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A New Beginning
The beginning of the Miller family starts with a story full of adventure and excitement. Join Nick, Chase, Ty, Vanessa, Ashlynn, and Summer Miller as they navigate all the new additions and adventures to their lives. This summer is bound to change them in a way they’d never imagined. As the Millers make choices and mistakes, they know that their family and friends always have their backs. Through it all, the Millers are striving to grow up into the person, God wants them to be. It's all just the beginning of this fantastic family’s story full of faith, friendship, family, and fun.
441 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 1, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
June 6, 2026
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆⋆✴︎˚𝙰 𝙽𝚎𝚠 𝙱𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚋𝚢 𝙹𝚊𝚌𝚚𝚞𝚎𝚕𝚢𝚗 𝙾𝚜𝚔𝚎𝚢 ⋆✴︎˚｡⋆⋆✴︎˚｡⋆
🍦🏒☀️✝️🐾🎆🧁
┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Now Playing:
‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹𝙹𝚘𝚢 - 𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚐 & 𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚢‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹
10+
↪ Romance: Parents lightly kiss. Talking about growing up and having a family.
↪Cursing: None!
↪Other: Dan’s father left when he was a kid. One sibling gets a cut that needs stitches.
{𝚂𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚒𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗, 𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎, 𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚋𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜. 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍𝚗’𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚙 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚊𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐.}
♡ Characters! ♡
Nick Miller 🏀: The oldest of the siblings and the DREAM older brother! He’s always looking over his siblings, and I love how he shared Bible stories! Nick is 15 and in tenth grade.He also enjoys basketball and is always playing it with his siblings.
Chase Miller 🏒: The second oldest brother and one of my favorite siblings! He’s 14 and in ninth grade. Chase enjoys hockey and is the most logical of them all.
Ty Miller 🎸: Ty is the twin of Vannessa Miller and 13 in the eighth grade! He is the super silly and crazy of the bunch and I was continually laughing over his daily antics! 😂
Even though he has a silly side he has a big heart and loves reading God’s word!
Vanessa Miller✏️: Vanessa or Nessa is the twin of Ty Miller. She is 13 and in the eighth grade. Nessa enjoys reading,writing,and singing! She is so sweet and empathetic! 💖
The book is in her pov.
Ashlynn Miller 👗: Ashlynn or Ash is the second to last sibling. She is 11 and is in sixth grade. Ash loves designing clothes and dreams of being a fashion designer in the future!
Summer Miller 🌞: Summer is the youngest of the siblings. She is four years old and such a sweetheart! She’s always so happy and bright!
Mr. and Mrs. Miller 🖱️/🥯: The parents of all the siblings and I adored them! I love how everyday they were pointing every good thing to God and every upsetting event they prayed about it and discussed it! They are so encouraging! Mrs. Miller enjoys baking and has her own baking business. Mr. Miller has his own roof repair company.
Dan and Patrick: They are the new neighbors, and I felt so bad for them when I figured out their dad had left them! 😭
Dan is such a sweet person, and I almost started crying when he came to God! Patrick is so cute! I love how he and Summer become friends!
{I closed my eyes and prayed aloud. “Dear God, thank You for providing this house for us and that we’re all here together. Thank You for the beautiful sunset and starry sky. Thank You for this warm and cozy bed. I pray that we will have a wonderful day tomorrow. In Jesus’ name, amen.}
જ⁀➴ Plot!
This story follows the Miller family. It starts off with the Miller moving into their new house in the early summer/late spring. It later follows each day full of summer fun and new friends! This is an amazing clean summer read! 😍
{How wonderful it was to have a family like ours. Thank You, Jesus!}
⁀જ➣ Thoughts!
Y’all! I can’t even describe how much this book changed me! The sweet bond between the siblings and the parents was just perfection! 👌👌👌👌
I loved how they were homeschooled! 🤚fellow homeschooler here! 🤚
{We enjoyed being homeschooled. We had more free time afterwards and more time to spend together as a family.}
How everybody encouraged each other and always had such a good attitude was perfect! 🤩
The Christian content was AMAZING! All the prayers and discussions about God really made me think of my relationship with God and how I could make my relationship better and prosper!
{We were tight-knit, not only because of our close ages, but because we were close at heart. I truly hoped that we would always remain that way.}
Dan coming to God was such a sweet time and how he always asked questions and then started going to the Millers youth was such a fun time!
The pace of the book fit it perfectly and I had such a hard time putting it down. The writing was BEAUTIFUL 😍😍!! I wish I could meet the Millers SO BAD! 😣
I could write so much more but then it would start to make no sense 😂!
Overall, I enjoyed this SO MUCH and I can’t wait until the second comes out! I will be having the whole series on my bookcase! 📚
{It was about a Savior who loved us so much that He died on a cross to save us from sin. Then He rose again the third day, defeating sin and death forever. He gave us a bright, brand new beginning.}
↬Favorite Characters!
💕Vanessa: I loved how she was always so thankful and had such a sweetheart!
💕Chase: He always just seemed so sweet and calm!
{You can’t force someone into believing or accepting Jesus. Everyone has to make that choice for themselves. It’s only the start. You never know how God can work in the next few weeks or what seed you could have planted.}
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･ Note to author! °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
I just want to say to you (Jacquelyn Oskey) that you did an absolutely BEAUTIFUL and AMAZING job!! You should be so proud of yourself! 🤩
I for one am and I know for sure God is too for finding a way to share God’s light! Here is some applause! 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
I wish there was a way I could rate your book 10 stars!
╰┈➤ Fav quotes! ⮜┈╯
(It’s hard to pick which ones because I have 99 of them! 😂😂)
{Dad prayed. “Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the school year and that all went well. Thank You for providing the means for us to homeschool our kids. I pray that You would bless this summer and that many lasting memories would be made. That You would keep us safe and healthy. I pray that we would glorify You in all we do, that we would grow closer to You and know more of You.}
{I’m so glad that summer is finally here. The best memories are made, and the most exciting adventures happen during the summer.}
{Ty raised his fist in the air. “Here’s to the best summer yet!” We echoed Ty’s cheer and knocked our fists against his fist. Yes, this was going to be the best summer we’ve had so far.}
{Becoming a Christian is each and everyone’s choice to say yes or no. God chose all of us and wants us to choose Him. But we have to make the choice to chose Him. We’re not robots. God gave us a free will. He doesn’t force us to love Him or want to serve Him. Being forced to love someone isn’t real love.}
{Life doesn’t make sense without God. I knew that I was a sinner and that I had sinned and continued to do so on a daily basis. I knew that I could never measure up. I could never be good enough or even close to perfect. But Jesus loves me so much that He died for me. Jesus knows that I never will be perfect, yet He offers me a free gift. He offers me a relationship with Him in Heaven forever.}
{But each day is a gift from God. A new beginning. A brand new start. We need to always remember that God can and will get us through any day that comes in the future. Good or bad or hard or easy. Days where it feels like you don’t have enough strength to carry on. God uses the bad or hard days to sanctify us and to make us enjoy the good and easy days all the more.}
{When you come to Jesus and repent, He gives you a brand new beginning. A fresh start. He wipes your slate clean. The beauty of having your sins washed away by the precious blood of Jesus is beyond anything you could ever imagine. So when God looks at you, He doesn’t see all that you’ve done wrong; He sees the blood of His precious Son covering you.}
{Here, we were the Miller kids; no matter what happened in our lives in the future, we would always be close. I believed that. We would always have each other and always stand up for each other. We would keep building that foundation and would withstand any storm that comes our way with God by our side. It was all just the beginning.}
🍦🏒☀️✝️🐾🎆🧁
┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Now Playing:
‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹𝙹𝚘𝚢 - 𝙵𝚘𝚛 𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚐 & 𝙲𝚘𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚛𝚢‧₊˚♪ 𝄞₊˚⊹
10+
↪ Romance: Parents lightly kiss. Talking about growing up and having a family.
↪Cursing: None!
↪Other: Dan’s father left when he was a kid. One sibling gets a cut that needs stitches.
{𝚂𝚙𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊 𝚋𝚎𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚒𝚏𝚞𝚕 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗, 𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎, 𝚕𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚋𝚎𝚐𝚒𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜. 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍𝚗’𝚝 𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚙 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚊𝚍𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚞𝚛𝚎𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚠𝚊𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚎𝚠 𝚜𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝚠𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚛𝚒𝚗𝚐.}
♡ Characters! ♡
Nick Miller 🏀: The oldest of the siblings and the DREAM older brother! He’s always looking over his siblings, and I love how he shared Bible stories! Nick is 15 and in tenth grade.He also enjoys basketball and is always playing it with his siblings.
Chase Miller 🏒: The second oldest brother and one of my favorite siblings! He’s 14 and in ninth grade. Chase enjoys hockey and is the most logical of them all.
Ty Miller 🎸: Ty is the twin of Vannessa Miller and 13 in the eighth grade! He is the super silly and crazy of the bunch and I was continually laughing over his daily antics! 😂
Even though he has a silly side he has a big heart and loves reading God’s word!
Vanessa Miller✏️: Vanessa or Nessa is the twin of Ty Miller. She is 13 and in the eighth grade. Nessa enjoys reading,writing,and singing! She is so sweet and empathetic! 💖
The book is in her pov.
Ashlynn Miller 👗: Ashlynn or Ash is the second to last sibling. She is 11 and is in sixth grade. Ash loves designing clothes and dreams of being a fashion designer in the future!
Summer Miller 🌞: Summer is the youngest of the siblings. She is four years old and such a sweetheart! She’s always so happy and bright!
Mr. and Mrs. Miller 🖱️/🥯: The parents of all the siblings and I adored them! I love how everyday they were pointing every good thing to God and every upsetting event they prayed about it and discussed it! They are so encouraging! Mrs. Miller enjoys baking and has her own baking business. Mr. Miller has his own roof repair company.
Dan and Patrick: They are the new neighbors, and I felt so bad for them when I figured out their dad had left them! 😭
Dan is such a sweet person, and I almost started crying when he came to God! Patrick is so cute! I love how he and Summer become friends!
{I closed my eyes and prayed aloud. “Dear God, thank You for providing this house for us and that we’re all here together. Thank You for the beautiful sunset and starry sky. Thank You for this warm and cozy bed. I pray that we will have a wonderful day tomorrow. In Jesus’ name, amen.}
જ⁀➴ Plot!
This story follows the Miller family. It starts off with the Miller moving into their new house in the early summer/late spring. It later follows each day full of summer fun and new friends! This is an amazing clean summer read! 😍
{How wonderful it was to have a family like ours. Thank You, Jesus!}
⁀જ➣ Thoughts!
Y’all! I can’t even describe how much this book changed me! The sweet bond between the siblings and the parents was just perfection! 👌👌👌👌
I loved how they were homeschooled! 🤚fellow homeschooler here! 🤚
{We enjoyed being homeschooled. We had more free time afterwards and more time to spend together as a family.}
How everybody encouraged each other and always had such a good attitude was perfect! 🤩
The Christian content was AMAZING! All the prayers and discussions about God really made me think of my relationship with God and how I could make my relationship better and prosper!
{We were tight-knit, not only because of our close ages, but because we were close at heart. I truly hoped that we would always remain that way.}
Dan coming to God was such a sweet time and how he always asked questions and then started going to the Millers youth was such a fun time!
