Daughters of Northern Shores by Joanne Bischof

Daughters of Northern Shores, by Joanne Bischof
Series: A Blackbird Mountain Novel, Book Two
Publisher: Thomas Nelson (March 12, 2019)

Review by Kelly Goshorn

It’s been way too long since I’ve finished a book that has left me as satisfied as Daughters of Northern Shores or one that made my writers heart cry out to the Lord wishing I could weave words as well as the author whose story I’d just finished.

I was completely enthralled with Bischoff’s characters. From the hearing impaired, Thor, to his younger brother, Haakon, the prodigal who has returned home seeking forgiveness and a new start with the family he left behind. I’ve never read a story with a deaf main character and wondered how that would work since he had no spoken dialogue. I have to say, Thor captured my heart with his wisdom, spiritual strength, and devoted heart for Aven. I was immediately drawn to Haakon and his courage to return home and face the mistakes he’d made and right the wrongs he’d committed against his family. Nothing like a bad boy who turns his life around to win this romance reader’s heart.

The women in this story don’t take a back seat either. Aven, Thor’s wife, is as gentle as they come, yet she possesses a determined spirit that serves her well as she faces many challenges, including a contagious illness that threatens her unborn child. Ida and Cora, freedwomen who live on the Norgaard property, display profound courage when monstrous evil returns and places everyone on the Norgaard’s property in imminent danger. It is Cora’s deep faith and her willingness to speak boldly that steers Haakon back to his faith.

Daughters of Northern Shores is so well-written that the Norgaard’s Appalachian farm comes to life with beautiful descriptions the reader can see and smell vividly. Filled with the type of rich historical details, my history-loving, nerd girl heart was filled to the brim. The author’s beautiful prose sings like the melody of a well-written symphony and will leave you desperately wanting more from this writer and the story world she has created for us.

I loved that Daughters of Northern Shores explored themes of forgiveness and grace. The prodigal Haakon encounters the consequences of breaking his brother’s trust when he returns. While surprised to see him again after four years with no word of his whereabouts, all are cautiously optimistic and hope his arrival signals Haakon’s willingness to restore bonds with the family, not merely to collect his inheritance, a small plot of land on the Norgaard farm.

I like that Bischoff didn’t make the family too eager to welcome Haakon into their good graces, but instead made him earn their trust. Forgiveness and trust are not one in the same. As believers we are encouraged to give forgiveness as freely as Christ has given it to us, whether or not the offender seeks it or changes their behavior. It is an act of obedience between the believer and God.

“It be trust he need to earn, and that’s what sin does. Forgiveness…it pure and good, but it just the start of it. Offering one don’t mean the other be remedied as well. When a person be hurt, there need be a minding to both hope and sense.”

Joanne Bischof, Daughters of Northern Shores

Trust however is earned over time through altered behavior and a determination by the offender to change their attitude and actions. Haakon’s pride must be broken enough to where this wayward son may finally know the healing peace of surrender and the boundless gift of forgiveness. Bischoff writes a beautifully believable transformation in Haakon, one that both the family and the reader can embrace as authentic.

I’ll conclude by confessing, I hadn’t read the first installment in the series, Sons of Blackbird Mountain, before choosing to read and review this novel. That is a tragedy I intend to soon rectify. While you can easily pick up and enjoy Daughters of Northern Shores as a stand alone, I don’t recommend it. Not because you won’t be able to understand the plot or will struggle to familiarize yourself with the characters, but because I’m positive, that like me, you will have cheated yourself out of a profoundly amazing reading experience.

I whole-heartedly give Daughters of Northern Shores five well-deserved fish.