Plus a LitFuse Giveaway!
From Amazon…
Bound together across time, two women will discover a powerful connection through one survivor’s story of hope in the darkest days of a war-torn world.
Present Day—With the grand opening of her new art gallery and a fairytale wedding just around the corner, Sera James feels she’s stumbled into a charmed life—until a brutal legal battle against fiancé William Hanover threatens to destroy the perfectly planned future she’s planned before it even begins. Now, after an eleventh-hour wedding ceremony and a callous arrest, William faces a decade in prison for a crime he never committed, and Sera must battle the scathing accusations that threaten her family and any hope for a future.
1942—Kája Makovsky narrowly escaped occupied Prague in 1939, and was forced to leave her half-Jewish family behind. Now a reporter for the Daily Telegraph in England, Kája discovers the terror has followed her across the Channel in the shadowy form of the London Blitz. When she learns Jews are being exterminated by the thousands on the continent, Kája has no choice but to return to her mother city, risking her life to smuggle her family to freedom and peace.
Connecting across a century through one little girl, a Holocaust survivor with a foot in each world, these two women will discover a kinship that springs even in the darkest of times. In this tale of hope and survival, Sera and Kája must cling to the faith that sustains and fight to protect all they hold dear—even if it means placing their own futures on the line.
Kristy Cambron fancies life as a vintage-inspired storyteller. Her debut historical novel, THE BUTTERFLY AND THE VIOLIN (Thomas Nelson, 2014), was named to Library Journal Reviews’ Best Books of 2014, Family Fiction’s Top Ten Novels of 2014, and received nominations for RT Reviewers’ Choice Awards Best Inspirational Novel of 2014 and the 2015 INSPY Awards for Best Debut Novel. Her second novel, A Sparrow in Terezin
Kristy is an Art/Design Manager at TheGROVEstory.com and holds a degree in Art History from Indiana University. She lives in Indiana with her husband and three football-loving sons, where she can probably be bribed with a coconut mocha latte and a good Christian fiction read.
You can connect with Kristy at:
Facebook: Kristy Cambron | Twitter: @KCambronAuthor | Instagram: kristycambron
Pinterest: KCambronAuthor | Web: KristyCambron.com | TheGROVEstory.com
The Writing…
Kristy Cambron doesn’t disappoint in her second installment in the Hidden Masterpiece series. I so did not see the twist in the first chapter coming. Way to get me hooked from the beginning, Kristy Cambron! There I am, sitting on the beach in California, and then BAM! I won’t spoil it for those who haven’t read it yet. Let’s just say Kristy Cambron has kicked things up a notch. Just as in The Butterfly and the Violin, we have perfect pacing, masterful descriptions, deep point of view…Kristy brings well-honed craft to the table. She’s someone to admire and learn from for anyone who desires to get into the publishing biz.
The Story…
I am loving the different angles Kristy Cambron has taken in this series. She approaches WWII and the Holocaust from completely new perspectives. In A Sparrow in Terezin, I felt like I was really there in London during the Blitz. I experienced Terezin as an insider. The places and events portrayed in this book made history come alive for me. Kája and Sera’s stories are so rich, so beautifully woven together, I almost want to take a break from writing YA fantasy and have a whack at historical fiction. That’s how much this story spoke to my heart. From contemporary lovers to all-out history buffs, A Sparrow in Terezin has something for everyone.
As always, in order to keep me interested, there must be romance involved. I have to say I am sort of crushing on Liam Marshall. What girl wouldn’t fall for a dashing Londoner who sweeps her off her feet (more than once, I might add). And then there’s Sera’s and William’s contemporary story. I fell in love with these characters in book one, and despite all the trials they face in book two, these characters find strength to get through it all. Add another mystery to the mix and you have a book you’ll devour. This busy, homeschooling/writer mom did. In two days! How’s that for hungry?
The Ending…
Perfect. Satisfying. Leaving me wanting more. I cannot wait until the next installment! I’m having a bit of a book hangover after this one. It’s THAT good! Also, the message of Joshua 1:9 is clear from the first page to the last. It has quickly become my new favorite verse.
Recommendation…
Ages: 16 and up
For fans of:
Content: This book contains historical themes and events relating to World War II and the Holocaust. The subject was approached tastefully and delicately. The romance in the book is very clean. I personally would have no qualms with my daughters reading this in their teen years.