The pace of the book fit it perfectly and I had such a hard time putting it down. The writing was BEAUTIFUL 😍😍!! I wish I could meet the Millers SO BAD! 😣
I could write so much more but then it would start to make no sense 😂!
Overall, I enjoyed this SO MUCH and I can’t wait until the second comes out! I will be having the whole series on my bookcase! 📚
{It was about a Savior who loved us so much that He died on a cross to save us from sin. Then He rose again the third day, defeating sin and death forever. He gave us a bright, brand new beginning.}
↬Favorite Characters!
💕Vanessa: I loved how she was always so thankful and had such a sweetheart!
💕Chase: He always just seemed so sweet and calm!
{You can’t force someone into believing or accepting Jesus. Everyone has to make that choice for themselves. It’s only the start. You never know how God can work in the next few weeks or what seed you could have planted.}
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･ Note to author! °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
I just want to say to you (Jacquelyn Oskey) that you did an absolutely BEAUTIFUL and AMAZING job!! You should be so proud of yourself! 🤩
I for one am and I know for sure God is too for finding a way to share God’s light! Here is some applause! 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏
I wish there was a way I could rate your book 10 stars!
╰┈➤ Fav quotes! ⮜┈╯
(It’s hard to pick which ones because I have 99 of them! 😂😂)
{Dad prayed. “Dear Heavenly Father, thank You for the school year and that all went well. Thank You for providing the means for us to homeschool our kids. I pray that You would bless this summer and that many lasting memories would be made. That You would keep us safe and healthy. I pray that we would glorify You in all we do, that we would grow closer to You and know more of You.}
{I’m so glad that summer is finally here. The best memories are made, and the most exciting adventures happen during the summer.}
{Ty raised his fist in the air. “Here’s to the best summer yet!” We echoed Ty’s cheer and knocked our fists against his fist. Yes, this was going to be the best summer we’ve had so far.}
{Becoming a Christian is each and everyone’s choice to say yes or no. God chose all of us and wants us to choose Him. But we have to make the choice to chose Him. We’re not robots. God gave us a free will. He doesn’t force us to love Him or want to serve Him. Being forced to love someone isn’t real love.}
{Life doesn’t make sense without God. I knew that I was a sinner and that I had sinned and continued to do so on a daily basis. I knew that I could never measure up. I could never be good enough or even close to perfect. But Jesus loves me so much that He died for me. Jesus knows that I never will be perfect, yet He offers me a free gift. He offers me a relationship with Him in Heaven forever.}
{But each day is a gift from God. A new beginning. A brand new start. We need to always remember that God can and will get us through any day that comes in the future. Good or bad or hard or easy. Days where it feels like you don’t have enough strength to carry on. God uses the bad or hard days to sanctify us and to make us enjoy the good and easy days all the more.}
{When you come to Jesus and repent, He gives you a brand new beginning. A fresh start. He wipes your slate clean. The beauty of having your sins washed away by the precious blood of Jesus is beyond anything you could ever imagine. So when God looks at you, He doesn’t see all that you’ve done wrong; He sees the blood of His precious Son covering you.}
{Here, we were the Miller kids; no matter what happened in our lives in the future, we would always be close. I believed that. We would always have each other and always stand up for each other. We would keep building that foundation and would withstand any storm that comes our way with God by our side. It was all just the beginning.}
May 10, 2026
Thank you so much to Jacquelyn for allowing me to arc read her amazing book!
Going in to this book, I didn’t know what to expect to be honest. I knew there would be faith content, siblings, and lots of fun. But this book exceeded anything I ever could have imagined!!
Nick🏀: I loved him so much! He was such a good protective older brother! I love how he made sure that his siblings knew that he was always there for them and how he was always up for something fun! He knew what he believed and was shared the gospel so well! I love how he would tell his siblings Bible stories.
Chase🏒: He was a good steady brother, the chill one who is a dependable voice of reason. I loved how he saw hockey as a way to share the gospel. I saw a lot of myself in him. Tho definitely not the waking up early to run, that’s a HARD no.
Ty🎸: He reminds me of my brother! The crazy wild child who’s always up to mischief. What I loved the most about him was how he made everyone laugh by being himself, but was also serious and mature. He knew when to be serious and have genuine conversations.
Vanessa🎶: So everything was in her pov and it was perfect! She was so sweet and had such a genuinely kind heart. She cared about her family and loved them so much. I love how she would be there for her siblings, always the first to give hugs and say “I love you”. She made my heart happy.
Ashlynn👗: She was spunky, I liked how she knew what she wanted in her future and was willing to work for it. She was encouraging and sweet and just a wonder little sister!
Summer☀️: This girl! She was so happy and sweet! I loved her! She really was the sunshine of the family and was so innocent.
Mr and Mrs Miller💕: These parents were amazing! I love how they made Jesus such a focus in all their lives and had such a genuine love for Jesus and their children. They did so many fun things and lived full lives. All the cupcakes sounded amazing and I don’t like cake so you know the descriptions were tantalizing🤤.
Dan and Pj 💔: My heart broke for these poor kids, they deserve so much better! But the ending! Hallelujah!! Dan’s whole story was so amazing and encouraging. That whole part of the story was so powerful and nearly made me cry. I loved them so much!
✝️The faith content in this was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You know it’s good when you open the book to Bible verses at the beginning. But these kids LIVED their faith, they didn’t just know facts from the Bible, they loved Jesus and acted like it. I loved all the prayers and the full gospel story! They would pray often and it’s so inspiring because prayer is powerful and I loved that reminder. There’s so much more I want to say about this, but all I’ll say is, you can see God working miracles in this book and changing lives.
There were so many funny parts! I have so many new things to do for Aprils Fools next year! 🧅And so many games I’ll be playing with my siblings this summer. This household was so full of laughter and just pure happiness!
Homeschoolers! 👏🏻Yes! 👏🏻I’m a homeschooler and I love reading about homeschoolers who actually like it! They prove you can have full lives and be homeschooled at the same time. It made me so happy and was so encouraging!
All in all, this book is absolutely amazing! Hilarious, fun and filled with such strong faith content that it will make your heart happy. ❤️ I loved the Miller family so much! They are the type of family I want, Christ centered and filled with laughter. I NEED the next book right now! I highly recommend this book! It’s perfect for families, young and old. I’m going to make all my siblings read this book and all my friends as well. Please release the next book soon!!!
Again, thank you Jacquelyn for allowing me to read this! It was absolutely amazing and so soon as it’s published, I’m getting multiple copies to give to everyone I know!😊
Going in to this book, I didn’t know what to expect to be honest. I knew there would be faith content, siblings, and lots of fun. But this book exceeded anything I ever could have imagined!!
Nick🏀: I loved him so much! He was such a good protective older brother! I love how he made sure that his siblings knew that he was always there for them and how he was always up for something fun! He knew what he believed and was shared the gospel so well! I love how he would tell his siblings Bible stories.
Chase🏒: He was a good steady brother, the chill one who is a dependable voice of reason. I loved how he saw hockey as a way to share the gospel. I saw a lot of myself in him. Tho definitely not the waking up early to run, that’s a HARD no.
Ty🎸: He reminds me of my brother! The crazy wild child who’s always up to mischief. What I loved the most about him was how he made everyone laugh by being himself, but was also serious and mature. He knew when to be serious and have genuine conversations.
Vanessa🎶: So everything was in her pov and it was perfect! She was so sweet and had such a genuinely kind heart. She cared about her family and loved them so much. I love how she would be there for her siblings, always the first to give hugs and say “I love you”. She made my heart happy.
Ashlynn👗: She was spunky, I liked how she knew what she wanted in her future and was willing to work for it. She was encouraging and sweet and just a wonder little sister!
Summer☀️: This girl! She was so happy and sweet! I loved her! She really was the sunshine of the family and was so innocent.
Mr and Mrs Miller💕: These parents were amazing! I love how they made Jesus such a focus in all their lives and had such a genuine love for Jesus and their children. They did so many fun things and lived full lives. All the cupcakes sounded amazing and I don’t like cake so you know the descriptions were tantalizing🤤.
Dan and Pj 💔: My heart broke for these poor kids, they deserve so much better! But the ending! Hallelujah!! Dan’s whole story was so amazing and encouraging. That whole part of the story was so powerful and nearly made me cry. I loved them so much!
✝️The faith content in this was AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You know it’s good when you open the book to Bible verses at the beginning. But these kids LIVED their faith, they didn’t just know facts from the Bible, they loved Jesus and acted like it. I loved all the prayers and the full gospel story! They would pray often and it’s so inspiring because prayer is powerful and I loved that reminder. There’s so much more I want to say about this, but all I’ll say is, you can see God working miracles in this book and changing lives.
There were so many funny parts! I have so many new things to do for Aprils Fools next year! 🧅And so many games I’ll be playing with my siblings this summer. This household was so full of laughter and just pure happiness!
Homeschoolers! 👏🏻Yes! 👏🏻I’m a homeschooler and I love reading about homeschoolers who actually like it! They prove you can have full lives and be homeschooled at the same time. It made me so happy and was so encouraging!
All in all, this book is absolutely amazing! Hilarious, fun and filled with such strong faith content that it will make your heart happy. ❤️ I loved the Miller family so much! They are the type of family I want, Christ centered and filled with laughter. I NEED the next book right now! I highly recommend this book! It’s perfect for families, young and old. I’m going to make all my siblings read this book and all my friends as well. Please release the next book soon!!!
Again, thank you Jacquelyn for allowing me to read this! It was absolutely amazing and so soon as it’s published, I’m getting multiple copies to give to everyone I know!😊
May 27, 2026
═══════ ∘◦ ✧ ◦∘ ═══════
This review contains a few random statistics, my personal thoughts, and a content review! ♡
═══════ ∘◦ ✧ ◦∘ ═══════
• Book - A New Beginning
• Author - Jacquelyn Oskey
• Pages - Kindle, 381
• Genre(s) - Middle grade contemporary, Christian fiction
• Published - 2026
• Recommended time to read - Summer
• Cliffhanger - No
• Vibe - ✝️🏡☀️🚗🙏🏻
⇢─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───⇠
→ Setting - 3/5
→ Characters - 3/5
→ Writing - 3/5
→ Cover - 3/5
→ Vibes - 3/5
→ Plot - 3/5
→ Pacing - 3/5
→ Overall - ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
⇢─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───⇠
Recommended to fans of-
✔︎ Christian fiction
✔︎ Salvation stories
✔︎ Family relationships
✔︎ Siblings bonds
♫ Now Playing - Garden in Manhattan by Josiah Queen ♫
═════════════════
╰┈➤ My thoughts (spoiler free)
♫ ”I’ll be a garden in Manhattan, be a river where it’s dry.” ♫
Thank you so much Jacquelyn for giving me the ARC! I’m honored that you chose me to read and review your book, and I’m very proud of you for sticking it out and publishing.
All in all, this is a good book. I think it just wasn’t for me. I’m sure a lot of people will love it, so I don’t want to put a damper on it with this review. If you want a fun, faith-filled summer story about siblings and family, you’ll love this!
We follow the six Miller kids, and their neighbors Dan and Patrick, as they navigate the summer adventures and the love of God. Lovely themes of salvation and peace, perfect for middle grade readers!
