This was a good addition to the series. Would definitely recommend. The prejudice against the Japanese was sad. Can’t imagine people feeling that way.

This sweet story of love and forgery set at the Seattle Exposition was superb. The culture of Japan was beautifully displayed. I cherished the romance between Lee (a policeman) and May (an artist). That May was half white, half Japanese (and the racism and prejudice of the era) was a main theme of the story, and I loved how the author approached this. May was my favorite character for how she treasured the culture of both parents and had a heart bent toward learning more about the heritage with which she was less familiar. Beautiful!

Content: suicide, breastfeeding

This is book three in the Pictures of the heart series, I feel it is a stand alone book, however you do miss some history of the town and some of the sub characters, but you will have no issue keeping up. We did meet May Parker in previous books, but here is where we really do get to know her. When May runs into her childhood friend Lee Munro she is so excited and can not believe her good fortune. Lee and May are working together to try to catch a thief. This is a great read and I enjoyed this entire series. I was given a copy of this book for my honest opinion.

May, an artist of American and Japanese descent, struggles with her Japanese identity. At home, her mother won't speak of her heritage, leaving May with questions and silence. A childhood friend, long lost to May, enters the picture at the World's Expo held in Seattle in 1909. The friend, Lee, serves as a detective with the police force. He has been in pursuit of an art forger for several years. Rumor has it that the forger is planning a heist at the Expo.
Lee is of European descent and his family has great prejudice against Asian people. When he picks up his friendship with May, his parents and brother are aghast. They disapprove and go to great lengths to make it known.
Of course, Lee and May must sort out how to move from friends to sweethearts when all is against them. And, they must work together on the capture of the forger.

I really enjoyed this end to what has been a very fun series! I had already enjoyed getting to know May in the previous books, and getting to know her backstory was so enjoyable while also a little heart-breaking. It's so hard to read about racism and know how real it was and how alive and well it still is in many places today. Lee was such a wonderful hero, very noble and full of integrity. It was also really fun getting to check in with the characters from the previous books and see how they have changed and grown. All in all, an excellent series all around!

I received a complimentary electronic copy of this book from NetGalley.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Knowing You by Tracie Peterson.

I have had the chance to Zoom with Tracie Peterson last year for a Book Club meeting. She is an amazing person and author. I loved hearing how she got into writing and how her career has advanced. The amount of research that she does for her books is incredible. She really makes sure that facts are correct.

This is the third book in the Pictures of the Heart Series. This series takes place during the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition. May the main character is employed as a camera girl for the exposition. May is an Asian American who has a desire to learn more about her Japanese heritage. This book is filled with rich history, suspense, racism, friendship and strong Christian faith.

This was a wonderful conclusion to Tracie Peterson's Pictures of the Heart series. I really enjoyed all three books and the setting of the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in Seattle in the early 1900's. May and Lee's romance was so sweet and I loved the added mystery. I also liked learning a little more about Japanese history - I always feel it's a bonus when I learn something new in a good book!

This is easily a stand-alone novel but I feel it is so much better if read after book 1, Remember Me, and book 2, Finding Us, as all the main characters are "Camera Girls" who work together at the Expo. I also listened to the audio and loved it.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read and review. All opinions are my own.

Publication date: 7 November 2023

May Parker is painting pictures at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition. She desires to learn more about her Japanese roots and finds herself part of a crime. She is reunited with a childhood friend Lee Munro and feels connected as if 10 years hadn’t passed by. The two work together to figure out to solve the crime. When sparks fly, they have to find ways to overcome the feelings of others around them.

I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition through this book. It also revealed many of the events and attitudes of people during the time frame in history. I enjoyed getting to know May and the process of an artist painting the pictures.

This book was part of a series, but I was able to read this book without knowing all the details from the other books. I believe that the book would be enhanced after reading the other books in this series. I would recommend this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book. All opinions are my own and I was not required to leave a positive review.

I enjoyed the authors previous story in this series, however, this one was much more challenging for me to read. Racism and hate crimes are a part of the story’s backdrop and were true to the time period. I struggled greatly the characters that perpetuated this racism.

