CrossReads Short Takes
Beatific
by Keith R. Rees
Beatific is a sweeping epic that the tells seven fascinating stories of one Celtic family across centuries. Each step of this glorious journey intertwines the family with a particular Catholic saint of the times, visiting such breathtaking regions as Wales, Northumbria and Germania. Over the centuries the family endure the madness of slavery, heartbreaking tragedies and heroic triumphs.
This captivating saga begins during the imposing era of 5th century Ireland in the days of a young Saint Patrick. The journey continues in England in the placid, yet tumultuous times of Saints Arilda and Cuthbert, then across the North Sea to the medieval age of Saint’s Hildegard of Bingen and Gertrude the Great. Into the Renaissance, the family emerges in Southern Germany in a tiny town along the Rhine River in the era of Saint Vincent DePaul. The journey makes its stunning conclusion in the modern times of 1865 during the miraculous occurrences of Saint Bernadette of Lourdes, culminating with the family’s triumphant arrival on the shores of America.
Beatific stands as a testament of one family’s strong faith in the Lord that perseveres and binds them together through the hourglass of time.
In Alexa’s Shoes
by Rochelle Alexandra
In Alexa’s Shoes – a dramatic, uplifting true story of a young girls struggle to overcome great odds to survive through WWII.
In the autumn of 1940, thirteen-year-old Alexa’s happy life is ripped from her as she, her mother, and many of the locals are rounded up by the Nazis in Poland. Loaded onto cattle trucks, they are transported to an unknown destination. Terror and uncertainty become the new normal. Life is a continuous nightmare as she is selected by a Gestapo officer’s wife, destined to become little more than their slave.
Separated from everyone she loves Alexa relies on her Christian faith, inner strength and courage, to endure through her long nightmare. Her story takes her on a treacherous journey across war-ravaged Europe in search of her family and the life she once knew. Despite living through unimaginable hardships and life-threatening danger, Alexa feels that someone, or something, seems to be looking out for her. Years later, she finds out that not all was as it seemed, as hidden secrets from this dark period in history are revealed to her.
In Alexa’s Shoes is a historical novel that beckons the reader to follow in the footsteps of a real-life individual who walks by faith to triumph over tragedy, one step at a time. It is based on the true story of the author’s grandmother.