Status
Available
Call number
Collection
Call number
F DYK
Publication
Bethany House
Description
"In the wake of WWII, a grieving fisherman submits a poem to a local newspaper: a rallying cry for hope, purpose . . . and rocks. Its message? Send me a rock for the person you lost, and I will build something life-giving. When the poem spreads farther than he ever intended, Robert Bliss's humble words change the tide of a nation. Boxes of rocks inundate the tiny, coastal Maine town, and he sets his calloused hands to work. Decades later, Annie Sawyer is summoned back to Ansel-by-the-Sea when she learns her Great-Uncle Robert, the man who became her refuge during the hardest summer of her youth, is now the one in need of help. But what greets her is a mystery: a wall of heavy boxes hiding in his home. Memories of stone ruins on a nearby island ignite a fire in her anthropologist soul to uncover answers. Together with the handsome and enigmatic postman, Annie uncovers the story layer by layer, yearning to resurrect the hope GrandBob once held so dear and to know the truth behind the chasm in her family's past. But mending what has been broken for so long may require more of her and those she loves than they are prepared to give."--Publisher description.… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member CoverLoverBookReview
My! Oh. My! Whose Waves These Are has moved me. Profoundly. I can’t begin to count how many times it made me cry—from sadness, joy, beauty.
I adore time-slip novels. Especially when both time periods pull me in equally. As I began reading, I sank into Robert’s story during WWII and its
Every single character adds to the fullness of this story. Each one grabbed firmly to my heart and became unforgettable. I truly can’t pick a favorite. I love every last one.
This is the first book I’ve read by Amanda Dykes, and she just became my must-read author. I am so drawn in by her writer’s voice. She effortlessly submerged me into the past and made me feel part of this wonderful Ansel-By-The-Sea community. Ayuh!
I wonder if I’ve ever read a novel that spoke to my soul so deeply. This story displays fathomless love in so many forms—beautiful, yearning, searching, pure, complete, and eternal.
My tears are spent. My soul is full. And I am changed.
#whosewavestheseare
#awholelottalight
#booklove
#2019favorite
Purchase Link (04.30.19 release date)
Author: Amanda Dykes
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Pages: 368
First Line (Chapter One): One minute a guy is splitting wood in the northeastern corner of the country, stomach rumbling and heart afire with ambition in the wake of his eighteenth birthday, and the next minute he’s pumping water from the old kitchen sink to clean the work off his hands and pick up a letter from the president of the United States of America himself.
Source: I was blessed to receive an advanced copy of this book from the publisher.
I adore time-slip novels. Especially when both time periods pull me in equally. As I began reading, I sank into Robert’s story during WWII and its
Show More
aftermath. I didn’t want to leave this side of the story. I was certain the contemporary layers couldn’t possibly be as intriguing. I was wrong. Annie’s story equally drew me in.Every single character adds to the fullness of this story. Each one grabbed firmly to my heart and became unforgettable. I truly can’t pick a favorite. I love every last one.
This is the first book I’ve read by Amanda Dykes, and she just became my must-read author. I am so drawn in by her writer’s voice. She effortlessly submerged me into the past and made me feel part of this wonderful Ansel-By-The-Sea community. Ayuh!
I wonder if I’ve ever read a novel that spoke to my soul so deeply. This story displays fathomless love in so many forms—beautiful, yearning, searching, pure, complete, and eternal.
My tears are spent. My soul is full. And I am changed.
#whosewavestheseare
#awholelottalight
#booklove
#2019favorite
Purchase Link (04.30.19 release date)
Author: Amanda Dykes
Publisher: Bethany House Publishers
Pages: 368
First Line (Chapter One): One minute a guy is splitting wood in the northeastern corner of the country, stomach rumbling and heart afire with ambition in the wake of his eighteenth birthday, and the next minute he’s pumping water from the old kitchen sink to clean the work off his hands and pick up a letter from the president of the United States of America himself.
Source: I was blessed to receive an advanced copy of this book from the publisher.
Show Less
LibraryThing member Becky_L
“Every wave in that big old blue sea is a story.” With these words, young Annie’s great-uncle finds a way to unlock some of her fears and turn them into something beautiful. But when she returns to Ansel-by-the-Sea as an adult, will she have the key she needs to unlock her adult fears and
Amanda Dykes may be a name I had never heard before, but by penning Whose Waves These Are she is rapidly garnering attention in the Christian fiction world. I predict this novel will win an award for a debut novel in 2019.
A time-slip book, the reader is tossed like the sea between young Annie as she grows up, a mature Annie of the present, and a young Robert Bliss whose twin is drafted in 1944.
Annie is a great heroine. One can’t help but root for her as she returns to look for her great-uncle. Will she grow enough to fit in and find her place in this seashore town? The pieces to this puzzle are more numerous than I expected and definitely include Annie’s parents. A story like this, told chronologically, would have been interesting. By creating a time-slip out of it, and adding the unexpected twists, Dykes produces a work nothing short of amazing!
Some favorite quotes:
The first and most important to me-
“Life is big. And God is bigger.”
“You’re a good man. Let me try to be one, too.”
“He wasn’t the oldest, but they both knew he was the one who had the fury of a nor’easter inside him, a fury he could use to fight.”