I did manage to stay with the story and enjoyed the mystery and subterfuge that unfolded. May was an endearing character, as well as, Lee. This would be a good choice for anyone that is looking for a faith-based book, who loves a good reunion love story, and enjoys a little mystery along the way.

I thoroughly enjoyed this imaginative historical tale, which provided plenty of tension and suspense, along with a sweet love story where childhood friends reunite, set during an actual historic event—the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition held in Washington State in 1909. The full-fledged characters come across as totally real, authentically flawed and vulnerable yet endearing and growing despite the pain and prejudice they must each deal with. And readers root for them to outwit the villains. The setting of a world’s fair is easy to picture in your mind as the author brings it to life on the page. And if you appreciate art, you will admire the talented female artist portrayed here. I have not read the other books in the series, but that didn’t inhibit my experience with this delightful novel, although some incidents are mentioned in the text. I do want to read the preceding books too. I received a copy of this novel from Celebrate Lit. All opinions are my own.

This is my favorite book in this series. It deals with some hard subjects such as prejudice and interracial marriages. There is also lots of mystery, intrigue, fun historical facts, and of course a bit of romance.

I was provided a copy of the book from the author/publisher. I was not required to post a positive review and all views and opinions are my own.

Knowing You by Tracie Peterson is the third book in the Pictures of the Heart series and a definite must read if you love inspirational historical romantic suspense.
May Parker and Lee Munro find themselves reunited after ten years apart when May is working as a Camera Girl at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition and Lee is the police detective assigned to keep a watchful eye on the exposition.
However May soon finds herself in danger when a suit of samurai armor in the Japanese exhibits becomes the target of a heist by an elusive art forger. Lee will do everything he can to not only protect May from the potential threat, but he will also make sure that whatever odds are stacked against them that their love will overcome them.
I enjoyed this story and look forward to reading more books by this author in the future.

I was given an ARC from the author/publisher. All conclusions are mine and mine alone.

This was a story about an artist who is of mixed heritage and the prejudice against her for her birth. May Parker's mother is from Japan and her father is a well to do American businessman who fell in love. May loves both her parents and has a deep passion to know her Japanese history, one that her mother will not speak of. May is also a talented artist working at the Seattle Exposition where a very valuable suit of samurai armor is on display.

That armor looks to be a notorious art forgers next crime, and Detective Lee Munro has been searching for him for five years. Only to be thwarted time and again. Lee did not realize that he would also be running into May, his childhood friend and first love after ten long years. He has missed her greatly, but never thought he had a future with her due to his parents' strong prejudices.

As Lee and May rekindle their friendship, a love begins to form a strong bond between them as well. They have a lot stacked against their relationship. Not only is danger coming from the art forger, who will stop at nothing to accomplish his goals, but Lee's entire family is against them as well. A bit of adventure awaits these two before they can settle down.

I enjoyed this trip to the early 1900's Seattle. I found the story of May, her heritage and what she faced interesting. I liked Lee and his passionate desire for her, and his unwavering will to catch the predator.

I was provided a copy of this novel from the publisher. I was not required to post a positive review and all views and opinions are my own.

My first book I've read from Tracie Peterson and I'm so glad I chose to read this book. I highly recommend it. May Parker experiences harsh prejudice right from the get go from ignorant hateful people because of her heritage. May and Lee Munro were the best of friends as children, but sadly, Lee's family moved away. Fast forward ten years and they bump into each other at the Japanese exhibit. There is some action and suspense as May inadvertently gets involved with Bianchi, the dangerous artistic thief that Lee had been trying to capture for many years. I'm glad to say in the end love finds a way. It's a story of endurance, patience and faith in God and is wonderfully portrayed by the cast of characters.

I really liked how the author wrote about how God and prayer works in our lives pretty consistently. Something I wish all Christian books could do on a regular basis. I received this e-book for free from Celebrate Lit Tour and the opinions I express are honest and my own.

I had read the previous books by this author and wanted to give her another shot. I did not get very far into this story. The repetitive nature of the Alaska Exhibit combined with the surgery, out of place blunt Christian references just put me off. I might come back someday to finish the story but I just couldn't get past the "God.... " lines.

