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The Stonewycke Legacy #1-3
The Stonewycke Legacy
The thrilling conclusion to the popular Stonewycke series chronicles the turbulent marriage of Logan Macintyre and Allison MacNeil in three separate novels--Stranger at Stonewycke, Shadows over Stonewycke, and Treasure of Stonewycke.
720 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1987
6 people are currently reading
186 people want to read
About the author
Michael R. Phillips
250 books611 followersLibrarian Note: there is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database.
Michael Phillips has been writing in the Christian marketplace for 30 years. All told, he has written, co-written, and edited some 110 books. Phillips and his wife live in the U.S., and make their second home in Scotland.
Michael Phillips has been writing in the Christian marketplace for 30 years. All told, he has written, co-written, and edited some 110 books. Phillips and his wife live in the U.S., and make their second home in Scotland.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
May 3, 2015
Read the review I did on 'The Stonewycke Trilogy.' This is the continuation of that story so my review would be much the same. However, I will say that its a great book that holds some cool twists! And I'm feeling sad to have come to the end of a such great series.
May 14, 2017
Great series. The second time I've experienced them. This time on audiobooks, and the narration is great.
February 4, 2025
Even better than the Stonewycke Trilogy that preceded it (3.5 stars)
"The Stonewycke Legacy" is a sequel to the three books that made up "The Stonewycke Trilogy". All three books are considerably longer than the three titles of the first trilogy, and also manage to avoid some of the weaknesses of that series.
#1 Stranger at Stonewycke (3 stars)
Considerable time has passed since the last book of the first trilogy, and it's now the 1930s. Maggie and Ian are an old couple living on the Stonewycke estate, and their granddaughter Joanna is married and has children on the verge of being adults. One of these, Allison, is the main character, but she has a selfish and proud streak. She finds herself drawn to the charms of a new face, Logan McIntyre, who initially has ambitions to find and steal Stonewycke's hidden treasure.
Typical of a lot of Christian fiction, both characters have a single moment of repentance, independent of the Word. In fact the book minimizes sermons and preaching as a means of grace (p.123); at another point Romans 8:28 is very obviously misquoted and wrongly applied.
#2 Shadows Over Stonewycke (4 stars)
We fast forward to the start of World War II in 1939. Logan and Allison have been married for half a dozen years, but there's a real strain in their marriage relationship as a result of pride and selfishness from them both. Despite adding a baby girl to the family, they even end up being separated. The bulk of the novel describes Logan in France, where he serves as a spy and double agent for the Resistance, and there are some real tragedies along the way.
It's one of the more gripping storylines in the series, but it gives this book a very different feel that feels incongruous with the rural settings of Scotland and America from previous books. The Biblical message of this book is one of the strongest yet, and I really appreciated how it shows how getting married and becoming a Christian have this important parallel: they are just the beginning of a journey, and require a lifetime of service, sacrifice, and commitment, with many struggles along the way. Even a lot of Christian fiction that just tells the story of a whirlwind romance and not the daily challenges of living out love in a marriage. In that respect the content about the permanency of marriage and the need for self-sacrificial love is refreshing, compared to secular fiction and even a lot of Christian fiction.
#3 Treasure of Stonewycke (3.5 stars)
It's now the 1970s, and Logan and Allison are a middle aged couple, without children or heirs. Suddenly someone from their past reappears in their lives, someone that they thought was dead. Or could it be an imposter? The result is a touching mystery, with a satisfying resolution. Most of the story is set in Scotland, and like the previous book, it's quite a captivating story.
I would have been satisfied had this book ended about three quarters of the way through, however. The final quarter of the book featured the return of an old and evil villain (Channing) and was implausible, tacky, and preachy, and really unnecessary. The emphasis on the generational female blood line and matriarchal ancestry was also a bit over the top, especially the idea that the Stonewycke women "carry lineage of godliness in veins", and have an "internal predisposition to God" (p58). On the other hand, I appreciated the emphasis that God works through the generations and in families.
Overall
Overall I found the three books of the Stonewycke Legacy to be stronger than those of the Stonewycke Trilogy that preceded it. If there is a weakness throughout, it is that there's while the importance of a relationship with God is emphasized, the Biblical emphasis on being part of a local church is completely absent. The Bible clearly teaches that these are essential for a Christian's life of faith: being part of a body of fellow believers, receiving guidance of spiritual leaders, and hearing regular preaching from Scripture. But sadly these are entirely missing in the entire series, and the absence of "church" from the storyline is very regrettable.