═════════════════
╰┈➤ Characters
♫ ”My friends can’t find the road? I’ll be a roadside welcome sign.” ♫
Nick - Classic older brother. He was protective and fun, happily taking on the responsibilities of looking after his younger siblings.
Nessa - Our main character! She has a big, empathetic heart, and loves tagging along with her siblings on their backyard adventures.
Dan - The non-Christian neighbor who starts his journey with Christ. He was probably my favorite!
Patrick and Summer - The cute little kids who bring child-like faith and joy to the scene!
═════════════════
╰┈➤ Spoilers below!
♫ ”Sunshine in Seattle, be a cool breeze in July, light in the darkness.” ♫
Am I the only who sees some potential for Nessa and Dan to be together when they’re older? I’m not sure if Jacquelyn is aiming for that, or a more brother/sister like relationship, but I think they’d be cute together!
I was very happy when Dan accepted Christ, and it brought some tears to my eyes!
═════════════════
╰┈➤ Content review
♫ ”A flower in the concrete, if that’s where You want me.” ♫
➸ Age Rating - 9/10+
➸ Language - None.
➸ Romance/Sexual - The kids see their parents kiss and they talk about wanting to get married and have kids one day.
➸ Violence - Some minor injuries, the worst being when Chase has an accident during hockey practice and has to get stitches on his forehead.
➸ Religious/Spiritual - Practically every page God is mentioned. Prayer, going to church and youth group, evangelism, salvation, basically everything related to Christianity is present.
➸ Magic - None.
➸ LGBTQ - None.
➸ Alcohol/Drugs - None.
➸ Other Notes/Possible Triggers - The Miller’s have a neighbor who’s dad isn’t in his life, and he talks about it sometimes.
This review contains a few random statistics, my personal thoughts, and a content review! ♡
═══════ ∘◦ ✧ ◦∘ ═══════
• Book - A New Beginning
• Author - Jacquelyn Oskey
• Pages - Kindle, 381
• Genre(s) - Middle grade contemporary, Christian fiction
• Published - 2026
• Recommended time to read - Summer
• Cliffhanger - No
• Vibe - ✝️🏡☀️🚗🙏🏻
⇢─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───⇠
→ Setting - 3/5
→ Characters - 3/5
→ Writing - 3/5
→ Cover - 3/5
→ Vibes - 3/5
→ Plot - 3/5
→ Pacing - 3/5
→ Overall - ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆
⇢─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───⇠
Recommended to fans of-
✔︎ Christian fiction
✔︎ Salvation stories
✔︎ Family relationships
✔︎ Siblings bonds
♫ Now Playing - Garden in Manhattan by Josiah Queen ♫
═════════════════
╰┈➤ My thoughts (spoiler free)
♫ ”I’ll be a garden in Manhattan, be a river where it’s dry.” ♫
Thank you so much Jacquelyn for giving me the ARC! I’m honored that you chose me to read and review your book, and I’m very proud of you for sticking it out and publishing.
All in all, this is a good book. I think it just wasn’t for me. I’m sure a lot of people will love it, so I don’t want to put a damper on it with this review. If you want a fun, faith-filled summer story about siblings and family, you’ll love this!
We follow the six Miller kids, and their neighbors Dan and Patrick, as they navigate the summer adventures and the love of God. Lovely themes of salvation and peace, perfect for middle grade readers!
═════════════════
╰┈➤ Characters
♫ ”My friends can’t find the road? I’ll be a roadside welcome sign.” ♫
Nick - Classic older brother. He was protective and fun, happily taking on the responsibilities of looking after his younger siblings.
Nessa - Our main character! She has a big, empathetic heart, and loves tagging along with her siblings on their backyard adventures.
Dan - The non-Christian neighbor who starts his journey with Christ. He was probably my favorite!
Patrick and Summer - The cute little kids who bring child-like faith and joy to the scene!
═════════════════
╰┈➤ Spoilers below!
♫ ”Sunshine in Seattle, be a cool breeze in July, light in the darkness.” ♫
Am I the only who sees some potential for Nessa and Dan to be together when they’re older? I’m not sure if Jacquelyn is aiming for that, or a more brother/sister like relationship, but I think they’d be cute together!
I was very happy when Dan accepted Christ, and it brought some tears to my eyes!
═════════════════
╰┈➤ Content review
♫ ”A flower in the concrete, if that’s where You want me.” ♫
➸ Age Rating - 9/10+
➸ Language - None.
➸ Romance/Sexual - The kids see their parents kiss and they talk about wanting to get married and have kids one day.
➸ Violence - Some minor injuries, the worst being when Chase has an accident during hockey practice and has to get stitches on his forehead.
➸ Religious/Spiritual - Practically every page God is mentioned. Prayer, going to church and youth group, evangelism, salvation, basically everything related to Christianity is present.
➸ Magic - None.
➸ LGBTQ - None.
➸ Alcohol/Drugs - None.
➸ Other Notes/Possible Triggers - The Miller’s have a neighbor who’s dad isn’t in his life, and he talks about it sometimes.
July 9, 2026
4.5⭐️
ᴺᵒʷ ᴾˡᵃʸⁱⁿᵍ⠃
“So So Good” by Phil Wickham
0:00- - - - - -|- - - -0:00
↻ ◁||▷ ↺
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚, 𝑰 𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒚
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒑𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･𝓜𝔂 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼: °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
I’m going to be completely honest with y’all for a second. I didn’t really think I would like this book. I planned on giving it 4 stars, because I want to help a teen author. But I didn’t think I would want to read any of the others when they come out, I didn’t think I would relate in any way. And honestly, I think I had the mindset of: “Well, I’m already a Christian. I don’t need this.” Let me tell you, that was 100% the Devil lying to me. This book was such an encouragement to me. And I am so grateful I decided to give it a try. Because that was terrible mindset for me to have. Wether you are a Christian or not, I deeply encourage you to read this.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼: °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
🏀 𝑵𝒊𝒄𝒌: He was such an awesome older brother to all his siblings. You could tell he cared so much about them, and he was definitely a great influence on them.
🏒 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒆: The fact that he played hockey actually made me so happy. Hockey is literally the only sport I care to watch. It’s also the only sport I know anything about. GO VGK! But anyway, I loved his character. I’m pretty sure we would get along well, he’s definitely the more practical of his siblings, and more organized like me. :)
🥁 𝑻𝒚: Oh boy, if I am like Chase, Ty is the rest of me. He is so fun, and definitely made me laugh out loud many times. And half the things he said I find myself saying on a daily basis. Not sure if that’s a good thing or not, but oh well. XD
📚 𝑽𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒂: Vanessa is the POV we follow in this book. And I am so glad we got her POV! She was a great FMC, and it’s rare for me to find one that doesn’t drive me up a wall. I love that she loves reading and music, I love reading. (Could you tell?) And I love singing. (Like something is dying, but hey, whatever) Overall she was a great character, and sister to all her siblings.
🎀 𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒍𝒚𝒏𝒏: I liked Ashlynn so much as well. She reminded me so much of one of my friend’s little sisters lol.
☀️ 𝑺𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒓: She was so cute! I really liked her relationship with Patrick, I thought they were adorable. And if this series is going to be pretty long..... childhood friends to lovers????????
🥅 𝑫𝒂𝒏: Wow, ok, he was the reason I cried TWICE! Thanks a lot, Dan. No, but actually, his story broke my heart in so many ways. And I am so so SO glad he came to know Christ. I cannot wait to see how he grows and gets closer to God.
🦖 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌: Awwwwww, my little guy is so adorable. I hope that when he gets older he will be saved just like his big brother.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑭𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑, 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒆
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝒃𝒚 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝓢𝓹𝓮𝓬𝓲𝓪𝓵 𝓝𝓸𝓽𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓾𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓻:
Of all the books I’ve read, this is definitely the only one I think has a chance of the author actually reading it lol. So, I wanted to write a little note of encouragement for you Jacquelyn :)
Dear Jacquelyn,
Thank you so much for writing this. God has truly blessed you with the gift of writing, and I pray you will never lose it. Please continue to write these amazing stories, I will definitely be recommending them to both my Christian friends, and my non Christian friends.
Lots of Love,
Katniss
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･𝓞𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵: °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
This book was amazing, like I’ve said, I will be recommending this to everyone I know. And I hope many many many more people will read this. And maybe even come to know God through these. I CANNOT wait for the next one!
Bye for now!
~Katniss
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
✨ Pre-Read ✨
I just ordered this! I’m so excited, I literally just moved, and it’s called “A New Beginning” with Christian content. YES. PLEASE.
ᴺᵒʷ ᴾˡᵃʸⁱⁿᵍ⠃
“So So Good” by Phil Wickham
0:00- - - - - -|- - - -0:00
↻ ◁||▷ ↺
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔 𝒎𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚, 𝑰 𝒕𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒇𝒚
𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒑𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒐𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒆
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･𝓜𝔂 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼: °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
I’m going to be completely honest with y’all for a second. I didn’t really think I would like this book. I planned on giving it 4 stars, because I want to help a teen author. But I didn’t think I would want to read any of the others when they come out, I didn’t think I would relate in any way. And honestly, I think I had the mindset of: “Well, I’m already a Christian. I don’t need this.” Let me tell you, that was 100% the Devil lying to me. This book was such an encouragement to me. And I am so grateful I decided to give it a try. Because that was terrible mindset for me to have. Wether you are a Christian or not, I deeply encourage you to read this.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼: °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
🏀 𝑵𝒊𝒄𝒌: He was such an awesome older brother to all his siblings. You could tell he cared so much about them, and he was definitely a great influence on them.
🏒 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒔𝒆: The fact that he played hockey actually made me so happy. Hockey is literally the only sport I care to watch. It’s also the only sport I know anything about. GO VGK! But anyway, I loved his character. I’m pretty sure we would get along well, he’s definitely the more practical of his siblings, and more organized like me. :)
🥁 𝑻𝒚: Oh boy, if I am like Chase, Ty is the rest of me. He is so fun, and definitely made me laugh out loud many times. And half the things he said I find myself saying on a daily basis. Not sure if that’s a good thing or not, but oh well. XD
📚 𝑽𝒂𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒂: Vanessa is the POV we follow in this book. And I am so glad we got her POV! She was a great FMC, and it’s rare for me to find one that doesn’t drive me up a wall. I love that she loves reading and music, I love reading. (Could you tell?) And I love singing. (Like something is dying, but hey, whatever) Overall she was a great character, and sister to all her siblings.
🎀 𝑨𝒔𝒉𝒍𝒚𝒏𝒏: I liked Ashlynn so much as well. She reminded me so much of one of my friend’s little sisters lol.
☀️ 𝑺𝒖𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒓: She was so cute! I really liked her relationship with Patrick, I thought they were adorable. And if this series is going to be pretty long..... childhood friends to lovers????????
🥅 𝑫𝒂𝒏: Wow, ok, he was the reason I cried TWICE! Thanks a lot, Dan. No, but actually, his story broke my heart in so many ways. And I am so so SO glad he came to know Christ. I cannot wait to see how he grows and gets closer to God.
