| From the award-winning author of Catching the Wind, which Publishers Weekly called “unforgettable” and a “must-read,” comes another gripping time-slip novel about hidden treasure, a castle, and ordinary people who resisted evil in their own extraordinary way. The year is 1938, and as Hitler’s troops sweep into Vienna, Austrian Max Dornbach promises to help his Jewish friends hide their most valuable possessions from the Nazis, smuggling them to his family’s summer estate near the picturesque village of Hallstatt. He enlists the help of Annika Knopf, his childhood friend and the caretaker’s daughter, who is eager to help the man she’s loved her entire life. But when Max also brings Luzia Weiss, a young Jewish woman, to hide at the castle, it complicates Annika’s feelings and puts their entire plan—even their very lives—in jeopardy. Especially when the Nazis come to scour the estate and find both Luzia and the treasure gone. Eighty years later, Callie Randall is mostly content with her quiet life, running a bookstore with her sister and reaching out into the world through her blog. Then she finds a cryptic list in an old edition of Bambi that connects her to Annika’s story . . . and maybe to the long-buried story of a dear friend. As she digs into the past, Callie must risk venturing outside the safe world she’s built for a chance at answers, adventure, and maybe even new love. |  |
Genre: Historical Fiction
(However, this is a time-slip novel, so there is also a contemporary component to the story)
Release date: September 4, 2018
(However, this is a time-slip novel, so there is also a contemporary component to the story)
Release date: September 4, 2018
Click here to purchase your copy!
My Review
The past and present come full circle...
I honestly don't remember which Melanie Dobson book was my first. I just know that I've read every one I could get my hands on and I've become especially fond of her time-slip novels involving WWII. Hidden Among The Stars is a trademark Melanie Dobson tale, bittersweet, fascinating, and thought provoking.
Whether you call this type of fiction time-slip or dual timeline, there is no denying that this author is a master at blending the poignant and sometimes painful events of the past and the effects of those events on the characters of the present. I absolutely loved the historical part as I've read and heard very little about Austria during WWII, but, it was the modern-era Callie and her tentative steps outside of her comfort zone that I identified a little more with.
Hidden Among The Stars is a book to take your time with, to ponder, possibly shed a tear or two, and to simply enjoy. I did so and it was well worth spending the extra time to truly appreciate the depth of this story and the inspiring characters within...
Tell Tale Book Reviews gives Hidden Among The Stars by Melanie Dobson a 4.5 Bark rating.
I honestly don't remember which Melanie Dobson book was my first. I just know that I've read every one I could get my hands on and I've become especially fond of her time-slip novels involving WWII. Hidden Among The Stars is a trademark Melanie Dobson tale, bittersweet, fascinating, and thought provoking.
Whether you call this type of fiction time-slip or dual timeline, there is no denying that this author is a master at blending the poignant and sometimes painful events of the past and the effects of those events on the characters of the present. I absolutely loved the historical part as I've read and heard very little about Austria during WWII, but, it was the modern-era Callie and her tentative steps outside of her comfort zone that I identified a little more with.
Hidden Among The Stars is a book to take your time with, to ponder, possibly shed a tear or two, and to simply enjoy. I did so and it was well worth spending the extra time to truly appreciate the depth of this story and the inspiring characters within...
Tell Tale Book Reviews gives Hidden Among The Stars by Melanie Dobson a 4.5 Bark rating.
(I received a copy of this book from the author/publisher. All opinions are entirely my own.)
Guest Post
from Melanie Dobson
Hallstatt’s Hiding Places
Backpacking across Europe—that’s how my husband Jon and I decided to celebrate our fifth wedding anniversary. We savored the old world culture and charm as we hiked along Italy’s coast, toured medieval castles in Germany, and cruised the canals in Belgium; we both left a bit of our hearts in an ancient lakeside town called Hallstatt.
| The moment we stepped off the ferryboat and into this storybook village, we crossed through a portal of sorts, traveling back several centuries in time. The rugged, snow-capped mountains around us and alpine lake, the quaint village with its church steeples and cobblestone lanes and waterfall that spilled into town—all of it captivated us. |  |
Along the shore, hidden partially by trees, we could see spires of an abandoned castle, and I wanted to know its story. No one in Hallstatt could tell us who’d lived in the castle—at least, not in English—so my husband agreed to a new adventure. With a swan as our escort, we glided across the lake in an electric boat so I could study the rusty turrets, boarded windows, and wooden boathouse resting in the water like a felled log.
Instead of quelling my curiosity, the match of inspiration ignited my mind. Who had lived in this castle, and what happened there? I began writing in my journal that night, trying to capture my rogue thoughts on paper, hoping that one day a novel would emerge from the ashes of this castle’s story.
When we returned home, I began researching more of Hallstatt’s history and discovered that this region, in all of its beauty and mystique, had been infiltrated by an enemy in 1938. This town and the surrounding Salzkammergut became a mountain retreat for Nazi officials who built mansions on the shores of its many lakes and used salt mines to hide “ownerless treasure”—the gold bullion and artwork they’d stolen from the Jewish people.
