The Song Weaver

The Mountain Song Legacy #3

by B.J. Hoff

Hoff, B. J.

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

383 pages, Hardcover

First published April 15, 2007

About the author

BJ Hoff’s writing is known for her historical settings, her unforgettable characters, and her lyrical prose. She is the bestselling author of numerous historical fiction series, including the Riverhaven Years, the Mountain Song Legacy, the Song of Erin saga, the American Anthem series, An Emerald Ballad series, and her newest book Harp on the Willow.

Her five-volume Emerald Ballad series was the first major work of fiction to bring the Irish immigration experience to the CBA marketplace, and the work that first brought BJ an international reading audience.

Her readers know they can expect to meet some memorable people in her novels and also know that many of those people will be immigrants; Irish immigrants particularly but not exclusively.

BJ admits to a passion for building worlds. Whether her characters move about in small country towns or metropolitan areas, reside in Amish settlements, secluded mansions, or coal company houses, she creates communities where people can form relationships, raise families, pursue their faith, and experience the mountains and valleys of life.

She’s intent on making her historical novels relevant to the present by developing characters and settings that, while staying true to the history and culture of their times, reflect many of the spiritual trials and social problems faced by contemporary readers. Her novels are meant to be stories that build a bridge from the past to the present.

Her literary awards include the Christianity Today’s Critics Choice Book Award for fiction; a Gold Medallion Award finalist; and a number of Excellence in Media Silver Angel awards. Her books have been translated into many foreign languages, and she frequently hears from her international readers in countries such as Ireland, England, Norway, and Germany.

A former church music director and music teacher, BJ writes from her home in a small town in east central Ohio. She and her husband share a love of music, books, and time spent with their family: two daughters and three lively young grandsons.

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me laugh and it made me cry. Wonderful book!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

As usual, BJ Hoff has delivered a captivating historical fiction novel that is hard to put down. The realistic setting and characters made it truly enthralling. I loved the situation with Maggie and her husband becoming parents overnight. There were so many facets to this book...from dealing with loss, to choosing your priorities, being supportive of family, addressing issues of domestic violence and the aftermath, living with chronic pain, etc. Each situation was well done and by the book's end I was wishing there were more books coming in the series. But regardless, The Song Weaver is a fabulous conclusion to a wonderful trilogy. Any true lover of historical fiction will find this novel captivating. The one thing I didn't get, however, was the title, because though there was some singing indicated in the book, I didn't see the "song weaver" as an applicable title that summarized the story. But despite that tiny flaw, this was a top notch book. On the one hand there was plenty of action to keep you reading, topped with just enough drama to keep your attention and hold it steady.

[Leanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good conclusion to the series.

[Gail Oliver · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favorite things about author, BJ Hoff, she doesn’t need to go into detail in the romantic portions of the story. Her writings allow the reader to understand the characters. I’m a fan of her style of writing.
For this series, I almost wish there was one more book.
The Mountain Song Legacy brought our attention to a small coal town with families and individuals that might just have been real.
A good book for a cold winter reading.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a nice ending to the series. You get to know the MacAuley family better and trace the early marriage of Jonathan and Maggie. The tragedy of losing a sister but gaining a child is the central theme of the book. It moves along well and takes you, mostly gently, from one stage of life to another. A nice read.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Song Weaver is the last book of the series, The Mountain Song Legacy. It is a sweet story of Maggie MacAuley, whose life the reader has followed since childhood. In this story she is an adult, married and raising a child. Song Weaver is a lovely ending to Maggie’s story. Of the three books in this series I liked number 2 the best. This book is fairly predictable.

[Deb Ellis]

A nice ending to the series. I liked all three books but the first was my favorite. I wanted more romance in this and I was disappointed with the way their lives went. I know life was like that in those days but the lack of choices for women at the time really bothered me.

[Patty · Rating 4 out of 5]

The end of the triology B.J. Hoff on Skingle Creek - a mining town. Maggie comes back to visit and ends up staying in her hometown to help out with family matters. She ends up going to teach at the very school she attended. Her former teacher, Johnathan Steuart, is still there teaching as well as being the princial of this small school. Her childhood affection for Johnathan is pricked, blooms and once they both realize what it is it blossoms into a marriage and many many other journeys than the typical marriage takes.

[Judith · Rating 5 out of 5]

The final book in the Mountain Song Legacy continues the story with newlyweds Maggie and Jonathon. Their love story is continued with new trials. The introduction of a womon Doctor to the small coal mining town gives great insight to the struggles of professional women in the early 1900s. An easy read and you feel you know the characters so well, that one is sorry to come to the end of the series. B J Hoff is now one of my favorite authors.

[Linda Husvar · Rating 5 out of 5]

This third book in the Mountain Song Legacy takes readers 20 years into the future. The young girl and teacher are married and running the one room school together. Grief and hardship still plagues this coal mine mountain community. In attempt to offer something to the dreary community life, John struggles to organize the miners into a men's choir. As the book and series closes, we witness a moving Easter service. I recommend this series highly.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was looking forward to reading this book as I had enjoyed the previous books in this series. This book failed to meet my expectations as the story rambled more and was as to the point as the other books had been. It was the final book in the series and I felt it was a let down as far as not really tying up some loose ends. I highly recommend other books in the series, including A Distant Music and The Wind Harp.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

This can be read as a stand alone novel but I highly recommend that all three books of this series be read in proper sequence to benefit from the complete descriptions of the setting and the characters as well as all parts of the events that make up the continuing story of these peoples lives.

The author does a fine job of drawing a conclusion to this series and wrapping up all loose ends.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I really like how B. J. Hoff writes! I had picked up several new authors to try, and she easily out-performed the others for content and construction. Just a good read with thought-provoking story lines.

[Haley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked it. Good ending to the trilogy.