August 2025 Book Round Up
All opinions are my own. Some books may be supplied by the publisher, but all opinions are my own. Links included may be affiliate/paid links. My family may receive a small commission if you make a purchase. Thank you for your support! For more information, see our terms, privacy policy, and disclaimer.
Reading Roundup for August
August 2025 Books Video!
A Sea View Christmas
Targeted age: Adult
Clean: Yes
Christian: Yes
My Rating: 5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A continuation of the Sea View Sisters series, this novella was short but oh so sweet. It’s a little difficult to get into a Christmas book in August. Honestly, I just put out my fall decor today (8/16), and Christmas is not really on my radar just yet. We started homeschool last week. However, it wasn’t hard to get into this story, because we’re continuing Sarah and Callum’s love story from the very first book.
If you read book 1, then you know that Sarah and Callum parted ways at the end of the book. There was no real resolution to their story. He departed England for his home in Scotland, and we don’t really hear much about him for the next several novels. However, Sarah is longing for him and thinks of him often. It seems she regrets the choices she made in book one. Sarah is torn between duty and love. Sarah helps her mother run Seaview, taking on many tasks of running a boarding home. She takes on so much that she leaves little for herself, including love. Her sisters want to see her and Callum together, and conspire together just like sisters would. Callum comes to visit Sea View again after a failed attempt on Sarah’s part to see him in Scotland. Once he finds out that he missed her in Scotland, Callum rushes over to Sea View for a Christmas visit. He hopes to win her heart during the season.
We also see Georgiana growing up in this book, and he growing feelings for Colin.
While there are no major intimate scenes, I feel this book with Sarah and Callum (who are older), has more mature feelings described between the two. We don’t see a lot of these feelings in the previous book, or have it described as much. Their attraction to each other is obvious and explored a little bit more in this novella. For my teen girl moms, I would maybe hold back on this book. I would categorize this as more adult.
All in all though, a sweet book that will get anyone in the mood for Christmastime and continue Sarah’s story.
Thank you to Bethany House for sending this book to review.
The Christmas House
Targeted age: Adults
Spice: N/A
Christian: Yes
My Rating: 5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“Gut (good) things take time to grow” - Ella Mae
A sweet Christmas book to get you in the mood for the season, The Christmas House by Beverly Lewis will capture your heart. With it’s focus on Christ’s birth, this is one Christmas book you don’t want to miss.
Many years ago (about 10 to be exact) I picked up my first Beverly Lewis book. It was an Amish book, but I was quickly drawn into the story line. Although I grew up near the Amish in central Indiana, I admittedly know little about their daily life. Lewis’ books are a way to peel back those layers to see how the Amish live, interact, and learn about their culture through her fictional stories.
This book centers around a young single woman, Liz, who runs a carriage tour business. It keeps her busy during the wedding season, and the Christmas season. For her safety, her brother accompanies her on the tours while she gives the English travelers a glimpse into the Amish live and town. When her brother and father are called away, her father sets up a temporary helper for her, Matt. Matt also happens to be single…and you can guess where this is going.
This was a really sweet story about Christmas, the Amish, and a town coming together to welcome strangers. Being a novella, it’s a short and sweet read for the busy season.
Unwrapping the Pharaohs
Targeted age: Older children
Christian: Yes
My Rating: 5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
We read this as part of our homeschool World History curriculum in August. I have to say, this is a really cool book. It confirms the Biblical timeline and weaves in where certain biblical events and people are during Egyptian dynasties.
It comes with a DVD, however, the footage was definitely shot quite a while ago. We watched it via the Answers in Genesis (Answers.TV) app, and it was a bit grainy. We don’t currently own a DVD player, so this was the best option for us. Even though it was grainy, it was still a great video series and I still highly recommended watching it while you read this book. This really brings everything to life for the readers.
We read about 2 chapters a day, made notebooking pages for certain chapters, and did narration along the way (we’re Charlotte Mason homeschoolers).
There is a line of dialogue about an incestuous relationship between brother and sister that I felt was a bit unnecessary, so a word of caution to younger readers of this book. However, it is recorded history, so do with that what you will.
