This is an excellent novel you’ll love to read! Jennifer Wright always delivers stories with unforgettable characters in captivating settings. This book based both in Galveston, Texas and Hudson Valley, New York delivers a story with a powerful punch. One plot line is tied to the devastating hurricane that brought its wrath down on Galveston in 1900. The population was unaware since the Weather Bureau was in its infancy. Wright displays her master level writing skills when she describes the sights and sounds of Galveston before and after the hurricane. Her prose grabs our senses. The hurricane’s catastrophic nature comes to life with each paragraph and page turn.

The book has a strong Christian theme that is stated overtly at the conclusion. In life, people are often disappointed by family and friends. In Last Light Over Galveston, our main character. Kathleen Ann McDaniel, experiences emotional pain inflicted by her father who blurts out hurtful words just as the plot takes a treacherous turn. Her father is her only remaining parent. All his actions are driven by his greed and self-centered agenda. The disappointment he causes in Kathleen’s life leaves a gaping hole in her heart. At this point, she flees her upscale Hudson Valley home and eventually arrives at an orphanage in Galveston. She assumes a new identity and tries to hideout in this sheltered community while caring for orphans. The hurricane touches down just as she is making preparations to go on the run once again.

Kathleen eventually builds authentic bonds of friendship and mutual respect with most of the supporting characters. Wesley’s point of view shines a light on the poor working conditions and exploitation of immigrant labor at this point in history. Matthew and Maggie are characters to love. Readers will cheer for the future path Matthew, Kathleen and Maggie choose when the wind dies and the flood waters subside.

Non-fiction Christian writers encourage people to fill their broken heart’s gaping hole with faith and a personal relationship with the Lord; the One who is steadfast in love and mercy and is always for us. In Last Light over Galveston, Jennifer Wright’s novel arrives at the same conclusion. Kathleen’s earthly father disappointed her, but she finds healing for her heart through faith and her identity in the Lord. This is my honest review in exchange for receiving this ARC from NetGalley and Tyndale Fiction. #LastLightoverGalveston, #NetGalley

Immersive and gripping, LAST LIGHT OVER GALVESTON is a wonderful historical novel rich with complex characterization and vivid details. Kathleen is a relatable and sympathetic main character who will win your heart. She has been through so much. Her story is ultimately one of hope and healing.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance e-galley; all opinions in my review are 100% my own.

I was captivated from beginning to end with this story!
I live on the South Coast of Texas, only hours away from Galveston and really enjoyed the expressive way the author described life on the coast. Jennifer has a special way of making the reader feel as if they too are facing both the physical and emotional storms alongside the main character Kathleen. I enjoyed the way the story unfolded slowly revealing more and more of the troubles Kathleen faced and the people placed in her path to help her overcome them.
I enjoyed the true historical aspects of this story so much that my husband and I actually took a trip to Galveston and visited some of the locations mentioned in the story! We visited the marker where St. Mary’s Orphan Asylum used to stand and got to walk along the now raised seawall that protects the city of Galveston from any future impending storms such as the hurricane of 1900.

I highly recommend this book, 5 out of 5 stars!
Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to Netgalley for an ARC of this book. I've not read anything about the hurricane in 1900 that virtually destroyed everything on the small island of Galveston. Her writing was so descriptive and authentic that I could imagine and see the horror of it in my mind. The story of Kathleen's past and the reason she fled to Galveston was also tragic but the love and sense of purpose she found at the Convent and the people that came into her life brought hope and healing to her heart. I can highly recommend this book. The opinion expressed is my own.

This was the first book that I have read from this author and it won't be the last. Please have tissues handy while reading this book about Kathleen who has been raised in high society. After attending school overseas she comes home and wants to do more than get married to someone whom her father has picked out for her. After some horrible things happen, she takes off and goes as far as she can get, which is Galveston. Nuns at an orphange takes her in until she ages out. She has to let the nuns know whether or not she is leaving or going to go through training to become a nun on the day that a historical hurricane hits the island. Throughout the book there are flashbacks as to the reasons she felt the need to leave everything behind that she has known her whole life. The books goes into details as to the destruction that the hurricane does to the island. Will Kathleen's past catch up to her? What will happen to her and the people around her once the storm hits? I truly enjoyed reading this book of hope and survival in the midst of such devastion. Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read an early copy of this book.

