I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own. I seldom give a book 5 out of 5 stars. It must be a book that I will keep thinking about it. This book definitely meets the criteria. The title raises the main themes of the book: Solace (comfort) and water (baptism, birth, life, growth, drowning, death). The quote “Water for life; dirt of the dead” is an overarching summary of this book.

The book gets your attention right off the start. The death of a child which has the reader sympathizing. The book is set in the 1950s. An Amish family and a Negro family become neighbors and friends. (“Was I just a white person and … just a colored person?” or “I’d always been known by what I wore and how I lived, but not by my skin. I didn’t know what it was like to be known by my own skin.”) Each mother in these families lost a child. The pain and coping that goes with their grief binds them together. Additionally, the book effectively raises the challenges of each group during these times.

Awareness is raised of:
• Death of a child (“Water could do a lot, but I didn’t think it could bring anything back from death. Sometimes too much water caused a seed or a young plant to die.” and “I tried so hard to see his little face, but it was like I was looking through water.”),
• Loss (“…something wrong with my land because it wasn’t letting nothing grow yet. No little sprouts. Maybe what I’d sown and planted was grief so that was all I could harvest.”),
• Self-harm (“I hurt real bad because I killed my brother.”),
• Interracial relationships (“You know better than that. You know our colors don’t mix. You live your life. I live mine.”),
• Racism in the 50s,
• Alcoholism and its impact on the community and family (“the secrets … kept from the church bound us together but were also destroying us from within”),
• Forgiveness (“…it was about me forgiving myself. I just wanted to die.”),
• Grief (“…didn’t want to be touched no more. Didn’t want no pleasure—didn’t seem right.” Grief so strong that she denies herself happiness.)
• Church and baptism (“Wasn’t baptism supposed to bring you a new life? It brought my baby death.”)

Numerous times it caused me to stop and think: “…the very trees called to me. Sometimes it was in the way the wind wrapped around them and their leaves waved hello. This morning it was in the birdsong with its trill reminding me that there was something beautiful still to be cherished.”

Over and over there are lines grabbed me, such as:
“The sun was setting just on the other side of the church. It looked pretty. Pink. Purple. Orange. God was painting His love across the sky.”
“It was like lamenting over thirst while the solace of water was close at hand. But I’d remained empty, and instead of taking a long drink of healing and offering forgiveness, I’d poured the water onto the earth to satisfy the bitter roots I harvest daily.”
“Water just did what it did and got in all the cracks and went in all the emptiness it could find. It didn’t even have to try hard. It was just how water worked. Sometimes it was giving and sometimes it was taking. Because water can do both.”
“… water was alive. It just did what it did and ain’t nobody can tame it.”
“The water was the same color as my hand and the same color as Emma’s hand—but the difference in color didn’t change what it was. It was still water. And in that, I found solace.”

The book is compelling and very thought provoking. I loved this book and highly recommend it.

I received an ARC of this novel from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Sparrow was watching her baby brothers when one drowned. She is blamed for the death by her mother, Delilah, but Sparrow blames herself far more. She embarks on a path of self-mutilation and destruction. Along her path, she meets Emma who becomes a surrogate mother on her time of need.

These relationships are further complicated by a strong cultural differences between the two families and racism in their community.

This is a beautiful novel about loss, forgiveness, and healing. I absolutely love this novel.

What an excellent read. This well written novel has all the great things a great read includes love, hope, faith, strength, and determination. Its written in a time in America of great misunderstanding, miseducation, and racial hate. It is about different cultures, religions and races. But more than anything it is about forgiveness, friendship and life. This is the story of an Amish wife and mother and a black wife and mother and the secrets and lives they live. Great book. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I absolutely love, love this book. It did not take me follow to figure out that I was in for a pure delightful read; within the first few pages. Ms. Younts drew me in and made me not want to leave. The three prominent women featured in this story...Delilah, Emma, and Sparrow all had a story to tell and their voices were heard loud and clear.

