Tomorrow's Sun

Lost Sanctuary #1

by Becky Melby

A historic house--once part of the Underground Railroad--holds clues to Emily's future. Can she follow them, or will her faith be derailed?

Genres: Christian Fiction, Christian, Historical Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Fiction, Historical

236 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

Wisconsin resident Becky Melby is the author of more than 20 titles, including her latest, Candles in the Rain, plus the Lost Sanctuary Series, four books in the Guideposts cozy mystery series Secrets of Wayfarers Inn, and a novella in A Door County Christmas. Married for 48 years, mother of four, grandmother to sixteen, Becky thrives on writing, reading, camping, rides on the back of a silver Gold Wing, and time with family. Connect with her at www.beckymelby.com or Facebook.

Reviews

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

It took me a while to finish it, but, I enjoyed this one.

[Kav · Rating 5 out of 5]

Richly layered, Melby has mastered the art of the slow reveal. There is mystery and suspense in this contemporary novel, though I wouldn't categorize it as either. The suspense is in the characterization, the mystery is in the past and both are woven into an intricate pattern that will prompt a sit-down-and-read-in-one-sitting compulsion.

Emily is still recovering from a debilitating accident. Time and hard work slowly heal her body but her mind is an entirely different matter. For that emotional healing she needs God but she is hiding from Him. Her inner turmoil makes for a riveting read.

Jake was once an 'on-fire' Christian but time and life have faded his resolve. He's going through the motions but when he meets Emily all that changes. Their reluctant 'courtship' dance is immensely satisfying...and frustrating...to read!

Add in the rich historical detail (even though it's a contemporary) and this book makes a near-perfect read. The only way it could be better is if the author had made it longer!

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical and modern tale

I enjoy stories of Grace and second chances. Every emotion forms while reading this: laughter, fear, romance, sorrow, curiosity and hope. I loved the way she weaves historical lives and the present together in a very believable tale. The characters are well developed. My favorite quote, "Someone died on the journey. Hannah’s grief produced a thing of beauty. Emily turned her eyes to the cross. Lord, can You make something beautiful from mine?" Quilts, codes, frogs, and shackles. Little boys and "peanuhbutter" cookies. Liars, tricks,
bad guys, and forgiveness will keep you reading and wanting more.

[Anita · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uplifting story of Emily who buys an old house to flip to make money but finds the house holds amazing historical significance as part of the Underground Railroad. As Emily and her handsome contractor get to know one another, they realize they have a history too, having met when they were young. Emily is recovering from a tragic accident and her new life brings heartache from her past but may also provide a heartwarming future.

[Ellen White · Rating 4 out of 5]

An unusual story, took awhile to figure out where it was going. Emily felt broken after a skiing accident, Wanted money by flipping houses for restitution of a girl’s dream that are lost. With Jake having guardianship of two small children, and working at the old house Emily bought, finding secret rooms, old material, letters added a good mystery to this story.

[Karla Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tomorrow's Sun is an intriguing story about an old house that was a stop on the Underground Railroad. It is a split-time novel with one storyline set in the present day and the other in the pre-Civil War days of the Underground Railroad. It was interesting to see how the two stories wove together, but I enjoyed the present-day story more than the historical story. I liked reading about the process of remodeling the house and the secrets that were uncovered during the renovation. The developing romance between Emily (the no-nonsense homeowner) and Jake (the traditional-values contractor) was fun, and the drama of Jake trying to gain custody of his abused niece and nephew was compelling. Satisfying read!

[Teresa Black · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book

[Terrie Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love split-time novels, and this one does not disappoint. Becky Melby knows how to write relatable characters and keep you turning the pages.

[Angel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Captivating

The story really shows how God cam work in mysterious ways. And a little glimpse of history, great read overall.

[Sheila Pritchard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Delightful easy read. A bit predictable!

[Dee Renee Chesnut · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dual time-line

[Pam Conine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read. I liked the way the author included the story of the past with the present. The ending seemed rushed, but I enjoyed the book overall.

[Melissa Levine · Rating 3 out of 5]

The whole time shift, going from present to the 1840's was cool. I found Emily and companies story to be more interesting than Hannah's. I found myself skimming through the 1840's. Strange because the historical stories are always a big favorite of mine. Needless to say, the author did a good job bringing the two groups of people/time eras together in the end.

The jebus-y talk was eh! haha Not a religious fan here, but I wouldn't consider this story to be too bad or overbearing in that area. Either way, I'd recommend it.

Questions/Comments:

I understand Jake not being ready to be a father, but at the same time with him knowing how Ben is, how could he have left Adam and Lexi with him? Honestly, I'm not totally sure how they would have been able to stay with Ben to begin with. What, their mother dies and nothing happens? Life continues? What about insurance policies and whatnot? Or the social workers? How does Ben afford to care for them?

Anyways, Ben's not related, he never adopted them, all he did was marry their mother. You'd think they would have automatically ended up with Jake. Jake and his mom have more legal right to have the kids than Ben. What right did Ben have to even keep the kids in the beginning? What did Ben getting social security have to do with the kids? I didn't understand that. Whatever.

Mess up: "Jake would take the cat and Ben wouldn't call the social worker." Why would Ben be calling them?

When Emily and Adam are in the boat during the storm, why does she tell him to take his shoes off? They didn't end up swimming until the boat fell apart, I think...Obviously it was easier for them to swim without the shoes, but she didn't know the boat was going to have more issues before it did. Get what I'm saying here?

Adam's in the hospital...why is he wearing an oxygen mask?

Jake goes to check on Emily after the boat accident. Why did he try to get her to go to his mothers and not just stay there for the night? Wouldn't that have been common sense? Considering she was already out and injured?

Hannah goes to the same church as white people? Again, why does that not sound right?

What is wrong with Emily's lungs? That seems to have come up after the boating thing, but I feel like I'm missing something more to that story.

So we find out over half way through the book that the threat Ben used on the kids was calling social services. I don't get it though. Adam is a really smart kid. How did they ever think that they would be separated and in foster care? Why wouldn't they have talked to Jake or their grandmother?

The big reveal surrounding the 'accident'. So Emily was taking drugs...while pregnant and decided to ski too? Either way, how can she be making a big deal that she lost her baby? I mean seriously. It definitely didn't sound like she really cared about having a baby to begin with, considering what she did. Yeah, her bf left, but, oh well. Grow up.

Why would Isaiah have left his wife behind? Especially with her being pregnant? Don't tell me it's because she's a cook?

If Emily had an apt waiting for her in CA, I assume for the nanny position, then why would she be looking for houses in Missouri?

Just because Emily can't have a child....I just never understand why people always make a big deal out of situations like this? There are other children out there looking for homes/families. It's not like it's the end of the world because you can't give birth.

After hearing Jake and his lawyer talking about how Emily would be a good thing considering Jake was trying to get the kids back....Jake laughs and Emily runs off. Why exactly? How could she have thought that Jake would have taken the lawyer seriously? Come on! Is she really that stupid?

Lexi is tied to a tree with Ben's belt. Her wrist is attached, so she can still stand up if she wanted. I don't understand how she wouldn't be able to get it undone. Supposedly it's because the belt is long. Huh? Where is her other hand?

[Holly Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Broken, emotionally scarred, and determined, Emily Foster purchases a house in Michigan to atone for her past sins. Flipping the house seems like a quick way to reach her goal. The unnerving yet handsome contractor she hires seems reluctant to flip her historic house. Contractor Jake Braden has too much to deal with, including his recent goal of obtaining guardianship of his late sister's twins. When Emily and Jake uncover evidence that the house may have been a stop on the underground railroad, they attempt to uncover more clues about the house's past owners. The story of lost love in Emily's house sets the stage for what might become their own lost love.

Tomorrow's Sun, the first novel in the Lost Sanctuary series, is a riveting story that keeps the reader engaged with its mystery and in-depth characters. I literally couldn't put this book down.

Becky Melby has crafted a beautiful story that weds history and the present as she explores how the past has prepared, in some special way, to affect those in the future.

Filled with beautiful prose, witty dialogue, and a captivating story-line of danger, romance and healing, readers will come away from this story with fresh insight. Becky Melby pens a story of characters who experience transformation and change.

While this story is definitely engaging, readers might become a bit annoyed at how the author flashbacks to the past at the end of an incomplete scene that leaves one desperate to know what will happen next. It felt like an immediate jump from one plot to another. Though these scenes of the past are used to provide readers with important information that is pertinent to the scene in the present tense, I personally found it a bit jarring in the middle of an unfulfilled scene. Yes, she returned to the scene once the past was over, but it still felt like an interruption.

That said, the scenes of the past were most certainly intriguing and enjoyable, and they managed to capture the reader's imagination. I just wish the author had presented those scenes after she finished with the scene we'd been reading, instead of inserting it into the middle.

Another thing I found a bit unnerving, though it's done in a way that never leaves the reader confused, is the massive number of sub-plots and character goals involved in this story. It just seemed like far too many.

