Catching the Wind (By: Melanie Dobson)

Catching the Wind
By: Melanie Dobson

Story Line: 5 Stars
Depth: 4 Stars
Faith: 4 Stars
Love Story: 3 Stars
Overall: 4 Stars

Whatever happened to Brigitte Berthold? At 10 years old, she and her best friend, 13 year old Dietmar, barely escaped from Nazi Germany into England. But once there, they were tragically separated. Now, for the last 75 years, Dietmar has spared no expense and spent a lifetime trying to find Brigitte - only to hit dead ends at every turn. As he is now an old man nearing the end of his life, he has one last hope of finding her - an American journalist named Quenby Vaughn, a woman he believes might just have the heart to help him complete his quest. 

Melanie Dobson's writing is superb, weaving together the past and the present, as Quenby uncovers a WWII treason and espionage ring. As she traces Brigitte's footsteps from all those years ago, through England and beyond, the author paces the story perfectly and brings to light just the right amount of information to keep us readers hooked. 

Catching the Wind will take the reader deep into WWII Nazi Germany, exploring espionage plots and the sad reality of many people's living conditions and dangers they faced. In the present, there are issues of abandonment, broken families and poor choices that are dealt with. However (perhaps our favorite part), author Melanie does a beautiful job in reconciling these sad realities with the grace and forgiveness of God. Rather than tying all these little problems up into an unrealistic, neat bow, the characters are able to experience real forgiveness, reconciliation and just let other things go. 

These two chicks highly recommend you pick up a copy of this book to read, but be warned: you may have a few late nights reading in your future!

Note: We were given this book in exchange for our honest review.  

The Silent Order (By: Melanie Dobson)

The Silent Order

By: Melanie Dobson

Storyline

It's 1928 in Cleveland and Detective Rollin Wells has one goal in life: to bring down the powerful Cardano mob family and put a stop to their decades of illegal activities and shady business. When he is nearly gunned down by the family's henchmen, Rollin takes refuge in an unlikely place: an Amish community. There, he is aided by a simple young woman, who reminds him so very much of the girl he once loved. 

Katie Lehman wants nothing to do with the world outside her community but taking care of Rollin forces her to face the secrets from her past. She must decide whether to pledge her life to the church or return to her roots outside of the Amish town. 

This book had us turning pages late into the night! It hummed along at the perfect pace as characters were developed beautifully and plot twists kept us hooked. Certain mysteries and secrets kept us guessing until the very end, where all the loose ends were tied up and answered skillfully. 

Depth

The reader is treated to a peek inside two vastly different worlds. The Cardano family's underground operations are dark and murderous, and author Melanie doesn't shy away from the grim reality of what life must have been like for those under their control. On the other hand, we explore the life of an Amish community that thrives on peace, forgiveness and simplicity. It's a sad and intriguing contrast all at the same time.

Faith

Rollin has spent the last decade cursing God and vowing revenge for the tragic loss he suffered at the hands of the Cardano family. But once immersed in the Amish community, he is confronted with issues of God's justice and blessing the Lord in any circumstance. The faith of his new friends is strong and lived out well, and it really rubs off on him.

Love Story

Rollin and Katie have an immediate connection that slowly builds into a deep, genuine love for each other. While their romance didn't necessarily get our hearts racing, it certainly made our hearts sigh with satisfaction as these two share tender and sweet moments!

Overall

This was the first novel we read by Melanie Dobson and you can be sure it won't be our last! She is a masterful storyteller, weaving plots together with action-packed excitement, realistic struggles and deep, touching interactions between characters. Excuse us, while we go choose another of hers to read!

Find it on Amazon: The Silent Order

Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor (By: Melanie Dobson)

Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor

By: Melanie Dobson

New-to-us author Melanie Dobson has caught our attention and we are eager to introduce our friends to her phenomenal books!

Storyline
Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor's story is told alternating between one generation and the next. It begins in 1950's England where Walter and Maggie Doyle are are joining their lives together, but secrets shadow their newly spoken vows. As the years pass, they face challenges that threaten to tear them apart including a special needs daughter, Libby, and a suspicious death of the boy next door. Fast forward to today, and Libby's sister Heather is headed back to England to wrap up the estate of her recently deceased father, Walter Doyle. What she thinks will be a simple task instead unearths secrets and shocking revelations about her childhood that urge her to extend her visit and search for answers. In addition to this, she must also come face to face with her first love from years ago and finally confront the problems that broke them apart. 

Melanie Dobson has an incredible gift for plot twists, revealing mysteries slowly and tying up loose ends. Her writing is masterful and we have yet to read one of her books that hasn't earned a five-star rating in our storyline criteria. We were completely swept away in Walter, Maggie and Heather's story!

Depth

Many deep issues of life are explored in this book. One of our favorites was that of children with special needs, and what they faced in the mid 1900's, before doctors fully understood their needs and before society appreciated their strengths. Melanie delicately writes Libby's unique beauty, and even writes from her point of view occasionally. Also tackled in this book are issues of lies, betrayal, mistakes, forgiveness, and second chances.

Faith

Faith is quite prevalent throughout this read! Most of the main characters seek God's guidance and forgiveness for the ways they have gone wrong. Walter Doyle was an especially inspiring character, as he sacrificed for his family, chose to love the unlovable and took the high road on many occasions, just as Christ did for us. Redemption is beautifully illustrated in several of the characters' lives!

Squeal Factor

We enjoyed several romances in this story, all of which warmed our hearts! While there may not have been much to get our hearts racing, one thing these 2 chicks really appreciated was characters choosing purity, even after mistakes had been made in the relationship previously. Not easy, but all things are possible when trying to please the Lord! He is the author of love, after all!

Overall

This dramatic family saga takes the reader on a beautiful journey through the English countryside and it is downright impressive! Full of rich imagery, entertaining characters and insightful life lessons, we couldn't stop turning the pages until the end.

Find it on Amazon: Shadows of Ladenbrooke Manor