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The Memory of Love
Enjoy a romantic adventure set on the early American frontier of the Ohio Valley from author Tammy Shuttlesworth. In a Moravian mission village, Callie Troyer struggles to connect her past with her future when a mysterious man claims to know her and the wilderness fills with political tensions. Also includes the bonus sequel, Healing Sarah’s Hear that continues the work of the mission through the story of a widowed mother who struggles with knowing who to trust.
320 pages, Paperback
Published February 1, 2017
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13 people want to read
About the author
Tammy Shuttlesworth
7 booksTAMMY SHUTTLESWORTH is an Ohio native who now considers Louisiana her home. She travels as often as she can to visit her daughters and grandchildren in Florida and family in Ohio. Now retired from the Air Force and teaching, she enjoys reading about and exploring Civil War battlefields and Native American historical sites. The two stories in this collection were inspired by the rich Ohio history she grew up visiting as a child.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 8, 2017
The Memory of Love is not your typical memory loss story. I found this to be simultaneously refreshing and maddening (though in a good way). What an odd combination of impressions, right?
The Memory of Love (Barbour, 2017) and the included “bonus story” Healing Sarah’s Heart, both by Tammy Shuttlesworth, comprise the latest of Barbour’s two-pack re-releases of Heartsong Presents books. (Heartsong Presents is no longer publishing new books as of mid-2015.) These are Ms. Shuttlesworth’s first two published books, and Healing Sarah’s Heart is a sequel to the first. I selected this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review because I’ve been enjoying Barbour’s two-story releases. Tammy Shuttlesworth is a new-to-me author.
Overall rating: 3 3/4 stars (I came very close to giving this a four.)
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The first story: The Memory of Love, originally published as A Different Kind of Heaven (Heartsong Presents, 1998) by Tammy Shuttlesworth is a historical Christian romance set in the Ohio Valley in a Moravian mission village in 1777.
Rating: 4 stars
I looked up the term Moravian online, and found the following information on Newsmax: “Moravians originally came from ancient Bohemia and Moravia in what is now called the Czech Republic. Their name comes from the denomination's original birthplace of Moravia. During the 18th century, Moravians split from the Roman Catholic Church.”
The heroine: Callie Troyer, 23, is the village’s healer, whose responsibilities include birthing babies. However, she hasn’t had formal training, and her knowledge is limited to what the Delaware tribe’s medicine woman was able to teach her before leaving. Callie is not at all satisfied with her level of knowledge, and is very burdened when faced with deaths.
The settlement Callie lives in is made up of Moravians and Delaware Indians, who are often called “Praying Indians”. Five years previously when the orphanage Callie lived in was destroyed by a great flood, she and her sister Sarah were taken in by the Moravian missionary. Callie lost her memory as the result of being injured in the flood, and five years later, she finds it frustrating that she still cannot remember her lost years. Unfortunately, Sarah cannot fill in the gaps of Callie’s life for her, because the two of them were kept apart at the orphanage.
The hero: Joshua Johnston arrives on the scene rather abruptly in chapter one, walking in on Callie while she is attending her best friend, who is in labor too soon. Callie asks him, “Who are you, and why are you here?” “‘I have come to help,’” he replied matter-of-factly.” Joshua has gone to medical school, so he is able to help significantly. The reader becomes aware early on that “he had planned this for five years, praying fervently all that time that Callie would take one look at him and remember who he was.”
Christian elements:
*I thought learning about the Moravian church was interesting.
*When making a promise to her sister, Sarah replies, “God’s promise. That is better than just a plain promise.” Callie’s mental response was: “So it was. People might fail, but God’s covenants stood fast.” I was not thrilled with this, because while yes, God’s promises are completely dependable, Sarah was the one making the promise. Not God. In fact, the Bible actually counsels us AGAINST making promises!
What I liked:
*The conflicts in the story were well done.
*There is one aspect of the end that I was pretty surprised about. (I am always impressed by the unexpected in a romance novel, because the reader knows the hero and heroine will get together and live happily ever after. Being surprised is, well... a pleasant surprise!)
What I didn’t like:
*There was one sentence that just didn’t make sense to me, and it was pretty important to the story. I wonder whether some of the dialogue was accidentally cut out. I read the section a few times and finally made my own conclusion.