Again, the number of sub-plots never leaves the reader confused, and in fact, it's done with exquisite skill since Becky Melby blends them all together. Given the separate plot involving the past connection with the house two sub-plots would have been sufficient for this story.

I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of this story, and I loved the romance that develops between the characters! I definitely recommend Tomorrow's Sun.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

[Iola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily Foster is a woman on a mission – to renovate and profitably sell the 1840’s property she has just purchased in Rochester, Wisconsin, population 1100. She has fond memories of one summer spent in the old house, the summer nineteen years ago when she found God and had her first kiss. But Emily is not going to let sentimentality (or her own disabilities) stand in the way of her goal, but the house has mysteries hidden in a bundle of 160-year-old letters, a hidden cellar and an old quilt.

As Emily begins to renovate the house, she hires handsome handyman Jake to help, and he slowly begins to knock down her walls, both literally and figuratively. They discover a hidden cellar and suggestions that the house was once a stop on the Underground Railroad, a network of safe houses used by slaves seeking their freedom by escaping to Canada in the 1850’s. Meanwhile, Jake has problems of his own, in the form of help and interference from his 12-year-old twin nephew and niece. Their mother has died and he suspects their stepfather is threatening and mistreating them. He wants to gain custody, but can’t unless he can prove they are being abused - which they deny.

Tomorrow’s Sun is a story told in two parts, in two separate time periods. The main story is the present, the secondary story flashes back to the 1850’s, to Hannah Shaw, her secret beau Liam, and their secret lives as conductors on the Underground Railroad in a town where many people are pro-slavery, and a time when it is an offence to assist an escaped slave. Their story is almost more interesting than Emily’s, as it is told in a combination of letters found in the present, and excerpts from the past.

I enjoyed the book, but I found that Emily was a hard character to get to know, because of her unexplained resolution not to form friendships in her new home, and her determination to see it as a temporary stop on her way to achieving her goals. We see that she is a driven person; what we do not see (at least initially) is what is driving her and why. This, to me, was the main weakness in the plot, as it made it hard to relate to Emily and therefore made her difficult for me to like. It is not that she was unlikeable; it was more than she felt unknowable. For most of the book, the other characters (Jake, Adam, Hannah, Liam) were more knowable, and therefore I was more engaged in their stories. But I did like the way the author wove the theme of slavery, both physical and emotional, into the story, and the way Emily eventually rediscovered her faith in God as she thawed emotionally.

Tomorrow’s Sun is the first book in Becky Melby’s Lost Sanctuary series, with the second stand-alone book, Yesterday’s Stardust, due to be published on 1 June 2012.

Thanks to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review.

This review also appears on my blog, www.christianreads.blogspot.com.

[Abbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Emily comes to Rochester WI to flip a house she bought. She only plans to stay just long enough to get the job done and move on to her next house until she has enough money to pay a debit she really can never repay. She has no intention of making friends or getting close to anyone. She soon meets Jake who is a contractor and she hires him to do the work on the house. She soon finds herself getting to know Jake and and his family and finds it hard to not get close to them. A long the way she finds the house she has bought was once a part of the underground railroad back in the 1850’s. Will this discovery help her let go of her past that will haunt her no matter how many houses she flips?

Jake is busy worrying about his niece and nephew and how to get custody of them over their good for nothing stepdad. When he meets Emily he wonders if she needs saved from something. He soon finds himself caring for her but will her past and his family problems be to much for them to work through?

I will say I enjoyed this book but it’s a deep book with lots of things going on.

What I liked: I really liked the characters. The author did a good job telling their stories and explaining there feelings. I also felt this book had just the right amount of people telling the story. This book is brought to life by Emily, Jake, Lexi(Jakes niece) and Adam(Jakes nephew). I thought these different angles fit together very well to tell this story. The readers also get to go back in time to 1852 and learn about the underground railroad through the eyes of Hannah and Liam. There story was much shorter and was very much a side story that helped tell the main story but it was well put together and I wish we could have gotten to know them a little better. Plus the suspense at the climax of the book had me turning pages as fast as I could read!

What I did not like: There was a LOT going on in this book almost to much for me. Here are some of the things this book deals with. Trying to make right a wrong, death of a loved one, underground railroad, not being able to have children, child abuse etc. It’s all handled well and beautifully written but it’s a loaded book.

I am very glad I read this book. I really enjoyed it and loved learning about the underground railroad and how it worked. I could read a book on the subject alone! I also really liked how this book brings to light god’s forgiveness and love. I am looking forward to the next book in this series due out later this year.

http://abbiesreadingcorner.com/2012/0...

