Books like 'Blood Water Paint'
Readers who enjoyed Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical historical-fiction family realistic early-modern coming-of-age dark religion high-school social-commentary
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Journey To Joy by Ginny Dye
Rated: 4.64 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsAs the country continues to change and shift, everyone finds themselves on a Journey to Joy.America continues the struggle to become a country for everyone…The discovery of a thief leads Anthony and Carrie down a road they never envisioned. Annie creates a miracle for children with no hope.Felicia goes on a journey that will challenge her beyond anything she could have imagined... -
Silva Rerum by Kristina Sabaliauskaitė
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsOpowieść o historii, która nie dzieli, lecz łączy.Ta powieść stała się już częścią światowej klasyki.Anno Domini 1666. Dwór w Milkontach na Litwie. Mijają lata, odkąd Jan Maciej Narwojsz schronił się tu z rodziną po najeździe kozackim na Wilno... -
Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTwo-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall invites readers to peek through windows that shine like real glass on this lavish book’s cover, and explore the dollhouse-like world of a beloved farmhouse where twelve children were born and raised.Over a hill, at the end of a road, by a glittering stream that twists and turns stands a farmhouse...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction realistic children children-books fiction historical multigenerational -
Crossroads by Jonathan Franzen
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 26 ratingsJonathan Franzen’s gift for wedding depth and vividness of character with breadth of social vision has never been more dazzlingly evident than in Crossroads.It’s December 23, 1971, and heavy weather is forecast for Chicago... -
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The Keeping Quilt by Patricia Polacco
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsThis 25th anniversary edition of a beloved and bestselling classic about family and tradition includes fifteen pages of bonus material.“We will make a quilt to help us always remember home,” Anna’s mother said. “It will be like having the family in backhome Russia dance around us at night.” And so it was...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction realistic religion spirituality book children-books -
Don't Cry for Me by Daniel Black
Rated: 4.35 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA Black father makes amends with his gay son through letters written on his deathbed in this wise and penetrating novel of empathy and forgiveness, for fans of Ta-Nehisi Coates, Robert Jones Jr. and Alice Walker As Jacob lies dying, he begins to write a letter to his only son, Isaac. They have not met or spoken in many years, and there are things that Isaac must know...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family grief historical-fiction literary-fiction realistic sad social-commentary -
Courage To Stand by Ginny Dye
Rated: 4.63 of 5 stars · 8 ratings#19 in The Bregdan Chronicles by Best-Selling Author, Ginny DyeReview: Best Historical Fiction series I have ever read! Keep them coming! ~ DottiAs the country continues to change and shift, everyone is challenged to find Courage to Stand.America continues the struggle to become a country for everyone…Carrie and Janie face the challenge of a horse plague that sweeps through America... -
The Letter by Michelle Vernal
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWORDS HAVE THE POWER TO HEAL, REUNITE AND TO HURT... Isabel opened her bag and pulled the letter out, glancing at the address one last time before she slid it through the slot, hearing it land with a plunk. It was gone. She’d done it, and now she’d have to wait to see what happened next... -
The Wretched Needle Worker by Iris Cole
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsVera has uncovered things she never wanted to know. Her father was a monster.How could Vera have been so blind to what was right before her eyes?After the death of her kind and loving Papa, Vera’s home is claimed by ne’er do well Uncle Merritt, who drives the household with cruelty and deprivation...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family literary-fiction religion female-mc spirituality historical fiction -
New Shoes by Susan Lynn Meyer
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsElla Mae is used to wearing her cousin's hand-me-down shoes—but when her latest pair is already too tight, she's thrilled at the chance to get new shoes.But at the shoe store, Ella Mae and her mother have to wait until there are no white customers to serve first...Categorized as:
historical-fiction social-commentary realistic children family female-mc historical children-books -
Sword and Serpent by Taylor R. Marshall
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn A.D. 299, the Roman oracles ceased to prophesy for the Emperor Diocletian. The silence of the gods sparks a bloody storm of persecution that sweeps across the Roman Empire. As the fires of suspicion and hatred ignite all around them, a young man and a young woman are united by a prophecy from the catacombs of Rome...one that will set them on a journey to battle an evil beyond imagining...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age historical-fiction religion retellings spirituality action-adventure book -
The Shameless Flirt by M.A. Nichols
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsA rogue with a silver tongue, a spinster with an iron heart, and the doorstep baby that brings them together.Ambrose Ashbrook spends his life hiding. Even his family sees nothing but the roguish facade he uses to hide behind. But when he finds an abandoned infant, all pretense is upended with one look at her dimpled smile...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality adult book fiction -
Under the Magnolias by T.I. Lowe