I felt sorry for Sparrow. She truly was devastated by the death of her younger brother. The way her mother, Delilah lashed out at her was sad. However, I could put myself in Delilah's shoes and see her point of view. She was hurting as well. Emma also was hurting. Thus the reason that these three women were able to band together and form a close bond. What I loved is that the women saw things deeper than "skin" deep or faith. Delilah and Sparrow are black and Emma is white and Amish.

This book is truly a delightful read. It is in the top five of my list for 2018. To quote Emma:

Water pulls at us
Believe
Drawing us together
Trust
Wraps coolness around
Us
Plunge into the deep
Breathe
We are reborn
Together
Solace

This is a book that stays with you... for a long time. It's deep, heavy, reminiscent, and reflective but full of acceptance, love, joy, grace and forgiveness. It's the story of how grief covers you and takes over your being and won't let you go sometimes. The words make you feel their loss. They make you hurt for their pain. They pull you in and won't let you go. To be completely honest, at first, I thought the story was a little slow and reflective and I wasn't sure what the point was. But the writing was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. The farther I got into the story the more I loved it. Not because it became so much more active, but because I could feel the story happening. The author is brilliant at writing how people feel, how they respond to the events in their life, and how they relate to those around them because of it. Two totally unrelated people groups drawn together. The story is unique. African American and Amish together, helping each other, grieving with and for each other, becoming friends in the deepest unexpected way. I loved the metaphor of the water. Christ is our healing water, the one who can quench real thirst and give forgiveness for even the worst things. Christian references were very minimal but powerful. They don't detract from the story at all. Very tastefully included. I put this book right up there with pulitzer prize winning All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr and Kristin Hannah's Nightingale. Excellently written literary work of the highest quality. Definitely worth the time it takes to read it. It's not an easy read but it's so so good. Give it a chance and stick with it!
I received a digital copy from Netgalley. This has in no way influenced this review. I was not obligated to write a review. All thoughts are my own.

A heart-wrenchingly somber tale of three women and their lives, the pain of losing a child, the sorrow of the emptiness inside, the secrets of the families, the racial and cultural unrest of the 1950s, and the turmoil of hearts when the darkest, deepest corners of your heart and mind are being exposed to the community surrounding you.
With breathtakingly beautiful prose, the author tells a story that went straight to my heart and shattered it repeatedly with the realistic and raw grief each of the women experience in their lives.
From the hidden alcoholism, self-mutilation, manipulations of mind and body, to the blame, bitterness, and agony, the sense of failure as a woman, mother, wife, sister, daughter, a Christian, a person of the community, every emotion and event tours a new wound to the fragile souls. Each of the three women seemed to burst into dust with their own unique pain until they were able to start to heal, to let the past go, to try to start a fresh, and find a new direction and purpose in their lives.
Each of the ladies gets their turn to tell their side of the story and events unfolding, in the first POV. And through their own eyes and thoughts, the reader gets to live the moments at their side, feeling all the emotions and the despair of their minds.
While I admire and applaud this devastatingly heartbreaking novel, it might have been one of the most difficult books to read with its burdensome lessons and heartfelt messages, even of the survival and strength of women when put them through the worst hardships of life.
These ladies and their destinies have stayed with me, lingered in my mind, and made me wonder how much - if any while watching the recent events - has the society advanced with certain matters over the decades.
While there is nothing light or fluffy about the story, and it definitely cannot be considered escape-reading, this delicate tale about the racial differences, and the mother's heart and its grief, about lives in turmoil, and the growing pains of a teenager, for an open mind and heart it will give a new perspective, a new understanding, and a new respect, appreciation, and confirmation of the strength of a woman and their heart, mind, and soul. Yes, the story will shatter you, your very core being, if you let it, but it will bring the healing, mending, encouragement, and inspiration before the ladies continue their new lives with their fresh start.
A stunningly affecting and poignant story
~ Five Spoons

Thank you to Netgalley for letting me read an advance copy of this book. This is a real gem of a book and i will be buying for certain friends of mine. I was transported to the 1950's, the characters i loved and the style of writing was fantastic too. I didnt want this book to end. Fantastic read *****

I loved this book. A gentle story of two families dealing with crushing tragedy during a time of cruel injustices. The divergences of family, home, and custom weave together to create a cohesive narrative. Even told from 3 voices, the story flows seamlessly. There is much for a book club to discuss.

