The Letter Keeper
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- Create Date：2021-05-18 12:30:58
- Update Date：2025-09-07
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- Author：Charles Martin
- ISBN：1713598442
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Summary
Combining heart-wrenching emotion with edge-of-your-seat tension， Charles Martin explores the true power of sacrificial love。
He shows up when all hope is lost。
Murphy Shepherd has made a career of finding those no one else could—survivors of human trafficking。 His life’s mission is helping others find freedom。
Then the nightmare strikes too close to home。
When his new wife， her daughter， and two other teenage girls are stolen， Murphy is left questioning all he has thought to be true。 With more dead ends than leads， he has no idea how to find his loved ones。
After everything is stripped away， love is what remains。
Hope feels lost， but Murphy is willing to expend his last breath trying to bring them home。
Praise for The Letter Keeper:
“Very few contemporary novelists have found acclaim within mainstream and evangelical markets， but Charles Martin is among them。 His latest novel is both a stand-alone story and a sequel to his highly-praised The Water Keeper。 It hinges on the Scriptural message of forsaking the found in order to seek the lost， a theme Martin brings to poetic and brilliant life。 A man broken by events beyond his control accepts the challenge to walk dark ways in order to bring the lost and helpless home， but he comes close to losing himself in the process。 Despite the hardship and heartache， Martin’s story shines with the light of eternal hope。” —Davis Bunn， writing for Christianity Today
He shows up when all hope is lost。
Murphy Shepherd has made a career of finding those no one else could—survivors of human trafficking。 His life’s mission is helping others find freedom。
Then the nightmare strikes too close to home。
When his new wife， her daughter， and two other teenage girls are stolen， Murphy is left questioning all he has thought to be true。 With more dead ends than leads， he has no idea how to find his loved ones。
After everything is stripped away， love is what remains。
Hope feels lost， but Murphy is willing to expend his last breath trying to bring them home。
Praise for The Letter Keeper:
“Very few contemporary novelists have found acclaim within mainstream and evangelical markets， but Charles Martin is among them。 His latest novel is both a stand-alone story and a sequel to his highly-praised The Water Keeper。 It hinges on the Scriptural message of forsaking the found in order to seek the lost， a theme Martin brings to poetic and brilliant life。 A man broken by events beyond his control accepts the challenge to walk dark ways in order to bring the lost and helpless home， but he comes close to losing himself in the process。 Despite the hardship and heartache， Martin’s story shines with the light of eternal hope。” —Davis Bunn， writing for Christianity Today
Reviews
John
，
If there is one thing that I could force every person in the world to do， it would be to read a Charles Martin novel （this one， or Long Way Gone， or Life Interrupted， or Water from my Heart）。 I read this last year when it came out， and Mr。 Martin is coming out with a sequel in June， so I read it again to refresh my memory。 This book is nominally about sex trafficking of women and the brutal nature of it （fortunately， Mr。 Martin doesn't go into grisly detail）， but in reality it's about love and b If there is one thing that I could force every person in the world to do， it would be to read a Charles Martin novel （this one， or Long Way Gone， or Life Interrupted， or Water from my Heart）。 I read this last year when it came out， and Mr。 Martin is coming out with a sequel in June， so I read it again to refresh my memory。 This book is nominally about sex trafficking of women and the brutal nature of it （fortunately， Mr。 Martin doesn't go into grisly detail）， but in reality it's about love and betrayal and loss and redemption， themes that Mr。 Martin often handles in his books， but always manages to deal with in new and fresh ways。The protagonist: Murphy Shepherd is perhaps a little beyond the realm of actual possibility—he gets wounded so many times fighting bad guys that surely he would have been done in just by the sheer number of the wounds—but who cares about how close it comes to real life。 It's fiction， for pete's sake。 I once heard Mr。 Martin say that he grew up reading Louis L'Amour's books and loving them， and this book does reflect Mr。 L'Amour's influence with our hero wading through bad guys right and left and saving girls sold into modern slavery。 What Mr。 Martin does that Mr。 L'Amour never did do， is delve deeply into his themes: unconditional love， betrayal， grace， forgiveness， etc。 These are themes that， like it or not， everyone of us will deal with， one way or another， every day of our lives。 。。。more
Anne
，
