No Names to be Given, Julia Brewer Daily. Review: The Cozy Book Blog

Hello Readers! Welcome to The Cozy Book Blog by Diane-Lyn. I am pleased to be today’s stop on the book tour for No Names to Be Given, by Julia Brewer Daily. Thank you, Amy Bruno (HF Virtual Book Tours), for the advanced reader copy and opportunity to provide a review (below). Thank you all for stopping in and enjoy the tour! You will love this book!

Best, Diane-Lyn

NO NAMES TO BE GIVEN BY JULIA DAILY

Publication Date: August 3, 2021
Admission Press, Inc

Genre: Historical Fiction

Synopsis:

1965. Sandy runs away from home to escape her mother’s abusive boyfriend. Becca falls in love with the wrong man. And Faith suffers a devastating attack. With no support and no other options, these three young, unwed women meet at a maternity home hospital in New Orleans where they are expected to relinquish their babies and return home as if nothing transpired.

But such a life-altering event can never be forgotten, and no secret remains buried forever. Twenty-five years later, the women are reunited by a blackmailer, who threatens to expose their secrets and destroy the lives they’ve built. That shattering revelation would shake their very foundations-and reverberate all the way to the White House.

Told from the three women’s perspectives, this mesmerizing story is based on actual experiences of women in the 1960s who found themselves pregnant but unmarried, pressured by family and society to make horrific decisions. How that inconceivable act changed women forever is the story of No Names to Be Given, a heartbreaking but uplifting novel of family and redemption.

Review by Diane-Lyn:

Oh boy – this book grabbed me right from the beginning and wouldn’t let go! From the very start, I was so deeply and emotionally involved in the lives of these three women. Each of them were from vastly different walks of life, yet they all had a story and they shared the same heart-wrenching situation. I am so sad and angry over the limited choices women back then had, along with the intense shame and secrecy that unwed mothers faced – even from their own families. It was no different for sexual assault victims, who suffered in silence and had their lives ruined while their assailants moved on unscathed. Some of this still exists today, but not to the same degree. When unthinkable decisions had to be made, the unyielding social norms and pressures of the 1960s took priority over everything else – including people. Family structures were rigid with roles and expectations firmly in place. The effects of trauma were overlooked as blame, shame and a focus on appearances took center stage. No Names to Be Given provides a detailed, insightful and authentic look at life for women in the 1960s, and it shook me to the core.

The plot line is fast paced, yet clear, smooth and well developed. I loved how this book spanned across fifty years, allowing the reader to follow the life of each character across time. Daily did a magnificent job detailing the evolvement of each woman, and the painful aftermath that remained decades after they were forced to relinquish their children. Also presented later on were the lives of their long-lost children, and how each of them fared after being adopted. Some outcomes were positive, but sadly, others were not. This novel is multi-themed – addressing issues of racism, politics, sexual assault, love, loss, grief, family, adoption, and forbidden relationships. Adoption is so complex and emotional for all parties involved, and Daily handles these issues poignantly, honestly and realistically. No Names to Be Given is extremely well-written, engaging and thought-provoking. I enjoyed this book and loved Daily’s captivating writing style. I look forward to reading more from this talented author!

I received an ARC of this novel from HF Virtual Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.

“Today’s young women will not understand how our families made us feel shame so intensely: we surrendered out first-born children to strangers.” Faith Reynolds, No Names to Be Given (Julia Brewer Daily)

AMAZON | BARNES AND NOBLE | INDIEBOUND | POWELL’S | TARGET

Praise

“A gorgeous, thrilling, and important novel! These strong women will capture your heart.”-Stacey Swann, author of Olympus, Texas

“A novel worthy of a Lifetime movie adaptation.” Jess Hagemann, author of Headcheese

“An insightful and sympathetic view offered into the lives of those who were adopted and those who adopted them.”-Pam Johnson, author of Justice for Ella

“Readers can expect deep knowledge of the world the characters inhabit.”-Sara Kocek, author of Promise Me Something

“I found myself thinking about Becca, Sandy, and Faith frequently as I went about my day-I was always excited to sit down and find out what happened next.”-Sarah Welch, author of Austin Brown Dogs: The Shelter Dogs Who Rescue Us

About the Author

Julia Brewer Daily is a Texan with a southern accent. She has a B.S. in English and a M.S. degree in Education from the University of Southern Mississippi.

She has been an educator, Communications Adjunct Professor at Belhaven College, administrator, and Public Relations Director of the Mississippi Department of Education and Millsaps College, a liberal arts college in Jackson, MS. She was the founding director of the Greater Belhaven Market, a producers’ only market in a historic neighborhood in Jackson, and even shadowed Martha Stewart.

As the Executive Director of the Craftsmen’s Guild of Mississippi (300 artisans from 19 states) which operates the Mississippi Craft Center, she wrote their stories to introduce them to the public. She is an adopted child from a maternity home hospital in New Orleans.

She searched and found her birth mother and through a DNA test, her birth father’s family, as well. She lives on a ranch in Texas with her husband Emmerson and two Labrador Retrievers, Memphis Belle and Texas Star.