*This is just a preference and not a flaw of the book: The story is not very lighthearted. The tone was more on the serious side, which did work well, but isn’t what I look for in a book. :-)
------------------------------------------------
The second story: I was a bit hesitant to read this book, because Sarah annoyed me in The Memory of Love, (which was originally released as A Different Kind of Heaven), the tale of Sarah’s older sister Callie. However, Ms. Shuttlesworth did a decent job of pulling it off. I was still somewhat annoyed with Sarah in this book, though it was in a different way.
Healing Sarah’s Heart (2000, Heartsong Presents), sequel to The Memory of Love, by Tammy Shuttlesworth, is a historical Christian romance set in Ohio in 1781, right in the middle of the Revolutionary War. The British are asking the Indians to chase the Americans out, and the Americans are retaliating by attacking and massacring the Indians they believe to be responsible. The novel is a standalone story, but the reader may prefer to read the first book for Sarah’s background.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars (I considered bumping it up to 4 stars because of the excellent ending, but Sarah annoyed me too much throughout the story.)
The heroine: Widowed Sarah Lyons, 25, has traveled seventy miles with her four-year-old son Samuel and her friend Bessie Hall. They are to join Bessie’s husband “Captain” at the militia encampment. Bessie and Captain are faithful friends to Sarah and are strong in their faith in God. “Sarah prayed occasionally, but it had been a long time since she’d believed God answered her prayers.” Sarah is really struggling in her faith as well as her zest for life. “No matter how important this move was for her son’s future, her feelings about it were as dismal as the mud-covered moccasins she stared at.”
The hero: Jeremiah Stewart does not want to kill others. In fact, he is in the army strictly as a courier, and he’s even been considering asking to be relieved of his militia position. Unexpectedly, his superior officer signed him up as a county lieutenant without asking Jeremiah, and Jeremiah is extremely unhappy about it. However, after much persuasion by the colonel, Jeremiah accepts the position on a temporary basis - for 180 days. The colonel urgently needs a suitable replacement as he will be gone for much of the time. But Jeremiah still dislikes his position so much that he tells his clerk not to call him Lieutenant Stewart!
Christian elements: The presence of faith in the story as a whole is well-done. I did take issue with Sarah’s inner thoughts: “She could not pinpoint a time, but she knew it wouldn’t be long until she again believed in God. She looked forward to that day when she could cast off her fears and feast on the promise of eternal life.” From this quote, it seems apparent that she already believes in God, and that was my impression throughout the story, too. Sarah believes in God, but she cannot understand why He allowed bad things to happen, so she’s angry with Him and hiding herself from Him. I think a more apt quote would be: “She felt her anger towards God dissipating and looked forward to fully casting off her fears.”
What I liked:
*I appreciated the incorporation of historical events as an integral part of the plotline, rather than as merely as a backdrop. Even though they’re both standalone, after reading Healing Sarah’s Heart and the book preceding it, I wonder if Ms. Shuttlesworth planned out the plot of both books at the same time.
*I liked the overall story very much, particularly the militia portion at the end of the book.
What I didn’t like:
*The initial romance seems a bit forced (and instant) to me. I think Sarah was flustered by Jeremiah too easily and too quickly, and Jeremiah was overly gallant overly early to the point that it felt a bit unnatural.
*I also felt that Sarah tends towards the irrational and that she is too quick to take offense. Yes, she’s hurting, but still…..
--------------------------------------------
I will not seek out more of Ms. Shuttleworth’s stories because the rest of her books are in collections of short stories or novellas, and I try my best to avoid those. (The reason is silly -- I have a terrible time writing just a one-paragraph review for each story.) If I end up with a collection with one of Ms. Shuttlesworth’s stories, however, I will certainly read it. :-) I recommend this two-story combo to fans of gentle Christian historical romances.
The Memory of Love (Barbour, 2017) and the included “bonus story” Healing Sarah’s Heart, both by Tammy Shuttlesworth, comprise the latest of Barbour’s two-pack re-releases of Heartsong Presents books. (Heartsong Presents is no longer publishing new books as of mid-2015.) These are Ms. Shuttlesworth’s first two published books, and Healing Sarah’s Heart is a sequel to the first. I selected this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review because I’ve been enjoying Barbour’s two-story releases. Tammy Shuttlesworth is a new-to-me author.
Overall rating: 3 3/4 stars (I came very close to giving this a four.)
