Christian Fiction Devourers discussion

Hello all- June's buddy read this month is by Tracie Peterson. This book is a historical fiction and I found it quite an interesting read as it took place at the Whitman Mission which is located in Walla Walla , Washington. Side note Walla Walla is where my oldest daughter is getting married in mid September ( if all goes well with things opening up). So I found it so interesting to read about some history related to this very place. When we head over to work on wedding stuff I will for sure go to the museum there to read more about the actual events.

For those that are joining in on this read I want to give a trigger warning without revealing any spoilers, so please know there is some sensitive content contained in this book and here is your warning- (view spoiler)[Rape and massacre are pretty prevalent themes in this book. (hide spoiler)]

Also just so you know there are three books in the Heart of the Frontier series- Treasured Grace, Beloved Hope, and Cherished Mercy. I have already read the first two and am waiting for the third from my library.

Tracie Peterson is an author who has written many historical fiction books. Do we have any Tracie Peterson fans in the group? Who is joining in on this one for June? I'm excited to discuss this one with you all!

I’m in. I started this book on audio this afternoon and am following along in my paperback. I’ll be reading the whole trilogy this month, hopefully.

I hope to join in for this one.

Just finished this one. Such heartbreak! Such hope! Five stars.

Andrea wrote: "Just finished this one. Such heartbreak! Such hope! Five stars."

Yes, for sure, because of the circumstances in the first book, I had to read the second , which I did enjoy, but somehow I felt there was more depth to the first book, but again I had to know how things played out!

Exactly. That's why I'm listening to Beloved Hope today. :) I'll also be reading Cherished Mercy, because I need to know what happens to Mercy too!

I am interested to ask you all that are joining in ( and even those that aren't )- have you ever read a historical fiction book where it takes place close to where you live and learn some actual historical content taking place in your town/city/state as a result? As I mentioned in the intro- I think one of the things that drew me in to this book is that the happenings happened in this state and so it intrigues me to to more historical research to find out how much Tracie Peterson took from actual history and how much is her fictional rendition.

Andrea wrote: "Exactly. That's why I'm listening to Beloved Hope today. :) I'll also be reading Cherished Mercy, because I need to know what happens to Mercy too!"

Me too, I just have to wait a little longer to find out about Mercy :)- I'm on hold at the library.

Aw, I guess others in your area are also enjoying this series. That's a great thing! Even if it does mean a delay in your reading that final book.

Cheryl wrote: "I am interested to ask you all that are joining in ( and even those that aren't )- have you ever read a historical fiction book where it takes place close to where you live and learn some actual hi..."

It's always fun for me when Dallas or any small town I live near are mentioned in books or play a huge role as the key setting to the story. I also enjoy reading books that take place in towns/cities I've visited around the country. There have been many books that have inspired me to learn more about real-life events, and Treasured Grace is one of those books.

Andrea wrote: "Aw, I guess others in your area are also enjoying this series. That's a great thing! Even if it does mean a delay in your reading that final book."

Yes exactly, and the great thing is there is always another great book to read while you are waiting for the other one :) lol!

Definitely!

I just finished and look forward to discussing it.

Agree with the comments made that it makes a novel more interesting when the reader is familiar with the area. Love that!

I have read about half the book, and I am really enjoying it (though with the sensitive/heartbreaking content,,enjoy is not quite the right word) but I want to keep reading more and it is definitely keeping my attention. Unfortunately it was an e-book that had to go back to the library before I finished and I have to wait 6 weeks to get it back. So I won't finish it before the discussion. I will definitely want to read the next 2 books in the series.

Oh no! Katrina, I'm so sorry. Hopefully others will return it quickly so the time length will shorten up some for you.

That’s a bummer Katrina -that has definitely happened to me before! I hope you get a chance to finish it even if it is six weeks from now . And yes, I couldn’t stop at just the first one either- I had to find our what happens with Hope and Mercy! I read the second one and am on hold for the third.

I have to say that the titles of the three books are just beautiful. Treasured Grace, Beloved Hope, Cherished Mercy. Just reciting the titles brings me peace.

