by Sarah Sundin
Quintessa propped up her smile.
“Come, come.” Madame Robillard abandoned the éclairs, shoved open the half-door in the counter, grabbed Quintessa’s arm, and guided her to the back wall. “Paris is the cure for sadness.”
Quintessa had to smile at the Philippe Beaumont lithograph of the Pont Neuf, from Papa’s youth in Paris, before he’d come to America in 1910 and had fallen in love with Mama. His early work sparkled with color and light, influenced by the Post-Impressionists.
Madame Robillard squeezed Quintessa’s arm. “Are you sad because of Yvette?”
“Yvette?” Quintessa blinked at the tiny woman. “Why? Is something wrong?”
“Have you not noticed? She is not herself. At our last meeting, she said not a word.”
Quintessa had never attended one of the meetings with Yvette’s French friends, but it wasn’t like Yvette to keep her mouth shut. “I think she’s preoccupied with Henri.”
“Henri Dubois? Non.” Madame Robillard fluttered her hand in front of her chest. “They are like brother and sister.”
“Not anymore.” Quintessa smiled. “Last week she told me they’ve fallen in love.”
“Non, it cannot be. A woman in love is happy, not suspicious, always looking over her shoulder. Yvette is jumpy. Like a little flea.”
Come to think of it, last night while cooking dinner, Yvette had jumped when the egg timer dinged. Quintessa patted Madame Robillard’s hand. “I’m sure she’s fine. Aren’t we all blessed to have another mother here watching over us?”
“You are too kind.” The baker pressed her hand to her chest. “You young people are far from home with no one to look after you. And here I am, far from my Paris and my sons and my grandchildren. We must be family for each other. And now I must get to work.”
Quintessa followed her back to the counter. An evening newspaper lay in an untidy mess on an empty table, so Quintessa picked it up.
The headlines made her shudder. Eight German saboteurs had landed in the US by U-boat in June and they were under trial for their lives, with the verdict expected any day. And the Nazi army was advancing rapidly in the Soviet Union, unstoppable.
Awful, awful. She folded the paper to hide the madness.
“Navy making WAVES.” She stood still and read the article. Earlier that day, President Roosevelt had signed a bill establishing Women Accepted for Voluntary Emergency Service, a women’s naval auxiliary.
Back in May, the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps had been formed, and magazines showcased young ladies in olive-drab uniforms. Now young ladies would parade in navy blue.
Purposeful women contributing to the war effort, selflessly serving the nation.
“Ma petite? Are you all right?”
“Yes.” Quintessa’s vision cleared. “I know what I’m going to do.”
Acknowledgments
When you work on a novel for a year, you owe gratitude to many people. Many thanks to my family for enduring the extremes of author craziness and for constantly inspiring me. Dave, your fearless campaign against shady prescriptions inspired the mystery plot for this novel, with a hefty added dose of “what if” paranoia.
While I already had this book plotted out when our daughter, Anna, began to fall in love with one of her brother’s best friends, it was great fun for me to watch life imitate art. And even more fun to watch their happy ending/beginning. As I write this, their wedding is in my future. When you read this, they will be close to their first anniversary.
I am extremely grateful to some wonderful professionals who aided my research from afar. The amazing staff at the Ritter Public Library in Vermilion, Ohio, downloaded photos of microfiche copies of The Vermilion News from 1941–42. The bits of local color helped so much—and I was delighted by the story of Mr. Okagi and his restaurant.
Likewise, Margaret Dyson at the Boston Parks Department answered my obscure question about ice-skating in Boston—complete with public records and photographs! Thank you so much.
When I was in Boston, my aunt, Ginny Siggia, took me to Durgin-Park, where we enjoyed delicious New England fare, including Boston cream pie. A few days later, Dianne Burnett and Kate Burnett of Christian Book Distributors informed me of Durgin-Park’s reputation for delightfully surly waitresses . . . which has toned down in recent years. I’m afraid our waitress was rather polite.
Thank you to my Facebook friends for suggesting “To a Wild Rose” for Lillian. And extra-special thanks to Amy Drown for helping me avoid a musical mishap.