I had read ISAAC'S STORM by Erik Larson and was very familiar with the Galveston hurricane, and was fascinated by one young woman's journey. Her experience in New York high society reminded me also of the Johnstown flood. I love the blending of these two historical events and the lives of women at that time. i could not put this down. Many thanks to the author.

This book was an intense depiction of what it is like to endure the wrath of a natural disaster. Even though the events in Galveston are the focus, the strong female protagonist of this story is escaping an even more momentous upheaval. She came from a life of privilege where her name and class meant everything. But that really was not who she was at the core. The mannerisms of the time hindered women for having opportunities or expecting their voices to heard. But she can’t help but speak out about the injustice and disregard from human life that is happening at her father’s hand.

She eventually comes to recognize that her Heavenly Father has been with her all along. “Sometimes God has to tear down all the distractions, all the lies in our lives, in order for us to see the truth. To see that after everything else is gone, He’s still there.”

Love this story.

I am definitely going to look for more novels by this author. It did not end with a perfect bow but was a well told story.

The main character has a massive shock to life and ends up in Galveston TX right before the massive hurricane. It was also interesting to learn about the impact of the hurricane and how everything happened.

She does a great job showing her characters - good and bad.

A young woman flees danger in high-society New York in 1900, finding shelter in an orphanage in Galveston, Texas. When her past threatens to catch up to her, she tries to flee again, only to face more danger. This was a captivating story, all in all. I hope the final edition includes an author's note where she explains the fiction and real characters that appear in the novel.

Thank you Tynedale House and Netgalley for an advanced copy to read and review.

This was an easy to read dual timeline book, only a few months apart, that came together very well.

As an Australian I knew nothing about the devastating Hurricane and flood in Galveston before reading. It was quite an eye opener. I very much enjoy a historical fiction based on events I do not know about.

The characters, while not all nice, were well written. Story was well paced and made for a very enjoyable read.

Last Light over Galveston is a very well written historical novel. I enjoyed the plot, setting and the character dynamics. I recommend this book. I received an advance ebook from the publisher and Netgalley. This is my unbiased

This is a great historical fiction book about the deadliest natural disaster in the US. I loved the main character in this book and all her growth. I grew up not far from Galveston and this book made me want to go back and take a historical tour of all the places mentioned! Definitely recommend this book for a sweet and emotional read!

I loved the setting for Last Light over Galveston. I have never read anything by Jennifer L. Wright, but I enjoyed myself, despite some sad moments in the book. She worked the ending out really well.

She had me hooked on Annie/Kathleen from the start and I was excited to read both "POV" in the story.

I have to say, a lot of the book did make me kind of sad, although I loved the hopeful relationship with God that grew throughout the book!

Overall, three stars! Really good, but I can't handle death sometimes...I will await Wright's future books!

I received a complimentary copy of this book; all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

All I have is one word Wow! What a read!
I've not read a novel about this hurricane at all! Those poor people!
When one door shuts God show those survivors that He can open another.
This story shows Hope after a long terrifying night of a disastrous hurricane.
I've been through hurricanes just living in Florida but not through a direct hit and with no warning. Wow I just can't imagine going through one with no warning!
Poor Kathleen! She's the one I found myself rooting most for.
This is a journey of learning who and what she is. This is what I mean by closing one door and opening another.
Storms do strange things but sometimes they offer new friendships in order to help each other to survive.
I didn't like Kathleen's father from the get go. I always thought he was rather shifty but just didn't know how.
I was so very happy to be approved for this beautiful novel! I couldn't put it down it was so very good. I will be adding it to my favorite shelf list.
This book has beautiful reminders of God and the He is always near no matter what.
I highly recommend!
My thanks for a copy of this book. I was NOT required to write a positive review. All opinions expressed are mine.

This is my first novel by Jennifer L Wright so I was unsure what to expect from her writing. I was pleasantly surprised with her ability to create scenery I could "see" while reading and make me feel the emotions of the characters. In the beginning, I had no idea how the two timelines (about 4-5 months apart) would intersect. Kathleen as part of society in New York and her in Galveston seeking refuge in a convent seem disjointed. By the end of the novel, I was able to see how Wright joined the two together and it didn't seem as unusual as when I started reading it.

I appreciated the pages with actual messages from the weather service at the time of the flood. As someone who lives close to Western North Carolina, this put into perspective what a resident might have felt when Hurricane Helene came through. The unpreparedness for the amount of destruction that would be experienced. The devastation, looting, unrest, and lawlessness after the flood waters receded. It was all so well crafted and pulled on my heart-strings.

