Sarah Redeemed

Girls from the Mountain #3

by Vikki Kestell

Martha Palmer, the generous benefactor of Palmer House—a most extraordinary refuge for young women rescued from prostitution—has died. Denver society turns out in strength to honor the elderly woman, as do many of the young women who have lived, at some point during the past decade, under the roof of Palmer House and under the steady and godly leadership of Rose Thoresen. For Sarah Ellinger, Rose’s trusted right hand, an invitation to the reading of Martha’s will raises the possibility—and the fervent hope—that Martha has endowed Palmer House with funds to keep the ministry running. However, Sarah expects to receive nothing from Martha for herself. She is as stunned as every Palmer House girl present at the reading to “To every young woman who lives or has lived at Palmer House and remains unmarried at the time of the reading of this will, I bequeath the sum of five hundred dollars as a bridal gift, payable upon her marriage. To those girls who have already married, I bestow the same amount, payable upon the execution of this will. If, however, a young woman who has lived at Palmer House remains single, I bequeath the same sum, five hundred dollars, payable upon her thirty-ninth birthday.” Five hundred dollars was a fortune many a Palmer House girl would never, in her lifetime, see again in a lump sum; it could enable a newly married couple to begin their marriage debt-free, perhaps buy a little piece of land or leverage a mortgage to purchase a home. While the girls of Palmer House, current and former, wept and rejoiced aloud, Sarah did not. She slowly shook her head. Oh, Martha. You left me a wonderful gift, for which I am most grateful. However, I cannot claim this gift unless I marry—or until I am quite near middle-aged. Why, Martha? Why did you arrange your generous bequest this way? I shall not be able to claim your gift for nearly eleven years . . . because I will never marry, no matter what the enticement to do so. Girls from the Mountain Book 1: Tabitha Book 2: Tory Book 3: Sarah Redeemed

Genres: Christian Fiction

263 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2018

About the author

Vikki Kestell’s passion for people and their stories is evident in her readers’ affection for her characters and unusual plotlines. Two often repeated sentiments are, "I feel like I know these people," and "I'm right there, in the book, experiencing what her characters experience."

Vikki holds a PhD in organizational learning and instructional technologies. She left a career of twenty-plus years in government, academia, and corporate life to pursue writing full time. "Writing is the best job ever," she admits.

Also an accomplished speaker and teacher, Vikki and her husband, Conrad Smith, make their home in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Want to be notified of new book releases? Sign up for Vikki's newsletter on her website, http://www.vikkikestell.com/, or connect with her on Facebook, http://www.facebook.com/TheWritingOfV..., or follow her on BookBub, https://www.bookbub.com/authors/vikki..., or right here on Goodreads.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sarah Redeemed

The story of Sarah is a heavy one, but definitely necessary in this dsy and age. There are a lot of messages and healing from God's Word. These messages spoke to my heart as well. Sarah's story of redemption can be anyone's story. I've really like the Girls From the Mountain series.

[Michelle Airheart · Rating 5 out of 5]

another fabulous book from Vikki Kestell. I think each book is the best until she rights the next one. If you're a fan of the Girls from the Mountain series this won't disappoint.

[Esther Tyler]

Great as always! Unexpected twist made it a bit heavier than normal but a sensitive subject was handled very well.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

BOOSTS YOUR FAITH

Sarah Redeemed is the final book in the Girls from the mountain series. Sarah hates men because of all of the abuse she endured . After her mother died of Consumption her new step father, Richard, begins to molest her. As she grows he becomes disinterested because he apparently only likes little girls. One horrible thing after another happens to Sarah until she ends up in Corinth in one of the “gentlemen” clubs. When the law rescues the girls from the club Sarah chooses to go to Denver with Ruth and Joy. There she finds Jesus. In this book Sarah’s faith is put into jeopardy when she meets a young musician by the name of Lola. It takes serious intervention from Rose to bring her back from self destruction.
I was enthralled with this book and read it in less than 24 hours. One criticism I have of Vickie Kestell’s writing is that the books seem to end so abruptly! You are reading along anticipating what will happen next only to see THE END printed on the next line. In spite of the frustrating endings to each book, I would still recommend this series to anyone who enjoys Christian historic fiction.

[Sarah B White · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Topic That Few People Want to Talk About!

Sarah Redeemed quickly gets into the topic of pedofile sexual encounters and this topic continues throughout the book. We learn about grooming a young person to ensure that the child does not report the activity. It seems that Sarah in this book was groomed by "boyfriends" of her mother and was then told by her violators that the activity was normal. Yes, sexual relations are normal in adults but not in children.

One thing that I did like in this book was that Sarah herself was involved in helping to rescue victims of pedofilia.

[Stella C · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Book

Enjoyed the last book as much as the other two in series Girls from the Mountain. This was serious reading at times but real. Enjoyed reading the good sound scriptures when confronting this subject. Even though fiction it could happen.....Reminder of God's forgiveness, love, mercy and grace.

[Richard Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Touching

I would recommend this book to anyone. It covers a subject that is difficult for some to talk about and deal with. I love how thesaurus can bring Jesus into the story and express his teachings and love.

[Bruce Dinsman · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am REDEEMED

Excellent story wonderful scriptures and counseling. I did also enjoy the appendices (funny that a burst appendix killed a girl). So I finally got the connection (Girls from the Mountain). I’m a slow learner and a man but I cried several times in this one)

[carol davis · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess my thoughts on this book are if I wanted to study scripture, I will read the Bible. I found this book far too preachy. NO that may be wrong, what I found was very little story and a whole bunch of scripture. I am not anti scripture, but I read stories and books for another purpose.

[Trahlyta Crawford]

Sarah Redeemed

The author asked what did I take from this story. I began to become disillusioned. The "buts" in my journey were rebellion, and this story magnified, isolated, and spoke truth. Reads like love, spiritual wisdom, and it is hard, but inspired.

[Roxine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brave

Thank you for addressing this issue in this instalment. The answer to every single heartache of mankind is and will always be Jesus. Not the white man's Jesus. Not the black man's Jesus. But the One Who takes away the sin of the world, Jesus.

[Cynthia Graf · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful!

I am impressed yet again! The Girls from the Mountain series has so much to offer. The strength of the characters, the plot twists, the unexpected. I highly recommend all three books.

[Tammy Broadbent · Rating 4 out of 5]

dislikes ending

I enjoyed the book until the end. It seemed like it just ended suddenly with no follow up or prologue about what happened with Sarah. I think this was my least favorite of the series.

[joy mansion · Rating 5 out of 5]

Forgiven

I picked this book thinking it as about mail order brides. It was not , for every book you read you learn something. I useless a or from reading this story.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too preachy

It was an interesting story, but was too preachy for my taste. I think I am glad this is the last in the series because I probably won’t read her again.

[Jodi Stiles]

All of this series has been great but I really enjoyed this one. Not afraid to tackle a major issue of the time we actually live in and shows our answer again as Jesus.

[Carol Stark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somewhat unsettling topics. But Biblical answers always win.

[Pam Jackson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Last book

I didn't enjoy this one like all the other, it just seem to drag and I had a hard time finishing it

[Donna Bagby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This storyline was hard as well as controversial. The theme was about homosexuality and some reasons why a person can get caught up. But it also showed how this 'sin" can be handled Godly and lovingly(hate the sin not the sinner).