That aside, the "Stonewycke Legacy" trilogy was stronger than the first trilogy both theologically and on the level of story, and I liked it quite a bit. The authors provide a helpful introduction ahead of each of the three books that explains and highlights some of the Biblical themes they are emphasizing. This is well done, and really helps appreciate the deeper level of each novel.
"The Stonewycke Legacy" is a sequel to the three books that made up "The Stonewycke Trilogy". All three books are considerably longer than the three titles of the first trilogy, and also manage to avoid some of the weaknesses of that series.
#1 Stranger at Stonewycke (3 stars)
Considerable time has passed since the last book of the first trilogy, and it's now the 1930s. Maggie and Ian are an old couple living on the Stonewycke estate, and their granddaughter Joanna is married and has children on the verge of being adults. One of these, Allison, is the main character, but she has a selfish and proud streak. She finds herself drawn to the charms of a new face, Logan McIntyre, who initially has ambitions to find and steal Stonewycke's hidden treasure.
Typical of a lot of Christian fiction, both characters have a single moment of repentance, independent of the Word. In fact the book minimizes sermons and preaching as a means of grace (p.123); at another point Romans 8:28 is very obviously misquoted and wrongly applied.
#2 Shadows Over Stonewycke (4 stars)
We fast forward to the start of World War II in 1939. Logan and Allison have been married for half a dozen years, but there's a real strain in their marriage relationship as a result of pride and selfishness from them both. Despite adding a baby girl to the family, they even end up being separated. The bulk of the novel describes Logan in France, where he serves as a spy and double agent for the Resistance, and there are some real tragedies along the way.
It's one of the more gripping storylines in the series, but it gives this book a very different feel that feels incongruous with the rural settings of Scotland and America from previous books. The Biblical message of this book is one of the strongest yet, and I really appreciated how it shows how getting married and becoming a Christian have this important parallel: they are just the beginning of a journey, and require a lifetime of service, sacrifice, and commitment, with many struggles along the way. Even a lot of Christian fiction that just tells the story of a whirlwind romance and not the daily challenges of living out love in a marriage. In that respect the content about the permanency of marriage and the need for self-sacrificial love is refreshing, compared to secular fiction and even a lot of Christian fiction.
#3 Treasure of Stonewycke (3.5 stars)
It's now the 1970s, and Logan and Allison are a middle aged couple, without children or heirs. Suddenly someone from their past reappears in their lives, someone that they thought was dead. Or could it be an imposter? The result is a touching mystery, with a satisfying resolution. Most of the story is set in Scotland, and like the previous book, it's quite a captivating story.
I would have been satisfied had this book ended about three quarters of the way through, however. The final quarter of the book featured the return of an old and evil villain (Channing) and was implausible, tacky, and preachy, and really unnecessary. The emphasis on the generational female blood line and matriarchal ancestry was also a bit over the top, especially the idea that the Stonewycke women "carry lineage of godliness in veins", and have an "internal predisposition to God" (p58). On the other hand, I appreciated the emphasis that God works through the generations and in families.
Overall
Overall I found the three books of the Stonewycke Legacy to be stronger than those of the Stonewycke Trilogy that preceded it. If there is a weakness throughout, it is that there's while the importance of a relationship with God is emphasized, the Biblical emphasis on being part of a local church is completely absent. The Bible clearly teaches that these are essential for a Christian's life of faith: being part of a body of fellow believers, receiving guidance of spiritual leaders, and hearing regular preaching from Scripture. But sadly these are entirely missing in the entire series, and the absence of "church" from the storyline is very regrettable.
That aside, the "Stonewycke Legacy" trilogy was stronger than the first trilogy both theologically and on the level of story, and I liked it quite a bit. The authors provide a helpful introduction ahead of each of the three books that explains and highlights some of the Biblical themes they are emphasizing. This is well done, and really helps appreciate the deeper level of each novel.
April 24, 2021
Wonderful story of this families life! Wonderful, deep characters!
August 20, 2025
Over all a good book. Parts of it do tend to drag out through also gets a little too preachy at times .
February 6, 2021
Excellent!
June 12, 2022
5 Stars
I adored it!
I adored it!
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November 6, 2017review coming...
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews