Win Roots Of Wood And Stone (Sedgwick County Chronicles) Published By Amanda Wen Represented In Digital Copy

of Wood and Stone is a fabulous debut author by Amanda Wen, It is exceptionally wellwritten. There is nothing about this novel that screams "debut, "

I started listening to this book on Scribd, I was not enjoying it, It sounding interesting, but I couldn't figure out the problem, I finally realized I was not enjoying the narrator, Her voice was fine, but she kept emphasizing parts, putting her emotions into the book, For example, she would sigh at stuff that I didn't think needed a sigh, and she giggled at one point and then said "she smiled.
" I was thinking, then why did she giggle Once I got the print copy I compared it to the audio and realized I was right, she was emphasizing things that didn't need to be, which was ruining my experience of the book.
And, trust me, this is a book that you are going to want to experience!

The characters in this book have great chemistry and you can feel the intensity oozing off the pages.
It is a great romance, with epic yet clean! descriptions, For example:

"I feel as tonguetied as a schoolboy, but somehow like I've know you all my life, Looking into your eyesI'm lost, But at the same time, I'm found, Being with you feels like the cusp of a grand adventure, yet it feels like I'm coming home too, "

Is that not just the sweetest

This is a beautiful story of healing and restoration, The past and present blend together seamlessly, creating an unforgettable story, There is depth, heartache, and moments that bring out all the feels, The ending gave me chills! This is one I would like to own and read again, Roots of Wood and Stone by Amanda Wen contained all my favorite story elements: emotional depth, perfectly paced character development, and swirling romance, The characters in this beautiful story experience loss and brokenness with genuine sorrow yet, the novel is not a heavy read, By the time I got a few chapters in, Sloane and her story had me captivated to the point I read through most of the book one Sunday afternoon.
Sloane rates as my favorite character, but Jack is another favorite because hes so honest and raw about his struggles, I loved the authenticity to the characters and their journeys,

I appreciated the themes in Roots of Wood and Stone, Perhaps the most poignant for me was about finding redemption even when restoration isnt possible, Ill leave a favorite quote here: “Though painful, Papas abandonment had led her here, To Jack. To this hard, messy, wonderful adventure of a life, The Lord had indeed wrought beauty for her lifes most bitter moments, ”

Roots of Wood and Stone, Amanda Wens debut novel and first in the Sedgwick County Chronicles series, surpassed my expectations, Reading this story was time wellspent, I recommend this novel to readers who enjoy Christian fiction with romance and depth,.Stars!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I was provided a copy of this book by the author or publisher, All opinions in this review are my own,
Roots of Wood and Stone is a poignant, warm, debut novel that left me pleasantly surprised, . . with a mysterious timeslip storyline that leaves ripples in a stream for years to come, I wasn't certain I could read this because I'm suffering from Covid, but the author wrote with such clarity I had no problems at all with comprehension.
Amanda Wen is an impressive debut writer, whose future books I am indeed looking forward to!

I received a complimentary copy of this this novel from Kregel Publications via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.
All opinions expressed are entirely my own and I received no compensation, I absolutely love "Roots of Wood and Stone" by Amanda Wen, What an excellent debut novel! History, genealogy, and an excellent story in the past and present are woven together in this exceptional novel, The characters are welldeveloped, lovable, and I chuckled at their funny banter, I enjoyed every minute of it, I would love to read more about them!

I highly recommend Roots of Wood and Stone, Amanda Wen is an author to watch! "If he stopped, the pain would catch up with him, "

"She was just a diversion they were forced to deal with, The unexpected wrinkle in their carefully ironed plans, "

When Garrett Anderson dropped by Sloane Kelley's office to donate an old satchel he'd found while cleaning out his grandmother's house, neither of them knew their lives were about to change.
Sloane, annoyed that he assumed the museum would accept any old items with ties to local settlers, tries to give it back, But then the diary tucked inside catches her attention, and the adventure begins,

Sloane preserves history because she doesn't know her own, Abandoned as an infant, she's always sought answers to her roots, Websites devoted to helping connect adoptees with their birth parents haven't yielded any clues as to why her mother might have left her on a bus that spring morning thirty years ago.