Christian fiction is outside the realm of what I normally read. However, the description and even cover of this book appealed to me. It certainly seemed to fall outside the typical Christian romance that is often marketed to women my age. Younts' novel didn't disappoint. The prose and descriptive writing was of high quality. The plot was interesting and the motif of water as it appeared throughout the novel kept things engaging and suspenseful. Her characters were believable and real. I thoroughly enjoyed this read and would recommend to a friend!

This book is heartbreakingly beautiful with unique prose . It reminds me a lot of Harper Lee’s writing.
I loved the time period and setting of this book and felt the characters were very believable.
This book also reminds me a lot of Sue Monk Kidd’s writing.
Thanks to Net galley and Thomas Nelson for letting me review it

Very moving and meaningful book. Difficult to read in parts, but if we truly admit it, the broken places of each of these people will speak to all of us. The imagery of the water is beautiful and ties the entire story together.
I was moved and uplifted by the redemption portrayed in the story.

Solace Of Water is a hard core heart wrenching story. It is a story of how sin and guilt can drag your Soul down and how redemption through the LORD can free it and your Soul can soar. You have to wade through all the muck and mire of sin and get to the other side to the light of CHRIST and freedom and joy to the Soul. Free from the chains of life & sin.

The Solace of Water is a book set in the 1050's. There are three women, who see life through different lenses, Each one is grieving in their own way. A book about unusual friendships and love and how water has a part to play in it.

Though The Solace of Water takes place during the 1950s, the messages are timely. The author infused these women’s stories with cultural nuances, heartrending trauma, and other memorable touches. The story deals delicately with race, secrets, tragedies, healing, grace, and forgiveness.

Emma and Delilah are diverse characters and so interesting, with unique dilemmas, yet similar needs of forgiveness. Their friendship is stirring and their journey to healing brought me to tears.

If you want a timely, touching, and memorable read that deals with cultural, social, and spiritual issues look no further. Get your tissues ready, though. It’s sure to prick your heart more than a time or two.


Cover: Like
Title: Love
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Pages: 368
First Line: My skin was the same color as the soil.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from BookLook and NetGalley.

"The Solace of Water" is a touching historical novel about women from two very different types societies coming together and discovering their similarities in the wake of personal tragedies.

The characters were sympathetic and flawed and their interactions with each other were painful and very human at the same time. I liked that the author managed to depict the women's decisions both as understandable and as heartbreaking at the same time.

I also liked that there was no easy solution to the women's problems and that the pain they endured stayed with them.

Overall, this is a very touching historical novel with flawed yet sympathetic characters.

The Solace of Water is an emotionally charged, captivating work of historical fiction. Set in the turbulent 1950's, this is the story of an African American woman and a white Amish woman and their unlikely friendship. Delilah, a preachers wife, has just moved with her family from Alabama to a little town in Pennsylvania for a fresh start after the death of their little boy. Her new neighbor Emma lives the Amish lifestyle yet harbors many secrets. Also told in the perspective of Sparrow, Delilahs oldest daughter, this is a heartbreaking story of loss, love, pain, and forgiveness. I loved getting lost in this time period. This was the first book that I can recall that shows the Amish perspective of the racial tension and I found it fascinating. The Amish were so isolated in their community that while big events were happening in the South (Rosa Parks and Dr. Martin Luther King for example), the Amish community were unaware. Emma and her community know about the racial tensions happening in their little town and I enjoyed getting their perspective of it. I loved this story, I loved the friendship as it developed between these women, I loved the insight from Sparrow. For me, The Solace of Water was ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 stars (rounded up from 4.5). Thank you @thomasnelson for this advance reader in exchange for my honest review.