------------------------------------------------
The first story: The Memory of Love, originally published as A Different Kind of Heaven (Heartsong Presents, 1998) by Tammy Shuttlesworth is a historical Christian romance set in the Ohio Valley in a Moravian mission village in 1777.
Rating: 4 stars
I looked up the term Moravian online, and found the following information on Newsmax: “Moravians originally came from ancient Bohemia and Moravia in what is now called the Czech Republic. Their name comes from the denomination's original birthplace of Moravia. During the 18th century, Moravians split from the Roman Catholic Church.”
The heroine: Callie Troyer, 23, is the village’s healer, whose responsibilities include birthing babies. However, she hasn’t had formal training, and her knowledge is limited to what the Delaware tribe’s medicine woman was able to teach her before leaving. Callie is not at all satisfied with her level of knowledge, and is very burdened when faced with deaths.
The settlement Callie lives in is made up of Moravians and Delaware Indians, who are often called “Praying Indians”. Five years previously when the orphanage Callie lived in was destroyed by a great flood, she and her sister Sarah were taken in by the Moravian missionary. Callie lost her memory as the result of being injured in the flood, and five years later, she finds it frustrating that she still cannot remember her lost years. Unfortunately, Sarah cannot fill in the gaps of Callie’s life for her, because the two of them were kept apart at the orphanage.
The hero: Joshua Johnston arrives on the scene rather abruptly in chapter one, walking in on Callie while she is attending her best friend, who is in labor too soon. Callie asks him, “Who are you, and why are you here?” “‘I have come to help,’” he replied matter-of-factly.” Joshua has gone to medical school, so he is able to help significantly. The reader becomes aware early on that “he had planned this for five years, praying fervently all that time that Callie would take one look at him and remember who he was.”
Christian elements:
*I thought learning about the Moravian church was interesting.
*When making a promise to her sister, Sarah replies, “God’s promise. That is better than just a plain promise.” Callie’s mental response was: “So it was. People might fail, but God’s covenants stood fast.” I was not thrilled with this, because while yes, God’s promises are completely dependable, Sarah was the one making the promise. Not God. In fact, the Bible actually counsels us AGAINST making promises!
What I liked:
*The conflicts in the story were well done.
*There is one aspect of the end that I was pretty surprised about. (I am always impressed by the unexpected in a romance novel, because the reader knows the hero and heroine will get together and live happily ever after. Being surprised is, well... a pleasant surprise!)
What I didn’t like:
*There was one sentence that just didn’t make sense to me, and it was pretty important to the story. I wonder whether some of the dialogue was accidentally cut out. I read the section a few times and finally made my own conclusion.
*This is just a preference and not a flaw of the book: The story is not very lighthearted. The tone was more on the serious side, which did work well, but isn’t what I look for in a book. :-)
------------------------------------------------
The second story: I was a bit hesitant to read this book, because Sarah annoyed me in The Memory of Love, (which was originally released as A Different Kind of Heaven), the tale of Sarah’s older sister Callie. However, Ms. Shuttlesworth did a decent job of pulling it off. I was still somewhat annoyed with Sarah in this book, though it was in a different way.
Healing Sarah’s Heart (2000, Heartsong Presents), sequel to The Memory of Love, by Tammy Shuttlesworth, is a historical Christian romance set in Ohio in 1781, right in the middle of the Revolutionary War. The British are asking the Indians to chase the Americans out, and the Americans are retaliating by attacking and massacring the Indians they believe to be responsible. The novel is a standalone story, but the reader may prefer to read the first book for Sarah’s background.
Rating: 3 1/2 stars (I considered bumping it up to 4 stars because of the excellent ending, but Sarah annoyed me too much throughout the story.)
The heroine: Widowed Sarah Lyons, 25, has traveled seventy miles with her four-year-old son Samuel and her friend Bessie Hall. They are to join Bessie’s husband “Captain” at the militia encampment. Bessie and Captain are faithful friends to Sarah and are strong in their faith in God. “Sarah prayed occasionally, but it had been a long time since she’d believed God answered her prayers.” Sarah is really struggling in her faith as well as her zest for life. “No matter how important this move was for her son’s future, her feelings about it were as dismal as the mud-covered moccasins she stared at.”