I give A Sparrow in Terezin 5 out of 5 hearts for tugging at my heartstrings, and for making me think deeply about past and present. Kristy Cambron is brilliant!
Darling, he is here. He sees. He knows our pain. And for every single sparrow that has fallen in this place, he has cried too.” ~ Kristy Cambron, A Sparrow in Terezin
Q&A with Kristy Cambron…
Today’s interview is a true treat to share with you all. I had the pleasure of connecting with Kristy Cambron at the 2014 ACFW Conference. I was a scared newbie who didn’t know what I was doing. Kristy Cambron (among many others) treated me like an old friend. I happened across her in the hotel Starbucks and blurted, “You’re Kristy Cambron!” Can you say starstruck? Kristy greeted me with a warm smile and a hug. She even took a photo with me (left)! I’ve had the opportunity to get to know her a little more through email and her inspiring blog over at KristyCambron.com (which if you haven’t visited, you should). And yes, she’s just as stunning in real life as she is in her photo.
Maddie F. asks, “What made you want to become a writer?”
Hi Maddie ~ Oh, the loveliness of dreams… How I smile every time I’m asked this question because I get to revisit how God made it possible.
My journey to becoming a writer started at our local library when I was a child – but not in the way most people would think. I wasn’t a veracious reader. My mom would take me and my sister to the library every week and instead of looking through the fiction books, I’d go straight to the art section. At the time, my dream was to become a Disney animator. And it was sitting on the floor in that library with stacks of Disney animation and art history books all around me that I first fell in love with visual storytelling. Now, I wasn’t blessed with an artist’s hands to create visual art. So by the time I entered college, I knew I’d have to find a different way to pursue what I loved. Walking into my first art history class is a moment I’ll never forget. It was like God whispered to my heart: “You’re home.” I knew from that point on I wanted to research and write about the art I loved, and do it for Jesus. I had no idea then that more than a decade later, He’d place that whispered dream on the shelf of a bookstore.
Becca P. asks, “Was your first book ever rejected? If so how many times?” (Sara Ella adds: Any advice for how to deal with rejection?)
Hi Becca – What a great question with a tough answer from this author: YES!
The Butterfly and the Violin was the first book I had published, but it was the ninth manuscript I’d written. I’d also been writing professionally in Corporate America for more than a decade. So by the time I began seriously pursuing publication, I had a lot of writing experience under my belt. But that doesn’t mean I was ready for publication… I submitted. And submitted some more. I entered a few contests and had a few more crash-and-burn experiences. I received rejections pretty regularly. In fact, I stopped counting them and channeled the sting of it into improving my knowledge of the writing craft. (Hint: We should NEVER stop doing this.) My husband and I chose to see every rejection we received not as a “No”, but rather, as a “Not Yet” or “Not Here” on the way to finding our publishing family. We knew that would happen one day – even if it took years, we weren’t giving up on what God had placed on our hearts.
We had to stay pretty close to Christ throughout the entire process – He provided the strength to keep going and the fresh words to write. We also felt it was important to mark the entire publication journey, so we’d be able to look back and see God’s provision along the way. I began collecting copies of my favorite book: Jane Eyre. With each milestone – good or bad – I’d buy a new copy and mark both the date and the milestone in the front cover. From my very first submission in the industry to the day we signed our first contract, we have 17 Jane Eyre books now on the shelf. Find a way to mark the journey, realizing that’s what it will be. It’s not so much about the end result (publication) as it is about finding the words He’s called you to write, and living out the journey it takes to get to them.
BOTTOM LINE: How to deal with rejection: 1) Channel it into learning and improving in the writing craft until you’re ready for publication. 2) Find a way to mark your personal publication journey. 3) Stay close to Christ throughout.
Daniela D. asks, “Where did you come up with the idea for your book?”
