A Quilt for Christmas is a heartwarming story that will melt the heart of any Ebenezer who has turned their back on life.  Melody Carlson has a tradition of writing Christmas stories that put me into the spirit of the season.  This story has been added to my "To be read each Christmas:" list. Melody has the gift of finding just the right characters we love and although they are fictional, if you look around you, there will be that special child or mother who needs you. 

Enjoy

Reviewing: Remember Me by Tracie Peterson

 from the publisher:

From the Yukon to Seattle, the hope of a new beginning waits just around the corner.

Addie Bryant is haunted by her past of heartbreak and betrayal. After her beau, Isaac Hanson, left the Yukon, she made a vow to wait for him. When she's sold to a brothel owner after the death of her father, Addie manages to escape with the hope that she can forever hide her past and the belief that she will never have the future she's always dreamed of.

Years later, Addie has found peace in her new life as a photographer, training Camera Girls to operate and sell the Brownie camera. During the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Expo in Seattle, Addie is reunited with Isaac, but after the path her life has taken, she's afraid to expose the ugliness of her former life and to move toward the future they had pledged to each other.

When her past catches up with her, Addie must decide whether to run or to stay and face her wounds in order to embrace her life, her future, and her hope in God.

my thoughts: 

Once again Tracie Peterson  delivers a story of a golden era in the history of our west.  This time, the story begins in her beloved Alaska, introducing us to Addie Bryant.  Addie endures a hardship life in Alaska with her brutal brothers and a father who looks on her as a disposable piece of goods.  She overcomes the unthinkable brutality of her brothers after the death of her father, becoming a strong woman.  Her character, developed after years of abuse was not that of a cowering woman afraid of shadows but that of a woman who is driven by a vow to never be abused again.

This is a book that gives the flavor of Alaska when the gold rush brought ruthless men into the wild, chasing after the riches gold fever promises.  Some are smart, and know when to quit and go home.  Isaac Hanson left Alaska with his family after satisfying their successful run.  He left behind Addie, who remains in his heart.

Addie, a beautiful woman determined to be successful in her own right, escapes her brothers, leaving Alaska for Seattle and a new life.  In that life, she uses her initiative to become the top photographer at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Expo in Seattle.  Addie embodies the successful woman who creates a life using all her talents and gifts.  In her heart, though, there is Isaac, who was her long ago love.

I liked this book for the glimpses of Alaska and Seattle, areas of our country the author has researched and written about extensively.  The scenery and events are so well written, her books entice the reader, perhaps, for a visit.  I have never been to Alaska, but it comes alive in this book, as does the Seattle in days gone by.  But most of all, the people in this book emerge as  vibrant and alive. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys rich characters and beautiful scenery.  I had a hart time putting it down.