The hero: Jeremiah Stewart does not want to kill others. In fact, he is in the army strictly as a courier, and he’s even been considering asking to be relieved of his militia position. Unexpectedly, his superior officer signed him up as a county lieutenant without asking Jeremiah, and Jeremiah is extremely unhappy about it. However, after much persuasion by the colonel, Jeremiah accepts the position on a temporary basis - for 180 days. The colonel urgently needs a suitable replacement as he will be gone for much of the time. But Jeremiah still dislikes his position so much that he tells his clerk not to call him Lieutenant Stewart!
Christian elements: The presence of faith in the story as a whole is well-done. I did take issue with Sarah’s inner thoughts: “She could not pinpoint a time, but she knew it wouldn’t be long until she again believed in God. She looked forward to that day when she could cast off her fears and feast on the promise of eternal life.” From this quote, it seems apparent that she already believes in God, and that was my impression throughout the story, too. Sarah believes in God, but she cannot understand why He allowed bad things to happen, so she’s angry with Him and hiding herself from Him. I think a more apt quote would be: “She felt her anger towards God dissipating and looked forward to fully casting off her fears.”
What I liked:
*I appreciated the incorporation of historical events as an integral part of the plotline, rather than as merely as a backdrop. Even though they’re both standalone, after reading Healing Sarah’s Heart and the book preceding it, I wonder if Ms. Shuttlesworth planned out the plot of both books at the same time.
*I liked the overall story very much, particularly the militia portion at the end of the book.
What I didn’t like:
*The initial romance seems a bit forced (and instant) to me. I think Sarah was flustered by Jeremiah too easily and too quickly, and Jeremiah was overly gallant overly early to the point that it felt a bit unnatural.
*I also felt that Sarah tends towards the irrational and that she is too quick to take offense. Yes, she’s hurting, but still…..
--------------------------------------------
I will not seek out more of Ms. Shuttleworth’s stories because the rest of her books are in collections of short stories or novellas, and I try my best to avoid those. (The reason is silly -- I have a terrible time writing just a one-paragraph review for each story.) If I end up with a collection with one of Ms. Shuttlesworth’s stories, however, I will certainly read it. :-) I recommend this two-story combo to fans of gentle Christian historical romances.
February 8, 2017
This is the first time I have read a book by Tammy Shuttlesworth . She is a new to me author.
I would recommend this to lovers of frontier Christian romance. There are two stories here connected by the same characters that take place about 5 years apart. The book had a nice ending. There was a sentence that made no sense in where it was placed. I could not figure it out.
Pub Date 01 Feb 2017
Thank you to NetGalley and Barbour Books for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for my honest review.
I would recommend this to lovers of frontier Christian romance. There are two stories here connected by the same characters that take place about 5 years apart. The book had a nice ending. There was a sentence that made no sense in where it was placed. I could not figure it out.
Pub Date 01 Feb 2017
Thank you to NetGalley and Barbour Books for providing me with a digital copy in exchange for my honest review.
February 11, 2017
Tammy Shuttlesworth has written a novel, The Memory of Love, including the bonus story, Healing Sarah’s Heart.
The story takes us to the Ohio (O he yo) Territory. Into a Moravian Settlement of Shoenbrunn. Callie Troyer lost her early memories due to a flood where she lived in Pennsylvania. Joshua Johnston, an old boyfriend and the love her life, comes to the Settlement. Because of Callie’s memory loss, she doesn’t remember him.
Callie and Joshua work together to mend the relationship they had in Pennsylvania. They go on the memory of that love, thus the title of the story.
In the story, Healing Sarah's Heart. This story is about Callie’s sister Sarah. This story takes place five years after The Memory of Love.
Sarah and her son, Samuel; along with her friend Bessie are traveling to the fort where Bessie’s husband, Captain is. Sarah’s husband Levi was killed in an Indian uprising two years past. While at the fort, Sarah meets Jeremiah, Bessie’s brother.
Sarah and Jeremiah have a lot to overcome. They both find love and happiness together.
I felt that this story was well written but there were areas that could have been better explained. I felt like there were gaps missing in a lot of areas. Thus, the reason I gave this book four stars.
Disclosure statement
I receive complimentary books for review from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including Netgalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.
The story takes us to the Ohio (O he yo) Territory. Into a Moravian Settlement of Shoenbrunn. Callie Troyer lost her early memories due to a flood where she lived in Pennsylvania. Joshua Johnston, an old boyfriend and the love her life, comes to the Settlement. Because of Callie’s memory loss, she doesn’t remember him.
