Tag - Shadows Over England

A Review of Roseanna White’s A SONG UNHEARD

February 6, 2018

This year has been a musical one for our family as we’ve attended a number of events to watch my nephew Levi, a senior, perform with the school band. From his duties assistant drum major during marching season to solos on his saxophone at the winter concert to performing with the OSU High School Honor Band, Levi’s passion for music is apparent. And with his events, we’ve been able to share that love with our boys.

In fact, one of the highlights of our holiday season was joining Levi to watch a performance of the Columbus Jazz Orchestra. While I liked seeing my little guys bop to swinging renditions of Christmas classics performed by highly talented professional musicians, watching Levi’s pure delight and rapture as he soaked it all in was the absolute best part. He was lit from within – with not just hearing a song, but understanding the intricacies, wanting to replicate the runs and harmonies, longing to perfect his own gifting into something as phenomenal.

So when I started reading Roseanna White’s newest book, A Song Unheard, Willa’s driving passion for music was easy to imagine and understand.

Haven’t met Willa yet? Let me introduce you to her via the back cover summary of the book (which is the second in Roseanna’s “Shadows Over England” series):

“Willa Forsythe is both a violin prodigy and a top-notch thief, which makes her the perfect choice for a critical task at the outset of World War I – to secure a crucial cypher key from a famous violinist currently in Wales.

Luka De Wilde has enjoyed the life of fame he’s won – until now, when being recognized nearly gets him killed. Everyone wants the key to his father’s work as a cryptologist. And Luka fears that his mother and sister, who have vanished in the wake of the German invasion of Belgium, will pay the price. The only distraction he finds from his worry is in meeting the intriguing and talented Willa Forsythe.

But danger presses in from every side, and Willa knows what Lukas doesn’t – that she must betray him and find that key, or her own family could pay the same price his surely has.”

I don’t know if it was all the musical references and scenes with violin lessons, or my own recent experiences with concerts and passionate musicians, but in Willa’s story, I found that Roseanna has written one of her most flowing, lyrical tales yet.

Masterfully arranged, Willa’s story is a song that will fill your heart. It’s dramatic with plenty of tension and dynamics; soothing and heart-rending in the soft, tender moments; and generously accented with playful, snappy interludes, while a beautiful, sincere theme of redemption and hope flows throughout the entire piece… I mean, story. 🙂

Willa is the kind of heroine I LOVE in a story – strong, quick-witted, independent, passionate, funny, and a bit stubborn. She loves her family fiercely and is proud of the life they’ve made, but her insecurities, flaws, and past leave her guarded and (secretly) feeling broken inside, with music and her talent on the violin as her solace.

Perfectly matching Willa for just the right spark is our hero, Lukas. Full of charm, Lukas is an oh-so-smooth but still somehow sweetly adorable ladies’ man who’s starting to re-examine his life in light of the devastating events in the world that have left him endangered in his own country and separated from his family.

Even in the midst of loss and physical pain, the boy can still flirt, and his quips and lines as he banters with a determined-not-to-swoon-over-him Willa had me smiling throughout the book.

Of course, as always, Roseanna writes a story about much more than just blushes and romantic overtures.

Both main characters have their own internal conflicts as well as brushes with darker, more nefarious persons and the danger they tend to bring with them, especially Willa. (I guess that’s what you get when you agree to steal a secret that many powerful people want.)

And they both face turning points in their faith, or lack thereof.

I’m always impressed with how realistically and honestly Roseanna can write God’s gentle drawing of a person’s heart, all the seeds of His love and forgiveness that other people plant and water in them along the way.

Two such influential characters, Gwen and Margot, have some beautiful moments in the story, as they offer grace and compassion in their own ways.

One of my favorite lines, though, comes from Margot, a savvy young prodigy herself, but in a different area. She basically steals every scene that she’s written into with her humor and brilliance, and I absolutely loved her! (Fingers crossed that we meet her again in the future!!! I’ve heard rumors…)

As if a captivating plot, remarkable characters; and a spiritual message that bolsters your faith weren’t enough (and really, those just seem to be the standard I expect from her anymore), Roseanna makes my little grammar-nerd, bookworm heart sing with her clever turns of phrase, vivid wording, and creative writing style. This book seemed to be especially inspired with little unique descriptions and analogies hidden throughout. It delighted both the writer and reader in me and confirmed yet again that Roseanna’s own genius and passion are definitely in crafting unforgettable tales.

