So I’m a little weird when it comes to the physical bookshelves in my house.

As I understand it, normal people are not obsessive about the books that go on their shelves and where they belong. I, on the other hand, have a very specific order for which ones get a place and where exactly that place is, and it has nothing whatsoever to do with alphabetization or topic. It’s all about how much I love them and how many times I intend to re-read them. It is a great honor for a book to be put on the favorites shelf, and honestly, it doesn’t happen very often. Like once every year or two. I’m not all that picky about what I’ll read on Kindle, but for me to buy and keep a paperback is a big deal. I usually only buy books I’ve already read electronically and know I want to own. And for said book to get a place on The Shelf is a very, very big deal around here.

So when I tell you that I added not one, but two books to The Shelf this week, I hope that means something to you.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

The other thing I’m obsessive about is that I don’t read a book 2 in a series without having read book 1. I just don’t. So, when I was offered a complimentary ARC of Roseanna M. White’s A Song Unheard, I read the blurb and knew I wanted to read it. I agreed to read it and promptly went and ordered the first book in the series, A Name Unknown. After finishing it, I was fairly certain I had discovered a new favorite author, but I decided to withhold judgment until I had read book 2. Well, let’s just say that book 2 confirmed my suspicions. I love Roseanna M. White’s writing style!

I love the premise of this series. I love the characters she created for this series. I love that she set it during World War 1, which I know very little about. I love how clean the books are. I have absolutely no qualms about having my 8th grader read these when we study WW1; in fact, I think they will add so much to her study! I love the different journeys of faith Mrs. White has her characters walk; no two are the same but all are inspiring! I truly have nothing but good things to say about these books! I’m already waiting impatiently for book 3, but I’ll content myself in the meantime with hunting down and reading everything else this author has written.

I highly recommend this series to anyone. I feel quite certain my husband will enjoy them as will my older kids. They are like an inspirational mash-up of Downton Abbey and Leverage without all the immorality, and I loved every minute of them!

About the Book

Title: A Song Unheard

Author: Roseanna M. White

Genre: Christian Historical Fiction

Release Date: January 2, 2018

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

Lukas 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 Lukas fears that his mother and sister, who have vanished in the wake of the German invasion of Belgium, will pay the price. The only light he finds is meeting the intriguing Willa Forsythe.

But danger presses in from every side, and Willa knows what Lukas doesn’t—that she must betray him and find that cypher, or her own family will pay the price as surely as his has.

Click here to purchase your copy!

About the Author

Roseanna M. White is a bestselling, Christy Award nominated author who has long claimed that words are the air she breathes. When not writing fiction, she’s homeschooling her two kids, editing, designing book covers, and pretending her house will clean itself. Roseanna is the author of a slew of historical novels that span several continents and thousands of years. Spies and war and mayhem always seem to find their way into her books…to offset her real life, which is blessedly ordinary. You can learn more about her and her stories at www.RoseannaMWhite.com.

Guest post from Roseanna White

I started playing the piano when I was 7. I didn’t discover any long-dormant genius or anything, but I liked it. When my sister quit, I kept playing. In middle school, I switched teachers, and moving from the lady at my church that I knew so well to someone who was just my piano teacher made a difference in how I applied myself. It deepened my love of music.

We all know how some random moments stand out forever in our memory. One such for me happened on the school bus. I was sitting with my best friend, talking about the new piano piece I was learning. “Via Delorosa” means Road of Sorrow, and it’s a song that tells musically about Jesus’ journey to Golgotha—ending with the faint chime of the nails being driven into his palms. As my beloved Mrs. Peto went through this song with me the night before, I remember her circling a D? that I’d missed and saying how important that note was. That it made the whole line weep.

That it would make the hearers weep. An epiphany so huge I had to share it with my friend. A well placed sharp could make music weep! Who knew?

That was but one lesson Mrs. Peto taught me in how music could evoke things words never could. A woman of strong faith, she also taught me how a song could preach the Gospel. Music can be medicine. It can be hope. It can be tears. It can be truth. Music can be Jesus to a hurting heart that turns its back on words.

This is a lesson I never forgot, and I had it always in mind as I was writing A Song Unheard. In this story, both my hero and heroine are musicians—violinists. But Willa (who is SO STUBBORN) wouldn’t listen to words of faith from any of the people in her life “suddenly spouting such nonsense.”

But then, in her darkest hour, she hears a slip of melody. And she realizes it’s the Lord.

I pray as readers move through the story of Willa Forsythe—violin prodigy and top-notch thief—that their spirits’ ears hear more than words, more than just a story. I pray they hear the Lord whispering that ultimate song. The one that says, “I love you.”

Want to hear the song Willa eventually wrote in the book? You can! The violin music in this trailer is officially dubbed “Willa’s Song” and written specifically for this book. I hope you enjoy it! http://bit.ly/ASongUnheardTrailer

Blog Stops

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