🦖 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒌: Awwwwww, my little guy is so adorable. I hope that when he gets older he will be saved just like his big brother.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑭𝒆𝒂𝒓 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒘𝒐𝒓𝒔𝒉𝒊𝒑, 𝒕𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒔𝒆
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒌𝒆𝒏 𝒃𝒚 𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒆
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝓢𝓹𝓮𝓬𝓲𝓪𝓵 𝓝𝓸𝓽𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓾𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓻:
Of all the books I’ve read, this is definitely the only one I think has a chance of the author actually reading it lol. So, I wanted to write a little note of encouragement for you Jacquelyn :)
Dear Jacquelyn,
Thank you so much for writing this. God has truly blessed you with the gift of writing, and I pray you will never lose it. Please continue to write these amazing stories, I will definitely be recommending them to both my Christian friends, and my non Christian friends.
Lots of Love,
Katniss
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑰 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒀𝒐𝒖'𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~⋆⋅𖤓⋅⋆~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･𝓞𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵: °❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･
This book was amazing, like I’ve said, I will be recommending this to everyone I know. And I hope many many many more people will read this. And maybe even come to know God through these. I CANNOT wait for the next one!
Bye for now!
~Katniss
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
✨ Pre-Read ✨
I just ordered this! I’m so excited, I literally just moved, and it’s called “A New Beginning” with Christian content. YES. PLEASE.
Review of advance copy received from Author
══════════🌻🐾🎈🎂 ══════════
𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣. A New Beginning by Jacquelyn Oskey 𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣
Rating: 4.5 ★★★★★
・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
First of all, thanks so much Jacquelyn for allowing me to be an arc reader for your awesome book! I praise the Lord for this Christ-centered family story!! I know it will touch many hearts and souls as it has touched mine. 💗
This book was so sweet and wholesome! I absolutely love books with big families and I haven't gotten to read one in a while, simply because there aren't that many. I loved getting to know the Miller family and all of the individual personalities each member of the family had. I found myself admiring Nick and Chase, for their loving and caring natures and wanting to be more like them.
This book just drips with Gospel truth and I loved that! The faith content didn't feel forced, Jacquelyn shines Jesus' light wonderfully in this book!!
Another thing I liked about this book was the fact that while the story flows all together nicely, each chapter kind of got to be its own story! All of the adventures the Millers had were so fun to read about, and I love that they weren't unrealistic, it made the story very relatable. My heart completely broke for Dan and his family. That one scene where everyone is sitting outside listening to Dan's story nearly broke my heart! The emotions Dan feels are written into the story so well that I could feel his pain through the book. I love how the Millers were able to be Dan's friends and were able to guide him to the light. I love how they were faithfully praying for Dan, knowing that God would bring everything about in His perfect timing.
While I was reading this book, I found myself admiring the Miller family so much. I love how they're constantly praying. I love how they do everything for God's glory. I love how the siblings help and love one another and how the parents teach and raise their children! Honestly I found so much inspiration from this book for raising my own kids one day! I was also inspired by Nick and Chase. I want to be the kind of older sibling they both are, always being willing to sacrifice time to support and love my younger siblings. I also loved how the theme of the book, (gaining a new beginning through Christ) was painted throughout the whole story. It really drew me back again and again to the Gospel, which I loved so much! I can't wait to read other books about the Millers so I can dive into their lives again! Thanks again Jacquelyn, for letting me be an arc reader!
Content:
This is completely clean! I believe a kid does get cut once from an injury and has to have stitches (for those that may be sensitive to that type of thing). Dan's father left him and his family which causes a lot of pain and could be hard to read about for those that have also lost parents.
Overall this book is very clean and wholesome for any reader. I think readers of all ages would enjoy diving into this book and reading about the adventures of the Miller family!!
𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣. A New Beginning by Jacquelyn Oskey 𖡼.𖤣𖥧𖡼.𖤣
Rating: 4.5 ★★★★★
・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・
First of all, thanks so much Jacquelyn for allowing me to be an arc reader for your awesome book! I praise the Lord for this Christ-centered family story!! I know it will touch many hearts and souls as it has touched mine. 💗
This book was so sweet and wholesome! I absolutely love books with big families and I haven't gotten to read one in a while, simply because there aren't that many. I loved getting to know the Miller family and all of the individual personalities each member of the family had. I found myself admiring Nick and Chase, for their loving and caring natures and wanting to be more like them.
This book just drips with Gospel truth and I loved that! The faith content didn't feel forced, Jacquelyn shines Jesus' light wonderfully in this book!!
Another thing I liked about this book was the fact that while the story flows all together nicely, each chapter kind of got to be its own story! All of the adventures the Millers had were so fun to read about, and I love that they weren't unrealistic, it made the story very relatable. My heart completely broke for Dan and his family. That one scene where everyone is sitting outside listening to Dan's story nearly broke my heart! The emotions Dan feels are written into the story so well that I could feel his pain through the book. I love how the Millers were able to be Dan's friends and were able to guide him to the light. I love how they were faithfully praying for Dan, knowing that God would bring everything about in His perfect timing.
While I was reading this book, I found myself admiring the Miller family so much. I love how they're constantly praying. I love how they do everything for God's glory. I love how the siblings help and love one another and how the parents teach and raise their children! Honestly I found so much inspiration from this book for raising my own kids one day! I was also inspired by Nick and Chase. I want to be the kind of older sibling they both are, always being willing to sacrifice time to support and love my younger siblings. I also loved how the theme of the book, (gaining a new beginning through Christ) was painted throughout the whole story. It really drew me back again and again to the Gospel, which I loved so much! I can't wait to read other books about the Millers so I can dive into their lives again! Thanks again Jacquelyn, for letting me be an arc reader!
Content:
This is completely clean! I believe a kid does get cut once from an injury and has to have stitches (for those that may be sensitive to that type of thing). Dan's father left him and his family which causes a lot of pain and could be hard to read about for those that have also lost parents.
Overall this book is very clean and wholesome for any reader. I think readers of all ages would enjoy diving into this book and reading about the adventures of the Miller family!!
June 24, 2026
~𝓐 𝓝𝓮𝔀 𝓑𝓮𝓰𝓲𝓷𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓜𝓲𝓷𝓲 𝓡𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀~
✅Spoiler Free!✅
───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───
♫ Song Pick: "I'm So Blessed" by CAIN.
───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───
➥ My Thoughts: I love finding indie Christian novels to dive into (in my experience, they're often better than mainstream Christian fiction), so when I found out about A New Beginning I knew I had to read it! And oh my goodness, I'm so impressed! Sometimes you just need a joyful, fun read after a long day, and this delivered. 𝘈 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘉𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 reminded me of a Christian take on 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘴 and Beverly Cleary books, and I absolutely loved the homeschool representation (as a homeschooler, I thought it was spot-on). It was so wonderful to read a book where Christian teens live out their faith and share it with others, like what the Millers did with Dan! I can't wait to see what adventures, troubles, ana triumphs Jacquelyn is going to write for them in the future!
───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───
★ Final Rating: 5/5 stars!
✅Spoiler Free!✅
───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───
♫ Song Pick: "I'm So Blessed" by CAIN.
───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───
➥ My Thoughts: I love finding indie Christian novels to dive into (in my experience, they're often better than mainstream Christian fiction), so when I found out about A New Beginning I knew I had to read it! And oh my goodness, I'm so impressed! Sometimes you just need a joyful, fun read after a long day, and this delivered. 𝘈 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘉𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 reminded me of a Christian take on 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘸𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘴 and Beverly Cleary books, and I absolutely loved the homeschool representation (as a homeschooler, I thought it was spot-on). It was so wonderful to read a book where Christian teens live out their faith and share it with others, like what the Millers did with Dan! I can't wait to see what adventures, troubles, ana triumphs Jacquelyn is going to write for them in the future!
───✱*.｡:｡✱*.:｡✧*.｡✰*.:｡✧*.｡:｡*.｡✱ ───
★ Final Rating: 5/5 stars!
May 19, 2026
I just wanted to take a moment to express my heartfelt gratitude to Jacquelyn for the wonderful opportunity to dive into her book and share my thoughts with you all! 😊 It’s important to mention that everything I’m about to share is based on my genuine opinions and reflections. I genuinely wish Jacquelyn all the success and happiness in the world with her writing journey.
Now, let’s talk about the genre of this delightful book. It’s a beautiful piece of Contemporary Christian Fiction that truly resonated with me. The story is filled with faith, love, and family, and I found myself completely captivated by all the characters. Each one brought something unique to the table, making the reading experience all the more enriching. This book is a solid read that not only entertained me but also prompted me to reflect on my own faith at various points throughout the story.
The pacing of the book is quite refreshing. It’s easy to follow and moves along at a brisk pace, which means a lot happens in a relatively short period of time. This keeps the reader engaged and eager to see what happens next.
So, let’s dive into the summary of the book. We are introduced to the Miller family, a lively group of eight consisting of Mrs. and Mr. Miller and their six wonderful children: Nick, Vanessa, Ty, Chase, Ashlynn, and Summer. The story follows them as they embark on a new chapter in their lives, settling into their new home and gradually returning to their everyday routines. It’s a heartwarming journey that captures the essence of family life and the challenges they face together.
Now, onto my personal thoughts and reflections. Initially, I found myself in a bit of a dilemma when it came to rating this book. I was torn between giving it 3.5 stars or 4 stars. After much contemplation, I decided to settle on a 3.5-star rating. While I thoroughly enjoyed the faith discussions and the scripture references that were woven throughout the narrative, as well as the heartwarming moments of family bonding, I felt that the story could have been even more impactful with a more substantial redemption arc.
I truly appreciated the unwavering faith and the strong foundation that the Millers, including their children, embodied. However, I did find their portrayal of faith to be somewhat too perfect. In my opinion, it would have been even more compelling to explore their journey to faith and delve into their inherent flaws and challenges. This would have added depth to their characters and made their story even more relatable and inspiring.
Note: perfect for teenagers & young adults
Please don’t take this as a critique or a negative review. I genuinely enjoyed reading this book and found it to be a delightful experience. These are just my personal thoughts and reflections, and I hope they provide some insight into what I loved about the story. Thank you once again to Jacquelyn for sharing her beautiful work with the world!
Now, let’s talk about the genre of this delightful book. It’s a beautiful piece of Contemporary Christian Fiction that truly resonated with me. The story is filled with faith, love, and family, and I found myself completely captivated by all the characters. Each one brought something unique to the table, making the reading experience all the more enriching. This book is a solid read that not only entertained me but also prompted me to reflect on my own faith at various points throughout the story.
The pacing of the book is quite refreshing. It’s easy to follow and moves along at a brisk pace, which means a lot happens in a relatively short period of time. This keeps the reader engaged and eager to see what happens next.
So, let’s dive into the summary of the book. We are introduced to the Miller family, a lively group of eight consisting of Mrs. and Mr. Miller and their six wonderful children: Nick, Vanessa, Ty, Chase, Ashlynn, and Summer. The story follows them as they embark on a new chapter in their lives, settling into their new home and gradually returning to their everyday routines. It’s a heartwarming journey that captures the essence of family life and the challenges they face together.
Now, onto my personal thoughts and reflections. Initially, I found myself in a bit of a dilemma when it came to rating this book. I was torn between giving it 3.5 stars or 4 stars. After much contemplation, I decided to settle on a 3.5-star rating. While I thoroughly enjoyed the faith discussions and the scripture references that were woven throughout the narrative, as well as the heartwarming moments of family bonding, I felt that the story could have been even more impactful with a more substantial redemption arc.
