Austin Returns with a Multi-Generational Historical NovelGeesje de Jonge crossed the ocean at age seventeen with her parents and a small group of immigrants from the Netherlands to settle in the Michigan wilderness. Fifty years later, in 1897, she’s asked to write a memoir of her early experiences as the town celebrates its anniversary. Reluctant at first, she soon uncovers memories and emotions … memories and emotions hidden all these years, including the story of her one true love.
At the nearby Hotel Ottawa Resort on the shore of Lake Michigan, twenty-three-year-old Anna Nicholson is trying to ease the pain of a broken engagement to a wealthy Chicago banker. But her time of introspection is disturbed after a violent storm aboard a steamship stirs up memories of a childhood nightmare. As more memories and dreams surface, Anna begins to question who she is and whether she wants to return to her wealthy life in Chicago. When she befriends a young seminary student who is working at the hotel for the summer, she finds herself asking him all the questions that have been troubling her.
Neither Geesje nor Anna, who are different in every possible way, can foresee the life-altering surprises awaiting them before the summer ends.
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Captivating! Love the history of the family immigrating from the Netherlands.
Waves of Mercy #1 Waves of Mercy by Lynn Austin
Waves of Mercy is actually two stories interwoven alongside each other over a span of 50 plus years of two women searching for answers. The author weaves between the two timelines expertly, keeping the reader captivated by their stories and thereby turning the pages to learn the outcome of their lives. It is full of historical details, coupled with visual details, that brings the characters to life and the era they live in during the mid 1800s to the end of the century. The stories of Geesje and Anna are touching and heartwarming as we read of the tragedies and heartbreaks they have suffered and overcome. But it is a story of courage, strength and strong faith; a faith that carries them through struggles, surprises, joys and all that life has in store for them. I appreciate the spiritual elements woven within the story-lines and the characters lives. The lessons Geesje learned of how God is in control in all areas of her life are not always easy lessons. Lessons Anna soon learns as well. A remarkable, heartwarming story.
Lynn Austin has woven a riveting tale about what it was like to immigrate from Europe to the U.S. My own grandmother immigrated from Czechoslovakia but I never had any idea of what that might have been like for her and her family. The story is heart wrenching, filled with many difficult choices and discovering what it really means to trust God in the midst of really difficult circumstances. I love Holland, MI and now I have an even greater appreciation for it as well as the freedom I have to worship how I choose.
I love Lynn Austin stories and this was no exception.
I feel like a time traveler who’s returned to the present day after a memorable visit to the late 1800’s. Without leaving the comfort of my home, Waves of Mercy brought me across the Atlantic ocean with Geesje De Jonge and her family. They are fleeing the Netherlands with their entire community in search of religious freedom in America. Every aspect of their journey was arduous, and the land that greeted them was untamed. When all manner of affliction assailed their small Dutch colony in western Michigan, they held fast to God — trusting.
1897 is the starting point for Anna Nicholson and Geesje’s stories. Readers gain insight into Anna’s life through her dreams as well as dialogue with other characters, like her mother and a hotel worker named Derk. On the other hand, Lynn Austin cleverly allows Geesje to write her life’s history (for us to read) at the request of her town’s Semi-Centennial Committee.
Waves of Mercy tossed my emotions about like a ship in a storm. In an overtly Christian novel where the people question their circumstance in relation to God’s goodness, His will, and their willingness/unwillingness to obey; the characters were relatable, yet not always admirable. At times I felt the story was about to be capsized by sadness, but my lasting takeaway was how all the trials produced perseverance and maturity of faith. Awash in history, complex characters, and highly emotive writing, Austin’s latest is not to be missed!
I received this book free of charge from the publisher. The opinions expressed are my own.
Loved it.
Another book by Austin with complex characters who learn life’s lessons including consequences of not seeking God first in making decisions and finding and choosing Him in the first place. Set amid the setting and time of the Chicago fire, steamship shipwrecks on the great lakes, and the preaching of Moody, you will find plenty of twists, turns, inspirational thought, and romance in this book.