The Last Quiet Autumn by Loni Kemper Moore is a Christian historical fiction with strong faith themes.  Published in September 2025

One letter stitched a family together. Now, with war on the wind, only love—penned note by note—holds the threads in place.
Autumn 1941

Three young women—strangers to one another—each receive an alluring invitation they cannot and dare not refuse—Thanksgiving dinner in Texas with a mysterious ninety-year-old woman.

Virginia Campbell, a poised Boston socialite on the brink of marrying into a powerful political family, is entrusted with a delicate family mission—one that could jeopardize the perfect wedded life she so carefully planned.

Eulalia Bell, a spirited nursing graduate, earned her scholarship in Nebraska thanks to the Orphan Train. But the truth of her past threatens the career she’s fought hard to build.

Francesca Smythe, a resilient wife and mother on an Oklahoma ranch, survived the Dust Bowl and Depression. She longs for the warmth and connection of a true family. When the letter arrives, she wonders if it holds the key to the belonging she’s yearned for all her life.
​
As secrets unfold and pasts entwine, these three women are drawn to a truth that will reshape their lives—about love powerful enough to face a potential world at war, desires too strong to be silenced, and the courage to claim their place in history.

MY REVIEW:

I enjoyed the book. It was a quick read. It took me two evenings. The story caught my attention because it was about three young women who were connected as a family but didn't know it. My two sisters and I were raised by three different families, only I was raised IN our family. They grew up not knowing it. I loved Mimi and how wise she was. I was very surprised by her story but loved how the girls grew to love and care for her as the great-grandmother that she was. There were certain storylines that I wish had been flushed out a tiny bit more but for the most part, it was very well done and wrapped up nicely. The historical content was interesting to hear about, and I loved that it took place in Texas, even though it was a bit west of where I live. I loved that family was important and making memories and keeping them together was the most important thing that Mimi wanted to share with them. That situations and conflict can be resolved, don't let the time pass and live with regrets. Time passes and when you look back, what would you regret if you didn't try to do something about it? 

BOUT THE AUTHOR:

Loni Kemper Moore is a sports-cheering, Diet-Pepsi-sipping, Rocky Mountain–adventure-seeking storyteller who longs to reflect God’s beautiful love through life’s hardest places, especially for remarkable women around the globe.

A preacher’s kid at heart though her father joined her mother in Heaven, Loni’s wanderlust was sparked early by family and missionary stories. She has visited more than a dozen countries, learning from other cultures while often experiencing life as “the other.” Though she attended multiple schools as a minority and later discovered African heritage through DNA testing, she approaches those experiences with humility rather than assumption.
Loni earned bachelor’s degrees in education and biblical studies from the former Denver Baptist Bible College and completed graduate work in Education at the University of Evansville.

A Jesus-following history enthusiast, Loni was named Leonnie Sue after generations of strong women. Leonnie was her maternal great-grandmother, who died during the Influenza Pandemic, leaving behind her husband and four teenagers. Sue traces through the family tree to Susanna Dean, who stepped off a ship in Korea, Maine, in the 1640s. These inherited collections of more than 500 spoons; stories of faith, endurance, and love deeply shape Loni’s writing.

Her novel The Last Quiet Autumn came to life after cousin reunions on both sides of her family stirred memories of childhood gatherings at her grandparents’ homes—one on a Loudoun County, Virginia farm and the other on a southern Colorado ranch. Reflecting on shared family experiences and her parents’ childhood just before the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Loni began to wonder how different her life might have been without nearly two dozen cousins spread across four time zones. That question sparked a story that grew far beyond her original imagination.

When she isn’t writing, Loni is visiting friends, studying history, and exploring meaningful places—like the Cherwell River near Oxford, UK where J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis once walked. During a trip to Swindon, England, she visited the Eagle and Child pub, where the Inklings met, a moment that proved especially encouraging.
​
Loni is the proud mom of Adam, a CAD engineer and YouTuber; Becca and Anthony, who made her a delighted grandmother of her “GrandMiracles,” Naomie and Zemira; and a frequent traveler with her beloved “Hugsband,” Robert, an embedded engineer. A granddaughter of ranchers and farmers, Loni holds close the legacy of trusting God through tragedy—faith that carried her grandparents and parents through the World Wars and continues to anchor her stories today.

