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What You Said to Me by Olivia Newport Review

 Hello Everyone :)

I pray today finds you all doing well, and I'm so thankful you chose to stop by The Preppy Book Princess for another book review.

I've long been a fan of dual timeline novels, and in particular, I love ones that have a mystery that connects between the past and the present.

A couple of years ago, my aunt had told me about the Tree of Life series by Olivia Newport, and it sounded like something I'd definitely enjoy reading.

I've read and reviewed the first three books on my blog previously, and you can check out those reviews using the links below:

The Inn at Hidden Run

In the Cradle Lies

When I Meet You


I hope you'll all keep reading down below for today's full review.


What You Said to Me by Olivia Newport:



Source: Library

Publisher: Barbour

Publication Date: November 1st, 2020

Genre: Christian Fiction/Dual Timeline

Series: Tree of Life


Synopsis:


A Father-Daughter Genealogy Team Link Present to Past on Family Trees
 
When 15-year-old Tisha Crowder gets caught shoplifting, attorney Nolan Duffy tries to protect her from consequences that could rattle her already troubled life. His daughter, Jillian, feels like she’s the one being punished instead—by having Tisha assigned to work with her on a backlog of genealogy files. Tisha doesn’t seem interested in taking the job seriously, and Jillian’s patience wears thin. Besides, everyone in Canyon Mines knows the Crowder family has experienced generations of brokenness. Then a sliver of hope turns up in long-ago words in plain sight, challenging shrouded assumptions about Tisha’s family. Now Jillian is the one who can walk with Tisha back to 1893 and uncover where everything went wrong in the first place—and save her from the past. 
 
What You Said to Me is the fourth book in the Tree of Life series by Olivia Newport. You’ll want to return to the lovely Colorado mountain town of Canyon Mines again and again to explore and celebrate unforgettable family stories that will inspire you to connect with your own family histories and unique faith journeys.

(synopsis from goodreads)


My Review:

What You Said to Me is the fourth installment in Olivia Newport's Tree of Life series, and I appreciated that the story kept me engaged right from start to finish. I wouldn't say this was my personal favorite of the series, as that honor still goes to In the Cradle Lies, but I did love the fact that this title brings a troubled teen named Tisha Crowder into Nolan and Jillian's life, and I thought it added a unique element when compared to the rest of the books in the series.

Nolan decides to give Tisha a chance at helping Jillian with a big genealogy project in order to complete her mandated hours of community service. When the father daughter duo start to realize something more is at play with her horrible attitude, they end up discovering secrets from the past that connect Tisha's family history with the town of Canyon Mine's history back in 1893. As they all work together to break the barriers that Tisha's struggling to hold onto, Jillian and Nolan will learn that family is sometimes more complicated than anyone could expect, and sometimes history doesn't play out in a way that anyone could predict. 

With immersive storytelling, characters that have come to feel like old friends, and an idyllic small town setting, What You Said to Me is another wonderful story by beloved author Olivia Newport. I continue to appreciate the originality of this series in choosing to focus more on the genealogical side of things rather than on romance or conflict between the main characters. I thought it was an interesting tidbit bringing in some of Nolan's work as an attorney into the mystery element within this one, and it definitely did not disappoint.

The only downsides for me personally was that firstly, I wish the faith element was stronger within this series. There's so much potential for these characters doing the Lord's work, and bringing the gospel to the hurting souls they're constantly coming into contact with. It just feels like a missed opportunity. Secondly, I continue to feel that Jillian and Nolan can both come across as pushy and nosy in the way they're constantly forcing their way into situations. I'm glad it usually works out in their favor, but it can get a tad annoying at times.

Overall though, I wholeheartedly enjoyed this one, and would definitely recommend it. I'm hoping to get around to reading the fifth book in the series soon.

Final Rating: 4/5.

Thanks so much for reading guys! Have a great rest of your day :)

This is not a sponsored post. All thoughts and opinions are my own. The photo does not belong to me, and all rights to the respective owners.




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