What Are Good Books to Read, After All?

Good morning, beautiful people! I’m back!!! I’d like to do something slightly different today (haha, haven’t I been doing that a lot lately?).

To start with, in a few of my posts, I’ve mentioned what a hard thing it can be to find a good book to read. I’ve talked to several of my friends about it and even put together a list of book recommendations for one of them!

That made me think though—what about you guys? Maybe you all have a hard time finding good books as well (or you just don’t like reading—that’s a faint possibility, though, since you’re reading this . . .).

So I thought, what if I made a list of book recommendations for my readers?

And that is why I’m here today: to give you all a list of books that I’ve read and would recommend to anyone looking for a good book.

Why trust me? Well, in the words of my friend’s dad when he asked where my friend had found all the books she’d been reading, “Well, if Janet recommended it, then I guess it’s alright. We can trust her.” And yes, he told that story to my face, so I think he meant it. 😂

And without further ado, here’s the list!

A Few of My Favorite Books of All Time

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

A romance, a sort of comedy, written to poke fun at Jane Austen’s own world and society and written by a teenager in 1796. Where can you go wrong? I’ve loved this story for a very long time and even acted in a local theater rendition of the beloved tale.

And content warnings? Um, a kind of crazy mother, romance (obviously), and sometimes hard to read because it was written so long ago. But if you have patience and a desire to understand it, you will!

Wish by Barbara O’Conner

This is the cutest MG (middle grade) story I’ve read recently! I loved it so, so much—the descriptions and everything were perfect. I am thinking about debuting in MG myself, so this is such an inspiration for my own stories.

A young girl, a dog, and a neighbor boy with a gimpy leg join together in this lovely book about family and the true meaning of friendship.

Content warning: a sort of messed up family situation and just general cuteness.

The Gammage Cup by Carol Kendall

This is a book my mom read to me when I was probably six or seven, but I STILL enjoy it! Imagine a hobbit-like people living in a secluded mountain valley where they enjoy life . . . until the Mushrooms (bald, fat people from beyond their valley) find a way through the mountains . . .

Content warning: battle and some lovely prejudice about expressing yourself.

Fawkes by Nadine Brandes

A YA historical fantasy, this was the first of its kind that I’d ever read. I didn’t even know that genre existed until I read this one, but it was really cool! Of course, there’s plotting, a little bit of racism from England in the 1600s, and a super cool history lesson woven throughout this fantasy novel!

I really enjoyed it, and I think I read the entire thing in two days or less. But of course, I sort of do that a lot, so . . . XD

Narnia (series) by C. S. Lewis

If you don’t know what this is, then you shouldn’t be reading this list. I love these books. That’s all I’m going to say.

The Bark of the Bog Owl (series) by Jonathan Rogers

This is another one of the books my mom read to me (series, actually), and it’s still one I love! It’s an allegory of David and Goliath, but it goes further than most retellings do. Plus, it’s not actually taking the real characters in the Bible story, but using them as a basis for Jonathan Rogers’s own story and world—something that I appreciate because it’s not trying to replace or explain the real story like some retellings seem to.

Also, this is just such an adorable story! Feechies, the WilderKing, King Darrow, and our hero, Aiden Errolson/Pantherbane. Who couldn’t love it? Highly recommend, although I’m not sure if it’s a series you’d find at a library or not.

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The Last Book That Made Me Cry, Why, and Should You Read It?

The Book Thief by Marcus Zuzak

This was a weird one. It’s a WWII story about a German girl, a Jewish man, the war, and a lot of sadness. I don’t recommend it without a warning—it is a WWII story!!! So if you’re sensitive about suffering and persecution, don’t like the thought of a story narrated by the character of Death (really, truly. It was sort of weird.), or don’t have time to read a 584-page book (or 14 discs, if you listen to it), then don’t read this one.

Other than that . . . if you like a heartwarming, touching story that will MAKE YOU SOB, then read it!

Other content warnings: swearing in German, and one character is forced to be examined without clothes on in one scene. Also, Death.