In case you need further persuading to go grab this book right now, here is the official A Song Unheard book trailer which features an original song composed specifically for this book!

(Below are a few affiliate links, which means that at no additional cost to you, I may receive a commission when you use the links. See my full disclosure for details.)

A Song Unheard is now available at any of your favorite booksellers. Or you can download it on your Kindle or Kindle app to begin reading it RIGHT AWAY! 🙂

From now through February 11, 2018, you can also enter to win a copy of A Song Unheard, as well as 14 other books and a $50 Amazon card, over at the

Celebrate Lit Mid-Winter, Multi-Author Giveaway.

Stay tuned, too, for the third book in Roseanna’s “Shadows Over England” series, An Hour Unspent, which comes out in September.

In case you missed it, here’s my review of book one in the series, A Name Unknown.

Thank you, Roseanna and Bethany House Publishing for another great book and the chance to be an advanced reader! (I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review, and all opinions expressed are mine alone. My endorsement of the book is based solely on how much I loved it.)

More about Roseanna White

Roseanna M. White pens her novels beneath her Betsy Ross flag, with her Jane Austen action figure watching over her. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two children, editing and designing, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of over a dozen historical novels and novellas, ranging from biblical fiction to American-set romances to her series set in Britain. She and her family make their home in the breathtaking mountains of West Virginia. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.

You can follow her website and blog and find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

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A Review of Roseanna White’s A NAME UNKNOWN

September 3, 2017

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Life in Lape Haven: A Review of Roseanna White's A Name Unknown. Roseanna White has released Book 1 of her "Shadows Over England" series, A Name Unknown, and here is my review of this new Christian historical fiction book set in Edwardian England just before World War I.

When my family went on vacation this summer, we went through Maryland, and when I saw a certain Maryland city on the map as we planned our journey, I got kind of nerdily excited.

What’s in that town in Maryland, you ask?

Actually, it’s the “who” that made the town remarkable to me.

Okay…so who’s in Maryland, you ask?

Only one of my favorite Christian fiction authors, Roseanna White.

Having been a fan of hers for a while, following her on social media, and since the beginning of my blog back in 2015, having been privileged enough to get to review her last 4 book releases (I’ve even interviewed her twice), it was kind of special to get to at least drive through her hometown.

Then at the last minute, when we realized that we’d be near that city around dinner time, I knew exactly who to ask for restaurant recommendations. Knowing how nice and very approachable she has always been, I sent off a quick message to Roseanna via Facebook, letting her know my family was in the area.

Always gracious, Roseanna responded sooner than I expected, with her family’s favorite place in town: an Italian restaurant located in an old farmhouse that was once used as a Civil War hospital…because really, what would you expect from a historical writer, right? 🙂 (The food was AAAMAZING, by the way – delicious wood-fired pizza!)

(By the way, this post contains affiliate links, which means that at no additional cost to you, I may receive a small commission when you use the links.)

My little episode of fangirling was especially amusing to me later, when I started reading Roseanna’s newest release and the first in her “Shadows Over England” series, A Name Unknown, which features an author as one of the main characters, taking us into his dual world of reality and imagination and the normal and not-so-normal life he leads.

You know, “stars, they’re just like us,” and all that.

But before I get too far along into my thoughts on her latest book, here’s the back cover summary for you:

“Rosemary Gresham has no family beyond the band of former urchins that helped her survive as a girl in the mean streets of London. Grown now, they concentrate on stealing high-value items and have learned how to blend into upper-class society. Rosemary is beginning to question whether she can continue in this life when she’s offered the challenge of a lifetime – whether a certain wealthy gentleman is loyal to Britain or to Germany. After all, how does one steal a family’s history, their very name?

As Europe moves ever closer to World War I, rumors swirl around Peter Holstein. Awkward and solitary, but with access to the king, many fear his influence. But Peter can’t help his German last name and wants to prove his loyalty to the Crown – so he can go back to anonymously writing a series of popular adventure novels. When Rosemary arrives on his door pretending to be a well-credentialed historian, Peter believes she’s the right person to help him dig through his family’s past.