I truly appreciated the unwavering faith and the strong foundation that the Millers, including their children, embodied. However, I did find their portrayal of faith to be somewhat too perfect. In my opinion, it would have been even more compelling to explore their journey to faith and delve into their inherent flaws and challenges. This would have added depth to their characters and made their story even more relatable and inspiring.
Note: perfect for teenagers & young adults
Please don’t take this as a critique or a negative review. I genuinely enjoyed reading this book and found it to be a delightful experience. These are just my personal thoughts and reflections, and I hope they provide some insight into what I loved about the story. Thank you once again to Jacquelyn for sharing her beautiful work with the world!
September 12, 2026
We need more books like this in our world. They had a whole family, they all loved each other, and above all else they loved God. I loved this book so much! I read this book in just two short days because I COULD NOT put it down! I was always wondering what would happen with the Miller's next!
✨Characters✨
Nick- An amazing older brother, he was always there for his siblings and never complained once!
Chase- I felt like his character grew the most and loved every second of it! (I actually know a Chase and I could literally only envision him the whole time, lol)
Nessa- She was the perfect narrator, and I saw myself in her at times, she was very calm and patient, but always eager to jump in on the fun!
Ty- He was so funny!! (Also, about the chair, I get how you feel.) Definitely one of my favorite characters!!
Ashlynn- I felt like she was quiet and shy but had a big heart!!
Summer- She was so adorable!!! A little ray of sunshine!
Dan- I felt so bad for him! I almost cried when he accepted Jesus (my favorite character)
Patrick- I felt even worse for him, because he had a hard life and didn't even know it! Poor little dude. I loved his friendship with summer!!! (and the smore)
✨Writing✨
Jacquelyn, I don't know how you did it, but your writing was addictive! I never wanted to pt it down!!!
🚫Content🚫
Violence- Someone falls out of a tree (unhurt) some gets stitches on their face (off page)
Language- Absolutely none!
Romance- The parents kiss a few times, and someone gets teased a little about (possibly) liking someone
OTHER- Dan's parents are not together and it has taken a toll on them!
10+ I recommend this book to anybody and everybody!!! Can't wait for book 2!!!!
✨Characters✨
Nick- An amazing older brother, he was always there for his siblings and never complained once!
Chase- I felt like his character grew the most and loved every second of it! (I actually know a Chase and I could literally only envision him the whole time, lol)
Nessa- She was the perfect narrator, and I saw myself in her at times, she was very calm and patient, but always eager to jump in on the fun!
Ty- He was so funny!! (Also, about the chair, I get how you feel.) Definitely one of my favorite characters!!
Ashlynn- I felt like she was quiet and shy but had a big heart!!
Summer- She was so adorable!!! A little ray of sunshine!
Dan- I felt so bad for him! I almost cried when he accepted Jesus (my favorite character)
Patrick- I felt even worse for him, because he had a hard life and didn't even know it! Poor little dude. I loved his friendship with summer!!! (and the smore)
✨Writing✨
Jacquelyn, I don't know how you did it, but your writing was addictive! I never wanted to pt it down!!!
🚫Content🚫
Violence- Someone falls out of a tree (unhurt) some gets stitches on their face (off page)
Language- Absolutely none!
Romance- The parents kiss a few times, and someone gets teased a little about (possibly) liking someone
OTHER- Dan's parents are not together and it has taken a toll on them!
10+ I recommend this book to anybody and everybody!!! Can't wait for book 2!!!!
June 20, 2026
This book is amazing!!! It has such a sweet, honest family dynamic, great characters, and delicious food.
This made me laugh, and brought some tears to my eyes.
The writing style is gorgeous, and there are so many good quotes.
I’m going to have to reread this at home so that I can add my little sticky note things to all the great quotes!!
I honestly needed this book, the books I’ve been reading lately are all great, don’t get me wrong. But, I honestly really needed to have a book where the main characters are Christian.
It was very refreshing for me, and I’m so excited to start book two, What Tomorrow Brings!!
This made me laugh, and brought some tears to my eyes.
The writing style is gorgeous, and there are so many good quotes.
I’m going to have to reread this at home so that I can add my little sticky note things to all the great quotes!!
I honestly needed this book, the books I’ve been reading lately are all great, don’t get me wrong. But, I honestly really needed to have a book where the main characters are Christian.
It was very refreshing for me, and I’m so excited to start book two, What Tomorrow Brings!!
June 23, 2026
🤬Language Rating: 0/5
🌶️Spicy Rating: 0/5
📖Plot Rating: 2.5/5
⚔️Violence Rating: 0/5
😎Christian Worldview: 5/5
⭐️Final Rating: 3.25/5 (rounded down)
✨this is a spoiler-free review✨
First off, before the rest of this review, I want to say thank you to Jacquelyn Oskey for gifting me a free ARC copy! You are a talented writer and it’s clear the LORD has blessed you with a talent for the advancement of His kingdom!
All thoughts and opinions are my own :)
🎧Now Playing: Living Proof by Katy Nicole
🎶so many moments my heart has doubted You🎶
A New Beginning follows the Miller family as they move in to a new house and spend the summer together. Along the way, they make some new friends, play manhunt, and eat tons of smores.
But most importantly, they worship the LORD in every moment, being a witness of His grace to new friends.
This was such a sweet, faith-filled story! Jesus filled every page, and His grace and mercy was boldly proclaimed through Jacquelyn’s writing. I will definitely read the second and am excited to see where next summer takes them!
🎶so many moments I’ve seen You still come through🎶
I was very invested in Dan’s coming to faith, and I absolutely adored Patrick and Summer. They were so sweet! I also loved getting to know the different siblings (Nick and Chase are my favorite!) and I am secretly rooting for an Ashlynn + Dan romance down the road 🤫💕
I found myself relating to quite a bit as a fellow homeschooling Christian book nerd teen, and I have about 50 quotes highlighted on my kindle. Lots of really solid theological quotes as well!
Plot wise, I did feel like overall the novel was a bit repetitive. That is not to say that this was a bad book, I really enjoyed reading it, I just personally think the story could have benefited from another character arc to follow, or some more struggles that the Miller family had to face. They just felt a tad too perfect at times to be completely realistic.
🎶when it looked hopeless You said I’m not done🎶
Content wise, this book is very family friendly and clean! Talk about parent’s kissing, and discussion of a divorce. No language, LGBTQ, or romance of any kind in this book!
I would definitely recommend this book for ages 11 and up! I wish there had been more faithful stories like this when I was younger. I can’t wait to read about the Miller family as they grow! I also can’t wait for a book from Dan and Nick’s perspective!
🎶and looking back I see what I’ve become - I am living proof of a God that’s real🎶
If you are looking for a sweet summer novel with strong family bonds, low drama, and heartwarming friendships, I highly recommend!
🌶️Spicy Rating: 0/5
📖Plot Rating: 2.5/5
⚔️Violence Rating: 0/5
😎Christian Worldview: 5/5
⭐️Final Rating: 3.25/5 (rounded down)
✨this is a spoiler-free review✨
First off, before the rest of this review, I want to say thank you to Jacquelyn Oskey for gifting me a free ARC copy! You are a talented writer and it’s clear the LORD has blessed you with a talent for the advancement of His kingdom!
All thoughts and opinions are my own :)
🎧Now Playing: Living Proof by Katy Nicole
🎶so many moments my heart has doubted You🎶
A New Beginning follows the Miller family as they move in to a new house and spend the summer together. Along the way, they make some new friends, play manhunt, and eat tons of smores.
But most importantly, they worship the LORD in every moment, being a witness of His grace to new friends.
This was such a sweet, faith-filled story! Jesus filled every page, and His grace and mercy was boldly proclaimed through Jacquelyn’s writing. I will definitely read the second and am excited to see where next summer takes them!
🎶so many moments I’ve seen You still come through🎶
I was very invested in Dan’s coming to faith, and I absolutely adored Patrick and Summer. They were so sweet! I also loved getting to know the different siblings (Nick and Chase are my favorite!) and I am secretly rooting for an Ashlynn + Dan romance down the road 🤫💕
I found myself relating to quite a bit as a fellow homeschooling Christian book nerd teen, and I have about 50 quotes highlighted on my kindle. Lots of really solid theological quotes as well!
Plot wise, I did feel like overall the novel was a bit repetitive. That is not to say that this was a bad book, I really enjoyed reading it, I just personally think the story could have benefited from another character arc to follow, or some more struggles that the Miller family had to face. They just felt a tad too perfect at times to be completely realistic.
🎶when it looked hopeless You said I’m not done🎶
Content wise, this book is very family friendly and clean! Talk about parent’s kissing, and discussion of a divorce. No language, LGBTQ, or romance of any kind in this book!
I would definitely recommend this book for ages 11 and up! I wish there had been more faithful stories like this when I was younger. I can’t wait to read about the Miller family as they grow! I also can’t wait for a book from Dan and Nick’s perspective!
🎶and looking back I see what I’ve become - I am living proof of a God that’s real🎶
If you are looking for a sweet summer novel with strong family bonds, low drama, and heartwarming friendships, I highly recommend!
September 12, 2026
Okay, when I tell you I LOVED this book….I can’t mean it enough.
*~characters~*
Vanessa: she was so amazing! I related to her so much (which it was cool since she’s the exact same age as me). I loved at the end where they were sharing where they would be in 10 years, and just what she said was literally the exact same as me 🥹.
Ty: oh boy 😂 He was a handful. He was sooooo funny—but also kind and caring. He honestly reminds me of this kid on my soccer team.
Chase: he was a good character. I loved his attitude when he lost the hockey game (not right after but I loved how he said that God had a plan and stuff like that)
Nick: he was definitely my favorite sibling! I’m the oldest in my family so that may have been a tad bit why but he was just so funny and yeah I just loved him!
Ashlynn: she was fun! I did think she acted a lil mature for her age buttt that’s her character. I loved her and Ness’s relationship.
Summer: she was my favorite sister! She was so cute and funny! I just loved her.
Patrick: he was sooo adorable! I absolutely adored his and Summers relationship.
Dan: his story is really, really amazing. I loved him and just *shivers in a good way*.
*~My thoughts~*
This took me a while to get into (which is why it took me so long to read) but once I fell in love with the characters, I couldn’t put it down. I can’t describe the feeling I felt while reading this. I laughed, cried, thanked the Lord! I can’t even start to tell you how many times I teared up. This author is so good at writing quotes (I’m not sure what else to call it 😅).
One thing that made me rate this a 5 star book, was that the Millers were a domination pretty close to mine. I don’t want to offend anyone cus everyone has their beliefs, but I believe in a know-so salvation, where you have to ask for forgiveness—repent of your sins, fully but your trust and Faith in Jesus—and you will be saved. And that’s basically what this book said to do—just worded it a bit differently than I do. Which that made my heart happy since there is really not any other book that I’ve heard of or read that didn’t say something else. All the testimony’s and like, person who’s reading this, I can’t explain it enough! This is a fictional book but I can’t help praise God for everything that happened! Like *-crys again-*. God is so good!
One other thing that I honestly think God planned to use this book for MY life was, so I’m writing a Christian romance book anddd to be honest I was kinda nervous about writing lots of Christian content in my book—even though God could use my book to save life’s! But, how that I read this book, I’m really inspired to write my Christian book and tell the gospel through it. So thank you!