The Nazis intended to build a Fourth Reich in this alpine fortress, but the Allies had other plans. Near the end of the war, these lakes became a dustbin of sorts, collecting whatever the enemy dumped into its waters—weapons, counterfeit banknotes, concentration camp lists—as they fled south from the Allied troops. The Devil’s Dustbin, locals call it.
Instead of quelling my curiosity, the match of inspiration ignited my mind. Who had lived in this castle, and what happened there? I began writing in my journal that night, trying to capture my rogue thoughts on paper, hoping that one day a novel would emerge from the ashes of this castle’s story.
When we returned home, I began researching more of Hallstatt’s history and discovered that this region, in all of its beauty and mystique, had been infiltrated by an enemy in 1938. This town and the surrounding Salzkammergut became a mountain retreat for Nazi officials who built mansions on the shores of its many lakes and used salt mines to hide “ownerless treasure”—the gold bullion and artwork they’d stolen from the Jewish people.
The Nazis intended to build a Fourth Reich in this alpine fortress, but the Allies had other plans. Near the end of the war, these lakes became a dustbin of sorts, collecting whatever the enemy dumped into its waters—weapons, counterfeit banknotes, concentration camp lists—as they fled south from the Allied troops. The Devil’s Dustbin, locals call it.
 | Lake Hallstatt plunges more than four hundred feet between the fortress of mountains. Because of its depth and the many hiding places in the underwater forests, caves, and shifting sands, divers continue finding World War II artifacts today. Some still believe there’s a treasure trove buried on the bottom, but no one has reported finding any gold. |
After our trip, a story about this castle and what happened to the heirlooms of the Austrian Jewish people continued to burn inside me until I finally put it on paper. So I built Schloss Schwansee—Castle of Swan Lake—in my mind, inspired by the castle along Lake Hallstatt, and created a cast of historical and contemporary characters who are searching for lost treasure.
Hidden Among the Stars is a time-slip novel about a castle and treasure and fairytales, but most of all, it’s a story about God using ordinary people across Austria to resist evil in their own extraordinary way.
Hidden Among the Stars is a time-slip novel about a castle and treasure and fairytales, but most of all, it’s a story about God using ordinary people across Austria to resist evil in their own extraordinary way.
- Melanie Dobson -
 Melanie Dobson | Melanie Dobson is the award-winning author of nearly twenty historical romance, suspense, and time-slip novels including Catching the Wind and Chateau of Secrets . Three of her novels have won Carol Awards; Love Finds You in Liberty, Indiana won Best Novel of Indiana in 2010; and The Black Cloister won the Foreword Magazine Religious Fiction Book of the Year. Melanie is the former corporate publicity manager at Focus on the Family and owner of the publicity firm Dobson Media Group. When she isn’t writing, Melanie enjoys teaching both writing and public relations classes at George Fox University. |
| Melanie and her husband, Jon, have two daughters. After moving numerous times with work, the Dobson family has settled near Portland, Oregon, and they love to hike and camp in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest and along the Pacific Coast. Melanie also enjoys exploring ghost towns and abandoned homes, helping care for kids in her community, and reading stories with her girls. Visit Melanie online at www.melaniedobson.com |
It's Time For A Giveaway!
To celebrate her tour, Melanie is giving away a grand prize package that includes a $25 Amazon gift card, Catching the Wind paperback, and Hidden Among the Stars paperback!!
Click below to enter. Be sure to comment on this post before you enter to claim 9 extra entries!
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Reader’s Cozy Corner
Reading Is My SuperPower
Fiction Aficionado
Back Porch Reads
Among the Reads
September 7
The Power of Words
Multifarious
lady ansel book vibes
The Becca Files
September 8
God’s Little Bookworm
Christian Chick’s Thoughts
Painting with Words
Lis Loves Reading
September 9
cherylbbookblog
Living LIfe Free in Christ
Madeline Clark
Mary Hake
September 10
Reflections From My Bookshelves
Genesis 5020
Faithfully Bookish
Simple Harvest Reads (Guest post from Mindy Houng)
September 11
Margaret Kazmierczak
All-of-a-kind Mom
Daysong Reflections
Caffeinated Christian Raves – N – Reviews
Seasons of Opportunities
September 12
Inklings and notions
amandainpa
September 13
Maureen’s Musing
Locks, Hooks and Books
Just Commonly
Book by Book
September 14
Connect in Fiction
Pause for Tales
Have A Wonderful Day
Splashes of Joy
September 15
The Christian Fiction Girl
Tell Tale Book Reviews
To Everything A Season
A Baker’s Perspective
September 16
proud to be an autism mom
Bibliophile Reviews
Bigreadersite
Aryn The Libraryan
September 17
By The Book
Christian author, J.E. Grace
Janices book reviews
September 18
Texas Book-aholic
Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations
Carpe Diem
September 19
Godly Book Reviews
For The Love of Books
Live. Love. Read.
Reader’s Cozy Corner
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