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Cover of Whose Waves These Are

Whose Waves These Are

  • Fiction
  • Publisher: Bethany House (Baker Publishing Group)
  • Published: 2019

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Publisher's Description

Winner of the 2020 Christy Award Book of the YearIn the wake of WWII, a grieving fisherman submits a poem to a local newspaper: a rallying cry for hope, purpose . . . and rocks. Send me a rock for the person you lost, and I will build something life-giving. When the poem spreads farther than he ever intended, Robert Bliss's humble words change the tide of a nation. Boxes of rocks inundate the tiny, coastal Maine town, and he sets his calloused hands to work, but the building halts when tragedy strikes. Decades later, Annie Bliss is summoned back to Ansel-by-the-Sea when she learns her Great-Uncle Robert, the man who became her refuge during the hardest summer of her youth, is now the one in need of help. What she didn't anticipate was finding a wall of heavy boxes hiding in his home. Long-ago memories of stone ruins on a nearby island trigger her curiosity, igniting a fire in her anthropologist soul to uncover answers. She joins forces with the handsome and mysterious harbor postman, and all her hopes of mending the decades-old chasm in her family seem to point back to the ruins. But with Robert failing fast, her search for answers battles against time, a foe as relentless as the ever-crashing waves upon the sea.  


Endorsements (6)

“When an author can capture me in the early words of a story, hold my attention on every page, and make me care this deeply about the characters and their struggles, struggles, the author has proven her skill as a storyteller. Amanda Dykes does all that, but with lyrical language that textures the experience and illustrates the power of well-placed words and their effect on the soul. I’ll not forget Whose Waves These Are. Beautifully done.”

Cynthia Ruchti

“Amanda Dykes’s voice is as powerful as the waves and as deep as the ocean in Whose Waves These Are. Readers will love the thoughtful imagery and poetic language without losing sight of a well-crafted plot that will offer courage and hope in the face of the storms of life.”

Elizabeth Byler Younts

“An absolute gem of a debut! With her breathtaking prose and captivating setting, Amanda Dykes weaves a tale of utter charm along the rugged coast of Maine. Whose Waves These Are transcends to the highest level of fiction. The author has paused to see humanity at its most real and precious, leaving the reader to tuck this one among the classics. It’s a novel that wraps around the heart, breathing of hope and light in every scene. Equal parts relevant and nostalgic, this is a novel for the ages.”

Joanne Bischof

“A lovingly woven tale. Climb into these pages and be buoyed by this story’s journey, alternately rocked and lulled by its waves. Full of heart and poetry, Amanda Dykes proves why she is such a beloved voice in lyrical fiction.”

Jocelyn Green

“With a gorgeously inimitable voice, Dykes sets herself apart with a debut novel as timeless as its themes of redemption and everlasting love. I dare you not to be swept into a yarn of age-old tales and seaside secrets deftly penned by a lyrical pen that pliantly shifts between contemporary and historical frames. Romantic, spellbinding, and wonderfully unique, Dykes’s sense of setting and emotional resonance is nearly unparalleled. A book world to be savored and returned to again and again.”

Rachel McMillan

“This is the book everyone will talk about all year—lyrical, lovely, full of heart and heartache, secrets kept and revealed. These characters, this town, and their stories will seep into your soul and leave you wanting more. A novel of hope and reconciliation you won’t forget for a long time, probably not forever.”

Sarah Sundin

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