A Token Of Love By Carrie Turansky

A Token of Love

by Carrie Turansky

Publisher: Bethany House

ISBN: 9780764241062

I have read all but one of Carrie's books and have loved all of them. I like that she's found her niche and creates unique stories. I am on her launch team and the publisher sent me her book for review.

Summary:

Separated by centuries, the lives of two women intertwine through their shared pursuit of love, truth, and justice.

In 1885 London, Lillian Freemont embarks on a treacherous journey to reunite with her long-lost niece, Alice, who was abandoned at the Foundling Hospital eight years ago. Fueled by her sister's plea and armed with the gold token that identifies her niece, Lillian teams up with investigative reporter Matthew McGivern to expose the grim reality of the shadowed streets of London. As Lillian and Matthew unravel the mystery of Alice's disappearance, their partnership blossoms into one of shared purpose and undeniable attraction.

In present-day London, Janelle Spencer finds herself unexpectedly running the Foundling Museum. When filmmaker Jonas Conrad arrives to document the museum's history, their collaboration takes a surprising turn as they uncover articles from the past that shed light on a haunting connection to the present. As Janelle becomes caught between exposing the truth and protecting the museum's reputation, she must decide if she can risk everything for what she believes.

My Review:

Another terrific book by Carrie Turansky! She does such a great job with time split stories. Typically my favorite timeline is historical, and that was true for this story as well. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed both of them, but I always have a propensity to lean toward loving the historical one more.

I think we as a society tend to forget there's nothing new under the sun. That includes how terribly people can treat one another. That's evidenced in this story in both 1885 and current day, but obviously in different ways. We also see that there are those who will champion a worthy cause!

First we meet Lillian, a widow, who is reunited with her estranged sister, and finds out her niece was left at the Foundling Hospital as a baby. What she learns from her first visit to the hospital takes her on a journey to unravel the mystery of her missing niece along with a handful of other young girls. She's joined (begrudgingly) by Matthew who is a reporter for a well-known newspaper. Together, they seek to find out what's happened to the girls!

While it was clear what direction this was going to take, I thought it was an interesting take on human trafficking, but not shocking because people were targeting the most vulnerable even then. I thought this time period was well written and I really loved Lillian's tenacity.

In the current day, Janelle is the acting director of the Foundling Museum. She finds out rather quickly that filmmaker, Jonas Conrad, wants to do a documentary about the museum in time for the museum's fundraising gala. What they find along the way about the Hospital's past leads them on a search for the truth! I really enjoyed following along as Janelle and Jonas learned more about the orphans, the families, and the hospital's history. It's a reminder of how difficult it can be to track down information from so long ago, but how well a puzzle can come together when you have all of the right pieces.

There was a lovely thread of faith woven through both timelines, which I always appreciate.

About the Author:

Carrie Turansky is the award-winning author of twenty-one inspirational novels and novellas and a winner of the Carol Award, the International Digital Award, and the HOLT Medallion. She loves traveling to England to research her Edwardian novels, including No Journey Too Far, No Ocean Too Wide, Across the Blue, and the Edwardian Brides series. Her novels have been translated into several languages and have received starred reviews from Christianbook.com and Library Journal. Learn more at carrieturansky.com.