About the Book
- Book Title: To Speak His Name
- Author Name: Tara Johnson
- Genre: Historical Romance
- Release Date: March 4, 2024
Avalina is a woman trapped in silence. Stolen from her home in Ireland and sold as a slave to a Barbados plantation owner, the trauma of her past has left her mute, wrapped in a prison of loneliness and isolation amid an island of beauty. Though she longs to be free from the cruelty of her overseer, her heart yearns for a greater freedom…something just beyond her grasp.
Josiah Holland has been born into a South Carolina slave-holding family but all it takes is one trip to the island of Barbados to open his eyes to the ugly cruelty that abounds beyond the confines of his plantation. With the aid of fiery abolitionist Benjamin McGee, Josiah forges a new future, fighting the very ideals he was once a part of. When Avalina and Josiah’s lives entwine, will their spark engulf them in destruction, or ignite a revolution?
Book Excerpt 1
Prologue
They tell me I was sold on a Thursday but being only a wee one, I have no recollection.
As I search through the dark recesses of my earliest years, I find only shards of images and snippets of color. And a melody. A sweet caressing song that haunts my dreams at night and calls to me during the waking hours. The words yet elude me but the song—the beautiful melody carried by the voice of a faceless woman—remains locked in my heart.
I recall small fragments: a woman’s blue eyes, bright as a robin’s egg, yet shadowed with a darkness I can’t understand. Dirt-stained fingers wrapping around my arm to yank me from my bed. Spitting out salty, briny sea water onto sugary sand. Digging my hands into that same strange sugar and having it cake my dress and skin. Seeing the strange, braided trunks of palms, with their plumy tops.
I wandered through thick foliage amid the buzz of bees and the odd chirping of limb-swinging furry creatures, and I called for my mother over the cacophony of a strange new world
Missed Any Excerpts,
Excerpt One: https://lakesidelivingsite.wordpress.com/2024/04/04/to-speak-his-name-epic-book-launch/
Excerpt Two: https://musingsbymaureen.blogspot.com/2024/04/celebrate-lit-presents-epic-book-launch.html
Excerpt Three: https://coverloverbookreview.blogspot.com/2024/04/to-speak-his-name.html
Excerpt Four: https://www.artistwriterandstudentohmy.com/posts/to-speak-his-name-epic-book-launch/
Excerpt Five: https://www.guildmaster97.com/posts/to-speak-his-name-epic-book-launch/
Excerpt Six: https://moments-of-beauty.blogspot.com/2024/04/epic-book-launch-to-speak-his-name-by.html
Excerpt Seven: https://www.fictionbooklover.com/posts/to-speak-his-name-epic-book-launch/
About the Author
Tara Johnson is an author and speaker, and loves to write stories that help people break free from the lies they believe about themselves.
Tara’s debut novel Engraved on the Heart (Tyndale) earned a starred review from Publishers Weekly, and was a finalist in the Carol and Christy awards. Tara has been published by Tyndale House, Annie’s, and Guideposts. In addition to being published in a variety of digital and print magazines, she is a certified body language expert and has been on radio, television and podcasts. She is a history nerd, especially the Civil War, and adores making people laugh. She, her husband, and children live in Arkansas.
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