Hi Daniela ~ The idea sparked for a book about the children’s art of Terezin while I was researching for my undergrad degree in Art History. I came across the book: I Never Saw Another Butterfly: Children’s Drawings and Poems from the Terezin Concentration Camp, 1942-1944. I was so moved by the images of the art in its pages. I knew the subject matter was special, I just didn’t know what to do with the idea at the time. More than a decade later, this research turned into The Hidden Masterpiece series. When I began writing Christian fiction, I kept going back to this thought that I wanted to try to give a voice to those children, to recognize the beauty of the art and the preciousness that was lost to the world because of the Holocaust. And while on maternity leave with our third son, I began writing the first book in the series. (Most of my friends know that I wrote the first draft of The Butterfly and the Violin on my iPhone, because it was easier to do it that way while giving our newborn his bottles.) After that, the second book in the series had to be about the children. I just couldn’t see it happening any other way.
Laura P. asks, “If you could hangout with your characters for the day, what would you want to do?”
Hi Laura ~ I’m just in love with this question! It’s every writer’s dream, I think, to get to step into this fairy tale world of the stories we write. (The funny thing is, they’re already so real to us that we may forget our characters are not actually living people…)
With my current book series on the art of the Holocaust, I’d have to do two things:
I’d absolutely need to hear Adele play her violin (from The Butterfly and the Violin). I’m not a musician, but I’ve had the stunning beauty of every note Adele’s played running through my head for years now. I’d love to step into the concert hall in the book, sit down in an audience of Jews who perished in Auschwitz, and together, listen to those notes of worship just float up to our Creator. It would feel like hearing their collective voice crying out to God – what could be more beautiful?
From A Sparrow in Terezin, I’d want to be a silent observer in Kaja’s concentration camp classroom. I’d wish to stand by and watch as she lavished hope and love on these little ones, all the while knowing what was likely to happen to them. I’d want to see as they took the cheery paint colors and scraps of paper, as they penned poetry or sang songs, and turned their pain into masterpieces of art. How stunning it is when you can inspire and infuse hope in the most bleak of situations! I’d not even need to say a word – just to be present in that moment that Kaja showed authentic love would be enough to find my heart irreversibly moved.
Sara Ella (me) asks, “What is your most anticipated read of 2015 and why?”
Hi Sara – I have two that I’m just really excited about next: The Curiosity Keeper, by Sarah Ladd (Thomas Nelson) and The Bronte Plot, by Katherine Reay (Thomas Nelson). These two authors are wonderful friends, and we’ve walked the journey of writing and editing our latest books together. I’m also excited to read anything by my author sisters on TheGROVEstory.com: Katie Ganshert, Melissa Tagg, Cara Putman, Beth Vogt, Courtney Walsh, Sarah Ladd, and Katherine Reay. I can’t think of anything better than to sit down and read the final product of friends’ books, knowing how we’ve cheered each other on from the sidelines and have lifted each other up in prayer. It’s a special thing to share in another’s journey – especially with books that will honor Christ in the end. Plus – I think they’re all fabulously gifted writers and their work inspires me every day to keep improving in what I write.
P.S. I’ve yet to read Water for Elephants, by Sara Gruen. Now that I’m writing a Jazz Age series and my next novel will be about the Ringlings’ early circus, I’m excited to read this book as soon as my next manuscript is turned in. Can you say, Beach Read?!
Bound together across time, two women will discover a powerful connection in Kristy Cambron‘s new book, A Sparrow in Terezin. Connecting across a century through one little girl, a Holocaust survivor with a foot in each world, two women will discover a kinship that springs even in the darkest of times. In this tale of hope and survival, Sera and Kája must cling to the faith that sustains and fight to protect all they hold dear—even if it means placing their own futures on the line.
Kristy is celebrating by giving away a basket filled with goodies inspired by her new book!
One grand prize winner will receive:
- A set of poppy notecards
- A poppy pin
- A copy of I Never Saw Another Butterfly
- A copy of the Mrs. Miniver DVD
- Literary tea bags
- Tumbler
- A copy of A Sparrow in Terezin
Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on April 28th. Winner will be announced April 29th on Kristy’s blog.
Have you read A Sparrow in Terezin? Let’s chat it up in the comments below, or tweet to me @SaraEllaWrites. I love hearing from you! Until then, happy reading!
Sara, thanks for your interview with Christy. She has some great books and would love to own all of them. No I haven’t read Sparrow in Terezin. But will keep trying to win it and maybe get lucky. Maxie
It’s definitely a must read. Maxie! Thanks for stopping by!