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Okay, that’s all for now! Hopefully, this gives you a few new books to read. Also, a side note: I tried to stick to more MG/YA (lighter stories) in this list, but if you’d like me to make a list of deeper stories for more mature readers, then let me know! I’ve read a LOT of books, so I’m sure I can think of several.

God bless!

~Janet

PS: I think also the reason so many MG novels are on my mind is because I’ve been reading a lot of them for research for my own book! 😀

What Happens When You Finish Your Project (and Want to Publish)?

A Few Thoughts on Self-Editing

Good day (or night) to everyone! This is going to be an interesting post—filled with real experiences, questions, tips, and steps, as well as . . . mayyyybeeee some special, never-before–seen snippets from my recently finished novel!

Let’s start out with this—yes, I did finish my novel! This project has been in the works since August of 2023, and I’ve been drafting it for the last three months. While I’m not going to talk in depth about that process (it was a process), I’d like to jump to where I am now and talk about my steps going forward.

The other day at my work (the day I finished drafting my project, actually), I told my coworker that I was hopefully going to finish my book after I got home. Her face lit up with a smile, and she asked me, “So, are you going to send it to a publisher, then?”

Well . . . no, not quite. You see, when going into the publishing industry, there are a lot more steps in there that nonwriters don’t know much about. Actually, I didn’t know much about them at first either. When I started writing, I knew I wouldn’t be sending off my first draft to a publisher yet, but . . . if not, when?

In the Author Conservatory, there is a lot of talk and prep for this. I can’t share all the details since it’s a paid program, but I’d like to share a few details in my own journey.

I have finished the first draft of this novel. In fact, it’s barely a novel at all, since it’s just 500 words above 50k. That’s okay though—I’ll expand it in later edits! But while we’re thinking about that, how do you go about editing?

Here we get to the meat of the next steps. There is a whole process in the Author Conservatory for editing, but it all starts with what are called self-edits. You don’t want to send a raw first draft to a professional editor, because they’ll have to wade through a bunch of things that you could have fixed yourself. You don’t want to waste their time and your money on them doing those small edits.

A few helpful steps:

So going into self-edits (today was my first day of that!), here are a few of the things I’m looking out for:

Things that I need to add. Details, characters, interactions, foreshadowing—all of it. I’m not actually adding it as I go, though. I’m reading through the entire novel first and leaving comments like crazy! I got through the first half this morning, in just two hours.
Things I need to cut. Unnecessary scenes, scenes that can be combined, info-dumping—all that lovely stuff. There isn’t actually as much as that in my draft because I’m what’s called an underwriter—I have a really hard time adding all the detail I actually need, so it’s even harder to add stuff that I don’t need. XD
Character arc and plot pieces that need to be moved around or fixed.

That last one is the main issue in my project. My arcs are really messy, so they’re causing a ton of issues and making the actual plot not work right. I knew about halfway through my story that this would be the case, so I’ve been dreading it for the last month or so as I finished drafting.

(But you know what? Knowing that I needed to fix them didn’t stop me from finishing the draft in the first place. I didn’t stop and go back to fix things. I needed to get everything written first before I could fix it.)

A tip:

One thing I’ve learned from the self-editing process (both preparing for and actually doing it) is that I shouldn’t worry about it unless I’m working on it. This is HUGE for me. I think about my story every waking moment—or at least, it feels like I do. So just letting go of the story while I’m not actually at my computer is a big thing! It makes me feel so much less stressed and helps me focus on other things as well.

It helps me sleep better too. So many nights I’d lie awake scheming on how I was going to pull off the next scene or what plot things needed to be moved around . . . and then a friend reminded me that I needed to actually rest from the project sometimes!

I’ve been trying to let God handle it, and so far it’s been working really well. When He’s holding it, when I sit down at my computer I don’t suddenly forget all the things I need to do. I can remember them in time, and it’s a ton easier to sit down and work on it in a given amount of time rather than all day long.

