All My Secrets by Lynn Austin

All My Secrets, by Lynn Austin
Stand Alone
Tyndale House Publishers (February 6, 2024)

Review by Kelly Goshorn

Lynn Austin’s latest release, All My Secrets, is an inspiring time-slip story of three generations of Gilded Age women and the secrets they struggle to keep hidden. Themes of forgiveness, resentment, and bitterness are woven throughout as characters grapple with God’s call to forgive those who injured them deeply.

While I typically get swept away by the historical details when reading this genre, what most captured my attention were Austin’s three female protagonists, each flawed but likable and realistic. Each brought their own perspectives and experiences to the story following the death of Arthur Stanhope lll and the unwelcome, perilous financial circumstances that follow.

After her husband’s untimely death, Sylvia is grieving the loss of her spouse and worries about how she’ll support herself. Her emotions war between pushing her daughter, Adelaide (Addy), into a loveless match before the rest of society becomes keen on their penniless state and the realization that if she succeeds in matching Addy to a wealthy husband, the resulting financial security for all three women will mean Sylvia will be alone.

For her part, Addy is too easily persuaded by the opinions of others and societal norms of what a young woman of her station should “be” and whom they should marry. She desires both to please her mother and also marry for love. The family matriarch, Junietta, Slyvia’s mother and Addy’s grandmother, hopes Addy will follow her heart. Junietta tells Addy,

“It’s your life, not your mother’s. Do you have the courage it takes to break free from the mold that society will try to cast for you?”

Lynn Austin, All My Secrets

Tension boils beneath the surface as the story builds to its climax and Junietta is the first to break the silence and share the secret she’s guarded her entire life. Her vulnerability encourages Sylvia and Addy to disclose their long-held secrets as well.

I loved how the author interwove Scripture, God, and prayer throughout the novel. Junietta’s story in particular reminds us that Satan will use our past to try to condemn us and make us feel unworthy. I truly love Christian fiction that not only mentions God but also gives us a message that can help the reader check their own heart. All My Secrets definitely shines in that way.

I give Lynn Austin’s All My Secrets an enthusiastic five fish!