About the Book

Book: Phoebe’s Secret

Author: Sydney Tooman Betts

Genre: Christian Fiction, Historical Mystery

Release Date: June 20, 2020

In April of 1843, Phoebe’s family hears about a murder while they are traveling to their new home in the Shenandoah Valley. They arrive to learn the victim attended the church her father has agreed to pastor and the crime took place on a leading church member’s plantation.

Eager to make new friends, Phoebe forms a unique relationship that propels her into the middle of the mystery, and she begins to question several acquaintances’ motives. Will she uncover their secrets before the plantation owner’s charming son discovers hers?

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My Thoughts:

Starting in a new place and a new home is stressful enough when all goes well. But for Phoebe and her family, from the very start things were not going well. Before they even leave the train her mother has to go back due to a family emergency and the rest of them are moving into a town that has just had a murder.

There were a lot of characters to get used to, but I imagine it was the same for Phoebe. She and the reader are kind of just dropped into the middle of this situation and I could certainly relate to Phoebe as she now has to step into her mother's role of getting the house in order. A woman's job really is never done.

Phoebe's father is the new pastor and he is thrust right into his position as well, leaving Phoebe looking after her very mischievous younger brother, Augie. He was a trip though and he proved he was just as much a sleuth as Phoebe. Between the settling in, the new acquaintances (some odd and others secretive), a murder investigation, and the hot button of slavery- Phoebe and her family have a lot to contend with.

This was an interesting historical read through the eyes of a seventeen year old young woman in 1843. Since this is just the first mystery, I am curious what else Phoebe will find herself in.

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

About the Author

Sydney Tooman Betts resides with her husband near the extensive cavern system that inspired the setting for several chapters in her series The People of the Book.

While single, Ms. Betts (B.S. Bible/Missiology, M.Ed) took part in a variety of cross-cultural adventures in North and Central America. After marrying, she and her husband lived in Europe and the Middle East where he served in various mission-support capacities. Her teaching experiences span preschool to guest lecturing at the graduate level.

Before penning her first novel, A River too Deep, she ghost-wrote several stories for an adult literacy program.

More from Sydney

Proverbs 25:11 says, “Words spoken fitly are like apples of gold in settings of silver.” I was not a great reader as a child, but I loved stories. We remember stories, whether told through movies, good sermon illustrations, parables, or simple novels.

Think of something you’ve read in the Bible. Did an instructional verse, a narrative, or a parable leap to mind? Stories have power because we can relate to them. We see ourselves in the shoes of the main character and ask what we might do in the situation. Mysteries, a new genre for me to write, are a little different. You are in the puzzle with the main character, working out the solution as you both come across the clues. I hope you will enjoy joining Phoebe in her first mystery as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Recipe:

Sally Lunn Bread

1 cup water

1 cup milk

¼ pound unsalted butter

8 cups of high-gluten or bread flour

⅔ cup sugar

2 tablespoons salt

¼ cup yeast

6 eggs

In a saucepan, combine water, milk and butter. Heat until the butter is very soft.

In a mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients with half the flour. Add the warm liquid, and mix well to form a smooth batter.

Add 3 eggs, one at a time, and mix well. Add another cup of the flour, and mix well. Add the second 3 eggs, one at a time. Add the remaining flour, and mix until the flour has been incorporated and the batter has formed a smooth ball. The dough should be less firm than bread and more firm than a batter.

Put the dough in a clear bowl with a little oil and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Proof until double in volume. Divide the dough between two bund pans or two loaf pans, or one of each. Proof again until risen and doubled in volume. Bake at 350° for about 20 minutes. Makes 20 servings.