So to wrap up: publishing doesn’t come right after the first draft. There are many more steps after this, and self-editing is just one of them! There are usually a lot of things that need to be fixed, but that’s okay—if you’re in this situation right now, I know you can do it. Hopefully my small list above gives you an idea of things you need to look out for, and you can dive into self-edits with a will!

And even if you aren’t sitting on a finished first draft and wondering what to do with it, hopefully this post will give you some idea of the process needed for later too. 😀If you aren’t a writer at all—well, thanks for reading anyway!

Without further ado, I give you two random snippets from my story that I found today while reading through it. Enjoy!

Here’s the first one . . .

He smiled, pulling off his glasses and cleaning them on his shirt. He looked me straight in the eyes and said, “Victrola, you can count on it. I wouldn’t leave for anything.”

I laughed, pointing to his glasses. “I thought you can’t see without those on?”

“Oh, I can see up close things. Sort of.” He put them back on, adjusting them. Then he looked at me again. “Jiminy Cricket, she was crying this whole time!?”

I laughed, shaking my head. “That was not nice!” But he was laughing too, so I knew it was meant to be a joke. “It wasn’t very funny, either.”

“Ah, but you’re laughing, aren’t you?”

And the next one!

Loryn explained all about codenames and why we needed them, even going so far as to suggest that mine be “Miss Music” (because my name was Victrola) and his be “Glasses” (for obvious reasons). But I wasn’t so sure.

“Why do we need to be undercover at all? Everyone in town knows who we are anyway. And I don’t think anyone would try to hurt us. Do you? I don’t think whatever this is is anything that big. Ma investigated things like property management and taking care of the animals and environment. Not Evil Overlords and Kidnapping Gangs or what-have-you.”

That’s all for today! Thank you so very much for reading my rambling thoughts, and have a blessed rest of your day.

~Janet

Books: Discernment vs. Compromise

Reading books is one of my favorite hobbies, activities, past times . . . all of the above.

I love reading books, and I always have.

In fact, I’ve heard that writing books is helped by reading! Like, if writing is output, reading is input. It refills your creativity.

Recently, I’ve been reading a lot of new books that I’ve heard about—either through friends, their blogs, or other random recommendations. Usually, I only read books recommended by people I know and trust—but sometimes even that can be tricky.

Books these days are sometimes a little harder to judge—either by their covers or otherwise.

So I’d like to talk today about books and why they’re both amazing and amazingly dangerous. Let’s get started!

I’m what you might call a bookaholic. When I pick up a book, I have a really hard time putting it down (which is why I’ve been known on multiple occasions to read an entire 300+ page book in one day). But I have an even harder time putting down a book permanently. I get hooked. I get curious . . . and I can’t DNF (do not finish) it, even though maybe I should.

In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever DNF’d a book in my life.

That’s how serious it is.

This can be a good thing, I guess. But more often than not, it’s proven harmful to me and my family/relationships.

I’ll talk about family first. When I’m reading a book—even and especially if it’s a good one—I get wrapped up in it. I can’t focus on anything else. There are some cases when this isn’t true and I can read through a book slowly (or at least more slowly than usual), but in general I read a book in one or two days.

That means everything else gets set on the back burner. My schoolwork for college. My family. My blog. My writing. You get the idea.

This can be and is a bad thing that I need to get control of. Obviously. XD I’m working on it!

However, that’s not the only component that I want to talk about here. I don’t just want to spout off how bad I am at not reading books. I want to warn you against this obsession, yes, but for more than that one reason.

I mentioned above that it can be harmful to me to keep reading a book. Example? Well, if there’s a lot of swearing. If there’s immorality. Perhaps there’s a background LGBTQ+ character. You get the idea.

These things are against my morals, but . . . sometimes I get so caught up in the story that I convince myself that it’s not that bad . . . or I can filter it out!

This is NOT true.

To some extent, maybe you can ignore the bad stuff. But for me, it comes back. It keeps coming back. Scenes pop up in my head all the time from books I’ve read and shouldn’t have. Words I shouldn’t know.