*~Age Rating~*
10+! Nothing bad about it at all! Dan and Patrick’s Dad did leave when they were younger which could be a trigger for some.
*~Overall~*
You have to read this. If you want a good, Christian book with amazing and love able characters—pick this up!
I can’t wait for book 2!
*~characters~*
Vanessa: she was so amazing! I related to her so much (which it was cool since she’s the exact same age as me). I loved at the end where they were sharing where they would be in 10 years, and just what she said was literally the exact same as me 🥹.
Ty: oh boy 😂 He was a handful. He was sooooo funny—but also kind and caring. He honestly reminds me of this kid on my soccer team.
Chase: he was a good character. I loved his attitude when he lost the hockey game (not right after but I loved how he said that God had a plan and stuff like that)
Nick: he was definitely my favorite sibling! I’m the oldest in my family so that may have been a tad bit why but he was just so funny and yeah I just loved him!
Ashlynn: she was fun! I did think she acted a lil mature for her age buttt that’s her character. I loved her and Ness’s relationship.
Summer: she was my favorite sister! She was so cute and funny! I just loved her.
Patrick: he was sooo adorable! I absolutely adored his and Summers relationship.
Dan: his story is really, really amazing. I loved him and just *shivers in a good way*.
*~My thoughts~*
This took me a while to get into (which is why it took me so long to read) but once I fell in love with the characters, I couldn’t put it down. I can’t describe the feeling I felt while reading this. I laughed, cried, thanked the Lord! I can’t even start to tell you how many times I teared up. This author is so good at writing quotes (I’m not sure what else to call it 😅).
One thing that made me rate this a 5 star book, was that the Millers were a domination pretty close to mine. I don’t want to offend anyone cus everyone has their beliefs, but I believe in a know-so salvation, where you have to ask for forgiveness—repent of your sins, fully but your trust and Faith in Jesus—and you will be saved. And that’s basically what this book said to do—just worded it a bit differently than I do. Which that made my heart happy since there is really not any other book that I’ve heard of or read that didn’t say something else. All the testimony’s and like, person who’s reading this, I can’t explain it enough! This is a fictional book but I can’t help praise God for everything that happened! Like *-crys again-*. God is so good!
One other thing that I honestly think God planned to use this book for MY life was, so I’m writing a Christian romance book anddd to be honest I was kinda nervous about writing lots of Christian content in my book—even though God could use my book to save life’s! But, how that I read this book, I’m really inspired to write my Christian book and tell the gospel through it. So thank you!
*~Age Rating~*
10+! Nothing bad about it at all! Dan and Patrick’s Dad did leave when they were younger which could be a trigger for some.
*~Overall~*
You have to read this. If you want a good, Christian book with amazing and love able characters—pick this up!
I can’t wait for book 2!
October 3, 2026
4⭐️
🎶 Now playing: As for Me and My Home by Brandon Lake 🎶
"𝒪𝒻 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝐼'𝓋𝑒 𝓅𝓇𝒶𝓎𝑒𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝓉𝓉𝑒𝓇𝓈 𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝓂𝑒 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑜𝓈𝑒 𝐼 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹"
♡{Thoughts}♡
Wow. That was soooo good! I LOVED the Miller fam and their inseparable bonds! Their faith was genuinely inspiring and had me crying at some points 🥹 The Dan and Patrick side of the story was also so sweet and heart wrenching- and Dan's endingggg. ugh so emotional!! 💗 I liked that it told their story, and didn't really have a "central conflict", but multiple smaller hurdles for the family to go through. The only things I didn't love: The sentence structure and writing felt very repetitive at times, and the chapter shifts sometimes were kind disorienting- like, I think Fourth of July had like 4 chapters, and then some problems got like 1 chapter. But over all I really enjoyed reading this, and can't wait for book 2! Do I sense a Nick and CoraLee relationship in book 2? We'll see in a week, when it comes out!!! 👀😏
"𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝒷𝓇𝒶𝓃𝒸𝒽 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝒻 𝓊𝓅𝑜𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒻𝒶𝓂𝒾𝓁𝓎 𝓉𝓇𝑒𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝒾𝓇 𝑜𝓌𝓃 𝒶𝒸𝒸𝑜𝓇𝒹"
♡{Ratings}♡
Cover · 4/5
Spice/romance · 0.5/5- Kisses and hugs between the Mom and Dad, but just sibling relationships really!
Language · 0/5
Violence · 1/5- talk about someone getting poison ivy; someone gets stitches; they pillow fight 🤪
Triggers · Someone's dad left them and divorced their mom, and they're working through that in the book.
"𝑀𝓎 𝓀𝒾𝒹𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓈 𝓉𝑜 𝒸𝓁𝒶𝒾𝓂, 𝐼'𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝓇𝒶𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂 𝓊𝓅 𝒶𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓎 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝑔𝑜"
♡{Final thoughts}♡
Age rating · 13+
Tropes · Friendship, family, faith based, found family
"𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹, 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝓅 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝒾𝓇 𝓌𝒶𝓎, 𝓉𝑜 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝑜𝓃 𝒷𝑜𝓇𝓇𝑜𝓌𝑒𝒹 𝒻𝒶𝒾𝓉𝒽"
Thanks for reading my review! Hope you enjoyed it and it helped you! ♡ Lily
"𝒜𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓂𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓂𝓎 𝒽𝑜𝓂𝑒 𝓌𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓈𝑒𝓇𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹"
🎶 Now playing: As for Me and My Home by Brandon Lake 🎶
"𝒪𝒻 𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔𝓈 𝐼'𝓋𝑒 𝓅𝓇𝒶𝓎𝑒𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝒶𝓉𝓉𝑒𝓇𝓈 𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝓂𝑒 𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝑜𝓈𝑒 𝐼 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓁𝑜𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹"
♡{Thoughts}♡
Wow. That was soooo good! I LOVED the Miller fam and their inseparable bonds! Their faith was genuinely inspiring and had me crying at some points 🥹 The Dan and Patrick side of the story was also so sweet and heart wrenching- and Dan's endingggg. ugh so emotional!! 💗 I liked that it told their story, and didn't really have a "central conflict", but multiple smaller hurdles for the family to go through. The only things I didn't love: The sentence structure and writing felt very repetitive at times, and the chapter shifts sometimes were kind disorienting- like, I think Fourth of July had like 4 chapters, and then some problems got like 1 chapter. But over all I really enjoyed reading this, and can't wait for book 2! Do I sense a Nick and CoraLee relationship in book 2? We'll see in a week, when it comes out!!! 👀😏
"𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇𝓎 𝒷𝓇𝒶𝓃𝒸𝒽 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓁𝑒𝒶𝒻 𝓊𝓅𝑜𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝒻𝒶𝓂𝒾𝓁𝓎 𝓉𝓇𝑒𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹 𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝒾𝓇 𝑜𝓌𝓃 𝒶𝒸𝒸𝑜𝓇𝒹"
♡{Ratings}♡
Cover · 4/5
Spice/romance · 0.5/5- Kisses and hugs between the Mom and Dad, but just sibling relationships really!
Language · 0/5
Violence · 1/5- talk about someone getting poison ivy; someone gets stitches; they pillow fight 🤪
Triggers · Someone's dad left them and divorced their mom, and they're working through that in the book.
"𝑀𝓎 𝓀𝒾𝒹𝓈 𝒶𝓇𝑒 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓈 𝓉𝑜 𝒸𝓁𝒶𝒾𝓂, 𝐼'𝓁𝓁 𝓉𝓇𝒶𝒾𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂 𝓊𝓅 𝒶𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓎 𝓈𝒽𝑜𝓊𝓁𝒹 𝑔𝑜"
♡{Final thoughts}♡
Age rating · 13+
Tropes · Friendship, family, faith based, found family
"𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹, 𝒽𝑒𝓁𝓅 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓂 𝒻𝒾𝓃𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝒾𝓇 𝓌𝒶𝓎, 𝓉𝑜 𝓃𝑜𝓉 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝑜𝓃 𝒷𝑜𝓇𝓇𝑜𝓌𝑒𝒹 𝒻𝒶𝒾𝓉𝒽"
Thanks for reading my review! Hope you enjoyed it and it helped you! ♡ Lily
"𝒜𝓈 𝒻𝑜𝓇 𝓂𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓂𝓎 𝒽𝑜𝓂𝑒 𝓌𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝓈𝑒𝓇𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝐿𝑜𝓇𝒹"
May 28, 2026
This book is soooo good! I was lucky enough to be able to get an arc of this book and I absolutely loved it! I love all the adventures Venessa and her family had! My favorite character is prob Ty because I just love his energy and personality and it feels like it’s the most similar to mine! This book had an amazing feel and all the components I love in books. It had a great family dynamic, an amazing connection to god and just overall great plot! I definitely recommend and this book was incredible especially for a first novel!
July 20, 2026
Omgggg this book!😘😘😘😘
Ok so I loved it soo much!!!!❤️❤️❤️❤️
When Dan excepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior!!😭😭😭
I had some tears.😂
It was heart felt and relatable in some parts. It was a touching book and I enjoyed reading it so much!!
I can’t wait to read the next one!!
It ended and I was like wowow this book was amazing!!
I feel like the author made it relatable and did a great job with the writing of the story!!
10 out of 5 stars it amazing!!
Ok so I loved it soo much!!!!❤️❤️❤️❤️
When Dan excepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior!!😭😭😭
I had some tears.😂
It was heart felt and relatable in some parts. It was a touching book and I enjoyed reading it so much!!
I can’t wait to read the next one!!
It ended and I was like wowow this book was amazing!!
I feel like the author made it relatable and did a great job with the writing of the story!!
10 out of 5 stars it amazing!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 27, 2026
this book was incredibly written! it was so nice to read a book without crazy things happening and changing and to read a book about this strong christian family was so empowering. thank you Jacquelyn for sharing this story with me and i’m so excited to read your beta read for the next book!
really do read this people it was amazing and my only suggestion is that it could’ve a bit shorter or have the element that it’s ok for people not to believe in Jesus. i’m glad that Dan did decide to give his heart to god willingly but also it’s important to except the fact that some people don’t. i am christian and im very proud to be and i love that christianity is everyone just praising jesus in slightly different ways⭐️🫶
really do read this people it was amazing and my only suggestion is that it could’ve a bit shorter or have the element that it’s ok for people not to believe in Jesus. i’m glad that Dan did decide to give his heart to god willingly but also it’s important to except the fact that some people don’t. i am christian and im very proud to be and i love that christianity is everyone just praising jesus in slightly different ways⭐️🫶
June 4, 2026
Many thanks to the author for giving me an Advanced Reader’s Copy of her book!
💭 My thoughts
A New Beginning tells the fun, emotional, sometimes chaotic story of the Miller family, incorporating family adventures, lessons, and above all, a clear presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is overall a slower, cozier read, told almost in a journaling writing style that I enjoyed, though I do think if in the later books of the series the author develops a more layered plot with some more action and progression of the main characters, they could be even more engaging. Personally, I know of no real-life siblings as nice to each other as the Miller siblings, but it made for some very heartwarming interactions, and there were many hilarious antics and misadventures to balance it out. As an additional small note, I absolutely loved the positive homeschool rep within this book!
Something that especially stood out to me is how the author’s heart and love for Jesus shines through on every page, and particularly with the plot thread of the Miller’s neighbor. I am so grateful for authors like these for being both able and willing to craft wholesome, God-honoring, family-centered stories without the obsession with romantic plotlines that so many others contain, and I hope others take note of these types of books and are encouraged to do the same.