[Rhonda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tomorrows Sun by Becky Melby review
4 Stars
I have always wanted a secret room since I first read about one as a child.
Tomorrow's Sun is uplifting, historical, christian & romantic all in one book.
Emily Foster has bought a old house to fix up and flip it and go to another town and do the same thing working her way to California.
Emily bought the old house from a friend who inheirted from her grandma. When they were teens they both came and stayed with her for awhile.
Emily has been in a bad accident and she still uses a cane and in pain.
Jake Braden is one of the contracters bidding on doing the job. Jake owns his family company and lives with his mother. Jake sister died and left twins who are with their stepfather. Jake wants custody of them.
Lexie & Adam are in seventh grade. They do not like their stepfather. He is mean but likes the money he gets for them. They are smart.
The story jumps back to day of the Underground Railroad. Hannah lived in this house and loved Liam who was learning to be a blacksmith during the day and a conductor at night.
Emily & Jake find a secret room down in the cellar. Jake right off thinks it was part of the underground railroad. They also find a few letters but want to find out more.
I liked the story. It deals when some issues that they all are facing. I would read more of these books. I was given the ebook to read in exchange of honest review from Netgalley.
01/01/2012 PUB Barbour Publishing, Inc.
http://readalot-rhonda1111.blogspot.com/

[IrenesBookReviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were so many story lines going on at once in this book that it became a bit confusing at times. The main character, Emily Foster, decides to make over houses in hopes that she can make money quickly. She starts her first project and runs into some interesting dilemmas. Her contractor is one of them! Jake Braden has much on his mind when he takes on the job of helping Emily renovate an older house. He is in the process of gaining custody of his niece and nephew. The attraction between the two main characters is evident and watching them develop their relationship is a good part of this story.

There are numerous other story lines going on around the relationship of Emily and Jake. Can they work through their own issues and uncover all the history the house has to offer? The history that is woven into the story was done so with abrupt changes in the story line. Meaning you are reading a section of the story now and then the story changes to the history parts and leaves you in the middle of the main story. I found the jumping from one time period to the other a bit much. However, it was an interesting story idea and the author’s writing style is easy to read. I can not say I would read this book again but it did keep my attention long enough to finish the story!

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of this book I enjoyed reading. I gave an honest review based on my opinion of what I read.

[Paula Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved this cover but unfortunately for me , this is one of those books that I fell for the cover but not the tale inside the pages. In Tomorrow's Sun we meet Emily , who has just brought an old house in a local community with dreams of renovating and restoring it but in order to renovate it the way she wants to, she will have to completely tear it to pieces. When Emily arrives , she hires a contractor but when he hears what he wants done , he backs away with the thoughts of "How on earth can someone do something like that to this historical landmark?" . For Emily, this is just one more step on a selection of house-flipping projects she has in mind as a few years back Emily was in an accident-hence the cane we see her with that caused another girl to lose her life dreams and now Emily filled with guilt is doing everything in her power to gain the forgiveness of the girl. Though, this is a major detail about the story it is minor compared to the tale ahead as during construction Emily finds a hidden box of letters and a secret room in the house. Within the letters are one's written by a girl named Hannah who lived in this very house over a hundred years ago , soon through the letters Hannah and Emily's lives are intertwined. Is this God's way of keeping Emily in the house ?
Find out more in the first book of the Lost Sanctuary Series "Tomorrow's Sun" by Becky Melby.

[Ellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was an accident. There were parties injured including herself. Now she wants to start over by flipping houses in communities along the way on her travel across the states. First stop is a relic from the 1840s. If she can flip it quick enough with a good profit, she'll be on her way to paying her debts to another in the accident and moving on far, far away.
Enter the contractor who doesn't like flips and certainly doesn't want to ruin an historic house by changing the ambiance of the house's floor plan. But it all comes down to money. He needs money to fight for guardianship of his dead sister's tween twins.
The story goes from now to the 1840s and back again. What was hidden in the walls? What did she find in the attic? Did her friend's grandmother make the quilt? Who wrote the letters? What did they find in the basement? Who was the person whose name was carved in the bench? What was hidden on the porch? And how did all of those relate to the history of the house? How were they significant? Can the local museum director fill in some blanks?
When the other person injured in the accident arrives, how will that affect her? What will she learn about the other person and about herself?

[H · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a history teacher, and a lover of history I enjoyed the historical aspect of the story. I will admit that it took me quite awhile to get into the novel. Mostly due to the historical snippets of the home's history interwoven with the contemporary story line. They seemed very disconnected, and I was a little frustrated with that. It took me putting the book down and coming back to it a few days later and really sticking it out for a few chapters, but then the glimpses of the past tied in to the story in a really cool way.