This stuff clogs up my mind and takes away from the good stuff I’m putting in at the same time.

You’ve probably heard the saying “bad character rubs off on good character,” or “you’re only as good as the company you keep.” Or something like that.

In other words, the things you read (and watch, BTW) do rub off on you. They leave an impression. GIGO—or garbage in, garbage out. According to google, this idea “refers to the idea that in any system, the quality of output is determined by the quality of the input. For example, if a mathematical equation is improperly stated, the answer is unlikely to be correct.”

So be careful with what you put into your mind! The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:21-22:

Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils:

ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.

Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?

This verse is taken a bit out of context, since here Paul is talking about eating and drinking food that had been offered to idols. But I think that the spirit of the argument applies here as well.

We can’t take in the things that are of God and the things that are against Him at the same time. It just doesn’t work! It’s impossible to sort out good from bad without God, and our judgment and our flesh will always fail and turn back to our sinful nature.

Don’t play games with God. Don’t try to explain it away by saying that “parts of it are good.” Save yourself the future trouble and stay far away from it in the first place.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Obviously, I need to get better at this as well! I understand myself enough to know that I have a very hard time putting a book down, so I need to discern whether or not I should even pick it up in the first place.

There are certain authors that I will not read anymore because I know their books have content that I don’t need in my mind. Unknown authors? Well, that’s a little harder. I don’t want to narrow my reading down to all that I have already read, and I know there are still good books out there—but doing more research beforehand or talking to someone who has read those books before I decide to try them out is important.

So there you have it! Work hard to discern what is good before you are forced to decide whether or not to compromise your morals because “it’s a good plot” or some other argument. Please, focus on keeping your mind pure. After all, it is God’s.

And when you’re stuck, ask Him for help in discerning against evil! Trust Him. He will never fail you.

Thank you for reading, and God bless!

~Janet

PS: When I wrote this, I had not DNF’d a book. Technically, I still haven’t. But the other day, I read a book (actually the one that inspired this post!) that was part of a series. I decided to read the rest of the series, but then . . . I thought about it for a bit. And when those books were ready for pickup at the library, I went and checked them out. Then I took them all outside and pushed them, one by one, through the return slot. 😂

Has it Been Three Weeks?!

*pops in*

*waves hello*

Uhhh, hi, y’all! It’s been awhile—as in three weeks—since I last posted. Maybe some of you noticed, maybe you didn’t. Either way, I did. 😂

Those three weeks have been full of interesting things, such as

My first time drafting my novel six days in a row
My first time entirely neglecting to draft my novel for the next five days in a row
My ~~first~~ time neglecting my blog without warning
My first time in several years drawing a one-point-perspective room design
My first time accidentally putting a book on hold at the library in Spanish, not english 😂
Business troubles (yes, I run my own business. And yes, it is having troubles.)
Story anxiety and some self-doubt that I’ve told no one about 😂 (until now)
Refocusing on God and trying to stay on track with Him
Computer issues
More research on graphic design

And much more! I won’t get into all of these things today (and maybe I won’t dive into details on some of them ever), but I would like to attempt explaining why I’ve been absent from my blog with no warning for almost a month.

First of all, I’ve been thinking about redoing my site—giving it a makeover. I’d like to have some sort of author blog and/or email list soon, in preparation for publishing and selling my books. However, I decided to put off making that decision for a while, so for now I’ll be sticking to the regular blog.

My posting schedule may change a bit though, since I’ve been overwhelmed lately with a lot of things, and blogging has fallen a bit to the back burner. I want to take care of myself, my creativity, and my relationship with God before pushing myself to create content for readers. Sorry, y’all—I love you and I’m so thankful to have you. I hope you’ll understand.

So this unexplained three-week absence has been sort of for that reason as well—I got behind, overwhelmed, and then just quit. For a bit. To be honest, I wasn’t sure how long I’d need a break for, and I was okay with that. I’ve been learning to let myself have the space I need to recuperate, and this has been part of that journey.