All in all, a lovely read that I would recommend without hesitation to anyone who enjoys novels full of sibling fun and strong Christian themes.
This book just released and you can purchase digital or paperback editions on Amazon now!
*I received a free digital ARC copy of this book from the author but was under no obligation to give positive feedback. These are my 100% honest thoughts and opinions.
⚠️ Content notes
Light and clean with good Christian morals but does deal some with paternal abandonment and divorce.
See this review on the Boundless Bookshelf blog here: https://boundlessbookshelfreviews.blo...
FOLLOW the Boundless Bookshelf blog here:
https://www.blogger.com/followers/fol...
💭 My thoughts
A New Beginning tells the fun, emotional, sometimes chaotic story of the Miller family, incorporating family adventures, lessons, and above all, a clear presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is overall a slower, cozier read, told almost in a journaling writing style that I enjoyed, though I do think if in the later books of the series the author develops a more layered plot with some more action and progression of the main characters, they could be even more engaging. Personally, I know of no real-life siblings as nice to each other as the Miller siblings, but it made for some very heartwarming interactions, and there were many hilarious antics and misadventures to balance it out. As an additional small note, I absolutely loved the positive homeschool rep within this book!
Something that especially stood out to me is how the author’s heart and love for Jesus shines through on every page, and particularly with the plot thread of the Miller’s neighbor. I am so grateful for authors like these for being both able and willing to craft wholesome, God-honoring, family-centered stories without the obsession with romantic plotlines that so many others contain, and I hope others take note of these types of books and are encouraged to do the same.
All in all, a lovely read that I would recommend without hesitation to anyone who enjoys novels full of sibling fun and strong Christian themes.
This book just released and you can purchase digital or paperback editions on Amazon now!
*I received a free digital ARC copy of this book from the author but was under no obligation to give positive feedback. These are my 100% honest thoughts and opinions.
⚠️ Content notes
Light and clean with good Christian morals but does deal some with paternal abandonment and divorce.
See this review on the Boundless Bookshelf blog here: https://boundlessbookshelfreviews.blo...
FOLLOW the Boundless Bookshelf blog here:
https://www.blogger.com/followers/fol...
Did Not Finish
June 23, 2026I’m afraid I may not be the right reader for this book. I am happy for the author has the opportunity to publish a book she is passionate about and wants to share.
Review of advance copy received from Author
5 ⭐️
WOW. What an amazing experience! A HUGE Thanks to the author for letting me read the ARC! It was an honor!!
This book is so, SO GOOD! The writing is amazing, the family love is wonderful, but most of all, the faith content is beautiful! This book showed me how true Christians should act and respond to certain questions and have patience with non-believers.
I adored all of the Miller family but my favorite was Vanessa (of course 😉)! All of the kids were loving to both friends and family and I loved how close they all were to each other! Their attitude towards non-believer wasn’t "holier than thou". They were friendly, loving, and respectful!! I also loved the healthy relationship between the parents! It was evident they were still in love and that they loved their children and wanted to raise them to honor God! Some things kinda gave Adventures in Odyssey vibes.
Favorite quotes
"God had made a way for this to happen, opening a door that we didn’t see. He alone could do the impossible."
"He sent His Son to die for you and your sins because He loves you that much, Dan. God doesn’t always do things exactly as we want or the way that we think He should. Maybe you can’t see it right now. But I can promise you that God didn’t just leave you or forget about you. His fingerprints are all over our lives, but at times we’re just too busy to see them."
"A rainbow with bold colors stretched across the sky, reminding us of God’s promise. The paint strokes of a brush held in the hand of our Creator, the best Artist ever."
Just from the quotes you can see the author’s passion for bringing the gospel to others and sharing the light of Jesus with her readers!
Cursing/ None at all. 👏
Sexual content/ mentions of a dad leaving his wife and kids. Mr. Miller kisses his wife on the cheek and lips a few times but no details. Zero innuendos!
Faith content/ A TON!!! 🥳
I recommend this book to all ages! I love it so much!
I’m so excited for what’s next with the Miller family!
WOW. What an amazing experience! A HUGE Thanks to the author for letting me read the ARC! It was an honor!!
This book is so, SO GOOD! The writing is amazing, the family love is wonderful, but most of all, the faith content is beautiful! This book showed me how true Christians should act and respond to certain questions and have patience with non-believers.
I adored all of the Miller family but my favorite was Vanessa (of course 😉)! All of the kids were loving to both friends and family and I loved how close they all were to each other! Their attitude towards non-believer wasn’t "holier than thou". They were friendly, loving, and respectful!! I also loved the healthy relationship between the parents! It was evident they were still in love and that they loved their children and wanted to raise them to honor God! Some things kinda gave Adventures in Odyssey vibes.
Favorite quotes
"God had made a way for this to happen, opening a door that we didn’t see. He alone could do the impossible."
"He sent His Son to die for you and your sins because He loves you that much, Dan. God doesn’t always do things exactly as we want or the way that we think He should. Maybe you can’t see it right now. But I can promise you that God didn’t just leave you or forget about you. His fingerprints are all over our lives, but at times we’re just too busy to see them."
"A rainbow with bold colors stretched across the sky, reminding us of God’s promise. The paint strokes of a brush held in the hand of our Creator, the best Artist ever."
Just from the quotes you can see the author’s passion for bringing the gospel to others and sharing the light of Jesus with her readers!
Cursing/ None at all. 👏
Sexual content/ mentions of a dad leaving his wife and kids. Mr. Miller kisses his wife on the cheek and lips a few times but no details. Zero innuendos!
Faith content/ A TON!!! 🥳
I recommend this book to all ages! I love it so much!
I’m so excited for what’s next with the Miller family!
Review of advance copy received from Author
𝙽𝚘𝚠 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐: LOOK AT WHAT GOD HAS DONE - LOST & FOUND
4 stars ✰
⁀➷ spoiler free/content reivew
Thank you so much, Jacquelyn, for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
WOW! This was such a sweet, tender, heartwarming story about family, Jesus, and, as the title entails, new beginnings. I will most certainly be awaiting the second book in this series. I loved every single one of the characters.
The family and how they treated each other was so wholesome. It’s so hard to find stories about healthy, nonproblematic families that have good relationships while still also teasing each other and feeling realistic. Reading about the Miller family reminded me of my own family on several occasions.
There was a point in the beginning that I really wanted to cry tears of happiness, because the beginnings of this book felt so reminiscent of what my family was going through last summer upon moving to our new house, and how we found the land, and the trials we went through and how we just had to trust in God while walking into this new chapter. It hit so close to home.
I also loved that Jesus was CENTRAL in their lives, that He wasn’t a passing mention or a prayer when they needed something, but He was an integral part of their lives as He should be. When reading this, I felt so encouraged and wanted to read my Bible more and just get closer to Jesus.
The only critique I had was the beginning was a bit slow and the central conflict wasn’t introduced until the 20% mark, but that’s when it grabbed my attention and I didn’t want to stop reading. Other than that, this is such a perfect story for summer, or any time in your life. No romance, only family and friendship.
𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝:
⟢ Found family
⟢ Coming to Christ
⟢ Healthy sibling banter
⟢ Lots of Christian content
⟢ No romance
═════════════════════
𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠:
Sexual: The Miller parents kiss a few times, no detail
Language: Absolutely none
Violence: Chase gets hurt during hockey and has to get stitches, some very minor injuries, a character falls out of a tree but he didn’t get hurt
Other: Dan’s father left their family and his mom is a single mother and they don’t believe in God
═════════════════════
𝙿𝚛𝚎 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠: Ah this was so delightful! So full of God’s love and grace! Review to come!
4 stars ✰
⁀➷ spoiler free/content reivew
Thank you so much, Jacquelyn, for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
WOW! This was such a sweet, tender, heartwarming story about family, Jesus, and, as the title entails, new beginnings. I will most certainly be awaiting the second book in this series. I loved every single one of the characters.
The family and how they treated each other was so wholesome. It’s so hard to find stories about healthy, nonproblematic families that have good relationships while still also teasing each other and feeling realistic. Reading about the Miller family reminded me of my own family on several occasions.
There was a point in the beginning that I really wanted to cry tears of happiness, because the beginnings of this book felt so reminiscent of what my family was going through last summer upon moving to our new house, and how we found the land, and the trials we went through and how we just had to trust in God while walking into this new chapter. It hit so close to home.
I also loved that Jesus was CENTRAL in their lives, that He wasn’t a passing mention or a prayer when they needed something, but He was an integral part of their lives as He should be. When reading this, I felt so encouraged and wanted to read my Bible more and just get closer to Jesus.
The only critique I had was the beginning was a bit slow and the central conflict wasn’t introduced until the 20% mark, but that’s when it grabbed my attention and I didn’t want to stop reading. Other than that, this is such a perfect story for summer, or any time in your life. No romance, only family and friendship.
𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝:
⟢ Found family
⟢ Coming to Christ
⟢ Healthy sibling banter
⟢ Lots of Christian content
⟢ No romance
═════════════════════
𝙲𝚘𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠:
Sexual: The Miller parents kiss a few times, no detail
Language: Absolutely none
Violence: Chase gets hurt during hockey and has to get stitches, some very minor injuries, a character falls out of a tree but he didn’t get hurt
Other: Dan’s father left their family and his mom is a single mother and they don’t believe in God
═════════════════════
𝙿𝚛𝚎 𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠: Ah this was so delightful! So full of God’s love and grace! Review to come!
Review of advance copy received from Author
Rating - 3.5 stars
Age Rating - 8+ (no language, no sexual content, no violence, mild TW (mentions of a dad leaving behind two children and a wife and is often discussed the impact that made))
Genre - Contemporary Christian Fiction
*NOTE: This book is now published! I know for sure that you can buy it on Amazon :)
First things first, thanks so much Jacquelyn for the ARC! I really enjoyed getting to read and review this for you, girly!
This book was so cute and fun! I will say it took me a bit to get into it, but once I did, I was thoroughly invested, reading slump be darned.
It was so fun reading about all the adventures this family had. Before you read this, prepare yourself for lots of shenanigans 🫡
My favorite characters were probably Dan and Nick, probably because they had the most character depth, and they were the most relatable for me. I also loved Summer and Patrick, they were just too cute 🥹 I'm excited to see where these characters go in later books!!
I can tell just how much passion Jacquelyn has for sharing the message of Christ through words, and it was beautiful to see that overflow into this book, I felt like I could feel her adoration for Christ through the pages and I loved that :)
Note for the author: Jacquelyn, I'll be sending prayers your way as you continue on your journey as an author. I pray that you will be a light to those who pick up your books, and that they can encourage them in their faith, and that as you continue to hone your craft, you will grow closer to the Lord as well. God bless 🩷
"Oh ghat my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand up on the earth." -Job 19:23-25
Age Rating - 8+ (no language, no sexual content, no violence, mild TW (mentions of a dad leaving behind two children and a wife and is often discussed the impact that made))
Genre - Contemporary Christian Fiction
*NOTE: This book is now published! I know for sure that you can buy it on Amazon :)
First things first, thanks so much Jacquelyn for the ARC! I really enjoyed getting to read and review this for you, girly!