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThis night not only marked the end to the drought, but also the end to the long-held secret we'd kept hidden under the magnolias. Magnolia, South Carolina, 1980Austin Foster is barely a teenager when her mama dies giving birth to twins, leaving her to pick up the pieces while holding her six siblings together and doing her best to stop her daddy from retreating into his personal darkness...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family female-mc grief historical-fiction literary-fiction realistic religion -
The Outside Boy by Jeanine Cummins
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIreland, 1959: Young Christy Hurley is a Pavee gypsy, traveling with his father and extended family from town to town, carrying all their worldly possessions in their wagons. Christy carries with him a burden of guilt as well, haunted by the story of his mother's death in childbirth. The peripatetic life is the only one Christy has ever known, but when his grandfather dies, everything changes... -
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The Corrigan Legacy: A captivating story of secrets and surprises by Anna Jacobs
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMeet the Corrigans. Childless Maeve, though rich and successful, is dying of cancer. She wants to leave her business empire to one of the offspring of her two estranged brothers, Des and Leo. But which young relative should she choose? Des has four children. His second wife Judith has just left him and he is overstretched financially...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality adult audiobook book -
Carved in Stone by Margaret Manchester
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFROM AMAZON INTERNATIONAL NUMBER ONE BESTSELLING AUTHOR Northern England 1881. Sent away during her brother’s trial, Phyllis Forster returns home as mistress of Burnside Hall only to find that the Weardale people have turned against the Forster family, and she desperately wants to win back their respect...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality adult book -
Rose's Choice by Chrissie Bradshaw
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsRationing, bombing, disease and pit disasters are part of Rose Kelly’s World War 2 childhood. When the spirited coalminer’s daughter discovers a family secret, she makes a choice that overshadows her teenage years. Rose tries to make the most of post-war opportunities but family tragedy pulls her back to a life in the colliery rows...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family female-mc historical-fiction religion spirituality 20th-century adult -
The Abandoned Waif's Christmas Miracle: Victorian Romance by Nell Harte
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIn the small hours of Christmas morning, a shrouded figure moves quickly through the biting storm in the Old Nichol, a tiny bundle wrapped in tattered rags hidden beneath its coat. “I’m sorry” the figure whispers, as it places the bundle on the cold stone of the work-house steps, “There is no other way... -
When the Clouds Go Rolling By by June Francis
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsThe secrets of the past can never be forgotten An orphaned young woman is overjoyed to find a family she never knew existed, but has to come to terms with their troubled history. Since her parents died Clara O’Toole has lived with her grandmother, Bernie...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality 20th-century adult book -
A Season of Grace by Lauraine Snelling
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsIn 1910 Minnesota, Nilda Carlson's dreams are coming true. Though her first few months in America were difficult, her life now resembles the images that filled her daydreams in Norway. She and her younger brother Ivar live in their own house, just a short distance from her older brother and his family. Together they work the farm and fell trees for lumber... -
The Traveller's Daughter by Michelle Vernal
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsROSA’S PAST IS HER PANDORA’S BOX, AND THE LID IS ABOUT TO BE LIFTED … ‘If you lie down with dogs you’ll rise with fleas’ – Irish Proverb Rosa Sorenson’s conversation was often peppered with sayings from her homeland. It was these conversational clangers that gave her daughter Kitty the only clue as to a childhood her mother refused to speak of...Categorized as:
family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction 20th-century adult book fiction -
How to Find What You're Not Looking For by Veera Hiranandani
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsNew historical fiction from a Newbery Honor-winning author about how middle schooler Ariel Goldberg's life changes when her big sister elopes following the 1967 Loving v. Virginia decision, and she's forced to grapple with both her family's prejudice and the antisemitism she experiences, as she defines her own beliefs...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family realistic social-commentary religion children bullying coming-of-age -
Outbound Train by Renea Winchester
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn 1976, memories from a night near the railroad tracks sixteen years earlier haunt Barbara Parker. She wrestles with past demons every night, then wakes to the train’s five-thirty whistle. Exhausted and dreading the day, she keeps her hands busy working in Bryson City’s textile plant, known as the “blue jean plant,” all the while worrying about her teenage daughter, Carole Anne... -
Dancing with a Gracious Lord by Bridget Barton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAfter a childhood illness left her with a scarred face, Juliana Rothmond is determined that no man will ever look at her except for her generous dowry. When her father announces that she is soon to marry Ira Galbrathe, an opportunistic and arrogant man, Juliana desperately tries to escape from her future misery...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality adult book fiction -
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The Secret Years: An emotional drama of love and survival by Judith Lennox
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA moving story about life in the East Anglian Fens after the First World War, evoking the emotions of the men who came through their ordeals and the women who survived the trauma of separation.During the golden summer of 1914, four young people played in the gardens of Drakesden Abbey... -