Katrina wrote: "I have to say that the titles of the three books are just beautiful. Treasured Grace, Beloved Hope, Cherished Mercy. Just reciting the titles brings me peace."

Agreed- love the titles!

Yes! The titles and covers are so beautiful. They were definitely eye-catching and heart-pinching for me... and reasons why I bought hard copies.

So I decided I didn't want to wait the six weeks to get the hold on the e-book back and bought the book on Amazon as an early birthday present.. Then amazingly last night, the book became available to borrow so now I have the library copy and a hard copy (plus books 2 and 3) on the way to me by mail.

Yay!

Congratulations, Katrina!

Katrina wrote: "So I decided I didn't want to wait the six weeks to get the hold on the e-book back and bought the book on Amazon as an early birthday present.. Then amazingly last night, the book became available..."

Nice- Katrina- happy (early ) birthday to you- I mean what better present right? On the 15th we'll start discussing the book more in depth. Meanwhile- enjoy the read!

Hello! I am new here and will be joining in with this book. Just getting started with it tonight! :)

Crystal Rose wrote: "Hello! I am new here and will be joining in with this book. Just getting started with it tonight! :)"

Crystal Rose - welcome I’m delighted to have you join in the discussion. Usually the first half of the month folks are reading the book and then the second half of the month we discuss . Anyone is free to make comments at any time, just try to avoid spoilers until the 15th. I liked this book al to, which is kind of strange because some very heartbreaking things happen but I think the author does a good job with the subject matter. I’m excited to see what you think!

I just finished listening to the audio today. :)

Welcome, Crystal Rose! So glad you're jumping right in on a buddy read. :) Let us know if you have any questions about the group.

Oh neat - how was the audio version Hannah?

Cheryl wrote: "Oh neat - how was the audio version Hannah?"

I listened to the audio while following along in the paperback. I really enjoyed the narration. I don't remember who the narrator was, but she did a fantastic job.

I think this book is my favorite of all of the Tracie Peterson books I've read so far (around ten books). So faith-rich and heart-wrenching and heroic and empathy-infused. It's currently my favorite book of the year, and there have already been many great ones, thankfully.

Cheryl wrote: "Oh neat - how was the audio version Hannah?"

It was really well narrated. Stephanie Cozart was the narrator...the only thing she did that really bugged me was continually pronouncing Nez Percé as “nezsh purse” but I looked it up and it’s apparently the common pronunciation now so... 🤷🏻‍♀️

Yes! That bugged me too, because it was a more French pronunciation at the time, I thought.

I adored this book!!!! So many emotions but just a beautiful story. I am already on to Beloved Hope which I will finish tonight and then tomorrow I am going to start Cherished Mercy 😍 Ever since Little House on the Prairie nudged it’s way into the deep recesses of my heart, I have (not so secretly) longed to live the pioneer life 😂 Hard life and hard work but what a wonderful sense of community and caring for one another ❤️

Crystal Rose, I loved this book too. The whole trilogy is great. I adored Little House! I read all the books from the library when I was a little girl. They were some of my favorites to check out time and time again. And the show was one of my favorites.

Crystal Rose wrote: "I adored this book!!!! So many emotions but just a beautiful story. I am already on to Beloved Hope which I will finish tonight and then tomorrow I am going to start Cherished Mercy 😍 Ever since Li..."
Agreed Crystal Rose- neighbors were really neighbors and helped each other out so much! And what they endured together in Treasured Grace - oh dear.. but we will talk abut it more on the 15th - that's when we can launch in!

I'm halfway in, and I knew what was coming since I had to read about it shortly after starting the book. It's so sad and heart-wrenching, but also so good ... I just bought a copy of the 2nd book yesterday, so I can continue with the story.

jenn wrote: "I'm halfway in, and I knew what was coming since I had to read about it shortly after starting the book. It's so sad and heart-wrenching, but also so good ... I just bought a copy of the 2nd book y..."

Jenn, I hope you're prepared to also get the final book. Mercy's might be my favorite of the three, though they are each lovely for their own reasons. :)

I just finished this morning. It was very well done! And yes, I'll definitely be reading the third book, too. I want to know how both sisters fare.