I would recommend this to other readers, but the caveat that one should go into the novel knowing that not all of the novel is set in Galveston at the time of the flood.

Thanks to Tyndale House Publishers and NetGalley for the complimentary ARC. All opinions expressed are my own.

Galveston, Texas - the last stop before the Gulf of Mexico and as far as Kathleen McDaniel can run from her former life. The safety Kathleen thought she had found at the St. Mary's Orphan Asylum comes crashing down around her though as a historic hurricane slams into Galveston. Kathleen must do all that she can to ensure her survival from this storm as well as the storm of her past.

I remember watching a documentary on the Galveston hurricane when I was in middle school, so I was really excited to learn that Jennifer L. Wright had written a historical fiction book about it. Let me tell you, this book absolutely did not disappoint. I was holding my breath and sitting on the edge of my seat from the time the storm first started making its way into Galveston up until the final pages of this book. Though this is an event that occurred nearly 125 years ago, the detail and vivid descriptions that Wright provides almost makes you feel like you're there with the characters. Not only did the scenes with the storm itself hold a lot of suspense, but this book was structured so perfectly that even the chapters where more of Kathleen's past is revealed had a high level of suspense to them.

Last Light over Galveston was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025. My only regret with reading it is that I read it so early in the year that I don't get to look forward to reading it this summer!

Thank you to NetGalley for this free ARC!
"Last Light Over Galveston" is the fourth published novel from Jennifer L. Wright. She writes in my favorite genre, Christian historical fiction.
This novel follows the adventures of a young lady named Kathleen who has run away from a family tragedy to hide on Galveston Island in Texas at an orphanage run by nuns. She has "aged out" of the system, and has been given the ultimatum to either become a nun or leave the orphanage and everyone she knows and loves behind.
The story takes place in September of 1900, and there is a once-in-a-lifetime hurricane approaching. The details that Wright describes makes you feel that you are actually in the hurricane with Kathleen, from the wind and the water, the debris, even the noises and the smells come to life in her writing!
As always, Wright throws in a plot twist at the end that you never see coming. I have enjoyed all of Jennifer's books, and look forward to the next one eagerly. This is a must read for fans of historical fiction, Christian fiction, and guinea pigs!

LAST LIGHT OVER GALVESTON by JENNIFER L WRIGHT is a very well written novel in which the author describes, not only the characters and their emotions and the setting in Galveston, but also the hurricane, which takes on a hideous character of its own……
Kathleen McDaniel, a privileged young woman, comes back to her father at McDaniel Manor in New York, after two years at finishing school in Switzerland, a changed person due to her friendship with three European women, Louisa, Marguerite and Hazel, who have ispired her to think for herself and live purposefully, making a mark in the world. This does not go down well with her father or the society to which she has returned.
Something terrible happens and she escapes to Galveston to a Catholic orphanage where she calls herself Annie Odell, always looking over her shoulder to see if her father has sent someone to find her. She is living a lie but the friendships she makes there and her experiences in the storm gradually change her…….
Matthew Richter works under Joseph Kline at the Galveston office of the US Weather Bureau and believes implicitly in his boss and their scientific calculations that prove that a hurricane will never reach Galveston. Matthew is a good friend to Annie, as are Emily and Maggie, but she is afraid of being honest with them…..
It is a sad story of devastation, but there is definitely hope and a strong message of the Fatherhood of God.
I highly recommend this wonderful read.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Tyndale House Publishers. The opinions in this review are completely my own.

I couldn’t put it down. It drew me in and wouldn’t let go. A story of redemption, perseverance, and friendship through tragedy. It haves lovely faith elements. This isn’t for the faint of heart. It’s based on true events which were devastating.
Engaging Historical Fiction (Christian)
Most Anticipated Christian Fiction 2025

I received a complimentary copy, all the thoughts and opinions expressed are fine. Thank you @netgalley @tyndale

Thanks to NetGalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So the first thing that drew me to this book was the setting. Growing up in Texas we learned about the Galveston Hurricane in history but like most kids I don’t think I understood what the disaster entailed. This book was so engaging and I fell in love with the writing style and the characters. Kathleen or Annie as she’s called for most of the book is such a strong character and I was rooting for her throughout the book. I enjoyed the flashbacks as we were finding out more of her back story and almost wanted more. I devoured those chapters as we were finding out what she ran away from. Overall, I would say if you love historical fiction and finding out about pieces of history that not everyone knows about I would highly recommend this book. So engaging I would recommend to everyone.