“She imagines people as combination locks, each bit of information a tick on the dial as she works to build up their story in her mind, to unlock them.”
“...if everything around you is broken, it’s time to unbreak something.”
When Annie is trying to figure out her purpose:
“‘The microbes,’ he says, ‘only have a single cell. And they use it to capture sunlight all day— their sole purpose. At night, when danger comes, ...they don’t run. They don’t shrivel up or hide. They release the sunlight they’ve been storing up, right into the darkness. They fight it back by lighting up.’”
Expect a small town, big hearts, sweet romances, tragedy, and miracles. Expect a blessing in this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinions, which are solely my own.
Show More
turn them to confident love and purpose?Amanda Dykes may be a name I had never heard before, but by penning Whose Waves These Are she is rapidly garnering attention in the Christian fiction world. I predict this novel will win an award for a debut novel in 2019.
A time-slip book, the reader is tossed like the sea between young Annie as she grows up, a mature Annie of the present, and a young Robert Bliss whose twin is drafted in 1944.
Annie is a great heroine. One can’t help but root for her as she returns to look for her great-uncle. Will she grow enough to fit in and find her place in this seashore town? The pieces to this puzzle are more numerous than I expected and definitely include Annie’s parents. A story like this, told chronologically, would have been interesting. By creating a time-slip out of it, and adding the unexpected twists, Dykes produces a work nothing short of amazing!
Some favorite quotes:
The first and most important to me-
“Life is big. And God is bigger.”
“You’re a good man. Let me try to be one, too.”
“He wasn’t the oldest, but they both knew he was the one who had the fury of a nor’easter inside him, a fury he could use to fight.”
“She imagines people as combination locks, each bit of information a tick on the dial as she works to build up their story in her mind, to unlock them.”
“...if everything around you is broken, it’s time to unbreak something.”
When Annie is trying to figure out her purpose:
“‘The microbes,’ he says, ‘only have a single cell. And they use it to capture sunlight all day— their sole purpose. At night, when danger comes, ...they don’t run. They don’t shrivel up or hide. They release the sunlight they’ve been storing up, right into the darkness. They fight it back by lighting up.’”
Expect a small town, big hearts, sweet romances, tragedy, and miracles. Expect a blessing in this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This in no way affects my opinions, which are solely my own.
Show Less
LibraryThing member coastandanchor
Whose Waves These Are is Amanda Dykes debut novel. What a debut it is! The story time hops from one generation to another and melds the two together. Get ready to ride on a wave of emotions and it begins with the opening chapter. As one twin brother is reading a letter from the local draft board,
**I received a review copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers and this is my honest review.
Show More
the other twin is beaming with news about a new arrival. And that is just the beginning! The characters are well developed. The setting of Ansel-By-The-Sea in Maine is breathtaking and quaint. Living by the ocean and what the sounds, smells and views do for my soul is hard to capture. But somehow the author is able to use ocean imagery and words that are deeply moving and capture your senses. You will be moved by this story and I can't promise that your eyes won't get misty. I'm always impressed when a fiction story can bring about more than just a story line but also a message filled with hope and learned lessons. Whose Waves These Are is a book that I will not soon forget. I'm looking forward to future books written by Amanda Dykes!**I received a review copy of this book from Bethany House Publishers and this is my honest review.
Show Less
LibraryThing member MM_Jones
Amanda Dykes' debut novel is a sweet, religious romance. Everything worked out all right in the end even if several characters died in the meantime.
LibraryThing member khoyt
"Whose Waves These Are" by Amanda Dykes is on my highly recommended list! It is amazing, inspirational, original, realistic, and patriotic while pointing to the God "whose waves these are". It is thought-provoking and heartwarming, putting you in the midst of a town you wish you could be a part of
Show More
with people you want to be your best friends. You will not go wrong when you pick this book up, sit in your favorite reading spot with tea or hot chocolate and submerge yourself in Ansel-by-the-Sea. Show Less
LibraryThing member Melissa_O
I have put off writing this review for a while now hoping the right words would come to me to do this story justice, but I truly don't think there are any. This book deserves all the stars and I truly believe it is one of the best books I have ever read. Amanda Dykes is such a wordsmith that I
This story is a split timeline and I loved the characters and stories for both. She is a master at weaving the two timelines together to tell a beautiful story. Historical fiction is not my go to genre, but I will read it any day from authors like her. It is obvious that she does a tremendous amount of research and the history comes alive through these amazing characters.
I am not typically a very emotional person and very rarely cry at books, but let me tell you the tears flowed while reading this book. It is such a powerful story that I promise you will stay with you for a long time.
Show More
truly believe that she could make a grocery list sound poetic.This story is a split timeline and I loved the characters and stories for both. She is a master at weaving the two timelines together to tell a beautiful story. Historical fiction is not my go to genre, but I will read it any day from authors like her. It is obvious that she does a tremendous amount of research and the history comes alive through these amazing characters.
I am not typically a very emotional person and very rarely cry at books, but let me tell you the tears flowed while reading this book. It is such a powerful story that I promise you will stay with you for a long time.
Show Less
Awards
INSPY (Winner — Debut — 2020)
Christy Awards (Nominee — General Fiction — 2020)
ISBN
9780764232664