Book picks similar to
An Irishwoman's Tale by Patti Lacy


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Stowaway Heart


Patricia Strefling - 2012
    Fifteen and alone she huddles in the night -- she must be on the last ship to France before the snow flies. Frannie does the unthinkable and sneaks aboard The Antonia, becoming a stowaway. She must get to Aunt Matilda, her only living relative.Almost immediately she is discovered by Captain Caldwell who hides her in his cabin. He leaves Frannie with his lady friend in the harbor town of Brest, with a promise to return and take her to Aunt Matilda.Times passes and she still hopes, but the Captain’s woman hates her and trouble arises. If Captain Caldwell does not come, she will be forced to make her way alone.Can God provide a way? She believes but too many circumstances nearly undo her plans leaving Frannie to wonder if she will ever feel safe or loved again.

Love and Summer


William Trevor - 2009
    So it doesn’t go unnoticed when a dark-haired stranger appears on his bicycle and begins photographing the mourners at Mrs. Connulty’s funeral. Florian Kilderry couldn’t know that the Connultys are said to own half the town: he has only come to Rathmoye to photograph the scorched remains of its burnt-out cinema. A few miles out in the country, Dillahan, a farmer and a decent man, has married again: Ellie is the young convent girl who came to work for him when he was widowed. Ellie leads a quiet, routine life, often alone while Dillahan runs the farm. Florian is planning to leave Ireland and start over. Ellie is settled in her new role as Dillahan’s wife. But Florian’s visit to Rathmoye introduces him to Ellie, and a dangerously reckless attachment begins. In a characteristically masterly way Trevor evokes the passions and frustrations felt by Ellie and Florian, and by the people of a small Irish town during one long summer.

The Soldier's Song


Alan Monaghan - 2010
    As Ireland stands on the brink of political crisis, Europe plunges headlong into war. Among the thousands of Irishmen who volunteer to fight for the British Army is Stephen Ryan, a gifted young maths scholar whose working class background has marked him out as a misfit among his wealthy fellow students. Sent to fight in Turkey, he looks forward to the great adventure, unaware of the growing unrest back home in Ireland. His romantic notions of war are soon shattered and he is forced to wonder where his loyalties lie, on his return to a Dublin poised for rebellion in 1916 and a brother fighting for the rebels. Everything has changed utterly, and in a world gone mad his only hope is his growing friendship with the brilliant and enigmatic Lillian Bryce. "The Soldier's Song "is a poignant and deeply moving novel, a tribute to the durability of the human soul.

The Callahans: The Complete Series


Gordon Ryan - 2000
    I - Destiny: Fleeing an abusive father and a hopeless life in Ireland in 1895, nineteen-year-old Tom Callahan takes passage on a ship bound for America. On board, he meets Katrina Hansen, a young Norwegian woman traveling to Utah. It's not a likely match. The brash Irishman is a Catholic, a brawler and a young man without prospects. Katrina is a refined young woman, yet naive in the ways of the world. Lured into a polygamous marriage, she finds herself abandoned on a remote Mexican beach as the man she loves, unaware of her status, seeks his fortune in Alaska. Destiny is a sprawling historical novel set at the turn of the 19th century, played out in such far-flung places as New York City, the gold fields of Alaska and Old Mexico.Vol.II - Conflict: Tom Callahan strikes it rich in the Alaska goldfield while Katrina struggles to remain alive in Mexico. Demonstrating her determination and faith, the reader is shown the resilience of this young woman who has grown beyond her years. Continuing through 1912 and the disastrous voyage of HMS Titanic, Conflict will keep you on the edge of your seat.Vol. III - Reunion: It's 1917 and American has entered World War I. Tom and Katie's son, in an effort to prove his worth to his father, has joined what President Woodrow Wilson is calling - the fight to make the world safe for democracy-. As the war ends, Tommy is selected for appointment to the Naval Academy, while his father is arrested and imprisoned in Ireland for gun running in the great Irish Civil War. Set against turbulent events in world history and filled with vivid scenes as well as tender emotions, Reunion takes the reader around the world.Vol. IV - Prelude: Tom and Katrina Callahan continue their story in the years between the two world wars. Their three children have grown up and are making their way in a world that is propelling itself toward World War II. Tess has her heart set on a Hollywood movie career; PJ is a successful sheep rancher in New Zealand and Tommy is pursuing his career in the Marine Corps and learning not only about war, but about the perils of romance. When Tommy finds himself in England prior to WWII, Winston Churchill calls on him to examine the economic growth of the German nation as they secretly prepare for war.Vol. V - Reprisal - Continuing the series into WWII as Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Callahan III faces personal tragedy during the Blitz in London as the war presents a very personal face. As he leaves his Embassy post to return to the United States, America joins Europe in the worldwide conflagration. For the second time in his young life, the son of Thomas and Katrina Callahan finds himself immersed in front-line battle, torn between his duty and the love of a beautiful woman who desires only his safety.The conclusion of The Callahans will leave you enthralled as the children and grandchildren of a once-young Irish immigrant and his Norwegian bride leave their mark upon the world.