Callie and Joshua work together to mend the relationship they had in Pennsylvania. They go on the memory of that love, thus the title of the story.
In the story, Healing Sarah's Heart. This story is about Callie’s sister Sarah. This story takes place five years after The Memory of Love.
Sarah and her son, Samuel; along with her friend Bessie are traveling to the fort where Bessie’s husband, Captain is. Sarah’s husband Levi was killed in an Indian uprising two years past. While at the fort, Sarah meets Jeremiah, Bessie’s brother.
Sarah and Jeremiah have a lot to overcome. They both find love and happiness together.
I felt that this story was well written but there were areas that could have been better explained. I felt like there were gaps missing in a lot of areas. Thus, the reason I gave this book four stars.
Disclosure statement
I receive complimentary books for review from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including Netgalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255.
December 10, 2016
Callie has been living in the Moravian settlement of Shoenbrunn in the O he yo territory west of Pennsylvania. Since the flood hit the orphanage where she was living four years ago, her memory of everything previous to that time has basically been erased. She is the county healer, but her skills and knowledge are sketchy, but she does the best she can. Joshua Johnston has come to the settlement looking for her but she has no memory of him at all. She does know that there was some connection, but her mind can't bring it back.
This is how Tammy Shuttlesworth introduces her novel, The Memory of Love. Callie has a sister living with her named Sarah, who does her best to aggravate Callie. What I don't understand and what I feel is never dealt with in the novel or the one that follows is if Callie's memory is gone, why doesn't Sarah help Callie try to remember. Sarah's memories are never spoken of in either novel, but I feel they could have added to the plot and given it more substance.
In Healing Sarah's Heart, Sarah is traveling with her friend, Bessie, and Sarah's son, Samuel. Sarah's husband, Levi, was killed in an Indian uprising. When they come to the fort where they are to stay for a while, Sarah meets Bessie's brother, Jeremiah. This novel takes place about five years after The Memory of Love and brings the reader through the trials that are the war for independence from Britain.
Tammy has done a good job with her novels, but the issues of Callie's memories, and Sarah's lack of concern for them are what brings it down to a four star book. Still a very good read.
My Thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.
This is how Tammy Shuttlesworth introduces her novel, The Memory of Love. Callie has a sister living with her named Sarah, who does her best to aggravate Callie. What I don't understand and what I feel is never dealt with in the novel or the one that follows is if Callie's memory is gone, why doesn't Sarah help Callie try to remember. Sarah's memories are never spoken of in either novel, but I feel they could have added to the plot and given it more substance.
In Healing Sarah's Heart, Sarah is traveling with her friend, Bessie, and Sarah's son, Samuel. Sarah's husband, Levi, was killed in an Indian uprising. When they come to the fort where they are to stay for a while, Sarah meets Bessie's brother, Jeremiah. This novel takes place about five years after The Memory of Love and brings the reader through the trials that are the war for independence from Britain.
Tammy has done a good job with her novels, but the issues of Callie's memories, and Sarah's lack of concern for them are what brings it down to a four star book. Still a very good read.
My Thanks to Barbour Publishing for allowing me to read and review this book.
January 5, 2017
This was a really sweet book and the first time that I have had the opportunity to read a book by this author. It was an American historical romance with some very nice writing. I enjoyed the story very much.
Callie Troyer joins a Moravian Brothers mission group and serves as their medical helper there. A stranger comes to the mission also with medical training and seems to have an interest in her. A part of her past and her future seem to come together in a most interesting way. The story has its sad moments and trials as the pioneering souls fight to make a life.
A very nice Christian read. I believe it was probably of novella length. It comes with a bonus sequel, Healing Sarah's Heart.
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley for my honest review, which I have given.
Callie Troyer joins a Moravian Brothers mission group and serves as their medical helper there. A stranger comes to the mission also with medical training and seems to have an interest in her. A part of her past and her future seem to come together in a most interesting way. The story has its sad moments and trials as the pioneering souls fight to make a life.
A very nice Christian read. I believe it was probably of novella length. It comes with a bonus sequel, Healing Sarah's Heart.
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley for my honest review, which I have given.
July 30, 2017
Did not read bonus story. But nice 18th century book from local ohio.+
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews