THE MEMORY OF US

by

Camille DeMaio

Genre: Historical Romantic Literary Fiction
Publisher: Lake Union Press
Date of Publication: May 31, 2016
Number of Pages: 400

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24dd0-synopsis

Memory Med Res Cover Julianne Westcott was living the kind of life that other Protestant girls in prewar Liverpool could only dream about: old money, silk ball gowns, and prominent young men lining up to escort her. But when she learns of a blind-and-deaf brother, institutionalized since birth, the illusion of her perfect life and family shatters around her.

While visiting her brother in secret, Julianne meets and befriends Kyle McCarthy, an Irish Catholic groundskeeper studying to become a priest. Caught between her family’s expectations, Kyle’s devotion to the Church, and the intense new feelings that the forbidden courtship has awakened in her, Julianne must make a choice: uphold the life she’s always known or follow the difficult path toward love.

But as war ripples through the world and the Blitz decimates England, a tragic accident forces Julianne to leave everything behind and forge a new life built on lies she’s told to protect the ones she loves. Now, after twenty years of hiding from her past, the truth finds her—will she be brave enough to face it?

ADVANCE REVIEWER PRAISE FOR THE BOOK:

“Powerful, emotional, and amazing read.”
“A smashing debut!”
“Brilliantly told and executed.”

“Will make you cry in the best way possible.”
“This is a beautiful story of redemption, love, and honor.”
“I fell in love with the characters.”
“I’m not sure if I have ever had such a range of emotions with a book.”

“This is one of the best books that I have read!”
“Touching and funny and tragic and beautiful.”
“Packs a powerful, emotional punch.”

PURCHASE FROM
AMAZON BARNES & NOBLE

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review

I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my expressed opinions.

I give The Memory of Us 4 out of 5 stars!

I was immediately pulled into the setting of this book. While the historical fiction I read tends to be set in the settling of the American West, I happen to love television based at the same time as this book–the 20th century, between and after the World Wars.

I loved that Julianne had her own, rebellious nature, that she wasn’t exactly what her mother wanted. From the start, Julianne had a good heart, and it was her good heart, her desire to not cause pain, that led to plenty of reader’s tears on my part. Yes, I cried. I cried a lot, especially in the last quarter of the book

I also loved Kyle’s character. A genuinely good soul is rare and a true gem..

While I was reading, I was anxious to get back to the set up presented in the opening couple of chapters. Because of this, I felt like some of the backstory lagged in progression because I just needed to know what had happened, what would happen.

The Memory of Us is a tale about enduring love from both above and here on earth, about forgiveness, about learning to face things head on, about being truthful and true to one’s self.

Thank you, Camille, for the chance to read and review your book.

a8b60-abouttheauthor

DiMaio Pic Camille is an award-winning real estate agent in San Antonio who, along with her husband of 18 years, home schools their four children. She has a bucket list that is never-ending, and uses her adventures to inspire her writing. She’s lived in Texas, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and California, and spends enough time in Hawai’i to feel like a local. She’s traveled to four continents (so far), and met Mother Teresa and Pope John Paul II. She just about fainted when she had a chance to meet her musical idol, Paul McCartney, too. Camille studied political science in college, but found working on actual campaigns much more fun. She belts out Broadway tunes whenever the moment strikes, and forever stays up late reading “just one more chapter”. There’s almost nothing she wouldn’t try, so long as it doesn’t involve heights, roller skates, or anything illegal. “The Memory of Us” is Camille’s debut novel. Her second, “Before the Rain Falls” will be released in the spring of 2017.