Jake's twin niece and nephew were a perfect balance to the rest of the story and I liked Jake's character.

I was a little put off by the strength and intensity of Emily's feelings in regards to the "restitution" she feels like she needs to pay. To me, it sometimes just seemed like all she wanted to do was suffer. And that got a little hard to read. But I could see why that was needed in the story.

Would I recommend this story?
It's not one of my favorites, but I didn't hate it either. It was okay. If your stuck looking for a book this is definitely not a bad choice.

[Amber Leigh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story between two worlds. In the modern day you have a woman scared to live life, a man frustrated with the situation he is in, and 2 kids that lack the courage to take a stand. Mixed in you have the wonderful small town people.

In the world of the past, is a girl & her father who are part of the underground railroad. The girl in love with the man who helps her father in a world where they can not be together.

While the book help much potential for either story, or for both I felt it did not deliver to me it's reader. Both stories lack the details, and parts that could of make this such a wonderful read. The flipping back and forth of years was at times hard to follow. The ending I felt rushed. I did find the book had a good base, which kept me reading and not stopping, however I will not be seeking out the second book.

[Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Story Description:

Emily Foster won’t allow herself to move on until she earns enough money to make restitution for the accident that stole a young girl’s dreams. Flipping houses sounds like the fast track to her goal, but when her first project turns out to be a stop on the Underground Railroad, Emily finds herself drawn to, but at odds with, the contractor she hires. Jake Braden needs to focus on gaining guardianship of his late sister’s twins, but the story of lost love uncovered in Emily’s house sets the stage for what might become his own lost love.

My Review:

Nice story but I found it a little bit slow getting into it. However, I did fall in love with the Emily’s character and found the information regarding the Underground Railroad interesting.

[Yen-Yen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some stories throw you in the middle of a plot that leaves you struggling to put the pieces together. Melby artfully begins in the middle of two plots separated by time but held together through one house and the memories and secrets it holds. She manages to do this in a way that makes you desire to put the pieces together and discover where the stories meet without losing you. I appreciated the telling of a past story and the discovery of this old story in a present time with a woman struggling under the weight of some guilt we slowly discover. The thematic aspects of how we are reflections of history with a vested interest in the events of the past are strong and moving without sounding trite.

[Gail · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a little hard to follow as the time frame and characters switched between the present and Emily who was remodeling an old house and the past and people who lived in the house during the days of the Underground Railroad. Emily found historic information in the house along with a secret room that was used to hide slaves. She becomes very interested in the history and Hannah and Liam who were helping hide them. So in reality when reading you are going back and forth between time and characters. Emily hires a contractor to do the house who just happens to be single so there's also some romance thrown in.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Set in contemporary times, two people, both dealing with problems in their lives, meet. The main female character is dealing with some past mistakes that have majorly affected her life and a friends. Theater main male character, also her contractor, is trying to obtain custody of his dead sisters children who are in a bad situation. Together, they discover letters and a few other things that indicate her new house which she is flipping was a part of their underground railroad. Throughout their book are letters and scenes from this long ago time. It was a good book which drew me, more and more,the more I read.

[Lyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Becky Melby is a Wisconsin author too. She is relatively new and this is the first of her books that I have read. Tomorrow's Sun is well written and I see great potential in Becky's writing. This was an ambitious parallel story portraying the present and past inhabitants of a house that was a stop on the Underground Railroad. If you're a history bugg, especially Civil War, this is a book for you! I also liked the subplot about two young teens, Lexie and Adam. Plus the hero Jake was FAB!

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. It's such a heartwarming story.

It swings back and forth between the people who lived in a particular house in modern times and the people who lived there in the 1850's when the house was part of the underground railroad.

So many topics are covered including love, forgiveness (of self and others), redemption, faith, friendship, family, loyalty, trust, good vs. evil and probably a few more that I'm missing.

I just loved this book!

[Lisa Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Becky Melby novel will not be my last. Loved it. Thoroughly captivated with her skill in weaving the strands of a contemporary romance alongside the threads of an antebellum romance. Neither romance's outcome is certain. Melby take the reader along for an enjoyable and satisfying ending to both stories.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though this book took me a bit to 'get into', it ended up being a really enjoyable read. I liked the way the author used 3 'secondary' viewpoints in addition to Emily's to tell the modern day story. I also liked the snippets we got of Hannah's story as well, and how it all came together in the end.
I will definitely be reading more of this author's work!