Some reviews leave a girl speechless. This would be one of them. Whoever read Shadowed by Grace for the Library Journal really understood what I was trying to do.

Putman, Cara C. Shadowed by Grace: A Story of Monuments Men. B&H. 2014. 352p. ISBN 9781433681783. pap. $14.99; ebk ISBN 9781433681790. CF

Rachel, desperate to save her dying mother, signs on as a photographer with a newspaper to take pictures of the atrocities happening in Italy during World War II. Secretly, she is hoping to find the artist father she never knew so he can help fund the treatment to save her mother’s life. In her 17th novel, ­Putman (Captive Dreams) has done an amazing job of bringing the grim realities of World War II to the page. She captures well the hidden stories of those who were sent to Europe to save the art and antiquities that were stolen or almost destroyed during the cataclysmic battles. The author also paints a beautiful love story, while illustrating that faith in God’s plan, even in the direst of circumstances, can bring believers through any situation.

VERDICT This wonderfully written inside look at a less-familiar story about World War II will be a great tie-in with the movie The Monuments Men starring George Clooney and Matt Damon, set for release this month.