Knowing You

Reviewed by:

Noelle Yew from Onalaska, Wisconsin, a Professional Writing Student at Taylor University in Upland, Indiana.

Title:

Knowing You: Pictures of the Heart Book #3

Author:

Tracie Peterson

Publisher:

Bethany House Publishers

http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/bethanyhouse

Publication Date:

November 7, 2023

Format:

Print book

Length:

320 pages

 Overview

Knowing You follows the story of May Parker, an artist and half-Japanese woman in the early 1900s Seattle. The story is set during the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition of 1909. May’s mother refuses to talk about her life in Japan because of a heartache before she fled her homeland with May’s white father, and May feels starved of her heritage. She starts learning about her culture from the many Japanese exhibits at the exposition. While exploring the exposition, she sees her childhood friend Lee Munro and they rekindle their relationship. Lee is a police detective at the exposition, searching for a massive art thief who is targeting samurai armor housed in the exposition. May gets involved in the case after being commissioned to paint a portrait of the armor.

Peterson obviously did her research about Japanese history, specifically the Samurai way of life. She also did extensive research about the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition because she fully places you in the time period. The heist plot is interesting, even though it is predictable.

The characters of May and Lee lack character depth, which is a major drawback to this book. The dialogue was also very surface level, even considering the difference of 1900s language. The love story between May and Lee felt very lackluster. The entire basis for their falling in love with one another was the fact that they had grown up together as friends and a few interactions since their meeting as adults. The problem is Peterson only gives us one small picture of them as childhood friends at the beginning of the story and nothing else.

Assessment

Rating: 3 out of 5

 Suggested Audience:

Fans of historical fiction and romance who enjoy mystery subplots.

 Christian Impact:

There is a huge focus on the Bible in Knowing You. It deals with people who use the Bible to support their racist beliefs, and Peterson dedicates much of the book to speaking the truth about scripture. The main characters’ Christian beliefs are valid and heartwarming, but they feel surface level because of the writing style and dialogue. Peterson talks about God’s love in this book, but the way the characters discuss it feels inauthentic and forced.

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