Dixie and Dottie

 

"Remember the Lilies"

Liz Tolsma 

Interred by the Japanese, missionary Irene Reynolds comes across a mysterious note while working at the censor’s office. She memorizes the parts she must black out and delivers it to wealthy nightclub owner Rand Sterling. Before she knows what’s happening, she’s drawn into a web of secrets and danger.
Rand Sterling wants nothing more than to reopen his nightclubs once the war ends. But slimy Frank Covey wants his hand in the till—and has news that could threaten Rand’s reputation if it became public. More importantly, beautiful and intriguing Irene Reynolds cannot discover this information if he expects to persuade her to become his wife.
When Irene is attacked by a sinister Japanese guard and their secrets are exposed, they must learn the true meaning of forgiveness—if they can stave off starvation until the American troops bring freedom.

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Although I enjoyed this book, the characters never really became real to me.  Not as the characters did in "Daisies Are Forever".  Rand turned out being a lot better guy than the summary of the book led me to believe.  It was almost as if he were two different people.  Although Irene was supposed to always have a positive outlook, she didn't seem too positive to me.  Not that I can blame her in her situation, but the book portrayed her as being a positive person when she really wasn't.  Anita was my favorite character and I missed her when she wasn't around anymore.  I found myself expecting her to provide her wisdom and strong faith for Irene and was sad when it didn't come. 

"Remember The Lilies" had more gospel in it than "Daisies Are Forever" and I really liked that.  The way that the author intertwined life's lessons into the book was really good and she did without being preachy.   While the life lessons were good for me as a reader, it seemed the characters were forced to learn them, which made it almost unbelievable. 

World War II has always been interesting to me.  All of the things that our forefathers went through to protect this country still amazes me.  "Remember The Lilies" was a great reminder of the sacrifices they made for the freedom that we have today.  This book reveals things about the war and internment camps that I didn't know or never really thought about. 

The way the author included the title of the book throughout the story was lovely.  I liked the fact that she didn't just mention it once, but several times throughout. 

Read more about the book here. 

I RECEIVED THIS COMPLIMENTARY BOOK FOR FREE FROM LITFUSE FOR REVIEW PURPOSES.