This book was so cute and fun! I will say it took me a bit to get into it, but once I did, I was thoroughly invested, reading slump be darned.
It was so fun reading about all the adventures this family had. Before you read this, prepare yourself for lots of shenanigans 🫡
My favorite characters were probably Dan and Nick, probably because they had the most character depth, and they were the most relatable for me. I also loved Summer and Patrick, they were just too cute 🥹 I'm excited to see where these characters go in later books!!
I can tell just how much passion Jacquelyn has for sharing the message of Christ through words, and it was beautiful to see that overflow into this book, I felt like I could feel her adoration for Christ through the pages and I loved that :)
Note for the author: Jacquelyn, I'll be sending prayers your way as you continue on your journey as an author. I pray that you will be a light to those who pick up your books, and that they can encourage them in their faith, and that as you continue to hone your craft, you will grow closer to the Lord as well. God bless 🩷
"Oh ghat my words were written! Oh that they were inscribed in a book! Oh that with an iron pen and lead they were engraved in the rock forever! For I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last he will stand up on the earth." -Job 19:23-25
Review of advance copy received from Author
3.5 stars! Firstly, I want to thank Jacquelyn for giving me an arc of this!! I've been wanting to read your book for ages and I'm so proud of you for publishing!!!
I'd like to start by saying that christian contemporary fiction is a genre that I haven't read before and contemporary fiction in general isn't usually my thing. As I was reading, I was thinking of all my friends who grew up loving the Penderwicks and I feel like they all would really enjoy this story.
This was such a great easy to read summer book. Very bingeable and lighthearted, which I enjoyed! It was delightful to follow along with the Miller families adventures!! (I especially enjoyed the weekend when Nick was left in charge of all the siblings) Personally I found the faith content to be a bit preachy or tell not show at times, but it’s clear how passionate Jacquelyn is about sharing her faith, which is amazing!
I'd like to start by saying that christian contemporary fiction is a genre that I haven't read before and contemporary fiction in general isn't usually my thing. As I was reading, I was thinking of all my friends who grew up loving the Penderwicks and I feel like they all would really enjoy this story.
This was such a great easy to read summer book. Very bingeable and lighthearted, which I enjoyed! It was delightful to follow along with the Miller families adventures!! (I especially enjoyed the weekend when Nick was left in charge of all the siblings) Personally I found the faith content to be a bit preachy or tell not show at times, but it’s clear how passionate Jacquelyn is about sharing her faith, which is amazing!
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is my first ARC review ever, and I’m no pro at writing reviews, so please bear with me! :) Thank you, Jacquelyn, for giving me the fun opportunity to read your book before it releases! 💛
3.75 stars
This story is about a Christian, homeschooling family moving to a new house in a new neighborhood, looking forward to a new beginning and what this new season will bring. The family’s adventures are narrated through the POV of Vanessa (who goes by Nessa), one of the middle kids. Most of the story takes place during the kids’ summer break, and overall it feels very slice-of-life (which I enjoyed!), though there is plenty of plot and character development, too 🥹 I won’t say anymore to avoid spoilers!
The Miller family won my heart, such that when I finished I felt sad that it was over… I wished that they were my neighbors and that I could hang out with them! (Given their mom’s baking business and the siblings’ tendency to have flour fights, as a Celiac I sadly would be a bit allergic to them 😭) The banter and shenanigans were fun, there were many adventures (and hilarious misadventures), and I love the bond, both relationally and faith-wise, that they shared. The Millers are very tight-knit and love each other and those around them very deeply, and the Gospel is very present in this book, which I appreciated.
Audience: This book felt to me like the middle-grade demographic would especially enjoy it, though anyone else can, too! ☺️
3.75 stars
This story is about a Christian, homeschooling family moving to a new house in a new neighborhood, looking forward to a new beginning and what this new season will bring. The family’s adventures are narrated through the POV of Vanessa (who goes by Nessa), one of the middle kids. Most of the story takes place during the kids’ summer break, and overall it feels very slice-of-life (which I enjoyed!), though there is plenty of plot and character development, too 🥹 I won’t say anymore to avoid spoilers!
The Miller family won my heart, such that when I finished I felt sad that it was over… I wished that they were my neighbors and that I could hang out with them! (Given their mom’s baking business and the siblings’ tendency to have flour fights, as a Celiac I sadly would be a bit allergic to them 😭) The banter and shenanigans were fun, there were many adventures (and hilarious misadventures), and I love the bond, both relationally and faith-wise, that they shared. The Millers are very tight-knit and love each other and those around them very deeply, and the Gospel is very present in this book, which I appreciated.
Audience: This book felt to me like the middle-grade demographic would especially enjoy it, though anyone else can, too! ☺️
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received a complimentary ARC from the author, and I was not required to write a positive review.
Content Rating: 5/5
Content Notes:
Theme Rating: 5/5
Age Rating: 8/9+
This was such a fun story to read at the beginning of summer, and I loved it so much! It had the sweetest sibling dynamics, outstanding faith content, and a ton of fun adventures. I was so grateful to get an ARC of this book, and I definitely enjoyed it!
The characters were all amazing, but my favorites were Nessa and Nick. As an oldest sibling, I definitely related to Nick in a lot of ways, and Nessa was so sweet. All the other siblings, as well as Dan and Patrick, were so well developed. I will say, I do feel like there could have been a bit more internal conflict for Nessa and things she struggled with, and maybe a bit more conflict between the siblings. I loved how close they were, but it was just a little bit too perfect.
The structure of the book reminded me of Little Women in that every chapter was kind of its own separate adventure, while the whole book had its overarching plot and themes. And I really like that structure, and feel like it worked so well for this story! I loved all the different sibling adventures, and I particularly loved the April Fools’ Day chapter.
I also loved the themes so much! They focused primarily on family and friendship and God’s plan of salvation and His power to bring all the lost souls back to Him. It was so beautiful and so beautifully done.
The main thing about this book that bumped it down to four stars, aside from that I felt there could’ve been a little more conflict, was the writing style could’ve used one more polishing. It was a little bit more passive and telling rather than showing, I felt like. But I also know that this is Jaquelyn’s first book, which means her writing style is still developing, so I’m sure this will simply improve with time!
Overall, I loved this sweet summertime story! I also feel like it’s a great story for the whole family, as I’d say it’s appropriate for kids as young as eight or nine, if parents are okay with the one content note, and it’s still definitely enjoyable for most teenagers. Also, I should add in that we get some homeschooler rep! I loved this story and can definitely recommend it! And congratulations to Jaquelyn on publishing your first novel!
More books like this:
-Little Women by L.M. Alcott(sibling relationships, similar themes and structure)
-Should We Tell Her? By Lillian Keith(summer story and sibling relationships)
-Family Reunion by Kelsey Bryant(sibling/cousin relationships, faith, summer, homeschoolers)
Content Rating: 5/5
Content Notes:
Theme Rating: 5/5
Age Rating: 8/9+
This was such a fun story to read at the beginning of summer, and I loved it so much! It had the sweetest sibling dynamics, outstanding faith content, and a ton of fun adventures. I was so grateful to get an ARC of this book, and I definitely enjoyed it!
The characters were all amazing, but my favorites were Nessa and Nick. As an oldest sibling, I definitely related to Nick in a lot of ways, and Nessa was so sweet. All the other siblings, as well as Dan and Patrick, were so well developed. I will say, I do feel like there could have been a bit more internal conflict for Nessa and things she struggled with, and maybe a bit more conflict between the siblings. I loved how close they were, but it was just a little bit too perfect.
The structure of the book reminded me of Little Women in that every chapter was kind of its own separate adventure, while the whole book had its overarching plot and themes. And I really like that structure, and feel like it worked so well for this story! I loved all the different sibling adventures, and I particularly loved the April Fools’ Day chapter.
I also loved the themes so much! They focused primarily on family and friendship and God’s plan of salvation and His power to bring all the lost souls back to Him. It was so beautiful and so beautifully done.
The main thing about this book that bumped it down to four stars, aside from that I felt there could’ve been a little more conflict, was the writing style could’ve used one more polishing. It was a little bit more passive and telling rather than showing, I felt like. But I also know that this is Jaquelyn’s first book, which means her writing style is still developing, so I’m sure this will simply improve with time!
Overall, I loved this sweet summertime story! I also feel like it’s a great story for the whole family, as I’d say it’s appropriate for kids as young as eight or nine, if parents are okay with the one content note, and it’s still definitely enjoyable for most teenagers. Also, I should add in that we get some homeschooler rep! I loved this story and can definitely recommend it! And congratulations to Jaquelyn on publishing your first novel!
More books like this:
-Little Women by L.M. Alcott(sibling relationships, similar themes and structure)
-Should We Tell Her? By Lillian Keith(summer story and sibling relationships)
-Family Reunion by Kelsey Bryant(sibling/cousin relationships, faith, summer, homeschoolers)
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Review of advance copy received from Author
A NEW BEGINNING IS OUT AND AVAILABLE NOW ON AMAZON IN EBOOK, PAPERBACK AND HARDBACK!!!
AHH!! This is my book!! It’s actually here!! 😆
Hi! It’s me, the author, so of course I’m biased in my review! 🤪 This book is a dream come true! It’s over ten years in the making. But it wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for God. He gave me these characters and placed this story on my heart. He continued to encourage me even when I felt like I should give up and guided me onwards. All praise to Him! 🙌🏻 I can see His fingerprints throughout it all. This whole journey has been so prayer soaked. It has brought me closer to God and closer in my walk with Him. This story changed me and will always have a special place in my heart. Now, I know it’s not for everyone and that’s okay. If it changes one person’s life or turns them to Jesus, then it will all be worth it. I hope you come to love the Millers as I do and that you feel like you’re a part of the family from page one and don’t want to leave. I hope you laugh, love and maybe even cry through the pages of this book. I pray that you are pointed to Jesus and grow in your relationship with Him as you read this book. Thank you for taking the time to read my book and my heart! ❤️ You are amazing and you’re making my dreams come true! 💕
And for those writers who aren’t sure if their story matters, let me tell you it does. The hard work and effort is worth it. So write that story. You’re going to impact someone’s life through it someday.
AHH!! This is my book!! It’s actually here!! 😆
Hi! It’s me, the author, so of course I’m biased in my review! 🤪 This book is a dream come true! It’s over ten years in the making. But it wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for God. He gave me these characters and placed this story on my heart. He continued to encourage me even when I felt like I should give up and guided me onwards. All praise to Him! 🙌🏻 I can see His fingerprints throughout it all. This whole journey has been so prayer soaked. It has brought me closer to God and closer in my walk with Him. This story changed me and will always have a special place in my heart. Now, I know it’s not for everyone and that’s okay. If it changes one person’s life or turns them to Jesus, then it will all be worth it. I hope you come to love the Millers as I do and that you feel like you’re a part of the family from page one and don’t want to leave. I hope you laugh, love and maybe even cry through the pages of this book. I pray that you are pointed to Jesus and grow in your relationship with Him as you read this book. Thank you for taking the time to read my book and my heart! ❤️ You are amazing and you’re making my dreams come true! 💕
And for those writers who aren’t sure if their story matters, let me tell you it does. The hard work and effort is worth it. So write that story. You’re going to impact someone’s life through it someday.
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