When danger and suspicion continue to mount, both realize they’re in a race against time to discover the truth – about Peter’s past and about the undeniable attraction kindling between them.”

As always, Roseanna gives us an intriguing and unique plot helmed by realistic, engaging characters, and Rosemary and Peter are two of the most charming yet. While the book moves at a slightly slower pace than some of her other stories and is longer, pagewise, than most, Roseanna’s initial “foundation-laying” for the characters is something you’ll appreciate as the book moves along.

Peter Holstein has an immediate vulnerability with a stutter that has left him insecure and guarded around people, but not unfriendly or unkind. His relationship with God has given him an inner strength that allows him to remain solid and secure in the storms he faces throughout the story.

I LOVED this quote early on in the book, where Peter is remembering his grandfather’s words, as he threw rocks over a cliff to the water below,

“They are like our prayers, ja? We send them out, and we cannot see, always, what they do. Once in a while we see their ripples. But more often we cannot. Still we pray. Because just like our logic tells us these rocks fall and gather and join the other rocks below, so our faith tells us our prayers whisper into God’s ears and gather and join the prayers of the other faithful. And His Word says the prayers of the faithful avail much.”

Peter may not feel like the dashing hero he longs to be, or like the one that he writes about, but his humble, giving heart draws Rosemary.

Rosemary Gresham herself is, as Peter describes her at one point, “delicate when it suits (her). Strong…always.” Growing up as a thief has taught her to be tough, wear a good mask, and to hide any vulnerability in order to survive. Despite that defense, she has a fierce protectiveness for her “family” and a desire to spare the younger ones experiences like her own. When Peter doesn’t fit the stereotypes and prejudices she expects from the wealthier of society, she has to learn to let her own guard down. Revealing her true self, though, means facing her past and her purpose for helping Peter to begin with.

As they develop a somewhat unlikely friendship (despite her goal and his secrets), the banter and humor they share is pretty adorable, blossoming sweetly as they find a shared mission.

As someone who has a difficult enough time just getting a simple blog written with the distractions of family life always present, it was delightful to see life through the eyes of an author – the things that inspired Peter, his living in two worlds, his frustration at being interrupted from his work before each word or idea is recorded.

I have a feeling that Roseanna may have pulled from her own real-life experiences as a writer just a little there. And I think that the story within the story – Peter’s book – should become a companion novella for this book.

However, my favorite aspect of A Name Unknown was Rosemary’s gentle heart change, brought about by the example in the everyday life of a man quietly living what he believes. Roseanna White always weaves the spiritual journey of her characters so well and so convictingly that her words become ministry in the midst of a great read.

I’m fairly certain Peter’s words sum it up nicely,

“…Perhaps by changing himself he could cause a greater change, too. That had always been his hope, his prayer. That the Lord could somehow use both his shortcomings and his gifts to make others better. Stronger. More faithful.”

A Name Unknown is another wonderful offering of Roseanna’s gifts that I know the Lord will use and one that you’ll enjoy as well.

(And thanks, again, Roseanna, for your dinner recommendations for my family. That was ministry as well.)

A Name Unknown is now available at any of your favorite booksellers. Or you can download it on your Kindle or Kindle app to begin reading it RIGHT AWAY! 🙂

And watch for Book 2 in her “Shadows Over England” series, A Song Unheard, coming out January 2, 2018.

Thank you, Roseanna and Bethany House Publishing for another great book and the chance to be an advanced reader, again! While I received a copy of A Name Unknown in exchange for my honest opinion, you know that my endorsement of the book is based solely on how much I loved it.

More about Roseanna White

Roseanna M. White pens her novels beneath her Betsy Ross flag, with her Jane Austen action figure watching over her. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two children, editing and designing, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels and novellas, ranging from biblical fiction to American-set romances to her British series. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to make their way into her novels…to offset her real life, which is blessedly boring.

Being educated at St. John’s College (the Great Books School) taught Roseanna to ask questions, to value conversation, and to never accept the simple answer without exploring it for herself. She and her family make their home in the mountains of West Virginia where she and her husband both grew up. Roseanna is a member of ACFW, a frequent speaker at writers events and small groups of readers, and an unabashed email addict.

You can follow her website and blog and find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.