Christy Awards Finalists 2023 – Historical Romance

What are the Christy Awards?

The Christy Award is destined to nurture creativity and quality in the writing and publishing of fiction written from a Christian worldview and showcase the diversity of genres. These 2023 finalists are books published in 2022. 

How does this giveaway work?

You select ONE of the Historical Romance finalists you would like to receive if your name is drawn. Mention the title in a comment. If you win that’s the book that will be sent to you. Easy Peasy. Here are the finalists. (I have provided links to my reviews of the books I have read.)

The Italian Ballerina by Kristy Cambron (Thomas Nelson)

At the height of the Nazi occupation of Rome, an unlikely band of heroes comes together to save innocent lives in this breathtaking World War II novel based on real historical events.

Rome, 1943 . With the fall of Italy’s Fascist government and the Nazi regime occupying the streets of Rome, British ballerina Julia Bradbury is stranded and forced to take refuge at a hospital on Tiber Island. But when she learns of a deadly sickness that is sweeping through the quarantine wards—a fake disease known only as Syndrome K—she is drawn into one of the greatest cons in history. Alongside hospital staff, friars of the adjoining church, and two Allied medics, Julia risks everything to rescue Italian Jews from the deadly clutches of the Holocaust. But when one little girl who dreams of becoming a ballerina arrives at their door, Julia and the others are determined to reunite the young dancer with her family—if only she would reveal one crucial secret: her name.

Present Day . With the recent loss of her grandfather—a beloved small-town doctor and WWII veteran—Delaney Coleman returns home to help her aging parents, even as she struggles to pick up the pieces of her own life. When a mysterious Italian woman claims she owns one of the family’s precious heirlooms, Delaney is compelled to uncover what’s true of her grandfather’s hidden past. Together with the woman’s skeptical but charming grandson, Delaney learns of a Roman hospital that saved hundreds of Jewish people during the war. Soon, everything Delaney thought she knew about her grandfather comes into question as she wrestles with the possibility that the man she’d revered all her life had unknown ties to Rome and may have taken noble secrets to his grave.

Based on true accounts of the invented Syndrome K sickness, The Italian Ballerina journeys from the Allied storming of the beaches at Salerno to the London ballet stage and the war-torn streets of WWII Rome, exploring the sometimes heart-wrenching choices we must make to find faith and forgiveness, and how saving just one life can impact countless others.

The Rose and the Thistle by Laura Frantz (Revell)

In 1715, Lady Blythe Hedley’s father is declared an enemy of the British crown because of his Jacobite sympathies, forcing her to flee her home in northern England. Secreted to the tower of Wedderburn Castle in Scotland, Lady Blythe awaits who will ultimately be crowned king. But in a house with seven sons and numerous servants, her presence soon becomes known.

No sooner has Everard Hume lost his father, Lord Wedderburn, than Lady Hedley arrives with the clothes on her back and her mistress in tow. He has his own problems–a volatile brother with dangerous political leanings, an estate to manage, and a very young brother in need of comfort and direction in the wake of losing his father. It would be best for everyone if he could send this misfit heiress on her way as soon as possible.

Drawn into a whirlwind of intrigue, shifting alliances, and ambitions, Lady Blythe must be careful whom she trusts. Her fortune, her future, and her very life are at stake. Those who appear to be adversaries may turn out to be allies–and those who pretend friendship may be enemies.

My Review: https://kavsbestreads.ca/2023/02/07/the-rose-and-the-thistle/

The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin (Revell)

When the Germans march into Denmark, Baron Henrik Ahlefeldt exchanges his nobility for anonymity, assuming a new identity so he can secretly row messages for the Danish Resistance across the waters to Sweden.

American physicist Dr. Else Jensen refuses to leave Copenhagen and abandon her research–her life’s dream. While printing resistance newspapers, she hears stories of the movement’s legendary Havmand–the merman–and wonders if the mysterious and silent shipyard worker living in the same boardinghouse has something to hide.

When the Occupation cracks down on the Danes, these two passionate people will discover if there is more power in speech . . . or in silence. Bestselling author of more than a dozen WWII novels, Sarah Sundin offers pens another story of ordinary people responding to extraordinary circumstances with faith, fortitude, and hope for a brighter future.

My Review: https://kavsbestreads.ca/2023/03/20/the-sound-of-light/

Yesterday’s Tides by Roseanna M. White (Bethany House)

In 1942, Evie Farrow is used to life on Ocracoke Island, where every day is the same–until the German U-boats haunting their waters begin to wreak havoc. And when special agent Sterling Bertrand is washed ashore at Evie’s inn, her life is turned upside down. While Sterling’s injuries keep him inn-bound for weeks, making him even more anxious about the man he’s tracking, he becomes increasingly intrigued by Evie, who seems to be hiding secrets of her own.

