about Things We Didn't Say
February 2, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 44: A Chat with Carolyn Miller
January 26, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 43: A Chat with Allison Pearl
January 19, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 42: A Chat with J'nell Ciesielski
January 13, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 41: A Chat with Jennifer Pierce
January 5, 2021
Chautona Havig
Episode 40: My Favorite Book of 2020
December 8, 2020
Chautona Havig
Episode 39: A Chat with L.K. Simonds
December 1, 2020
Chautona Havig
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