Shadows in the Mind's Eye by Janyre Tromp
Publication Date: April 19, 2022
Kregel Publications
Genre: Historical Fiction/Christian
Charlotte Anne Mattas longs to turn back the clock. Before her husband, Sam, went to serve his country in the war, he was the man everyone could rely on--responsible, intelligent, and loving. But the person who's come back to their family farm is very different from the protector Annie remembers. Sam's experience in the Pacific theater has left him broken in ways no one can understand--but that everyone is learning to fear.
Tongues start wagging after Sam nearly kills his own brother. Now when he claims to have seen men on the mountain when no one else has seen them, Annie isn't the only one questioning his sanity and her safety. If there were criminals haunting the hills, there should be evidence beyond his claims. Is he really seeing what he says, or is his war-tortured mind conjuring ghosts?
Annie desperately wants to believe her husband. But between his irrational choices and his nightmares leaking into the daytime, she's terrified he's going mad. Can she trust God to heal Sam's mental wounds--or will sticking by him mean keeping her marriage at the cost of her own life?
Debut novelist Janyre Tromp delivers a deliciously eerie, Hitchcockian story filled with love and suspense. Readers of psychological thrillers and historical fiction by Jaime Jo Wright and Sarah Sundin will add Tromp to their favorite authors list.
Guest Post from author Janyre Tromp
I’ve been addicted to reading for as long as I can remember.
I was that kid who read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe in first grade and then proceeded to read everything I could get my hands on.
As a kid I preferred stories steeped in classic stories and myths—King Arthur, Brothers Grimm, etc.—and often read under my covers by the glow of my little nightlight.
Looking back, I suppose reading was a way to escape the ugly that often hovered in my childhood home.
The characters were my friends, and I could travel with them on adventures and be a hero even when I often felt unremarkable and forgotten.
But it wasn’t until I was in college that I really enjoyed history. I’ll pause here while you process a historical writer not liking history.
It does makes sense. History, as presented in school, is often impersonal timelines and boring lists of facts. I don’t do boring details.
That all changed when my US History professor gave us an assignment to talk to a family member about WWII or the depression. I drove up to see my grandparents and heard stories I had never heard before, and I was profoundly affected.
Grandma and Bobpa told me about being separated while my grandmother went to college during the depression; my grandfather enlisting and applying for officer’s school to avoid being drafted as a grunt; my grandfather directing fire from a piper cub and being shot down over Germany.
Because of my grandparents’ stories, I will forever see how personal and relevant history is.
In some ways, it’s my mission to find the truth tucked in historical stories and introduce it to modern readers.
Given my past, it isn’t surprising that I write historical novels steeped in the deliciously creepy stories of myths and legends. And Shadows in the Mind’s Eye is no different.
You’ll see bits and pieces of my family’s stories in the book. Things like both my grandfather and Sam didn’t meet their daughter until they returned from the battlefield and both men struggled with memories from their war experiences.
However myths and legends are just as important to the story. Besides typical fairy tale themes of light versus dark, my hero, Sam, talks of himself in terms of the heroes and monsters in his daughter’s fairy tale story books. He says, “if you pop in the middle of the story, you might just mistake the hero for a failure or worse, a monster. But it’s the scrabbling out of trouble and finding the truth deep inside him that transforms that character into a hero of light and goodness.”
The moment those words hit the page, I stopped. It’s such a powerful thought.
The middle of the story isn’t the end.
Wherever we are in our stories, it might seem like there’s no hope and we’re in too far. But story is all about the rising action, the conflict, and the resolution. And history bears proof of the pattern.
It’s why I hunt for beauty . . . even when life isn’t pretty.
In my pursuit of truth and beauty, I dig for good things like the golden morning light kissing the tips of winter bare branches or the way flower petals curl when they dry or even the blessing of an alarm, so I don’t forget to pick up my kid from school . . . not that that ever happens (ha ha)!
What are some good things you see around you?
