Since there are thousands of titles to search through, I thought I would contribute some of my discoveries for those who may have similar tastes and want to save the time of searching all the books. I list several books here and will put more in subsequent blog posts.
Once again, note that these are books available for free loan for Amazon customers who belong to the Prime program, in which you pay an annual fee ($80??) to receive free 2-day shipping on many products and, recently added, free streamed digital content (movies, I think, but I have not investigated since the bandwidth would be prohibitive here in Nigeria).
Freedom’s Stand by Jeanette Windle (4.6 stars, 34 reviews)
Jamil renounced a life of jihad when he encountered the life-changing message of Jesus Christ, but villagers and authorities in the hills of Afghanistan respond with skepticism . . . and even violence. Relief worker Amy Mallory is shocked by the changes in her organization—changes with dire implications for the women and children under her care. And concern for her former assistant, Jamil, weighs heavily on her heart. Former Special Forces veteran Steve Wilson faces off against the riots and corruption of Kabul’s upcoming election. He's looking for something that will give his life purpose but is confident that he won’t find it in Afghanistan.
My first thought from the blurb above was that perhaps the book was just Christian pulp fiction, but the comments seem to indicate that it is much richer than that, so I’d be interested in reading it. NB: This is the sequel to Veiled Freedom, which is not currently available for free rental, so you might want to read that book first.
Catching Moondrops by Jennifer Erin Valent (4.8 stars, 33 reviews)
As with some other books on the free lending list, this is a sequel so don’t be surprised if it feels as if you are missing some history if you read it on its own.It's the summer of 1938, and in the rural town of Calloway, Virginia, something is brewing --- something that 18-year-old Jessilyn Lassiter has felt before. Amidst romance in the air and the brilliant colors of summer sunsets, Jessilyn and her best friend Gemma know racial tension is on the rise. Six years ago, that tension exploded with burning crosses and white-robed Klansmen. Their hate-filled, public displays were reduced to a simmer since then, but the two best friends --- one white, one black --- knew it was about to bubble over again. When a black doctor sets up shop in Calloway's "colored" district, he fans the flames of the Klansmen's hatred, setting in motion a series of events that will change the people of Calloway and leave two mothers grieving for their sons. … I could write endlessly about the clever dialogue, colorful imagery and unique voice. And I certainly can't leave out the depth and attitude of the characters, the compelling plot, or the way the book takes you on an emotional roller coaster ride. Yet none of this does justice to the novel or its gifted author. Jennifer Erin Valent possesses writing talent that will surely have her name on bestseller lists for years to come.
Untouchable by Scott O'Connor (4.5 stars, 48 reviews)
It is the autumn of 1999. A year has passed since Lucy Darby's unexpected death, leaving her husband David and son Whitley to mend the gaping hole in their lives. David, a trauma-site cleanup technician, spends his nights expunging the violent remains of strangers, helping their families to move on, though he is unable to do the same. Whitley – an 11 year-old social pariah known simply as The Kid – hasn't spoken since his mother's death. Instead, he communicates through a growing collection of notebooks, living in a safer world of his own silent imagining.
Those Who Save Us by Jenna Blum (4.4 stars, 268 reviews)
Family secrets of Nazi Germany are at the core of this powerful first novel told in two narratives that alternate between New Heidelberg, Minnesota, in the present, and the small town of Weimar near Buchenwald during World War II. Trudy is a professor of German history in Minnesota, where she's teaching a seminar on women's roles in Nazi Germany and conducting interviews with Germans about how they're dealing with what they did during the war. But her mother, Anna, won't talk about it, not even to her own daughter. Trudy knows, she remembers, that Anna was mistress to a big Nazi camp officer. Why did she do it? Was he Trudy's father? The interviews are a plot contrivance to introduce a range of attitudes, from blatant racism to crippling survivor guilt. But the characters, then and now, are drawn with rare complexity, including a brave, gloomy, unlucky rescuer and a wheeler-dealer survivor. Anna's story is a gripping mystery in a page-turner that raises universal questions of shame, guilt, and personal responsibility. Hazel Rochman
Freedom's Stand is a fast-paced, gripping novel that paints a vivid picture of life in Afghanistan. It shows the challenges Amy and other missionaries face when ministering to women and children, who are considered nothing more than property in that culture. The book is filled with intrigue, a little romance, and incredible faith that results in an ultimate sacrifice. The end contains an interesting twist.
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