My Bookshelf: With Every Letter by Sarah Sundin

        Lt. Mellie Blake is looking forward to beginning her training as a flight nurse. She is not looking forward to writing a letter to a man she’s never met—even if it is anonymous and part of a morale-building program. Lt. Tom MacGilliver, an officer stationed in North Africa, welcomes the idea of an anonymous correspondence—he’s been trying to escape his infamous name for years.

        As their letters crisscross the Atlantic, Tom and Mellie develop a unique friendship despite not knowing the other’s true identity. When both are transferred to Algeria, the two are poised to meet face-to-face for the first time. Will they overcome their fears and reveal who they are, or will their future be held hostage by their pasts?

        Lt. Mellie Blake cannot make friends. She simply does not know how. So when she is asked to write a letter to a man she has never met as part of a morale-building project for the men at the front, she is hesitant to accept for fear that her letter will do nothing but disgust the man who receives it. Although she finally agrees to the anonymous letter-writing, she is sure nothing will ever come of it. Surprised when her new pen-pal writes back, Mellie hesitantly accepts his offer of friendship, and a relationship unlike any she has ever known forms from their over-seas correspondence.

        Lt. Tom MacGilliver has plenty of ‘friends’. The only problem is, he cannot let any of them close enough to know who he really is, and his infamous name never fails to drive them away. When he receives Mellie’s letter, he cannot believe he finally has the chance to make a real friend who will not judge him for his name or his past. As their pen-pal friendship grows, Tom cannot help but wonder what it would be like if they were to meet. Will they be able to get past their fears of revealing their true selves, or are they destined to only be anonymous letter friends?

        With Every Letter was the first book I had ever read by Sarah Sundin, and I was thoroughly impressed by her writing. While she created a wonderful plotline that kept me guessing from chapter to chapter, she also filled her novel with interesting facts about life for the soldiers and flight nurses during World War II. Not only did I learn more about World War II—in an enjoyable way—but I felt like I connected with, or at the very least understood, Mellie and Tom as well. Many people, myself included, struggle with making friends, whether because they don’t know how, they are afraid of rejection, or they have something—like Tom’s name—that keeps people from seeing them as they really are. I couldn’t help but sympathize with the two of them, and that drew this book even closer to my heart.

        I also enjoyed Mellie and Tom’s story, aka, how their friendship unfolded, how they helped each other, and how they met—or didn’t. With plenty of inspiring and heartbreaking moments, I give With Every Letter all five stars for being a book that I could relate to, for having characters that changed, and for being a wonderful example of Historical Christian fiction. Because I loved it so much, especially the happily-ever-after ending, I absolutely would recommend this book.

        Happy reading!

You can get your own copy of this amazing novel here.

All credit for the above italicized synopsis goes to Sarah Sundin and her publishers.