More from Loni​

I can still picture my grandmother standing at her farmhouse stove, cracking open precious eggs she’d just sold back to herself. The surplus eggs were sold to allow her to buy rationed products.

One recipe she made regularly was this ‘Wacky Cake’—a chocolate cake so frugal it needed no eggs, butter, or milk. While historians debate the exact origin of the name, the most likely explanation is that it earned its playful moniker from the unconventional method of mixing everything directly in the baking pan—no bowl required. Homemakers could hardly believe a cake without eggs or butter would actually rise and taste good. But it does!

As a child spoiled by Betty Crocker mixes, I had to admire her ingenuity, even if I couldn’t quite share her enthusiasm for the taste. When my character Chessa bakes in ‘The Last Quiet Autumn,’ I drew directly from recipes like this one. Understanding how women stretched ingredients during wartime rationing helped me write scenes that felt authentic.

Have you tried Depression-era recipes? I’d love to hear about your family’s resourceful traditions from that era. It reminded me how faith, like that cake, often rises when we least expect it to.

​Little by little, their relationship turns to friendship with the hope of more AFTER the case is solved. He wants to keep thing professional. We get to see Oaklee interact with the other two brothers, Grayson's mom and nephew. The Brenneman family is very close, and they do what is needed to help each other, and others. 

Some of the secondary characters in the book were very strange and really set my nerves on edge when she had to interact with them. They seemed like villains from the start. But there was more than meets the eye behind even that. 

I will say that this book had some surprising twists that I did not see coming, at first. Some really threw me for a loop. It unfolded perfectly. 

This is a book that has faith elements running through it. Grayson has walked away from God, but he finds his way back after Oaklee asks him why he doesn't go to church anymore. I love the redemption between him and God and his family. It is beautifully done.

I loved the entire series!

Check out the author's website for information about her books: PennyZeller.com

I found this story interesting because it gives young readers a look into that time period from a teenager's perspective. I am a homeschool parent and grandparent and I've found the best way to teach history is through novels. We find books like this and use them to pique our interest to dig deeper into a topic. This book does that because it doesn't go into huge details about the arena but enough to make you want to ask questions. There is so much more to learn than most of us know and understand in present day America. 

This book could be something to assign a student on their own or it could be a part of a unit study where you read it aloud in the group and assign research topics to dig deeper over the course of a couple of weeks. It could stretch longer if you had other books on the same topic. 

Many things Titus goes through are very hard and at one point, he even seems to give up hope. Faced with moral decisions, he makes the right ones, despite the people who he is going up against. At the beginning of the book, he stands with his father and does not deny the name of Christ. The consequences of that are different for him than his father. His father is sent to the arena, where his mother was taken, to die. He is sent to the copper mines. While he is there, he is faced with how to treat others in the face of despair. His story continues past the time in the mines, and a surprising twist comes after he defends and saves someone others see as an enemy. 

Not everyone's story can have happy endings. Titus does get some happiness, but he still deals with hardship in his life. I think that is a very important thing to teach our youth. They need to know that even when things don't turn out how we think they should and we go through really hard things, we can keep our eyes on Jesus to get us through. We can find the good in every situation. God saved Titus for a purpose and he did great things. 

I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book, which I received from Celebrate Lit. All views expressed are only my honest opinion. I was not required to write a positive review, nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC regulations.

Blog Stops for Titus and the Christian Coin 

For Him and My Family, March 12

Simple Harvest Reads, March 13 (Author Interview)

Texas Book-aholic, March 14

Guild Master, March 15 (Author Interview)

A Simple Texas Girl, March 15

Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, March 16
​
Fiction Book Lover, March 17 (Author Interview)

Happily Managing a Household of Boys, March 18

Vicky Sluiter, March 19 (Author Interview)

Mary Hake, March 20

For the Love of Literature, March 21 (Author Interview)

Capturing Luminous, March 21

Lily’s Corner, March 22

Little Homeschool on the Prairie, March 23

Artistic Nobody, March 24

The Bookish Pilgrim, March 25

To celebrate his tour, Dennis is giving away the grand prize of a $100 Amazon Gift Card and a copy of the book!!
​
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for extra entries into the giveaway!