45 Books Western Romance by Katie Wyatt, Kat Carson
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhat’s better than a book box set? 45-book box set Celebration 12 complete series! And when it’s 45 best-selling, clean western novels, ranging from mail order bride to historical and contemporary romance, you know you’ve found yourself a real treasure trove. Curl up with the Wild West Brides of Bodie as they courageously embark upon new lives and loves in California... -
Mail Order Bride And The Gift of Children (A Western Historical Romance Book) (Evergreen Frontier) by Florence Linnington
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFinding love is never easy for a single mother listing herself as a mail order bride. But it is necessary.Eliza Buell has just given birth to her second child. Now a single mother after the death of her husband, she finds herself alone and desperate for a way to help her children survive the coming winter. With no other option, Eliza opts to become a mail order bride...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality 20th-century adult book -
A Whisper To The Living by Ruth Hamilton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsAnnie Byrne was born during one of the worst winters Lancashire ever remembered. When the doctor finally got through the nine-foot drifts of snow, mother and daughter were in a pretty bad way, but both the new-born Annie and her exhausted mother - a spinner in the cotton mill - were fighters, tough and determined not to let the world knock them down...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction adult audiobook book -
A Duke's Secret Romance by Abigail Agar
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe time for the dashing and very eligible Emma Colborne to enter Bath's high society as a debutante has arrived. Unfortunately, the first event of the Season will turn into a big disappointment, after Emma encounters her secret childhood crush, the Duke of Pembershire...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality adult book fiction -
Ruth and Boaz: Strangers in the Land by Terri L. Fivash
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWith a cast of over 70 characters and a plot that tugs at the heart, Terry Fivash, author of Joseph, breathes new life into the story of Ruth--singer of songs, faithful friend, and daughter of royalty. But who would have a stranger from a foreign land? This biblical fiction has been carefully done so as to be historically accurate... -
How to Claim a Governess’s Heart by Bridget Barton
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsEver since her parents died, Bridget Thatcher has been left destitute and determined that she will never find happiness in her life. Having been left with no choice, she becomes a governess to earn her living. Fortune smiles on her, though, when she is assigned to a little girl that quickly warms her broken heart...Categorized as:
children female-mc historical-fiction religion spirituality historical industrial-era regency -
In All Good Faith by Liza Nash Taylor
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratings“A well-researched and deftly written historical fiction novel…Highly recommended."-Booklist (starred review) A riveting new historical fiction novel, In All Good Faith continues the story of May Marshall, the captivating protagonist introduced in Taylor’s acclaimed 2020 debut, Etiquette for Runaways... -
The Paris Housekeeper by Renee Ryan
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsFrom the author of The Secret Society of Salzburg comes a powerful and moving story of bravery and resilience in World War II Paris, and one woman who must face impossible choices to survive…Paris, 1940German tanks rumble through the streets of Paris, forcing frightened citizens to flee. But not everyone has the luxury to leave...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family spirituality female-mc literary-fiction religion fiction ww2 -
Millie's Remarkable Journey by Martha Finley
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratings'Slavery is a great evil and we must stand against it,' insisted Millie. 'But we've never seen it ourselves. How are we supposed to know for sure if the awful stories we hear are true?' Effie asked. 'Millie will find out,' Celestia Ann said with certainty. 'I...will?' Millie questioned as she looked from one to the other. 'Of course you will,' Celestia Ann said...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction realistic religion spirituality action-adventure book christian -
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Darcy in Distress: A Pride and Prejudice Variation by Laraba Kendig
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsMr. Darcy is rich, well-connected and handsome, but he is also exhausted, broken-hearted and afraid. Can Darcy and Elizabeth Bennet find happiness together?Fitzwilliam Darcy’s father was an unreliable rake who brought their family much trouble before his death. Darcy’s fears are potent, but his resolve to care for his sister and mother is strong...Categorized as:
dark family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion retellings spirituality -
Elsie's True Love by Martha Finley
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAs the saga of Elsie Dinsmore continues, Elsie is now twenty-one. Love and marriage are very much on her mind as she struggles with disillusionment from the past and the doubts that still trouble her heart... -
Rebekah by Jill Eileen Smith
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen her father dies and she is left in the care of her conniving brother Laban, Rebekah knows her life has changed forever. Her hope for the future is restored when she falls in love with her cousin Isaac, and their relationship starts strong. But marital bliss cannot last forever, and the birth of their twin sons marks the beginning of years of misunderstanding, disagreement, and betrayal...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction realistic religion spirituality adult book christian -
Elsie's Impossible Choice by Martha Finley
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsNow that nine-year-old Elsie Dinsmore's dream of being united with her papa has come true, happiness still seems elusive when she faces danger at the hands of a jealous family member...Categorized as:
children historical-fiction realistic religion spirituality book children-books christian -
Midnight Without a Moon by Linda Williams Jackson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt’s Mississippi in the summer of 1955, and Rose Lee Carter can’t wait to move north. But for now, she’s living with her sharecropper grandparents on a white man’s cotton plantation. Then, one town over, an African American boy, Emmett Till, is killed for allegedly whistling at a white woman. When Till’s murderers are unjustly acquitted, Rose realizes that the South needs a change . . -
The Mercy Seat by Elizabeth Hartley Winthrop
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA breakout novel by “a bitingly intelligent writer” (New York Times Book Review) set during the hours leading up to the scheduled execution of a young black man for the alleged rape of a white woman in a small Louisiana town in 1943.“One of the finest writers of her generation” (Brad Watson), and author of three previously acclaimed novels, Elizabeth H... -
The Prophet: Amos by Francine Rivers
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA man of solitude, who felt at home among the hills.A man of conviction, who heard when God called.A man of fortitude, who spoke to a nation unwilling to listen.The Israelites rebelled against God and were devoured by war. But first they were warned by a prophet who refused to be turned away... -
Audacity by Melanie Crowder
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe inspiring story of Clara Lemlich, whose fight for equal rights led to the largest strike by women in American history A gorgeously told novel in verse written with intimacy and power, Audacity is inspired by the real-life story of Clara Lemlich, a spirited young woman who emigrated from Russia to New York at the turn of the twentieth century and fought tenaciously for equal rights...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family female-mc historical-fiction realistic religion sad social-commentary -
The Marriage Portrait: A novel by Maggie O'Farrell
Rated: 4.06 of 5 stars · 34 ratingsREESE’S BOOK CLUB DECEMBER PICK • NEW YORK TIMES BEST SELLER • The author of award-winning Hamnet brings the world of Renaissance Italy to jewel-bright life in this unforgettable fictional portrait of the captivating young duchess Lucrezia de' Medici as she makes her way in a troubled court.“I could not stop reading this incredible true story...Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction family early-modern coming-of-age female-mc fiction historical -
Daughter of China by C. Hope Flinchbaugh
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTapping into her vast reservoir of knowledge about the persecuted church, author Hope Flinchbaugh has crafted a spellbinding first novel set in modern China. Nineteen-year-old Mai Lin has two serious handicaps in Chinese society-being born a girl, and worse, choosing to become a Christian. But she dreams of attending Shanghai University.Categorized as:
historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality book christian fiction historical -
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Where The Winds Dwell by Böðvar Guðmundsson, Bovar Gumundsson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWritten as a letter from a father to a daughter, Where the Winds Dwell is compassionate and real. Guðmundsson brings together past and present in this tragic story of the historic journey to Nýja Ísland, the world's largest Icelandic community outside of Iceland... -
The Last Carolina Girl by Meagan Church
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA searing book club novel for fans of Where the Crawdad's Sing and The Girls in the Stilt House following one girl fighting for her family, her body, and her right to create a future all her ownSome folks will do anything to control the wild spirit of a Carolina girl...For fourteen-year-old Leah Payne, life in her beloved coastal Carolina town is as simple as it is free...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction adult audiobook book -
Then Sings My Soul by Amy K. Sorrells
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen Nel Stewart returns home due to the sudden death of her mother, she realizes her beloved father, Jakob, is struggling with dementia. With the reappearance of a high-school sweetheart, deliveries from Ukraine addressed to her, and the discovery of a mysterious, vintage aquamarine gemstone, Nel senses God is pulling her into the past to restore their faith and their futures...Categorized as:
female-mc historical-fiction literary-fiction religion spirituality adult audiobook book -
A Sister to Beguile by Wendy May Andrews
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsTwo nobles convinced love has no place in their future—until their hearts get involved.Lady Graciela Sherton, the Earl of Sherton’s youngest daughter, shares none of her sisters’ ambitions for love or marriage—much to her mother’s chagrin. She is happy to spend the rest of her days at her family’s estate, steadfast in her conviction that boring is better...Categorized as:
historical-fiction spirituality religion female-mc literary-fiction industrial-era regency fiction -
Those Bennet Sisters: Pride and Prejudice Varation by Jadie Brooks
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn this Regency romance, Darcy and Elizabeth come together in a most unexpected fashion, and one other unlikely couple find their happily ever after as well.In this mash-up of Jane Austen characters from some of her best loved stories, such as Persuasion, Sense and Sensibility, and Mansfield Park...Categorized as:
retellings family literary-fiction religion spirituality industrial-era regency humor -
Blackberries, Blackberries by Crystal Wilkinson, Nikky Finney
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAs the title implies, this beautifully written collection bursts with stories reminiscent of blackberries-–-small, succulent morsels that are inviting and sweet, yet sometimes bitter...Categorized as:
literary-fiction social-commentary realistic family female-mc fiction poc-author poc-mc
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