Books like 'A Map to Paradise'
Readers who enjoyed A Map to Paradise by Susan Meissner also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
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Last Port of Call by Jean Grainger
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsQueenstown, County Cork, IrelandApril 1912Twelve-year-old Harp Delaney is an unusual child, quiet and intelligent far beyond her years. She would rather spend her days in the library of the grand Georgian house that she sees as her home than playing on the streets with other children.Her mother, Rose, is the reserved and ladylike housekeeper at the Cliff House...Categorized as:
family female-mc friendship historical-fiction 20th-century adult book british-isles -
The Girl From the Island by Lorna Cook
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA world at war.One woman will risk everything.Another will uncover her story.1940: When the island of Guernsey is invaded by the Nazis, two sisters are determined to rebel in any way they can. But when forced to take in a German soldier, they are shocked to find a familiar face on their doorstep – a childhood friend who has now become their enemy...Categorized as:
family female-mc friendship historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure -
The Mersey Mothers by Sheila Riley
Rated: 4.60 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsLiverpool 1953January sees the dawn of the Queen Elizabeth’s Coronation year as the mothers of Reckoners Row unite in preparation for the celebration of the new Queen.Meanwhile Evie Kilgaren is dreaming of her summer wedding to Danny Harris, but trouble looms for Skinner & Sons with a new rival trying to put them out of business, but no-one knows why...Categorized as:
family female-mc friendship historical-fiction spirituality urban 19th-century 20th-century -
The Discovery by Dan Walsh
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsGerard Warner was not only a literary giant whose suspense novels sold in the millions, he was also a man devoted to his family, especially his wife of nearly 60 years. When he dies he leaves his Charleston estate to his grandson, Michael, an aspiring writer himself... -
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The Nature of Fragile Things by Susan Meissner
Rated: 4.27 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsApril 18, 1906: A massive earthquake rocks San Francisco just before daybreak, igniting a devouring inferno. Lives are lost, lives are shattered, but some rise from the ashes forever changed. Sophie Whalen is a young Irish immigrant so desperate to get out of a New York tenement that she answers a mail-order bride ad and agrees to marry a man she knows nothing about...Categorized as:
california christian family female-mc friendship historical-fiction north-america spirituality -
The Secret Stealers by Jane Healey
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA female American spy in Nazi-occupied France finds purpose behind enemy lines in a novel of unparalleled danger, love, and daring by the Amazon Charts bestselling author of The Beantown Girls.Anna Cavanaugh is a restless young widow and brilliant French teacher at a private school in Washington, DC... -
The Nature of a Lady (The Secrets of the Isles) by Roseanna M. White
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratings1906Lady Elizabeth "Libby" Sinclair, with her love of microscopes and nature, isn't favored in society. She flees to the beautiful Isles of Scilly for the summer and stumbles into the dangerous secrets left behind by her holiday cottage's former occupant, also named Elizabeth, who mysteriously vanished...Categorized as:
christian family historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure adult -
The Painted Castle by Kristy Cambron
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsBestselling author Kristy Cambron concludes the Lost Castle novels with this sweeping tale of art and secrets long buried in England. It was supposed to be a one-week job: survey an art find, collect a hefty fee, and use that to settle historian Kiera Foley’s life back into balance...Categorized as:
christian family female-mc friendship historical-fiction spirituality 20th-century action-adventure -
The Whisper Sister by Jennifer S. Brown
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsThe author of Modern Girls delivers an atmospheric coming-of-age story set in Prohibition-era New York, tracing one immigrant family’s fortunes and a young girl’s journey from the schoolyard to the speakeasy.The streets of New York in 1920 are most certainly not paved with gold, as Minnie Soffer learns when she arrives at Ellis Island... -
The Second Life of Mirielle West by Amanda Skenandore
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 27 ratingsIn an intoxicating story of resilience, repulsion, and the Roaring 20’s, the glamorous world of a silent film star’s wife abruptly crumbles when she’s forcibly quarantined at America’s only leper colony in Carville, Louisiana…Based on the little-known true story of America’s only leper colony, The Second Life of Mirielle West by RUSA Award-winning author Amanda Skenandore brings vividly to life... -
The Last Secret of Lily Adams by Sara Blaydes
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsThe death of a legendary actress reveals a wealth of Hollywood secrets in a breathtaking novel about betrayal, rivalry, and the punishing brutality of fame.One of the brightest stars of Hollywood’s golden age was Lily Adams, the beloved picture of all-American innocence. Why she suddenly vanished from the spotlight was a mystery even to those closest to her...Categorized as:
historical-fiction thriller friendship female-mc fiction mystery historical audiobook -
Catching the Wind by Melanie Dobson
Rated: 4.31 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsWhat happened to Brigitte Berthold? That question has haunted Daniel Knight since he was thirteen, when he and eleven-year-old Brigitte escaped the Gestapo agents who arrested both their parents. They survived a harrowing journey from Germany to England, only to be separated upon their arrival...Categorized as:
christian family historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure adult -
The Dressmaker’s Secret by Lorna Cook
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsParis, 1941: As Coco Chanel’s assistant, Adèle lives side by side with German officers in the splendor of The Ritz hotel. But Adèle has a secret. She is working for the resistance, right under the German’s noses...Categorized as:
family female-mc friendship historical-fiction spirituality 20th-century action-adventure adult -
No Journey Too Far by Carrie Turansky
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA family long divided, a mysterious trunk, and a desperate journey across the ocean--all in the name of love. The epic saga of the McAlisters continues in this riveting sequel to No Ocean Too Wide. In 1909, Grace McAlister set sail for Canada as one of the thousands of British Home Children taken from their families and their homeland... -
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Absolute Truths by Susan Howatch
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIt is 1965, and Charles Ashworth has attained the plum position of bishop of Starbridge, an honor that keeps him in a heady whirl of activity that would exhaust the most seasoned corporate executive. With the invaluable support of his minions and his attractive, unsinkable wife, Ashworth stands against the amorality and decadence of the age—"Anti-Sex Ashworth... -
The Orphan Daughter by Sheila Riley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWinter, Liverpool 1947. Evie Kilgaren is a fighter. Abandoned by her mother and with her father long gone, she is left to raise her siblings in dockside Liverpool, as they battle against the coldest winter on record. But she is determined to make a life for herself and create a happy home for what's left of her family... -
A Gilded Lady by Elizabeth Camden
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCaroline Delacroix is at the pinnacle of Washington high society in her role as secretary to the first lady of the United States. But beneath the faade of her beauty, glamorous wardrobe, and dazzling personality, she's hiding a terrible secret. If she cannot untangle a web of foreign espionage, her brother will face execution for treason...Categorized as:
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Anchor in the Storm by Sarah Sundin
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsOne Plucky Female Pharmacist + One High-Society Naval Officer = Romance--and Danger For plucky Lillian Avery, America's entry into World War II means a chance to prove herself as a pharmacist in Boston. The challenges of her new job energize her. But society boy Ensign Archer Vandenberg's attentions only annoy--even if he "is" her brother's best friend...Categorized as:
christian family historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure adult -
The Prince of Spies by Elizabeth Camden
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsLuke Delacroix has the reputation of a charming man-about-town in Gilded Age Washington, D.C. In reality, he is secretly carrying out an ambitious agenda in Congress. His current mission is to thwart the reelection of Congressman Clyde Magruder, his only real enemy in the world...Categorized as:
christian historical-fiction spirituality suspense urban 20th-century action-adventure adult -
Pushin' Up Daisies by Carolyn Brown
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCatherine O'Shea is the oldest and most responsible of the three O'Shea sisters. She has just buried her mother, one of the last victims of the flu epidemic of 1918. Her father had been one of the first to succumb to the flu and her fiance was killed in the war. And now there is a detective living at her hotel, the Black Swan, looking into the disappearance of her abusive brother-in-law... -
Spring House by Mary Ellen Taylor
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsThe lives of two women, generations apart, converge in this enthralling novel of love, mystery, memories, and secrets. Pregnant and still grieving the death of her fiancé, historian Megan Buchanan is forging ahead on a dream project: to restore to its original glory the landmark hunting lodge her own great-great-grandfather built on Virginia’s Eastern Shore... -
A Lady Unrivaled by Roseanna M. White
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhite Is Quickly Becoming the Top Name in Edwardian Romance Lady Ella Myerston can always find a reason to smile--even if it's just in hope that tomorrow will be better than today. All her life everyone has tried to protect her from the realities of the world, but Ella knows very well the danger that has haunted her brother and their friend, and she won't wait for it to strike again...Categorized as:
christian family friendship historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure -
Cometh the Hour by Jeffrey Archer
Rated: 4.18 of 5 stars · 28 ratings"Cometh the Hour" opens with the reading of a suicide note, which has devastating consequences for Harry and Emma Clifton, Giles Barrington and Lady Virginia.Giles must decide if he should withdraw from politics and try to rescue Karin, the woman he loves, from behind the Iron Curtain...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction politics suspense thriller 20th-century action-adventure adult -
Secrets She Kept by Cathy Gohlke
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe secret a mother was forbidden to share . . . the consequences a daughter could not redeem—but will risk everything in her attempt.All her life, Hannah Sterling longed for a close relationship with her estranged mother. Following Lieselotte’s death, Hannah unlocks secrets of her mother’s mysterious past, including the discovery of a grandfather living in Germany...Categorized as:
christian family historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century adult audiobook -