Knowing You
by Tracie Peterson
Pub Date 07 Nov 2023
Bethany House,Bethany House Publishers
Christian| Historical Fiction| Romance



I received a copy of Knowing You to review from Bethany House Publishers and Netgalley:


Is a captivating art exhibition the key to love -- and truth?



A budding artist, May Parker, is captivated by the Japanese exhibits at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition and longs for more information about her mother's heritage, which she doesn't talk about because of the heartache she left behind. In order to see more of the exhibits, May works as a Camera Girl--but her curiosity leads her into danger when an elusive art forger targets a suit of samurai armor.



May reunites with childhood friend Lee Munro, a police detective assigned to keep an eye on the exposition after ten years apart. Their friendship immediately blossoms, but when their love is threatened by a dangerous heist involving samurai armor, can they overcome the odds?



I give Knowing You five out of five stars!


Happy Reading!

I really enjoyed this story. I loved how we got to see what it would have been like for a half Japanese/half white woman at a time when there was a lot of prejudice against any person of color but especially those of Asian descent. I also liked seeing how May and Lee were willing to give up anything to be together. I also liked how they tried to help others to see that May was a child of God just like them and to not judge her based on her nationality. I liked seeing their faith. I also liked the mystery of them trying to stop an art thief. I thought that was a fun plot line. I have enjoyed the books in this series and all the things I have learned as I have read them.

I received a complimentary book from publishers, publicists, and or authors.  A review was not required and all opinions and ideas expressed are my own.

1909 Seattle, Washington

This has been a great series set in the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition with the main characters of each novel employed as a Camera Girl inside the exposition.

May's father is a white American and her mother Japanese. She doesn't fit into either group as whites see her as Japanese and the Japanese see her as white. As a talented artist, May has found a place where she fits in well. She does a great job of adding color to photos for exposition guests that want this added service done to their photos. May has also found a great group of friends among the camera girls. Her only area of lack is she would like to know more about her Japanese heritage.

As a law enforcement officer, Lee is assigned to the exposition and rediscovers his childhood friend May at the Japanese exhibit. Lee is on the hunt for a infamous forger.

Lots of great messages in the pages about seeing others for who they are inside.

It is no surprise to me that the author has written a book that is a subject not written about very often where we see the human side of racism. It unfortunately is here and has become more of an issue than ever before. I will never grasp the concept of why people think that it is acceptable to belittle other nationalities, judge them, harass them, bully them and treat them less than human. We are all here because God put us here. We are to work together and become united. As you read this story you will witness the senseless hurt and shame put on a particular culture that is rich in history.

May wants to know more about her mother’s heritage and sets out to find out about the Japanese and how her mother was raised. May yearns to know the history about the Japanese and discovers some intriguing facts about herself as well. The author is known for her exquisite ability to draw historical facts into a story and create a realistic look at the time period. I was ready for my journey to begin. So here we go readers as we sit back and allow the words to paint a picture on what racism looks like and how it can change if we take the first step to stop it.

This is a beautiful story where we learn about the Japanese culture and how a young woman yearns to know her ancestors. She is faced with cruel comments and prejudice from others because of her nationality. May has a strong faith that sees her through many difficult times. It is hard not to be upset as we witness the racism people have faced in the past. I think it also reminds us that racism is still active now and we need to do better.

I loved how May and her dear friend Lee from childhood meet years later. Their friendship has latest all these years so it seemed natural for them to pick up where they left off. The author does add a bit of romance along with a mystery that keeps readers on their toes. I think this is one of the author’s best books and I highly recommend it to all readers.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

I have always had the pleasure in reading Tracie Peterson’s novels and her newest release, Knowing You, is no different. This third installment from her Pictures of the Heart series is by far my favorite I have read by her to date. I adored getting to know the main character, May. I particularly loved her interactions with Lee. The two get involved in lot of suspense, adventure, and action. I wanted to find out how it would all end for them and read the whole book in one sitting.

Five stars is what I give Knowing You. I highly recommend it for readers who enjoy reading clean historical fiction. I will most definitely be looking out for more releases to come from Tracie Peterson,

I received a paperback copy of Tracie Peterson’s Knowing You from the publisher, but was not required to write a positive review. This review is one hundred percent my own honest opinion.