I think this is a very important story in our country's history that needs to be told. I enjoyed the dual timeline/point of view format, but the pacing was quite slow, and I struggled to get through this book.
I like how the ending brought everything together, but it felt anticlimactic after waiting so long for something to happen.

A historical novel that skillfully explores political turmoil, land claims, and the vulnerability of abandoned children. It is rich in historical detail and captivating.
Many thanks to Random House and to Netgalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Before We Were Yours is one of my favorite books of all time. It is one that I recommend to almost everyone and that I have carried with me for so many years. You can imagine my disappointment then, when I tell you I could not get into this story. It had moments where I felt myself get excited with anticipation and then it would quickly disappear. Such a bummer, but I still consider Lisa Wingate one of my favorite authors.

Thank you Net Galley and Random House Publishing Group for my copy!

Set in two different time periods and told in two different voices, Shelterwood is a story of women and children, of love and loss, of courage in the face of injustice and most of all the act of finding the strength and bravery to fight for a place in the world - regardless of the time period. Wingate has managed, once again, to weave a tale that is both heartbreaking and uplifting. Ollie and Val are both such strong, yet vulnerable characters. The reader is constantly bouncing back and forth between pride in their fortitude and worry for their safety. Regardless, it is impossible not to be drawn to them. With an amazing array of supporting characters, Shelterwood is the whole package. It is a must read book for anyone who is looking for a hero or who looks for beauty in the ashes.

5 When the Past Comes to the Present Stars!!!

I’m a huge fan of Ms. Wingate’s writing and this most recent book is a perfect example of why I love her stories. This book takes place in both 1909 and 1990 and we go between both of these timelines every other chapter. It’s also very clear that Ms. Wingate has done extensive research on the fate of indigenous children in Oklahoma early in the 20th Century and the fate that was forced upon them by unscrupulous and evil people of that time.

In 1909 we meet Ollie and Nessa as they are on the run to find Ollie’s family home in the Winding Stair Mountains and along the way they come across others on the run and they form their own community set out to protect each other and just maybe stop the atrocities happening to the indigenous people.

In 1990 Ranger Valerie Boren O’dell begins a new life Horsethief Trail National Park not expecting to be drawn into a scandal involving a missing hiker, human bones found in a cave and a story that seems to be ever changing the more time Val spends with the little sister of the missing hiker.

This story is told with intensity and drew me in from the beginning of the first chapter. I love how the stories are wound together and while there are definitely some jarring moments, and I at times questioned how it was all going to come together because there are so many secrets and deceptions that are uncovered. This book kept me on my toes that’s for sure!! I for one cannot wait to listen to the audiobook of this as I always find with Ms. Wingate’s books I get a different appreciation of her writing and story telling when the book comes to life in my ears!!!

Let me start by saying, I truly love dual time line stories. This was a great one! I absolutely loved how they both tied together so well. Both stories are set in Oklahoma, one in 1909 and then 1990. The characters were wonderful with Ollie being my favorite. I couldn't put this book down as I was so invested in finding out what was going to happen. I received an advanced readers copy and all opinions are my own.

Thank you Random House Publishing from Netgalley for the ARC! I really enjoy Lisa Wingate's dual POV takes on historical fiction. I really enjoyed the story of Ollie and the "elf children" that brought awareness to yet another way Indigenous people were wronged. It took me a while to get into the story, but it was very good.

Shelterwood, by Lisa Wingate was such a pleasant surprise. I thoroughly enjoyed this work of historical fiction and the story of the elf children and the strong women who fought for their rights. I enjoyed the dual timeline, but found the conclusion a bit rushed after a ton of buildup. Overall, I enjoyed the unique voices and perspectives and was fully immersed in the story. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC. I look forward to discussing this one with friends!

My Rating: 4 stars

I’ve been quite a bit behind on my leisure reading as of late and while I hope to catch back up as soon as possible, the reality is that it will be a challenge with peak summer reading right around the corner. In addition to being busy with work and school, a few of my favorite authors actually have books coming out this summer, so it goes without saying that I will definitely be doing some prioritizing over the next couple weeks in order to get to everything. With that said, I’ve been able to squeeze in a May / June new release here and there. This time around, the book is Shelterwood, the newest release from Before We Were Yours author Lisa Wingate.