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The Invisible Woman by Erika Robuck
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIn the depths of war, she would defy the odds to help liberate a nation...a gripping historical novel based on a remarkable true story from the bestselling author of Hemingway's GirlFrance, March 1944. Virginia Hall wasn't like the other young society women back home in Baltimore--she never wanted the debutante ball or silk gloves... -
Her Last Promise by Kathryn Hughes
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA mysterious letter from Spain. A surprising new beginning... Fall in love this summer with Her Last Promise, a gripping, heartwrenching story of how hope can blossom in the ruins of tragedy and of the redeeming power of love. From No. 1 bestselling author Kathryn Hughes. Tara Richards was just a girl when she lost her mother... -
The Berlin Letters by Katherine Reay
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsNear the end of the Cold War, a CIA code breaker discovers a symbol she recognizes from her childhood, which launches her across the world to the heart of Berlin just before the wall comes tumbling down...Categorized as:
historical-fiction christian cold-war family female-mc spirituality historical fiction -
On the Wings of Hope by Ella Zeiss, Helen MacCormac
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsAs World War II draws to a close, can two young people find love, hope—and freedom?February 1942: Terrifying reports of the Wehrmacht’s advance across the Soviet Union spread like wildfire, striking new fear into the already oppressed German families living there.Harri Pfeiffer, now sixteen, is summoned to the forced labour camp in Chelyabinsk...Categorized as:
family female-mc friendship historical-fiction politics 20th-century action-adventure adult -
Up from the Sea by Amanda Dykes
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDeep in a New England forest, an ancient tree stands at the center of a tale passed down through the generations. So much so, that the residents of Ansel-by-the-Sea, Maine, no longer know what is truth and what is fable. A woman fleeing in the night, rumors of treason, revolution, retribution . . -
The Starlet Spy by Rachel Scott McDaniel
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsHollywood Star Turns Spy In 1943, movie producer Henrik Zoltan approaches Amelie Blake under the guise of offering the Hollywood star a leading part in his upcoming film, but he has a more meaningful role in mind. Amelie’s homeland of Sweden declared neutrality in the war, but Stockholm has become the “Casablanca of the North...Categorized as:
historical-fiction christian suspense spirituality romance historical fiction mystery -
The Secrets of Saffron Hall: An absolutely gripping Tudor historical fiction novel by Clare Marchant
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsTwo women. Five centuries apart.One life-changing secret about to be unearthed…1538New bride Eleanor impresses her husband by growing saffron, a spice more valuable than gold...Categorized as:
christian family female-mc friendship historical-fiction spirituality 20th-century adult -
Arabian Winds by Linda Lee Chaikin
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAs World War I breaks upon the deserts of Arabia in 1917, Allison Wescott, a young nurse, arrives in British Cairo, torn between her love for a handsome officer and her feelings for a minister working in Oswald Chambers's Zeitoun camp...Categorized as:
christian historical-fiction politics spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure adult -
In Times Gone By by Tracie Peterson
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsAfter getting left at the altar, Kenzie Gifford flees to San Francisco to start her life over, determined never to love again. She's made new friends and has a good job in the office of her cousin's chocolate factory. The only thorn in her side is Dr. Micah Fisher, who insists on pursuing her despite her constant rejection. Then the Great 1906 Earthquake strikes the city, and everything changes...Categorized as:
christian family historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century adult audiobook -
A Life for a Life: A Mystery Novel by Lynda McDaniel
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen a young woman is found dead in a wilderness area of the North Carolina mountains, the county sheriff says suicide. Della Kincaid disagrees. As a former reporter in Washington, D.C., she knows how to hunt down the real story. But she's living in Laurel Falls, N.C., trying to create a new life for herself...Categorized as:
christian female-mc suspense historical-fiction friendship spirituality romance historical -
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Born of Gilded Mountains by Amanda Dykes
Rated: 4.30 of 5 stars · 10 ratingsWhen newcomer Mercy Windsor arrives in Mercy Peak in 1948 after a scandal shatters her gilded world as Hollywood's beloved leading lady, she is determined to forge a new life in obscurity in this time-forgotten Colorado haven. She purchases Wildwood--an abandoned estate with a haunting history--and begins to restore it to its former glory...Categorized as:
north-america usa historical-fiction christian friendship spirituality colorado fiction -
Mightier Than the Sword by Jeffrey Archer
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 28 ratingsA bomb goes off, but how many passengers on the MV Buckingham have lost their lives? You will find out only if you read the opening chapter of Mightier than the Sword...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction politics suspense thriller 20th-century action-adventure adult -
The Lightkeeper's Daughters by Jean E. Pendziwol
Rated: 4.22 of 5 stars · 36 ratingsThough her mind is still sharp, Elizabeth's eyes have failed. No longer able to linger over her beloved books or gaze at the paintings that move her spirit, she fills the void with music and memories of her family—a past that suddenly becomes all too present when her late father's journals are found amid the ruins of an old shipwreck... -
