BEEtween the Pages: Adventures in Odyssey: Take It From the Top (Volume 51)

Adventures in Odyssey's Take It From the Top includes 9 different stories offering hours of entertainment for children and their parents. Featuring the Parker and Jones families along with John Avery Whittaker of Whits End and his eccentric assistant Eugene, this volume contains creative and thought-provoking stories that will teach valuable moral lessons to your children, such as storing up treasures in heaven, the importance of family, and responsibility.

I was first introduced to the Adventures in Odyssey audio series when I was child, listening to it on the radio on road trips with my family. Many years later as a mom of a preschooler, I was thrilled to discover that Focus on the Family and Tyndale Publishers are still producing this family-friendly series. Both my son and I thoroughly enjoyed this volume. My son giggled at the tale about Whit's Imagination Station while I was moved by the story about the Jubilee Singers. This audio series can easily be used to entertain your children while running your errands around town or during longer road trips.

I highly recommend this volume of the Adventures of Odyssey series to all families. You will cherish the lessons each of the stories will teach your children. For more information about this volume, please visit Tyndale Publishers Web site.

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of reviewing it.

BEEtween the Pages: The Silent Governess by Julie Klassen

"Ahead lay Chedworth Wood. The warnings of years echoed through her mind. 'Don't stray into the wood at night.' Wild dogs stalked that wood, and thieves and poachers camped there, with sharp knives and sharper eyes, looking for easy game. A woman of Olivia's four-and-twenty years knew better than to venture into the wood alone. But her mother's cries still pulsed in her ears, drowning out the old voice of caution. The danger behind her was more real than any imagined danger ahead."

~Excerpt from Julie Klassen's The Silent Governess~

Set in England in the early 1800s, The Silent Governess tells a tale wrought with secrets and misunderstandings that threaten to jeopardize the fortune and happiness of the story's characters. At the center of this novel is Olivia Keene, a 24-year-old woman who unexpectedly becomes a governess at an English manor house. Fleeing from her a home after a frightening incident, Olivia stumbles upon Brightwell Court and inadvertently overhears a secret that could ruin the future of the estate's heir. Fearful Olivia will divulge his secret, Lord Bradley forces her to take a post at the manor house so he can monitor her actions. As Olivia cares for the children living at the house, an attraction begins to develop between Lord Bradley and her. But as the secrets of both their pasts begin to unravel and intertwine, hope begins to fade that this attraction will blossom into an everlasting love.

In The Silent Governess, Julie Klassen crafts an intriguing and satisfying story that highlights the protocols and challenges of an English governess in the Regency era alongside the personal struggles of the story's cast of characters. Klassen's masterful storytelling shines from the first to last pages of this novel as she skillfully divulges pieces of the mystery at a pace that keeps the reader wondering what will happen in the next chapter. I highly recommend this book and look forward to reading other novels from this author.

For more information about The Silent Governess, please visit Bethany House's Web site.

Note: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for the purpose of reviewing it.