Pocketful of Pinecones
Targeted age: Adult
Christian: Yes
My Rating: 5/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I read Michael’s Gentle Wife by Karen Andreola before I read Pocketful of Pinecones, so I felt like I was going back in time a bit when I picked up this lovely book. Michael’s Gentle Wife is my favorite historical fiction novel, and is the third book in this series (although all these books could be a standalone). Set in the 1930's, this book is about a family starting out their Charlotte Mason homeschooling journey and has a focus on nature notebooking. Andreola's two books, Blackberry Inn and Michael's Gentle Wife, are about the same family.
I read and review books for Christian publishers as a hobby. Reading brings me great joy! I’ve noticed a pattern in most Christian books today. We see our main character face a trial, they say “I must trust God”, say a little prayer, and then claim their faith is strengthened when everything wraps up with a bow in the final chapter. God is rarely mentioned in any other part of the book (and much less, Jesus). This is most Christian publishing today. I would bill most of these books as clean fiction rather than Christian fiction. The faith of most characters are shallow, with little growth. The stories can be fascinating, but the faith elements are at best mediocre.
On the flip side, we have Karen Andreola and her books. This, my friends, is what a Christian book should look like. In our main character, Carol, we see Christ shining through. We see a woman dedicated to her husband, her children, and most of all, her God. She clings to her faith during trials. She treats friends and family with kindness and hospitality. She dedicates her days to homeschooling her children and bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. We see Carol and her husband working together to solve problems, but putting their faith in the Lord every step of the way. We see Carol lovingly take care of family members when there is a need. We even see Carol trusting her husband and biblically submitting to him for some decisions along the way (don’t want to give spoilers!). Andreola has written a character who loves her role as a wife, mother, and homemaker who has a strong faith that keeps building as the months go by. This is how you write a Christian character.
This book has taught me many things about nature notebooking, which I’ll be starting with my son this year in homeschooling. It’s like a living book for me, as a mother. I learned fascinating things about nature walks, animals, plants, weather, insects, and more while I read along. This book will teach you much about nature note booking if you’re new to the concept.
Don’t miss the Appendices in the back of the book! There’s many things in there that will be helpful for you. There are many book suggestions that you might want to jot down! I have a few in my Amazon cart. The Afterward is a great read, too. I loved getting the back story on one of my favorite characters, Emma Cook.
This book is a treasure for the Christian mom! Even if you don’t homeschool, you’ll love this one.
Buried Wilderness Secrets - Jaime Jo Wright
Targeted age: Adult
Christian: Yes
Warnings: Serial killer, murder, etc.
My Rating: 4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I always love a good JJW book, especially in the fall. Wright is known for her Christian “spooky” stories that always end up being something natural. Her Christian writing shines through, and is stronger than just a light sprinkling of faith here and there in a book. JJW is what I like to call an “auto-buy” author. I will buy her books without even looking at the back to see what it’s about. It’s an automatic “add to cart” for me. So when I saw this on NetGally, I grabbed it.
I’ll admit, this took me a bit to get into. Partly because I was busy this summer with one kid in the fire academy and another preparing for homeschool year 9. But when I got into it, I flew through it. This is not her normal spooky writing, this is a different genre for Wright. This book is more of a suspense and love story book.
What I liked; the serial killer story line was great! It got better as the story progressed.
What I didn’t like: the love story was a bit overwhelming for me. It’s an instant attraction type of thing so that was a bit much for me as a reader, but I’m also older so I’m sure that plays a part in that. I skimmed through those pages int he beginning a bit to get to the rest of the story.
So I would still read these books by Wright because she’s such an amazing storyteller, but I will say I enjoy her spooky stories more. They are lighter on the love story and stronger on the main story line and history. Still though, it was a great book.
82 Days on Okinawa
Targeted age: Adult
Christian: No
Warnings: War
My Rating: 4/5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A tough but good read. A true story of Major Art Shaw and his unit on Okinawa. Having lived on Okinawa for 3 years, I’m familiar with the territory and island. Occasionally, I like reading true stories of war and battle. My husband is a retired Marine, and these stories always interest me. Brave men giving the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. I found myself rooting for individual soldiers and my heart breaking at times.
A word of caution, this is a true story, not historical fiction. Major Shaw can at times be harsh describing the realities of war. Know what you’re getting into before you start this book.