Click the link below to enter.
​
https://gleam.io/Vpjph/titus-and-the-christian-coin-celebration-tour-giveaway

Diana is written in 3rd person. She is the gallery's keeper of the Moder Collections and Lily is her assistant. Diana has worked her way up to this position and is doing everything she can to keep it. For Lily, this is a dream come true. Lily has put both their jobs in jeopardy by speaking those words in front of everyone at the showing, including the press. 

An insurance company has sent an art investigator to find out about the painting that is said to be a forgery before they can compensate the owner. He knows a lot about art and gets right to business of figuring out what Lily knows about that painting and about art in general. He plays a big part in how things unfold although Lily is the one who does a great deal of her own investigating. At one point he asks her if she is in the right business because she finds out some important information many times. 

Things aren't how they look on the surface and I got carried away with the story as things unfold. Lily's family is a bit complicated and at first, we don't know why. We find out at the beginning that she has another big regret, like she regrets speaking up about the portrait. I enjoyed how that unfolded and came to a resolution with her sister and then her mom.   

I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys learning history when it is intertwined in a fictional story. Once you've read several chapters, it becomes difficult to put down. I switched back and forth between audible and e-book. The narrator was very good. I enjoyed her accent and style of reading.                                                 

Favorite Quotes:

"Her example has taught me that if you have status, money, and power, you don't need to talk about it. Rather you wear it lightly, effortlessly, like an Egyptian cotton shift on a warm summer day." 

"Sometimes an artist needs to begin in secret because, just like those unfinished works she loves, true expression can be daunting, paralyzing, and even terrifying. It's a solitary, often painful venture and it's almost impossible to share such vulnerability with others." 

Check out her website: Katherine Reay​

WHERE SECRETS LIE

Book two in the Tupelo Grove series did not disappoint. This book starts where the first book left off. It is filled with even more mystery and family secrets that lead to more to be discovered in this book and the next.

We delve deeper into the issue of stolen artifacts and smuggling while the university that they work for is on the verge of financial collapse. Savannah and Hez end up in more danger as they strive to save the school and solve the mysteries. There is so much more going on behind the scenes with the university that I am not even sure they have shown us all of them.

There are also some strange things going on that have nothing to do with the school but cause problems for them personally as they try to rebuild their relationship. I guessed who was behind those things pretty easily after the first book. There is only one person against them being together. 

There are so many twists and turns to keep you on the edge of your seat. I listened to it in one day on Audible right after I finished book one. I can't wait for book three to come out next month.

Check out their websites:
Colleen Coble
Rick Acker​

​"There are books enough to find a thousand worlds. You can play in the woodlands or write home or mend your socks. It is only for lack of imagination that you are bored."

"These stories make us remember something we forgot. They make a young boy want to hop out of bed and see the ruins of a castle. These kinds of stories wake us up."

"Grief is the price I paid for loving fiercely, and that was okay, because there was no other choice but to love fiercely and fully."

This book made me want to reread all of the Narnia books and so many other things that C.S. Lewis wrote. It made me excited to read with a new outlook, to look for those hidden stories inside of the story. I felt so many emotions as I read the last quarter of the book. A book that can pull that much out of me deserves to be shared with others. 

Check out her website for more information on her books: Patti Callahan Henry

A big day on my running journey was Saturday, February 7, 2026. My youngest daughter bought us tickets for my birthday back in November. She didn't just buy one for me but bought herself one because she wanted to do something WITH me. That was the true gift, time with my grown daughter. We had planned to "train" from December to the race, but we didn't. She works full time in food service on top of working with me four mornings a week. I had all sorts of excuses, mostly just not feeling like it. I have a high stress job and by the end of the workday I'm just done. I also wanted to run outside instead of the little treadmill I bought so I COULD run inside when it got dark too quickly or it was too cold. I let those things stop me from doing what I knew I wanted to do and needed to do.  That didn't stop me from getting out there and doing my best. 

