Daughters of Northern Shores

GIVEAWAY

BISCHOF, JOANNE
DAUGHTERS OF NORTHERN SHORES

Aven Norgaard understands courage. Orphaned within an Irish workhouse, then widowed at just nineteen, she voyaged to America where she was wooed and wed by Thor Norgaard, a Deaf man in rural Appalachia. That the Lord saw her along the winding journey and that Aven now carries Thor's child are blessings beyond measure. Yet while Thor holds her heart, it is his younger brother and rival who haunts her memories. Haakon -- whose selfish choices shattered her trust in him.

Having fled the farm after trying to take Aven as his own, Haakon sails on the North Atlantic ice trade where his soul is plagued with regrets that distance cannot heal. Not even the beautiful Norwegian woman he's pursued can ease the torment. When the winds bear him home after four years away, Haakon finds the family on the brink of tragedy.

A decades-old feud with the neighboring farm has wrenched them into the fiercest confrontation on Blackbird Mountain since the Civil War. Haakon's cunning and strength hold the power to seal many fates, including Thor's which is already at stake through a grave illness brought to him as the first prickle of warfare.

Now Haakon faces the hardest choice of his life. One that shapes a battlefield where pride must be broken enough to be restored, and where a prodigal son may finally know the healing peace of surrender and the boundless gift of forgiveness. And when it comes to the woman he left behind in Norway, he just might discover that while his heart belongs to a daughter of the north, she's been awaiting him on shores more distant that the land he's fighting for.

My Review:

My thanks to Diane Flowers for virtual hand holding during the duration of this read.

Well...that's just...I can't...I'm so...befuzzled? discombobulated? shattered? Unable to articulate a cohesive sentence? Sigh, all of the above.

First things first : 5 tissue box alert...in fact you might want to stockpile Kleenex (or hankies if you're the genteel type) before commencing this read. Second -- you really need to read Sons of Blackbird Mountain before starting in on Daughters of Northern Shores. You'll appreciate this story so much more once you've met the Norgaards in the first book.

Be prepared to have your heart torn out and stomped on and your nerves rattled and you might even turn blue from holding your breath before the end. because this story is that majestic and moving and awe-inspiring and just plain lose-yourself-in-the-pages absorbing.

If you are a Thor fan, be prepared for some nose-diving swooning. If you weren't sure you ever wanted to see Haakon again,  be prepared to have your mind changed and your heart softened. What an amazing redemption story! And if you just plain fell in love with the folks on Blackbird Mountain be prepared for an emotionally tumultuous journey of struggles and hope. And heartache. Mine still feels a bit bruised. Sensitive readers might want to keep some therapeutic chocolate at hand -- maybe a whole carton of chocolate chip ice cream as well. (It pays to be prepared.)

Phew!!!! Joanne Bischof is an artiste with words and a spellbinding spinner of tales and the way she weaves faith into the very fiber of this story...well, it made me weep. A not to be missed read.

Oh -- and I listened to the audio version of this book which was excruciatingly delightful! Amy Rubinate is a talented narrator and she really brought these characters to life -- including getting all the accents right!

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like a chance to win a copy of Daughters of Northern Shores, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it's easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday May 18 2019. Offer open to International Readers. Good luck!