When I received this book as an ARC， I didn’t realize it was the second book in a series。 I quickly ordered a copy of the first book， The Water Keeper and read it in less than 24 hours， it was that good。 The Letter Keeper can be read alone， but I highly recommend starting from the beginning to really know the characters and setting。 The Letter Keeper dove deeper into who David Bishop， aka Murphy Shepard is， but didn't lack in the intense scenes， and emotional roller coaster that I was used to in When I received this book as an ARC， I didn’t realize it was the second book in a series。 I quickly ordered a copy of the first book， The Water Keeper and read it in less than 24 hours， it was that good。 The Letter Keeper can be read alone， but I highly recommend starting from the beginning to really know the characters and setting。 The Letter Keeper dove deeper into who David Bishop， aka Murphy Shepard is， but didn't lack in the intense scenes， and emotional roller coaster that I was used to in The Water Keeper。Murphy has made a career out of helping young girls and boys find freedom from sex trafficking。 However， when his world turns upside down with the disappearance of his wife， her daughter and two others， Murphy reflects back on his own life。 He spends his life saving those in trouble， will he be able to save the ones who he truly loves and cares about？Charles Martin is truly a gifted writer！ He is a master story teller！ And quickly becoming one of my favorite authors。 Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for providing me with this e-ARC。 。。。more
Judy
，
Wow。 I just finished Charles Martin’s The Letter Keeper and I have to say this author just gets better and better with every single book。 David Bishop/Murphy Shepherd is a priest who also rescues kids from human traffickers。 This is book#2。 I loved this one as much as I loved book#1 The Water Keeper。 We get a lot more of his background in this story。 I love that the author gives us a lot of action and then he gives us a moment to catch our breaths by giving us some background story before we are Wow。 I just finished Charles Martin’s The Letter Keeper and I have to say this author just gets better and better with every single book。 David Bishop/Murphy Shepherd is a priest who also rescues kids from human traffickers。 This is book#2。 I loved this one as much as I loved book#1 The Water Keeper。 We get a lot more of his background in this story。 I love that the author gives us a lot of action and then he gives us a moment to catch our breaths by giving us some background story before we are off again to more action packed scenes。 I love the main characters in this series。 I was not prepared for the ending at all。 I cannot wait for his next book！ I highly recommend reading The Water Keeper first。 Thank you to Netgalley and Thomas Nelson for the ARC。 All opinions expressed are my own。 。。。more
Kaitlyn Krispense
，
Okay。 Once upon a time， I would've said that Charles Martin is one of my favorite authors - beautiful prose， engaging plot。 Blunt - just like me。 *halo* Thing is。。。I wouldn't quite say so anymore。 *Deep breath* So。 Let's dive in， shall we？Mmkay， so， let me say what I didn't like （and try not to turn this into a rant）， and get that part over with。For one。。。the prose。 The first couple of books I read by Martin （When Crickets Cry and The Dead Don't Dance） were absolutely amazing。 But then I read bo Okay。 Once upon a time， I would've said that Charles Martin is one of my favorite authors - beautiful prose， engaging plot。 Blunt - just like me。 *halo* Thing is。。。I wouldn't quite say so anymore。 *Deep breath* So。 Let's dive in， shall we？Mmkay， so， let me say what I didn't like （and try not to turn this into a rant）， and get that part over with。For one。。。the prose。 The first couple of books I read by Martin （When Crickets Cry and The Dead Don't Dance） were absolutely amazing。 But then I read books that he published in recent years （Send Down the Rain and The Water Keeper）。。。and they've only disappointed me。 I couldn't put my finger on why， though。。。so I picked up The Water Keeper from the library and requested The Letter Keeper from Netgalley。I've figured it out。 The 'prose，' to me， isn't really prose anymore。 The meaty parts of the story， the parts where the plot really began to pick up and get going， were either short bits between the slow parts， or were broken up by rabbit trails of deep thinking。Don't get me wrong; y'all know I love books that make me think deeply。 But in the middle of a suspenseful sequence is not， in my opinion， a good time to insert "There are times in a man's life when。。。" *deep thinking that takes up an entire page and interrupts the plot* It seemed like there wasn't enough plot to go around， so hey， let's throw in an insane amount of internal dialogue that you have to force yourself not to skim over， but make the rest of the book interesting enough that you want to keep reading and find out how it ends！Okay。 I think my rant is over。 Sorry。 *cough*What else didn't I like？ Some of the scenes between Murph and Summer made me downright uncomfortable。 Like， it wasn't too bad， it was just。。。lots of different places。 Until that one scene right after the wedding （not gonna say whose wedding， to avoid potential spoilers）。 I understand that this is supposed to be authentic and real but like。。。y'all。 I've got a vivid imagination。 Whenever I read something in a book， I picture it in my mind。 And this。。。this is not something I wanted to picture in my mind。 （I suppose I should've learned my lesson from the first Shepherd book。 But I didn't， unfortunately。）The unfortunate thing is， even though the book ended on a cliffhanger， I'm not even sure that I want to read the next one。 Which sadly brings the book down from "It was pretty good！" to "It。。。was good。。。I think？"But。 What did I like？The plot was fantastic。 Granted， the first half of the book was slow and I was trying to find out exactly where the back cover blurb fit into the whole picture。 But then the second half hit and bang， we finally caught some of the action that Murphy Shepherd is known for！ （did I just end a sentence with a preposition？ Yes。 Yes， I did。 *bows* forgive me。） Like， that one scene full of InJUrY and pAIn and DEaTh！"You came after us！" "I said I would， didn't I？""Yeah， but。。。you actually did。" （Might not be exact wording， but super close， anyway）These words， uttered from a heart so broken that she dared not believe they were true until she saw it put into action in the most sacrificial way possible， sum up my favorite part in the entire book。 Someone who didn't see herself as worthy of love。。。found herself being treated as a most precious treasure （find a parallel in here somewhere？）。 And I adored it。I also really loved Casey's character arc。 It wasn't the straight-road-to-recovery-with-a-couple-setbacks。 No， it was more like we-thought-we-were-recovering-but-then-everything-was-almost-completely-lost-but-it'll-all-turn-out-okay-in-the-end。 （I guess I have a thing for hyphens。 *shrug*） Like。。。I really， really loved the entire Casey aspect （including that last scene with her？？ IT WAS SOOO GOOD。）*I received a copy of this book from the publisher from Netgalley for promotional purposes。 All thoughts are my own。 。。。more
Annette
，
I’ve read several of this author’s book and really enjoyed them all。 This one doesn’t have quite as much action as the first one in this series。 Seems like it’s more in Murphy’s head。 Murphy is like MacGyver with nine lives and he’s half way through those。 I enjoyed the story and look forward to seeing where this series goes nextThanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the early
Renea
，
I enjoyed The Water Keeper very much， so I was excited to receive an advance copy of The Letter Keeper。 First of all， it is important to read The Water Keeper first or much of this story will not make sense。 I am having a difficult time determining how I feel about the book now that I’ve finished it。 I enjoyed the sections where we learn more about Murphy’s life and the development of his friendship with Bones， but I felt all of the action scenes were rushed and disjointed。 I’ve learned that I e I enjoyed The Water Keeper very much， so I was excited to receive an advance copy of The Letter Keeper。 First of all， it is important to read The Water Keeper first or much of this story will not make sense。 I am having a difficult time determining how I feel about the book now that I’ve finished it。 I enjoyed the sections where we learn more about Murphy’s life and the development of his friendship with Bones， but I felt all of the action scenes were rushed and disjointed。 I’ve learned that I enjoy Charles Martin’s ability to describe people and relationships far more than his action sequences。 While I did want to read the whole book and I will definitely pick up the next book （because the ending implies another book is coming，） this was not one of my favorites from this author。Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Melissa
，
This book is the follow up to The Water Keeper by Charles Martin。 Charles has long been one of my favorite authors and his new books are no exception。 The Letter Keeper picks up with Murph where the Water Keeper left off。 We get to find out more about what makes him tick and where he came from。 I am deeply invested in this character and devoured this book from the start。 This is an emotional fiction work that deep dives into to human trafficking travesty that currently exists。 The only complaint This book is the follow up to The Water Keeper by Charles Martin。 Charles has long been one of my favorite authors and his new books are no exception。 The Letter Keeper picks up with Murph where the Water Keeper left off。 We get to find out more about what makes him tick and where he came from。 I am deeply invested in this character and devoured this book from the start。 This is an emotional fiction work that deep dives into to human trafficking travesty that currently exists。 The only complaint I have about this book is that it ended with a definite cliffhanger and now I am mad I have to wait for Charles to write the next one。 Highly recommend this read to anyone but definitely recommend taking the time to read the Water Keeper first。 Thank you so much to the publisher and netgalley for allowing me to read and review a copy of this book。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more
Cindy
，