Garrett is a frazzled financial planner trying to get things squared away for the longterm care of his grandmother, who is slipping away more and more with dementia.
While his sister has given up much to care for Grandma, it's getting to be more than Lauren can handle, As the numbers guy, Garrett realizes that they are going to need to sell Grandma's house in order to afford her care, but it's hard to get the place ready to sell when it's been in his family for generations.


The discovery of Annabelle Collins's diaries brings delight to the heavy task of cleaning out Grandma's house, Annabelle, a nineteenth century pioneer, started recording her thoughts as ayearold left at her aunt's house while her father went off to fight in the Civil War.
The diaries trace Annabelle's life through her journey west, her marriage, motherhood, and beyond, Annabelle's story draws Garrett and Sloane together, and some of the very truths they seek may be found within those yellowed pages,

I loved so much about this story, The themes are sweet and relatablefamily, difficult decisions, seeking answers to questions which may never be answered, sitelinkAmanda Wen brings the Wichita, Kansas, setting vividly to life, both in the contemporary and historical settings, All the characters are wellrounded, the romances will make your toes tingle, and the faith element will stir a desire to connect with God more fully yourself.
An extremely welldone debutI will be watching for more from this author!

I received my copy of the book from Read With Audra.
All thoughts in this review are my own,

This review originated at sitelink dreamwidth. org My first Amanda Wen book and certainly not my last, What a wonderful story. And I believe this is her debut novel, Well, bravo. I would have never guessed,

This story was packed with so much I couldnt possibly do it justice without giving spoilers, so I will just say the faith element was well done without being pushy.
It was simply organic to the characters' storylines, Also, I enjoyed the characters' complicated flaws revealed to us in the backgrounds that followed,

Also, read it, Its lovely. I really enjoyed this book even though I was not sure in the beginning what

to expect, A good diary story always pulls me in and this one certainly did, especially with old houses and a topic of adoption linked in it.
There are so many God Things in the book, they give heart tugs, and thus it became a page turner, I'll say I "loved this book", yes, all of it,

We flash to the eighteen hundreds and back again, and all the while you become very involved in what is Annabelle's story, and then present day dealing with the challenges life presents.
We are given a brother and sister, having recently losing their mother, are not cleaning out and taking care of their grandmother, She lives in the family homestead, but is deep into alzheimer's and they know the time is coming and hard decisions have to be made.


We also meet Sloane Kelley, a young woman who has always felt she doesn't belong, but is working at the Historical Museum, when a dusty satchel is dropped off.
In this bag is a diary that is about to change everyone's life, and we are about to be drawn into the Collin's Family, and I didn't want to leave.
This book is rich is love and history, a bit of sweet romance, both in the past and present, and a deep love of God!

I received this book through the Publisher Kregel and Read With Audra Blog Tour, and was not required to give a positive review.
Fabulous debut.
I so love novels steeped in the history of the author, This lovely dualtime book is a prime example, Ms. Wen draws on extensive research into her family tree to give us a exceptional story of life, love and lessons learned,
It is a fabulous story of Sloane Kelley who is adopted and feels the loss of her own history, She is a curator at a historical museum in Wichita, Kansas when Garrett Anderson brings in an artifact discovered when he was clearing out his grandmothers attic.
Little did Sloane know how God would use an old satchel to answer her longing heart,
Garrett is a planner but he has forgotten to enter seeking God into his plans for the future, Together, Sloane and Garrett pour through old diaries and find their life answers, There are a lot of surprises along with laughter and tears, This author knows how to write romance and sizzling kisses!
Past and present meld in a fascinating way, And at the root of it all is a lesson both generations of characters learn: we all have worth in God and He can give us more than we deserve or expect.

A complimentary copy of this book was provided by Kregel through Interviews and s, I was not required to give a favorable review, All opinions are my own, .