That's how I felt after finishing Hope's story. "I must see what happened to Mercy right now!" was my thought.

(I love how this one-book thing is becoming a whole-series binge for so many of us!)

I'm not liking the second book quite as well as the first just because it seems more repetitive and the leads have very similar issues to each other. I'm sure I'll enjoy Mercy's story, though, because I really like her as a character.

Hannah wrote: "(I love how this one-book thing is becoming a whole-series binge for so many of us!)"

Yes! That speaks so much to the richness of book one, doesn't it? We all got hooked on these sisters' journeys and just had to find out what happened to each of them.

It’s so funny - I agree with you about the really liking the first one! Were you all surprised to see the turn that the first book took? Did you see the mission massacre coming? And had any of you heard of the Whitman Massacre before?

I had a heads-up on the massacre and rape (thanks, Cheryl!), but I wouldn't have seen it coming at all if I hadn't known. I did a bit of research on the Whitman Massacre while reading this book, but I hadn't heard particularly about this massacre before reading Treasured Grace. I had heard of massacres in general in America's history (by or against Indians, depending on the case) but had never really done much specific research about them.

I thought the tough stuff was written really well and in a way that was sensitive yet honest.

Also side note - I am going to Walla Walla this weekend to do a tasting for my daughters wedding which is in September so I’m going to try and look up some of the history and museum while I am there so will report To you all next Monday about it!

I had to research the massacre shortly after starting the book, so I would be more prepared for it when it happened in the story. I had not heard of that particular massacre before. And I agree: I think the author handled the tough stuff in the story very well.

I am too far to visit the place where it occurred, but I did a virtual tour. I'm curious to hear more about it when you return, Cheryl.

I had never heard of it before this book, and I've even been to Walla Walla before just on a vacation with my husband. So it will be very interesting to learn more about it while I am there. And I agree Andrea , the author did do a great job with the tough stuff. Like I had mentioned to Andrea when we had a discussion about the sensitive content in this book, it is tough to know when to give a "warning" as to content in a book. My daughter is in the publishing industry and it is becoming more prevalent to give folks a heads up to certain content in books so as to not catch people unawares and so we decided to issue a "spoiler warning" for this one. Again, the author handled it really well, but for some even the mention of a rape is tough to read. It's funny though, I think that reading the trauma and heartache in this first book gave the book a depth that I really did appreciate.

What did you all think of the dynamics of the sisters and their relationships with each other?

Cheryl wrote: "I think that reading the trauma and heartache in this first book gave the book a depth that I really did appreciate."

Yes! You just put into words what I felt when I finished the book. :)

"What did you all think of the dynamics of the sisters and their relationships with each other?

I loved it! The sisters were each strong in their own right. They each had their own issues to face. They each brought so much to the story and their family that it felt genuine and real, as if it could have been girls in any of our families.

Andrea wrote: "Cheryl wrote: "I think that reading the trauma and heartache in this first book gave the book a depth that I really did appreciate."

Yes! You just put into words what I felt when I finished the bo..."

Yes Andra- I agree with your thoughts. Ad bing the mother of 4 girls who are each strong int heir own right in different ways :) I appreciated the sister relationships.

I also thought it was written so well when Grace was actually portrayed on the "outside of the circle" both with the women of the mission and even her own sisters after the massacre. I thought that was really well done and you could just imagine those feelings on both sides of the equation. Wow, a lot to process for all of them.

Yes! Well said, Cheryl.

I thought I had heard of this event through a different book, A Cry From the Dust, by Carrie Stuart Parks. Now that I look back at the Parks book, it involves an 1857 wagon train massacre in Utah called The Mountain Meadows Massacre.

As for the sisters...I thought it was great that they had such different personalities. I could completely understand Hope's behavior, but it was tough to "live" through it.

One of my favorite things about this story was how Hope tried to protect Mercy even though it meant taking on more pain herself. That's a selfless love right there.

Yes! Loved that too. Very motherly of Grace.