When it comes to dual timeline historical fiction, I usually prefer the past timeline over the present one, but this time around, I felt that the present timeline, which took place in 1990, was much more engaging than the one from 1909. I think this might be because for most of the 1909 narrative, I had no idea where the story was headed – the pace was slower, some parts didn’t feel entirely believable, and few of the scenes seemed a bit too farfetched, a little like drama was being created for drama’s sake. The 1990 narrative, in comparisons, moved at a much faster pace and I felt more invested in the story (though I noticed these sections were much shorter than the historical narrative, which made the overall pacing much slower than I would have liked). Having said all that, I like that Wingate brought both timelines together in a way that was meaningful and memorable; in all honesty, that moment when all the pieces started falling into place and I finally understood the historical situation that Wingate was trying to shine a light on was when I truly became engaged in the story – though I wish it hadn’t taken so long (more than half the book) to get there.

I love historical fiction because of the way the genre makes history so interesting and I always learn something, even if I’m already familiar with the subject matter I’m reading about. In this case, I knew nothing about Oklahoma’s history and the guardian system that indirectly sanctioned the stealing of land from indigenous children, so I appreciated getting to learn about this (though I highly recommend also reading the Author’s Note, as Wingate recounts the history in way more detail and, for me at least, clarified a few aspects of the narrative that didn’t make a lot of sense at first).

Lastly, I wanted to put in a quick mention about the characters. My favorite stories are the ones with strong, tenacious female protagonists who aren’t afraid to go against the grain – both Ollie (from the past narrative) and Val (from the present narrative) were precisely this kind of protagonist, which I absolutely appreciated.

This one is definitely recommended, though a little bit of patience is needed to reach the payoff at the end. For me, it was worth it!

Received ARC from Ballantine Books via NetGalley.

This is a beautifully told tale spanning dual time periods in Oklahoma. Both the main characters, Olive and Valerie, are grappling with significant personal issues, which are deftly explored. The character development and dialectical writing Wingate uses is magnificent. The plot will keep readers hooked through the entirety. This will be a huge hit with book clubs.

Historical fiction stories on topics of which I know nothing about usually end up being among my favorites. Shelterwood is just that. It begins with enough mystery and intrigue that immediately piqued my interest and through a dual timeline narrative weaves a story of the lost and abandoned children of Oklahoma in the early 1900s as well as a national park ranger trying to solve a mystery in her park in 1990, upholding her duty to protect national lands, all the while meeting a lot of judgment and threats both from her male colleagues and the town's powerful men.

What I enjoyed about this book: The writing in this book is really beautiful and paints such a vivid picture. Once I finished the book and really thought about how much detail the author included, I was left even more impressed with this author's storytelling and research abilities. Additionally, I have always been fascinated by national parks and the job of a park ranger so I really enjoyed that aspect of the book. And, of course, I appreciated learning about a time and place that I really know nothing about.

What didn't work for me: The story builds very slowly so you must be patient and at times, I confess, I grew tired of the slowness. But, I was intrigued by how the two narratives would come together and never considered not continuing the book.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one and would recommend to all historical fiction readers.

Thanks to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for the advanced digital copy.

The Search

This is a dual timeline story. The first story being in 1909 Oklahoma. It follows several cast-away children as they struggle for survival in a wilderness because of intolerable conditions at home. They are brave, courageous and do what they must to survive. It is also the story of two children looking for a father that left to find gold in Colorado and never returned and their search to find him. Some kind people that helped them along the way, including a card shark, two sisters, and others.

The second storyline is about a young widow raising a son. She is working for the forest department and discovers a mysterious cache in a cave which goes back to 1900’s. Her story is following the mystery even though she is told to let it be. She cannot do so until it is solved.
The way these to stories are tied together is sad, but is the way things were in the 1900’s. You will have a good time trying to guess her mystery and also the story of the children searching for their father which ends on a happier tone.

This was a great read and I enjoyed it immensely, and I think you will as well.

Thanks to Lisa Wingate for writing a great story, to Random House Publishing for publishing it and to NetGalley for providing me with a complimentary copy to read and review.

I was engrossed in this novel from the start. I enjoyed the two timelines set in eastern Oklahoma which overlapped the injustices done to many of the Chocktaw people and children. It is a story I knew nothing about even though I have traveled the area many times. The author took a complicated topic and made it easy to follow and certainly made one want to see history take a different path. I thought the added part regarding women trying to stand up for these lost and abadoned children quite compelling.

The more modern part of the story being set in a National Park service area was a bonus. I enjoyed reading about the area and learning some history behind this small part of the country. The Chocktaw nation is still very much a part of Oklahoma and it's culture. It was wonderful to see the follow up to the children's story later in the novel.. Thank you Netgalley for the chance to review this book.

