With Every Letter

Back Cover

They know everything about each other – except their real names.

Lt. Mellie Blake is looking forward to beginning her training as a flight nurse.  She is not looking forward to writing a letter to a man she’s never met – even if it is anonymous and part of a morale-building program.  Lt. Tom MacGilliver, an officer stationed in North Africa, welcomes the idea of an anonymous correspondence – he’s been trying to escape his infamous name for years.

As their letters crisscross the Atlantic, Tom and Mellie develop a unique friendship despite not knowing the other’s true identity.  When both are transferred to Algeria, the two are poised to meet face-to-face for the first time.  Will they overcome their fears and reveal who they are, or will their future be held hostage by their pasts?

Combining a flair for romance with excellent research and attention to detail, Sarah Sundin vividly brings to life the perilous challenges of WWII aviation, nursing – and true love.

Review

With Every Letter is a unique love story surrounding two characters who hold similar fears.  Lt. Mellie Blake has become used to being the “oddball” amongst any group of people, and rejection is, while painful each time, very commonplace to her.  In order to protect herself from rejection, she has erected a huge wall around herself and makes no attempt to make friends.  Lt. Tom MacGilliver, on the other hand, tries extremely hard to make friends and makes everyone think he is a happy, care-free guy in order to escape the stigma of his father’s wrong-doings.

Their similar fears are that of rejection.  While Mellie does everything in her power to avoid any circumstance that could cause rejection (namely, making friends), Tom ensures that everyone will like him so no one would want to reject him.  It’s in this that these two find common ground, and their anonymity in writing letters gives them a place to share their fears with someone who understands.  Neither of them expected the wonderful friendship that would come of it, nor the romance that blossomed between them.

I was discussing this book with a fellow reviewer (her review can be found here), and one thing that popped out was the fact that this story was about two flawed people, which in essence is two very real people.  Mellie and Tom aren’t perfect, but neither is any human being!  But what Mellie and Tom do is strengthen each other’s weaknesses and bolster their strengths to help the other become the person God wants them to be.

With Every Letter was a very touching, sweet story, and I enjoyed every moment of it.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.  Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group.