Another small part of this has been college work and computer issues. I’ve been busy trying to keep on top of drafting my novel, fixing my business issues, and keeping my poor lil computer running (and not on fumes, hopefully).

Yes, a computer replacement is on the list, hopefully in the near future.

So there you have it! I’m sincerely sorry for disappearing off the face of the internet and leaving you all hanging (if you even noticed XD), but here I am again.

From now on, I’m not sure what my posting schedule will look like. I saw a friend, Leah, announce recently that she’ll be posting only when she feels led to, and I might do the same—we’ll see. Or, ya’know, when I have something exciting to share. ;P

For now, here’s a picture of the one-point-perspective drawing that I did, since I mentioned that in my list! I hope you enjoy it. (DISCLAIMER: this is not my own design. I was copying someone’s design on Pinterest. ;P)

Also, just for fun, here are a few books I’ve read recently! 😀

Gone-Away Lake by Elisabeth Enright

I can’t say this book has a huge plot or stakes or anything, but all the same, I loved it! It’s a safe, fun middle-grade story about two kids who discover a hidden lake . . . and some interesting people. I highly recommend this for a fireside story with little kids or just for curling up with yourself for a fun read!

Offsides by Lori Z. Scott

Pivoting from the fun middle-grade stories to a deeper YA novel, Offsides is an entertaining and yet heavy story. It deals with some difficult topics and staying alert to dangers young people face in the world today. It’s a good awareness story, but at the same time a heart-warming story of friendship, faith, and love. I’d recommend this book for older teens and parents, but I leave it to your discretion. 😀 I did really enjoy reading it!

And that’s it for today! See y’all next time, and God bless <3

~Janet

I Have Some Exciting News!

Well, hello, everyone! As the title of this post suggests, I have some exciting news relating to my writing progress!

In the Author Conservatory, we have a five-stage process of outlining and prepping a story, whether that be a novel or a short story. You start out with the bare concept, adding character arcs to that, then taking it to a three-page synopsis before expanding it into an in-depth outline, and then you finally reach the drafting stage.

The drafting stage is the longest stage usually, seeing as you’re actually putting the words on the page. And usually that can be a lot of words—between fifty and one hundred thousand words! But it’s also the most exciting stage, since you’ve spent so much time preparing for it and making sure your story is strong and has a firm foundation to build on.

Now, you may (or may not) see where I’m going with this.

Well, long story short, I’ve graduated to the drafting stage on my next project! The craziest part is that I was actually only on step three (synopsis) when I got the news—I skipped the whole step of outlining! Although this isn’t unheard of, it is certainly rare and amazing, so I was (and still am) super happy about it.

Am I completely ready to start drafting my next novel? Well, I’d like to think so. But if I’m completely honest, the answer is, not quite. I was completely surprised to hear the news and was nowhere near preparing my mindset for the long hard process of drafting a novel so soon.

But I’m willing to take the step, and I can’t wait to see how it goes! Although, going into December and the holidays, it might take me a while longer than my last novel. We’ll see.

Anyways, that’s my news for today! If you’re wondering what my novel is about, here’s a quick rundown:

Thirteen-year-old Vickie Allison lost her mother recently, and with her dad’s new job offer, they’re having to move to a new town as well. It’s been hard on Vickie, but she’s hopeful that she’ll be able to fulfill her mother’s last wish—tracking down some mischievous activity in the very town they’re moving to! With the help of a new friend, some weird clues given by the well-meaning townspeople, and a last-ditch effort by the men in town, Vickie is able to uncover the secret her mom had been investigating and bring out the truth.

This is a pretty rough idea of the actual story, and I know it might seem a tad strange, but I absolutely love the story and the way it has developed over the last three months! I can’t wait to start drafting it and bring my characters to life.

And that’s all I’ve got for today! God bless you all, and have an awesome day.