Praise for Shadows in the Mind's Eye
“Readers will enjoy this emotional exploration of a soldier’s journey as he returns home to his family’s farm after fighting a war in the Pacific. This story examines not only the traumatic impact on his own psyche but on the lives of all who love him most. With alternating points of view, Tromp weaves a complex historical tale incorporating love, suspense, hurt, and healing―all the elements that keep the pages turning.” -- Julie Cantrell, New York Times and USA Today best-selling author of Perennials
“Oh my! What a story! Shadows in the Mind’s Eye is a stunner of a debut novel. Sam and Annie’s love is beautifully rendered, Sam’s combat fatigue (what we now call PTSD) is compassionately portrayed, and Janyre Tromp’s writing effortlessly captures the Southern voice. And the last half of the book is one dangerous, breathtaking twist after another, as Sam’s worst nightmares come to pass. A compelling look at a town struggling to find its soul and a wounded couple struggling to reclaim their love. Not to be missed.” -- Sarah Sundin, ECPA best-selling and award-winning author of Until Leaves Fall in Paris
“An achingly poignant tale of rediscovering love and trust between wounded hearts. Love, forgiveness, and danger weave together in Tromp’s emotional tale where the greatest of battles are fought in the mind. Beautiful in description with complex characters, readers will not forget this emotional journey.” -- J'nell Ciesielski, best-selling author of The Socialite
“Stunning and compelling, Janyre Tromp’s Shadows in the Mind’s Eye kept me turning pages. With a cast of true-to-life characters, pitch-perfect narrative, and a plot that will keep the reader wondering what is true (and what is imagined), this novel is not to be missed. Intense and full of heart, Tromp delivers a fresh voice in the world of fiction.” -- Susie Finkbeiner, author of The Nature of Small Birds and the Pearl Spence Series
“With twists and turns as unexpected as an Arkansas thunderstorm, Tromp brilliantly explores the things war can change and the important things it can’t.” -- Lynne Gentry, USA Today best-selling author of Lethal Outbreak
“A hair-raising, mind-bending psychological thriller, Shadows in the Mind’s Eye by Janyre Tromp deftly explores a marriage torn asunder by war. Is a marriage worth fighting for when you cannot see the people your husband is fighting, or when you even become the one he is fighting? Tromp’s nuanced empathy elevates this story to another level and blurs the line between villain and hero, causing readers to ponder the lengths they would go to protect themselves, even against the ones they love.” -- Jolina Petersheim, bestselling author of How the Light Gets In
“Shadows in the Mind’s Eye is an intense, beautifully written novel about secrets and sacrifice. A story about poignant trauma and truth potent enough to heal a broken family. A fabulous debut!” -- Melanie Dobson, award-winning author of The Winter Rose and Catching the Wind
“With pitch-perfect dialect, lyrical prose, and homespun wisdom, Tromp delivers a slow boiling mystery that dares to ask the deepest questions about faith, love, suffering, evil, and hope.” -- Elizabeth Musser, award-winning author of The Promised Land
“Tromp’s debut novel is the perfect blend of historical fiction and psychological thriller. Shadows in the Mind’s Eye hooked me early on and kept me enthralled until the very end. A story of war, of heartache, of love and healing, this novel will appeal to a broad swath of readers. Tromp is a new author to watch!” -- Kelli Stuart, award-winning author of The Fabulous Freaks of Monsieur Beaumont
Author Janyre Tromp
In case we get to meet in person some day, you pronounce that first name Jan-air. Kind of like the stove. I'm a developmental book editor by day and a writer at night.
And that all happens from my kitchen table when I'm not hanging out with my husband, two kids, and slightly eccentric Shetland Sheepdog. Unfortunately, I spilled coffee on my super cape and then the dryer ate it. So you'll just have to imagine I can do it all!
I have four traditionally published books—a WWII era novel, Shadows in the Mind's Eye; a juvenile fiction, That Sinking Feeling; and two board books in the All About God's Animals series—and 2 indie books—Wide Open, a historical novella and It's a Wonderful Christmas, a Christmas novella collection (coming October 2021).
But my passion is writing about the beauty of the world—past and present—even when it isn't pretty.
After all, isn't it the beauty in the world that gets us through the day?
Hopefully after you hang out with me for a bit, we'll be able to see things a little more clearly, find a little bit of meaning, and make a bigger impact.
With me what you see is what you get...all the Beautiful, all the Ugly, all the Me.
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Giveaway
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