Shelterwood is another gripping historical novel from the author Lisa Wingate. Told in alternating points of view. In two different time periods. We learn about the tragic history and continued destruction near the rugged Winding Stair Mountains in Southeastern Oklahoma. Both time frames feature little girls that are frightened and but yet resilient. who fight their own way to survival.

This was such a fantastic story. Lisa Wingate has such a wonderful way of weaving history in her stories. Her writing is beautiful and her characters had a complete hold on me. I will 100% recommend Ollie and Nessa’s story!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced copy.

This book is historical book told from two time frames 1909 & 1990 and is based on true historical events. Every chapter or two was told from a different time which made it hard to follow. 1 chapter its current time and we are with Valerie a new park ranger and the next chapter we are in 1909 with Olive & Nessa who are fleeing children in 1909. As the stories go on especially in 1909 I found myself having to go back and reread entries because I felt like I might be missing something. I couldn't imagine for the life of me how these 2 stories had anything to do with one another. Clearly there was an immense amount of research done in order to put this book together the way that Lisa Wingate did.
I really enjoyed how it all came together the last few chapters.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this advanced reader copy.

This story is told in alternating dual timelines of 1909 and 1990 Oklahoma. The former timeline follows an eleven-year-old girl named Olive Augusta, or Ollie, as she flees an abusive situation with her “sister” Nessa, a Choctaw girl, to the woods where they try to avoid capture and find provisions in the hopes of starting their own community they name Shelterwood. The latter timeline follows park ranger Valerie Boren-Odell new to the territory, but not the job, as she investigates an unofficial report of a missing teenager and the bones of three children that were found in a local cavern against her superior’s instruction with the assistance of a tribal police officer, Curtis. The chapters are preceded by excerpts of various news articles giving the reader information about the land barons given guardianship over the orphaned native children and their properties as well as other pertinent stories.

I really enjoyed following Valerie’s storyline. I’m a pushover for a story about a park ranger anywhere. Valerie is raising a young son on her own after losing his father who was also a park ranger. Charlie’s in school now and Valerie is ready to get back to work, but her new boss is clearly not happy that his new ranger is a female relegating her to desk duties and checking permits while sending less experienced personnel off to do the big stuff. I enjoyed her collaboration with Curtis and some of her interactions with the other rangers. I eagerly followed her investigations.

In the beginning I also enjoyed the parts that followed Ollie as she navigated survival in the woods and taking care of Nessa. Ollie was precocious with a knack for survival and weaving a story, though sometimes she didn’t know when to stop. I found this part of the book summary misleading. The story is from the point of view of the child, not the pioneer women who fought for them. I eventually tired of the children squabbling about who was in charge and one boy for making trouble causing me to resent the interruption in the timeline.

Just when the former timeline was ramping up, the stories merged, and I felt like I lost direction. The ending felt a little rushed and confusing in the telling as one of the characters explains what happened at Shelterwood and how the latter story fit into the whole.

Overall, I really enjoyed parts of this novel. The characters were well written, and the plot was an important part of history that should be explored.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ballantine Books for a copy provided for an honest review.

Excellent book! The plot with different places in time was spot on. It took place in the same area but switched between different decades. The generational ties made sense and it was a hard but beautiful story. Recommend.

I have enjoyed many of the books I’ve read by this author. However, this one did not appeal to me. Though she did thorough research about the topic and time period and presented a story that should have been interesting, it just did not resonate with me. The journey through the pages was slow. I typically enjoy dual timeline historical fiction books. But this one was a trudge to get from beginning to end. I literally had to force myself to finish reading it. However, there are plenty of very positive reviews. So I would encourage you to read the book and decide for yourself if it appeals to you.

Thank you to NetGalley and Ballantine Books for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own.

For more reviews, please visit my blog at: https://www.msladybugsbookreviews.com/. Over 1000 reviews posted!

Thank you so much to NetGalley, Ballantine Books, and Lisa Wingate for allowing me to review this wonderful book. Lisa Wingate is a phenomenal author who always writes the most interesting and well researched books. I love how she weaves real historical quotes and events into her historical fiction. She often writes about little known events such as the storyline for this novel. If you love historical fiction then you will love this novel as well. This book is told in two timelines by two different perspectives and each timeline and character is equally fascinating as the other. I highly recommend this book. Thank you again for allowing me to review this book. It will stay with me for quite some time.