~Janet

Ember Creek: Snippet 2

Good morning, everyone! I posted the beginning of this short story a couple weeks ago, and here I am with the next part! Enjoy. 😀

Inside the trunk are oblong shapes and bulges all covered by white muslin and other scraps of carefully tucked fabric. My inner adventurer jumps in excitement as I reach down and gently unfold one of the objects.

When the cloth falls away, it reveals a stunning sword in a scabbard. Well, I can’t see if the sword itself is stunning, but the scabbard sure is. It’s made of leather with engravings in another language all down it. A few gems are embedded into the top of it, and laced all through the piece is stitching in a fine, silvery thread.

It’s also heavy, so I set it carefully aside and pull out the next piece.

Should I be snooping? Probably not—but Uncle Bryan did say I could look through the whole house.

The next piece is a leather chestpiece, followed by the remainder of a full set of leather and metal armor. It’s not any kind I’ve seen in pictures, so it must be old. Or not from my country at all.

Why does Uncle Bryan have this stuff? Was it his? Or his parents’?

I stare at the pieces for a long moment, shifting them so the dim light catches the metal pieces and makes them glint. It doesn’t look like a heavy outfit—being mostly leather. The sword is the heaviest part.

I pick it up again, studying the letters all over the scabbard. What does it say? Heaving myself to my feet, I lug the weapon after me and descend the ladder into my room.

I have to ask Uncle Bryan about this. I know both he and my father fought in the war, so it might belong to him. He might be able to explain why it looks so strange and what the letters mean.

He’s still out on the porch when I come downstairs, and I lean the sword awkwardly against the doorframe.

At the sound, his shoulders tense before he looks at me.

“I forgot you were here for a moment, Corey. Sorry about—what’s that?”

I motion to the sword. “This? Oh, I thought you might be able to tell me what it is. Where’d it come from? There’s a whole—”

He grabs the sword carefully, towering over me as he studies it. I step back, out of the doorway to give him space.

A long moment passes, then he looks past the pommel at me. “You opened the trunk?”

“You said—”

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t do that again.” With that, he leads me back up the stairs to my room and ascends into the attic. In the dim light, I scurry up just in time to see him stuffing the sword back into the trunk. I watch silently as he replaces the rest of the items and shuts the lid.

“Uncle Bryan?” I say timidly as he sits back on his haunches. His head turns to look at me.

“What, Corey?”

“What are they for? Were they yours?” I ask, biting my lip. He doesn’t seem mad, but the adventurer spirit has already died within me.

“Don’t come up here again, Corey. Please. If you tell anyone about those things, you could get hurt.” He motions for me to climb back down the ladder, and when I do, he follows me, shutting the trap door and latching it shut. But it’s not locked.

In silence, he leads me out of my room and back down to the dining room. And all the while I’m wondering, Who would hurt me? You, Uncle Bryan? Or someone else?

Thanks so much for reading! What do you think so far? I’d love to chat in the comments!

~Janet

The Author Conservatory is Publishing My Friends!

Guys.

I’m so excited to share this with you!

You may know, I’m in a writing college program called the Author Conservatory. The goals for this program include publishing novels, short stories, anthologies . . . etc. There are so many amazing things happening inside of it that it’s hard to keep track of them all!

BUT, something above-the-top is happening right now! And that is: some of my fellow students are publishing a collection of short stories in one book—next month!

And today is the cover reveal for that book: Voices of the Future.

So without further ado, here’s the (amazing!) cover. 🎉

Isn’t that a cool looking cover? I can’t wait to have it on my shelf. 😃

But today isn’t just the cover reveal. It’s also the day you can pre-order the book on Amazon! I already ordered mine, and I’d encourage you to do the same! All these short stories are clean, uplifting, and complex. Intriguing mysteries, amazing stories, and wonderful writing.

So if you’re interested in reading this book for yourself, here’s the link to pre-order and/or find out more about it!

And that’s all I’ve got for today. It’s been a while since I posted on a Thursday 😂 It feels kind of weird!

God bless!