Mystical Paths by Susan Howatch
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen Nicholas Darrow follows his father into the Anglican priesthood in 1968 at the age of twenty-five, he is fleeing a troubled past. But when his fascination with his own psychic powers results in a near-tragedy, Nicholas must face the truth about his relationship with his father before he can find his way out of the seemingly impenetrable darkness that engulfs him... -
Far Side of the Sea by Kate Breslin
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsIn spring 1918, Lieutenant Colin Mabry, a British soldier working with MI8 after suffering injuries on the front, receives a message by carrier pigeon. It is from Jewel Reyer, the woman he once loved and who saved his life--a woman he believed to be dead...Categorized as:
christian family historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century action-adventure adult -
Almost Home by Valerie Fraser Luesse
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWith America's entrance into the Second World War, the town of Blackberry Springs, Alabama, has exploded virtually overnight. Workers from all over are coming south for jobs in Uncle Sam's munitions plants--and they're bringing their pasts with them, right into Dolly Chandler's grand but fading family home turned boardinghouse...Categorized as:
christian family friendship historical-fiction spirituality 20th-century adult audiobook -
The Fourth Daughter by Lyn Liao Butler
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsIn Taiwan, the bond between grandmother and granddaughter opens up a healing world for them both in an inspiring family saga about the comfort of food, untold histories, and indomitable mother love.Chef Liv Kuo’s star is on the rise…until a traumatic incident leaves her emotionally unable to venture outside her Manhattan apartment... -
Hidden Among the Stars by Melanie Dobson
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFrom 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...Categorized as:
christian family friendship historical-fiction spirituality urban 20th-century action-adventure -
A Sparrow in Terezin by Kristy Cambron
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTwo women, one in the present day and one in 1942, each hope for a brighter future. But they'll both have to battle through their darkest days to reach it. "Today. "With the grand opening of her new gallery and a fairytale wedding months away, Sera James appears to have a charmed life...Categorized as:
christian historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century adult audiobook book -
A Beautiful Disguise by Roseanna M. White
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsLeft with an estate on the brink of bankruptcy after their father's death, Lady Marigold Fairfax and her brother open a private investigation firm marketed to the elite . . . to spy on the elite. Dubbed The Imposters, Ltd., their anonymous group soon becomes the go-to for the crème of society when they want answers delivered surreptitiously...Categorized as:
historical-fiction christian family suspense friendship spirituality romance mystery -
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Testimony of Two Men by Taylor Caldwell
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsSomeday the town of Hambledon might forget the lies they told about their brilliant young doctor. But they could never forgive the truths he told about them... -
Beyond the Shadow of Night by Ray Kingfisher
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsIn this epic tale of friendship and loss from the author of The Sugar Men, fate pushes childhood friends to opposite sides of a terrible war—but is forgiveness always possible? Ukraine, 1923. On a small farm, two boys are born within days of each other, both Ukrainian, one Jewish... -
The Forgotten Village by Lorna Cook
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA timeless story of love and sacrifice, perfect for fans of Rachel Hore, Tracy Rees and Kate Morton. 1943: The world is at war, and the villagers of Tyneham are being asked to make one more sacrifice: to give their homes over to the British army. But on the eve of their departure, a terrible act will cause three of them to disappear forever...Categorized as:
family female-mc friendship historical-fiction spirituality suspense 20th-century 21st-century -
A Splendid Ruin by Megan Chance
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 24 ratingsA spellbinding novel of dark family secrets and a young woman’s rise and revenge set against the backdrop of the devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake.The eve of destruction. After her mother’s death, penniless May Kimble lives a lonely life until an aunt she didn’t know existed summons her to San Francisco. There she’s welcomed into the wealthy Sullivan family and their social circle...Categorized as:
california family female-mc friendship historical-fiction north-america suspense usa -
The Secret Book of Flora Lea by Patti Callahan Henry
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWhen a woman discovers a rare book that has connections to her past, long-held secrets about her missing sister and their childhood spent in the English countryside during World War II are revealed.In the war-torn London of 1939, fourteen-year-old Hazel and five-year-old Flora are evacuated to a rural village to escape the horrors of the Second World War... -
Above the Fold by Rachel Scott McDaniel
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsCan she nab the headline without losing her heart?Elissa Tillman may be confined behind a secretarial desk, but her heart is out in the open world landing the big story that’ll place her father’s struggling newspaper back on top. When a millionaire inventor is murdered, she finally convinces her hesitant father to give her the break she’s been dreaming of. But there’s a catch...
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