As always, I appreciate my brainstorming and critique buddies, who help me build my stories and polish them. Cathleen Armstrong, Judy Gann, Sherry Kyle, Bonnie Leon, Ann Shorey, and Marcy Weydemuller—I love you ladies.
I’m especially thankful for all the people who make these books come to pass. My agent, Rachel Kent at Books & Such, for shepherding the business end of things. My editors at Revell—Vicki Crumpton with her insight and wit, and Kristin Kornoelje with her eagle eye. Cheryl Van Andel and the cover team for one stunning cover after another. Michele Misiak and Claudia Marsh for creative and diligent marketing and publicity. I love this team!
And how I love my readers! Thank you for your touching emails and for your prayers and encouragement. Please visit me at www.sarahsundin.com to leave a message, sign up for my quarterly newsletter, or read about the history behind the story. I hope to hear from you.
Discussion Questions
Had you heard about the U-boat war off the US East Coast in World War II before reading this novel? What did you find interesting or shocking?
Lillian Avery lives with a visible physical disability. How does it affect her? What negative consequences does she experience because of it? How is she stronger because of it? How have things changed for people with disabilities since 1942?
Arch Vandenberg fears being rich. What did you think about this? When you learned his history, how did this affect your opinion? What did you think of his decision at the end of the story? In general, what are the benefits and dangers of wealth?
At the beginning of the story, Lillian dismisses Arch as a snobby society boy. Then Arch challenges her: “I believe in judging a person on words and actions and character. Not on background or appearance.” In what ways do both Lillian and Arch struggle with judging, suspicions, and lumping people into categories? In what ways do you struggle?
Arch suffers from combat fatigue, what we now call post-traumatic stress disorder. Were you surprised at how the condition was treated—or not treated—during World War II? Do you know anyone with this condition? How did Arch’s story give you insight into their struggles?
Mr. Dixon is not the most pleasant boss, but Lillian does her best to win him over. Have you ever worked for a difficult person? How did you handle it?
As Arch and Lillian investigated the drug ring, whom did you suspect?
Lillian struggles to open her heart—to God, to Arch, and to her roommates. How does her relationship with Opal Harrison challenge her and cause her to grow?
Both Arch and Lillian cling to their careers for security. In what ways is this acceptable? In what ways is this misguided? How do they change?
Lillian is close to her brother Jim but has a strained relationship with her twin sister, Lucy. What sort of dynamics do you see in the Avery family? In your own family? Do you think Lillian and Lucy will ever be close? Why or why not?
Arch tells Lillian, “We’ll be weak together, strong together, you and I.” Do you find that to be true in your deepest relationships? In what ways?
Discuss the meaning of the anchor.
“Blood is thicker than water”—how does this saying apply to Jim and Lillian? To Mrs. Harrison and her grandson? To Mr. Dixon? How have you seen it in your life?
In what ways did the weather mirror the characters’ journeys?
If you read Through Waters Deep, did you enjoy following up with Jim Avery and Mary Stirling? The third novel in the Waves of Freedom series features Lt. Dan Avery and Quinte
ssa Beaumont. From what you’ve seen of these characters, what might you expect?
Sarah Sundin is the author of Through Waters Deep as well as the Wings of the Nightingale and the Wings of Glory series. Her novella “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” in Where Treetops Glisten was a finalist for the 2015 Carol Award, and her novel On Distant Shores was a double finalist for the 2014 Golden Scroll Awards. In 2011, Sarah received the Writer of the Year Award at the Mount Hermon Christian Writers Conference. A graduate of UC San Francisco School of Pharmacy, she works on-call as a hospital pharmacist. During WWII, her grandfather served as a pharmacist’s mate (medic) in the Navy, and her great-uncle flew with the US Eighth Air Force in England. A mother of three, Sarah lives in northern California, and she enjoys speaking for church, community, and writers’ groups.
Books by Sarah Sundin
WINGS OF GLORY
A Distant Melody
A Memory Between Us
Blue Skies Tomorrow
WINGS OF THE NIGHTINGALE
With Every Letter
On Distant Shores
In Perfect Time
WAVES OF FREEDOM
Through Waters Deep
Anchor in the Storm
SarahSundin.com
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