~Janet

Ember Creek: Snippet 1

Good morning everyone! Today I’ll be sharing with you a snippet from a short story I’m writing—Ember Creek. I hope you enjoy it!

They said the war is over. But I know that it isn’t, not really. A war rages in my family, in my own heart. And the worst part is, I don’t know what it’s all about.

Snippets of whispered conversations, slips of paper hidden out of sight. And then the unexpected news—I’m going to stay with Uncle Bryan for the summer.

Two days later, my trunk thumps onto my new bedstead—an antique white piece of furniture stuffed into the corner of Uncle Bryan’s spare room. And it’s spare alright—nothing here besides the bed and a window seat with a view of the forest.

It’s called Ember Creek, apparently. I go downstairs to where Uncle is frying up some rabbit for an early dinner. At least he was expecting me, but he doesn’t seem very excited now that I’ve finally arrived.

His stocky frame blocks the stove as he stands there, silently flipping meat to sear it perfectly. The smell is tantalizing, but I fold my hands quietly and wait, not wanting to seem hurried.

“Want two or three pieces?” He asks, sliding the tray of steaming meat onto the table.

“Maybe two?” I say carefully, and he serves me up the desired amount. When I take a bite, the taste is wonderful.

“You know, I’ve never had rabbit before.” I say after my first bite.

Uncle Bryan’s short-cropped beard goes up and down with each silent bite.

“Did you shoot them yourself?”

“Umhmm.” He motions to a longbow hanging above the door. He’s a hunter, then. My parents never told me much about my uncle, and this is the first time I’ve seen him in my life—that I can remember.

We finish quietly, and I help him wash the dishes. After, he pulls a pipe and some fleurish out of a cupboard and motions me to step outside with him. He pulls up a chair for me, and leans against the railing as he smokes.

Finally, he turns his gaze from the vast forest of pines to me. The pipe rests gently against the railing as he studies my face. I look away, focusing on the birds flitting here and there in the trees.

“You look a lot like your mother.” He says slowly.

“I know. Everyone says that. Some say when I’m older, I’ll look like her twin.” I smile, picturing my mother’s strong but loving eyes. If only I could be as brave as her.

Uncle Bryan laughs softly, a twinkle in his eye. “Aye, that you might.” Then the smile fades and he turns back to the forest. “Twins.” I can barely hear it, but I’m sure that’s what he said.

In my turn, I study him. He looks a lot like my father, but I don’t say so. He knows it, I’m sure. They’re the real twins in the family, and when I saw him first I knew immediately. It was a little disconcerting, the resemblance. But I’d get used to it eventually.

“May I go up to my room?” I finally say. He puffs on in silence for a moment, then nods.

“Go right ahead. You can explore the whole house if you want.” He gives me a small smile, and I leave the porch.

After pulling out the clothes and things I’ll need for the next morning, I take advantage of his offer to explore. I’ve heard a few things about this house—this was where my dad and Uncle Bryan grew up. It’s a log cabin, and pretty small. The only thing I’m interested in is the attic my dad has told me about. I save it for last, hoping it will be more interesting than the rest of the house.

The trap door is located in my own room, and when I slip up the ladder to the attic, it’s like stepping back in time.

There’s a lot of dust, first off. And not much light. Perfect. This is how an old attic should be, and for the first time since arriving I feel a glow of adventure. Maybe this summer away from home won’t be as boring as expected.

As I rummage through boxes of old clothes and toys, I can feel my dad’s presence acutely. Before the war, when he and his twin brother were kids—this might have been where they played.

Then I come across an old map. It’s only about 20 years old, but the land names have changed a lot since before the war. I set it aside to peruse more later, and push further into the corner of the attic.

Some old documents and books. A few scraps of an army uniform. And an old trunk.

I hold my breath, hoping it isn’t locked. When the lid opens, I sigh. It would have been more mysterious if it was locked, since now I’m sure it’ll just be more clothes and stuff.

But when I flip the lid all the way open, that’s not what I find. Not at all.