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When fun-loving glamour girl Quintessa Beaumont learns the Navy has established the WAVES program for women, she enlists, determined to throw off her frivolous ways and contribute to the war effort. No-nonsense and hoping to make admiral, Lt. Dan Avery has been using his skills to fight German U-boats. The last thing he wants to see on his radar is a girl like Tess. For her part, Tess works hard to prove her worth in the Anti-Submarine Warfare Unit in Boston—both to her commanding officers and to the man with whom she is smitten. When Dan is assigned to a new escort carrier at the peak of the Battle of the Atlantic, he’s torn between his lifelong career goals and his desire to help Tess root out a possible spy on shore. The Germans put up quite a fight, but he wages a deeper battle within his heart. Could Tess be the one for him? |
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Other books in this series:
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Questions about Sarah’s Story
What inspired your story?
A combination of history and characters. There were certain historical events I wanted to include in this novel, plus two side characters who screamed for their own story. Quintessa Beaumont is the kind of woman who lights up any room, a fun-loving glamour girl. She’s accustomed to attention, but she has a big heart for her friends. As a side character in the first two books in the series, she’d taken some hard knocks and was forced to take a good look at herself for the first time in her life. Now she wants to do something useful, to become a better woman. Meanwhile, Lt. Dan Avery, the oldest brother of the clan, is a no-nonsense Navy career man—today we’d call him a workaholic. I wanted to shake up his neat and tidy world, and Quintessa was just the woman to do so!
What was the hardest part of your book to write?
The mystery component. Tess’s friend, the enigmatic Yvette Lafontaine, belongs to a group of French refugees and expatriates. Evidence emerges that there is a spy in the group, and French-speaking Tess inserts herself into the group to figure out what’s going on. Juggling all the suspects and their competing motives, allegiances, and alliances was quite a challenge.
Why did you choose the year your book is set?
When Tides Turn follows the establishment of the WAVES and the Cocoanut Grove Fire in Boston in 1942, as well as the peak of the Battle of the Atlantic in March 1943 and the dramatic turning point in May 1943. Since the Waves of Freedom series covers the American involvement in the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II and the Boston home front, I really wanted to include those events.
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Questions about Sarah’s Reading
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If your job was to sell one author’s historical fiction (besides your own) which author’s wares would you want to peddle? And which is your favorite by that author? Melanie Dobson’s books never fail to astound me. She usually writes “time-slip” novels with connected contemporary and historical storylines. The depth of characterization, the thorough research, and the intricate plots always draw me in. My favorite of her novels is Chateau of Secrets, which was inspired by the true story of a Frenchwoman forced to house Nazi officers in her home…while she allowed Resistance members to use the tunnels beneath! |
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Which was the last Christian Historical Novel you read, and what was your favorite thing about it? I’ve been very behind in my reading due to a busy time in my family, but I recently read and adored Through the Shadows by Karen Barnett, the last book in her Golden Gate Chronicles, which follows the 1906 San Francisco Earthquake and its aftermath. Impeccable research made this story come alive, especially the look into slavery in Chinatown and the work done to combat it. But the characters really drew me in, wounded and flawed and desperate to make better choices in life. I highly recommend this series. |
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What Christian Historical Novel are you most excited to read that’s a new release? I can’t wait to read Laura Frantz’s next novel, A Moonbow Night, set in Kentucky in the 1770s. Her writing is simply lovely in every aspect. |
Sarah is giving away a copy paperback (usa only), and I’m giving away winner’s choice of ebook of either of the books mentioned above. Enter the Rafflecopter below!
**If you don’t want to enter Rafflecopter, tell me in a comment below: “I’m not entering the rafflecopter, but please throw me in the hat” so I can manually put you in there for a chance.**