Decades earlier, in 1914, Englishman Remington Culbreth arrives at the Ocracoke Inn for the summer, but he doesn’t count on falling in love with Louisa Adair, the innkeeper’s daughter. When war breaks out in Europe, and their relationship is put in jeopardy, will their love survive?

As Evie and Sterling work to track down an elusive German agent, they unravel mysteries that go back a generation. The ripples from the Great War are still rocking their lives, and it seems yesterday’s tides may sweep them all into danger again today.

Bestselling and award-winning author Roseanna M. White whisks you away to two periods fraught with peril in this sweeping and romantic dual-time tale.

My Review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5250507706

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

Giveaway available to US and Canadian readers (book or ebook where available) as well as anyone who has a US Kindle account (Amazon.com) for ebook wins.

Christy Award book giveaways vary by title. Please check the list below for formats available.

The Italian Ballerina by Kristy Cambron – ebook only

The Rose and The Thistle by Laura Frantz, The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin and Yesterday’s Tides by Roseanna M. White — print or ebook

If you would like a chance to win a copy of one of the  Historical Romance finalists, leave a comment below (including the title you would like to win) 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 November 11 2023 .

48 thoughts on “Christy Awards Finalists 2023 – Historical Romance”

  1. Well, this was definitely easy peasy to choose since I’ve read all of them except The Italian Ballerina. I’m just glad I’m not a judge, because I absolutely loved all of the others. What a great group of books and amazing authors!
    whthomas13 at yahoo dot com

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  2. I’ve read Laura’s and Roseanna’s but I haven’t read a Sarah Sundin book in a while,
    so I’ll go with The Sound of Light. Thanks for the giveaway!
    tracey14567 at gmail dot com

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  5. If I were fortunate to be selected, I would love the opportunity to read “Yesterday’s Tides” by Roseanna M. White. Enjoy this author’s books and the description and your review just have me all a titter with the prospects of reading it.

    Thank you for the chance to win a copy.

    Have a great day to start off a fabulous new week!
    2clowns at arkansas dot net

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  8. I’ve read (and loved) all of these except for The Italian Ballerina, so that the one I’m requesting. Thanks for the giveaway! Jolene – iwant2save34 at gmail dot com

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  9. My favorite category! I’ve read to it before and have the third on my bookshelf. The only one I don’t have is The Italian Ballerina, so that would be my choice.

    pattymh2000(at)yahoo(dot)com

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  11. Kav, believe it or not, I’ve only read Laura’s The Rose and The Thistle in this category (and absolutely loved it and highly recommend it!) but all of the others are on my want-to-read list. I’ll go with Yesterday’s Tides by Roseanna M. White because – again believe it or not – I’ve not read one of her books yet. I always want to, but you know how it goes – too many books, too little time 🙂 Thanks for the opportunity!

    ckbarker at gmail dot com

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  12. My choice is “The Italian Ballerina” by Kristy Cambron because, believe it or not, I haven’t read a book by her yet (gasp!). Call me a cover snob, but I’m first drawn in by a gorgeous cover 😉💖 Dual-timeline seals it for me!

    teamob4 (at) gmail (dot) com

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  13. As others have said, this group of books is so good how could you ever choose one winner! I already own copies of each of these but haven’t read The Rose and the Thistle yet, but it’s getting close to the top of my TBR pile.

    Yesterday’s Tides was my first Roseanna White book, and I’m currently reading through her backlist and have loved every one of them!

    No need to enter me in this giveaway.

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    1. Aren’t you glad you’re not the one with the deciding factor? Such great books — neat that you’re up to date with them all (well, almost.) I know you’ll enjoy The Rose and the Thistle when you get to it. Happy Reading, Sandy!

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  15. All these choices are in excellent company! Haven’t read The Rose and the Thistle. Thanks! Will be especially interesting to see who the judges select.

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  16. Yesterday’s Tides was one of my favorite reads this year. Hard decision with the others but I can’t pass up The Sound of Light. leliamae54(at)aol(dot)com

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  18. Well, well, well ~ surprising even myself, I am choosing an ebook copy! Can’t pass up Kristy Cambron. It’s The Italian Ballerina for the win!
    Kathleen ~ Lane Hill House
    kathleen[dot]e[dot]belongia[at]gmail[dot]com

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      1. I realized that I totally goofed! It’s the Roseanna White one that I wanted to put as my choice. I have the Cambron book on Kindle. Sorry about that.

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  21. I’m finding it hard to pick which one to go for. I do have one already and the eBook one won’t work for our library so that leaves me with 2 hard choices. LOL Quite the dilemma huh? So I’ll go with The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin

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  22. So many awesome choices! I am going to with The Sound of Light by Sarah Sundin. It really grabbed my attention and sounds very intriguing.

    Alison Boss
    nj(dot)bossman(at)gmail(dot)com

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  23. I have read the other three already and would love to win a copy of Yesterday’s Tides by Roseanna M. White. It has been on my wishlist since it came out.

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