Leota's Garden


Francine Rivers - 1999
    It was her refuge from the deep wounds inflicted by a devastating war, her sanctuary where she knelt before a loving God and prayed for the children who couldn’t understand her silent sacrifices.At eighty-four, Leota is alone, her beloved garden in ruins. All her efforts to reconcile with her adult children have been fruitless. She voices her despair to a loving Father, her only friend.And God brings a wind of change through unlikely means: one, a college student who thinks he has all the answers; the other, the granddaughter Leota never hoped to know. But can the devastation wrought by keeping painful family secrets be repaired before she runs out of time?

Cowgirls Don't Cry


Debra Lynn Collins - 2014
    Ever since her mother abandoned her family when she was ten, Sami has watched her father grow cold and bitter from a broken heart. The one question she cannot shake is: Where is God through all this? To her wounded heart, the only answer she can find is: He is not. As Sami gets to know Chase, her walls start to come down, which frightens her. Can she trust this man who seems so sincere? Or will he abandon her just like her mother did?After hearing rumors about Sami, Chase Townsend expected a “man-eater” of a woman, especially with a nickname like “Wild Cat.” Instead, he is stunned by the beauty with the sparkling blue eyes. However, Chase quickly figures out that something has happened to Sami, and he has to decide if he is willing to try to help her overcome her bitterness or if he should just let the “Wildcat” be. Because of Chase’s deep trust in God, and his strong perseverance streak, he makes it his mission to show Sami that God loves her and, only He can heal her broken past. Now that Chase has made it his business to witness to Sami, he finds himself falling in love. Will his heart be broken when Sami pushes him away?

What Follows After


Dan Walsh - 2014
    Life is simple. The world makes sense, and all families are happy. When they aren’t, everyone knows you’re supposed to pretend. With their family about to collapse, Colt Harrison and his little brother, Timmy, hatch a plan. They’ll run away from their Florida home, head for their aunt’s house in Savannah and refuse to come home until their parents get back together. But things go terribly, terribly wrong. Colt’s parents must come to grips with years of mistrust and fight for their son’s return…and to mend their broken marriage. In this emotional story, Dan Walsh takes readers on a suspense-filled journey to rediscover the things that matter most in life.

More Precious Than Gold


Lynn Dean - 2011
    Clinging to her battered faith, she heads west to escape her grief and runs headlong into the man who caused it. Tall and headstrong, Eliza expected to remain an "unclaimed treasure." Devastated in the wake of the war, she sets out for New Mexico's Sangre de Cristo mountains in search of peace and new purpose but finds that the western frontier is a wild place where former enemies--Yankees and Rebels, Freedmen and Indians--square off in the quest for land and gold. Eliza must confront her prejudices and fears, and Jacob Craig embodies that conflict. The mountain man wins her trust with his gentle strength, but he harbors a secret. As a Union sharp-shooter, he met her fiance on the field of battle and cost him his life. Eliza must learn that she will not find purpose or peace anywhere until she finds in God a faith more precious than gold. A real ghost town comes to life in this award-winning story of love, forgiveness, and the sovereignty of God.

The Secret Scripture


Sebastian Barry - 2008
    Over the weeks leading up to this upheaval, she talks often with her psychiatrist Dr Grene, and their relationship intensifies and complicates.Told through their respective journals, the story that emerges is at once shocking and deeply beautiful. Refracted through the haze of memory and retelling, Roseanne's story becomes an alternative, secret history of Ireland's changing character and the story of a life blighted by terrible mistreatment and ignorance, and yet marked still by love and passion and hope.