What an utterly captivating read! It took me a couple of chapters to settle into this story, but by the time I finished it, I had tears rolling down my face. The burdens these women carried—some of their own making, some not—were so palpable and their characters so breathtakingly authentic, not just as humans but as products of their time and culture, that I ended up being completely transported to the world of the story.

Ironically, I think the reason it took me a couple of chapters to settle into the novel was because Delilah was so well written. Her speech patterns were very authentic for a black woman in the 1950s and, coupled to her forthright manner and her bitterness over the death of her young son, the first person narrative initially felt a bit awkward. But as I got to know Delilah better, I realised how much it added to, perhaps even defined her character.

The story was gripping in its own right, but the way it explored the dichotomous qualities of water—literally and metaphorically—added layers of depth that I’m still contemplating. Water is the source of both life and death; it soothes and it causes pain; it is a force of nature and yet ours to harness and use as we choose. And, of course, it has spiritual significance through baptism. All of these aspects are explored in the novel to varying degrees as Delilah, Sparrow, and Emma are carried along on the relentless current of their grief, their secrets, and their guilt.

This is a must-read if you enjoy a powerful story of restoration, forgiveness, and unlikely friendship.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher. This has not influenced the content of my review, which is my honest and unbiased opinion.

"Why did different cause such a reaction? If not laughter then judgment, and if not judgment then fear . Shouldn’t it cause us to seek something more valuable, like understanding? But fear and judgment were easier."

DeeDee, an African American woman grieving the loss of her son, struggles to deal with a move from 1950's Alabama to Pennsylvania. She can't let go of the anger she has for her daughter, Sparrow, who was looking after the son when he died. Emma, an Amish lady with secret sins of her own, is an unlikely neighbor-turned-friend. They all struggle against loyalty to "their people" versus the budding friendships that seem to be blossoming.

This is a book that will stay with me. Every emotion is touched on and felt by the reader. The first person rendering switches from the point of view of Emma, DeeDee and Sparrow, allowing an almost omniscient perspective.

I would highly recommend this book.

Wow! This book will easily be one of my top 10 reads of the year.

Ms. Younts is a new-to me author. This story is filled with heartbreak and anguish. It is a story of tragedy and how family members dealt with grief and guilt in their own way. It is also the story of unusual friendships that blurred the lines of race and religion in the 1960's setting. The story is told from the separate POV of Delilah, Emma and Sparrow. While I did not always agree with the decisions made by the three main characters, I was able to empathize and eager to read a happy ending. Ms. Younts creates believable and flawed characters that remain with the reader after the last page has been read.

Each of the three main characters have a strong faith, but are at a point where they question why God lets bad things happen. The resulting story of soul-searching and forgiveness is powerful. I look forward to reading more by this author in the future.


I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley and the author/publisher. I was not required to write a review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I found this book very hard to get into in the beginning no matter what I tried it just couldn't grab my interest and I found myself putting it down a lot. This book was a historical fiction book about two women. Friendship and love were the strongest themes in this book and both of them were done very well. I think it was the characters that I just couldn't relate to to much but I did like the way that it was written. The author had a way with the words that was beautiful and you don't see very often. This book was all about two women both from very different upbringings and ways of life. It was all about their interactions with things. Kind of hard to describe to much because it was almost the way that the story was written. I think that the concept was interesting but I kept getting a little confused with what was actually happening. I did like the powerful messages that this book presented and they were done very well. Overall I think that this book was well put together just wasn't the right kind of subject for me I guess, and I think that the constant point of view changes made it a little difficult to grasp even though they were nicely stated. What I did like however was the main characters they were both very strong women and it was nice to see.