A Glitter of Gold by Liz Johnson Review

Hello my reader friends! Sorry for my absence, but recovery has taken a little bit longer than I anticipated. Thank you for all your prayers while I was sick, during surgery and afterwards 🙂

The one good thing about having surgery is that you have time to read because you’re not working. Now, I may not have read as many books as I thought I would, but I did get a few read. One of them happens to be Glitter of Gold by Liz Johnson. Let me say this – best book I could have read during recovery!!!

Anne Norris moved to Savannah, Georgia, for a fresh start. Now her pirate-tour business is flagging, and paying the rent requires more than wishful thinking. When she discovers evidence of a shipwreck off the coast of Tybee Island, she knows it could be just the boon she needs to stay afloat. She takes her findings to local museum director Carter Hale for confirmation, but she runs after a disastrous first meeting.

Carter has been searching for the location of the wreck detailed in the worn pages of an 18th-century diary, the discovery of which could open the door to his dream job at a prestigious museum. But convincing Anne to help him fill in the missing pieces of the puzzle is no easy task. And working with Carter means that Anne will have to do the one thing she swore she’d never do again: trust a man.

Finding a monetary backer and sticking with a search that’s turning up nothing will take all their dedication–and every secret they’ve tried to hide. If they can find the lost ship, they may discover a treasure worth more than all the pirate gold in the world–love.

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Liz Johnson is such an amazing author. She takes a setting that I absolutely love, and brings it to life so I can visit it whenever I want, from the comfort of my own home. I have family that live on the Georgia Coast, and I have only visited a handful of times. But between my own memories, and Johnson’s descriptive writings, I can still see the shoreline, I can smell the ocean, I can see the historic buildings, and I can feel as if I am right there. 

A Glitter of Gold has so much going for it. Setting. Pirate story (need I say more!?). Love interest. A woman doing the impossible, all for the love she has for her brother – which by the way I thought was smart. Most times you see women do something for a love interest, so the fact that this was done for a family member made it so much more special and meaningful. Redemption. The grace of God. And an awesome journal that I couldn’t get enough of!

Anne and Carter were wonderfully written characters. You could kind of sense the romantic tension from the beginning, but Johnson took her time with them. This is NOT one of those immediate attraction, fall in love and become an instant couple stories, and rightly so. This was so much more than that. Each character had something to overcome – whether it’s a hurtful past, pride, forgiveness, or whatever. The story was more than just romance, it was truly the entire ride. Johnson gives you glimpses of the pasts of each of these characters, and as you start to put the puzzle pieces together, you understand how they got to where they are today. Then you realize why they act the way they do, and what they need to overcome in order to move on with their life, and Who’s help they would need in order to do so.

Johnsons easily weaves a faith theme amongst the pages of this book and I thought she did so beautifully. Her words spoke right to my heart, and that is what I love about Christian Fiction. It has the power to touch people, to help people, to encourage people. It did all of this and more for me. Don’t mistake this for being some preachy story, it is anything but that. Instead you see glimpses of the strength that helps these characters – it’s natural, it’s evident, and it’s poetic. Bravo Liz Johnson.

I cannot get enough of this series honestly. It’s one of those that I hope never ends – and yes part of that is because I simply adore the setting. But part of it is also because Johnson has written characters and circumstances that resonate with me. I cannot wait for the next installment! 

I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a favorable review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

“And he’d prayed that God had a plan for this particular journal and this story he loved so much.”

“…he decided that the Hale family name would not be the most important thing to him. God had a family for him and a name so much greater.”

“But could God forgive her when she wasn’t even sure she could forgive herself?”

“Oh, she knew the Sunday school answer – she was never alone. God was always with her. But knowing that to be true was completely different from feeling it when the door clanged shut, leaving you in a dark, empty hole.”

“He was hotter than a California wildfire and sweeter than Savannah pralines, and she was afraid she might combust in his arms.”

By day Liz Johnson works in marketing. She finds time to write late at night and is a Christy Award finalist and a two-time ACFW Carol Award finalist. Liz makes her home in Phoenix, Arizona where she enjoys theater, exploring local history, and doting on her nieces and nephews. She loves stories of true love with happy endings. Find out more about Liz at www.LizJohnsonBooks.com.