Desperate Pastors' Wives


Ginger Kolbaba - 2007
    All desperate for something. Is it possible that their desperation will lead to hope? Mimi, Lisa, Jennifer, and Felicia all live in the fishbowl of Red River, Ohio. Everyone expects something from them. Gourmet casseroles. Perfect husbands. Well-behaved children. They expect even more of themselves. The constant demands and always-ringing phones are enough to drive any sane woman crazy. Add to all that the condescending Katherine Fleming Katt -- self-promoting pastor's wife of the town's largest church -- who loves to flaunt her superior position. In the midst of such chaos, will each woman find the one thing she longs for? When the unflappable Kitty Katt starts showing up at odd places, the four friends get suspicious. Is Kitty hiding something? What secrets lie behind her "perfect" exterior? But even more significant than unraveling Kitty Katt's secrets is finding answers for themselves.

A Daughter's Inheritance


Tracie Peterson - 2008
    Seventeen-year-old Fanny has never put much stock in the conventions of society. In fact, she has given her heart to Michael, the family boat-keeper. But when she receives a surprising inheritance, she discovers just how oppressive society can be . . . and that she may be trusting the wrong people.Dare she follow her heart and risk going against her family? What if she loses everything she's ever known? It all comes down to one choice: What does Fanny Broadmoor want her legacy to be?

The Secret Diary of a Magnificent Lady


Aria Norton - 2019
    But when she suddenly finds out the striking news that her childhood sweetheart is engaged to another, her hopes dissolve and her heart is torn apart. Is there anything left to let her believe that the door to his heart might one day be open again, or has she lost him forever? Henry Montague is under a lot of pressure to marry a woman of his father’s choosing. When a dear friend approaches him with an unusual request, he decides that they have no other option than scheming together . But as their false betrothal is celebrated among their ignorant families, he finds himself enraptured by a woman he meets by chance. Will he find a way to court the fascinating lady who has stolen his heart, even though he is engaged to another? Matilda’s diary holds all her secrets, and when it falls into the hands of Henry, she wants nothing more than to run away. Will having all her secrets exposed to Henry cause more chaos in her life, or will it offer her a way to achieve what her heart deeply wants?

Welcome to Fred


Brad Whittington - 2003
    The problem is, he can't really tell anyone. Especially not his dad, the Baptist preacher. As the last of the modern nomads, a preacher's family is always on the move, and Mark has learned to cope with life as the new kid in town. At least he's in a town. Until he is whisked away behind the Pine Curtain of East Texas to the microscopic community of Fred. There, his urban coping skills fall flat as he fumbles every attempt to fit in. And the girl of his dreams is immune to his Sixties counterculture charm. But these frustrations fade in comparison to the crisis prompted by a dusty book he finds lodged between the stacks on the library. Before it's over, Mark will have to face his doubts. And his father. This award-winning novel is a moving and hilarious coming-of-age story set against the vibrant backdrop of the 1960s and rural America. eBook extras: Reader's Guide, 900+ SAT words, Preview of Living with Fred

Love's Providence


Jennifer H. Westall - 2012
    If not for Jackson Carter, her childhood best friend and the only boy she’s ever loved, she’s sure she would have run away years ago. But when Jackson loses his father and a future basketball career within months of each other, his faith is so shattered, he shuts out everyone, including Lily. After months of heartache, Lily begins to piece together a life without Jackson, and while vacationing at the beach on a beautiful island off the Georgia coast, she begins a long-distance romance with Alex Walker, a police officer with a quick wit and a cocky grin. He revives her hope in love again, but their intense attraction and his devastating secret test Lily’s commitment to save herself for marriage. Through her struggles to remain true to her principles, an agonizing choice between Alex and Jackson, and a series of terrifying events that threaten all of them, Lily must endure losing everything she’s been grasping so tightly. Only then will she discover the depth of the love that already surrounds her.

The Misremembered Man


Christina McKenna - 2008
    This vivid portrayal of the universal search for love brings with it a darker tale, heartbreaking in its poignancy.