What an epic adventure! Lynn Austin is a new author to me, but I will be looking up her other books after reading "Where We Belong". If you like adventure, travel, strong female characters, and deep spiritual content, you will like "Where We Belong"!
This book is broken up into sections. Each section is told from a different character's perspective. Ms. Austin has great characters. It truly is an epic story, following the character's lives from when they are young to middle-aged. I especially liked reading from the middle-aged perspectives, as that is not often an age that is covered in this genre. Because the book is broken into sections, it took me awhile to mentally change to the next character's perspective. This also felt a bit abrupt at times. But once I was able to make the change, I really enjoyed reading from so many different viewpoints.
One of our main characters, Rebecca, is a special favorite, as she doesn't care what others think, and has a strong faith. She doesn't worry about her life or safety, but trusts God with her future. She also loves reading, adventure and traveling. Rebecca (Becky) and her sister, Flora, do unconventional things in the Victorian era, like traveling across a desert with only a young butler as an escort. They have so many escapades–such as haggling in Arabic at a market, skipping school to have an adventure, and exercising in bloomers. Travel and adventure lovers will find kindred spirits in Flora and Becky with their free spirits, wanderlust and adventures around the world.
This story takes readers all over the world. The descriptions of the settings are amazing! I felt the sand blowing against the tent as I was transported to the Sinai desert. This is one of those books where you settle down and really immerse yourself in the story. It's not a quick read, but it is so rich and fulfilling. "Where We Belong" has themes of trusting God, finding one’s purpose and God's plan for our life. This book is just so well written. I would put this author up there with Liz Curtis Higgs and Francine Rivers.
Content: This is a clean read. I would give it a PG rating due to a bit of content. It is a little graphic when describing the tenements in a poor area. There is talk of a man's harem. One man almost says the word for an illegitimate child. There is talk of a man getting drunk and beating a character. A man tries to grab a girl. There is a scene where a girl gets forced into a brothel. There is a lot of content which alludes to the activities in a brothel.
Rating: I give this book 5 stars.
Genre: Christian Historical Fiction; Victorian; Adventure
I want to thank Lynn Austin and Bethany House Publishers for the complimentary copy of this book for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I express in this review are my own. This is in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s CFR 16, Part 255.
About the Author:
Lynn and her husband have three children and make their home in Illinois.
Winner of 8 Christy Awards for Excellance in Christian Fiction. Author of 19 books, over 1 million copies sold! In addition to writing Lynn is a popular speaker at conferences, retreats and various church, school and library events.
To visit the author's website click here
To purchase the book click here
To visit the author's website click here
To purchase the book click here
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