I started getting really excited after I picked up our race packets on that Thursday night. Friday, I gathered all the things I'd need for an early Saturday morning race. I got us both some long sleeve shirts when I picked up the packets so we could wear them during the race and after because they are so comfortable. I did my best to set an early bedtime but I'm terrible at that. I went to bed around midnight and got up at 5:30 so I could get dressed and have some time to do my Bible Recap before my daughter arrived. 

We got to Fair Park by 7:30 and had some time to walk across the parking lot and grab a few pics before the race started. We weren't sure of the plan, but I had downloaded three of the audio runs from my MADE4 app that I use frequently on my runs. My plan was to use those to make running the 6.2 miles as easy as it is to run the shorter distances. The run audios always make it pass so quickly and I feel so good afterwards. She told me she didn't want to run by herself, so I decided to stick with her. She was listening to her favorite TV show on her phone while I was listening to the runs. I started telling her what I was going to do for each interval, not to make her do it, but so she would know. She decided to run with me when I ran and walk when I walked. 

The miles passed so quickly. Each mile marker on our app took us by surprise. That spurred us on and we put more effort into the running intervals. She even made a short video at mile five to send in our family text showing that we had made it that far and were so close to finishing the race. We walked maybe a fourth of the time, but we ran the rest. It could have been a bit more or less, I'm not really sure. I just know we did a great job and finished strong. We ran through the finish line and got our medal.

They had the Finisher's Cup waiting to be picked up. The first thing we wanted was that banana. It tasted so good. We both agreed they could have had most of the things in the cup in exchange for another banana. We ate the banana and pretzels dipped in the chocolate. We found a place to sit down to enjoy our treat before walking back to the car. The walk to the car seemed to take forever, maybe if we were walking much slower than before. My feet were feeling a bit of pain but not as badly as they have in the past for a really long run. 

The drive back to Arlington was filled with talk of the race. We picked up my husband and took our daughter to our favorite burger place for our first real meal of the day. It was fun to sit and talk for a bit while we enjoyed our food. I went home after and did my best to lay down and talk a nap before having to get up. I slept a little bit not a deep sleep. I normally can't even sleep that much after a race. I get so keyed up that it stays with me. 

I really loved the time together with my daughter doing something that is fun and good for us. This race has so much meaning for me because it was my very first race 13 years ago. I did the 5K. I've done two 5K's, one 15K and now one 10K. I'm not sure if we will do the 10K again next year or do the 15K. We just need to decide now so we can buy the early bird tickets cheaper. I'd love to do the 15K just because I feel it is a big accomplishment. My feet want me to pick the 10K. I'll do whatever she decides. 

The weather is getting nice and the days are growing longer. That means I can get more runs outside where I can get some sunshine and get out of the house for a bit. My goal is to get out there two or three times a week. 

Thanks for joining me for the race update. I'm going to be putting some "look back" posts for some other runs soon, just so I have them all in one place. I love to look back at all the fun I've had doing the races. 

​As always, 

~A Simple Texas Girl living life on the Jesus Way!

I've got so many wonderful books on my TBR pile, and it just keeps getting bigger. My goal is to read one classic each month that I haven't read or haven't read in a while. I want to read some of the older titles each month along with the newer books and new releases that I can't help but get. I love supporting the authors and gracing my shelves with beautiful books at the same time. I do read a lot on my kindle with KU. It helps me decide what I need to get for my shelves. Honestly, I'd love to be able to get all the books, but I have limited shelf space and funds. That doesn't seem to stop me in MANY cases. 

I can't wait to share with you the books for February! I have a book review I need to write and am in the process of reading two other books.  

As always, 

~A Simple Texas Girl living life on the Jesus Way! ​