This was the sequel to The Water Keeper， a book I loved。 This continues the story of Murphy Shepherd and gives more back story about who him。 I found it interesting but not quite as page turning as The Water Keeper， until the second half of the book。 Then I couldn't read fast enough！ The writing is beautiful while Charles Martin continues to tackle human trafficking issues。 The ending was stunning and certainly leaves the reader hoping there will be another book in the series。 Thank you to NetGa This was the sequel to The Water Keeper， a book I loved。 This continues the story of Murphy Shepherd and gives more back story about who him。 I found it interesting but not quite as page turning as The Water Keeper， until the second half of the book。 Then I couldn't read fast enough！ The writing is beautiful while Charles Martin continues to tackle human trafficking issues。 The ending was stunning and certainly leaves the reader hoping there will be another book in the series。 Thank you to NetGalley and Thomas Nelson for my ARC of this book， all opinions are my own。 。。。more
Ebos Aifuobhokhan
，
I am rarely speechless。 But this book made me speechless。 I couldn't stop reading。 It held me captivate and at the end of the day all I could think about was love always wins， love always shows up。 My heart was beating in resonance with the characters。 Murphy's heart was boundless。 The dephts he went， the sacrifices。。。 In more words than I can say the author pictured Jesus' love for us。 How he goes after us relentlessly， recklessly until he brings us home。 No matter how far we've gone， no matter I am rarely speechless。 But this book made me speechless。 I couldn't stop reading。 It held me captivate and at the end of the day all I could think about was love always wins， love always shows up。 My heart was beating in resonance with the characters。 Murphy's heart was boundless。 The dephts he went， the sacrifices。。。 In more words than I can say the author pictured Jesus' love for us。 How he goes after us relentlessly， recklessly until he brings us home。 No matter how far we've gone， no matter where we are， his love shows up。 No matter how may times we need rescuing。 Murphy pulled out all the stops going after 1 person after another。 So much how Christ leaves the 99 and goes after the 1。 Undiluted， unconditionally love oozed out of the pages of this book and into the deepest parts of my heart。 I felt so loved by God and grateful to Him after reading this book。 Hibhly， highly recommended it。 I received a copy of this book from Netgalley and this is my honest opinion。 。。。more
Diane Merritt
，
Charles Martin a master at story telling。 I have to confess I didnt realize this was a second book in the series。 I will be going back to read the first。The main character intrigues me。 Great book。 "I received a complimentary copy of this book。 Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own。"Thanks to the author， the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book。 Charles Martin a master at story telling。 I have to confess I didnt realize this was a second book in the series。 I will be going back to read the first。The main character intrigues me。 Great book。 "I received a complimentary copy of this book。 Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own。"Thanks to the author， the publisher and NetGalley for an early release of this book。 。。。more
Rebecca Posey
，
I ended this book shouting an explicative。 In a good way。 Light and darkness tango in Charles Martin’s sequel “The Letter Keeper。” Martin illustrates love in so many forms: that for ourselves， our partners， our families， our friends， and （quite possibly the most important） our pets。Two sentence review: David Bishop/Murphy Shepherd shares his past as he prepares for the future with his growing family。 This period of bliss is too good to be true as evil men hunt to steal his family， kill his hope， I ended this book shouting an explicative。 In a good way。 Light and darkness tango in Charles Martin’s sequel “The Letter Keeper。” Martin illustrates love in so many forms: that for ourselves， our partners， our families， our friends， and （quite possibly the most important） our pets。Two sentence review: David Bishop/Murphy Shepherd shares his past as he prepares for the future with his growing family。 This period of bliss is too good to be true as evil men hunt to steal his family， kill his hope， and destroy him entirely。 The storyline is a page turner and the final paragraph will reach out and slap you across the face （hence the explicative）。 You’ll want to read “The Water Keeper” first for an introduction to the plot， setting， and characters。 But if it fell in your lap， you could read it as a stand alone and stay mostly caught up。 There’s less action than its predecessor， which had me on edge waiting for the plot to pick up。 Otherwise， my biggest critique is now I have to wait until 2022 for the final installment of this trilogy。 Truly a work that shows graves can be turned into gardens。 You won’t want to put it down。 Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the ARC。 All opinions are unapologetically my own。 。。。more
Darci Swanson
，
Can't wait for the next one！ Can't wait for the next one！ 。。。more
Judy
，
Charles Martin's books are always inspiring to me。 They are filled with hope， sacrifice， and love。 The Letter Keeper is the second book in the Murphy Shepherd series and I hope there will be many more to come。 The characters are vivid and arresting。 The plot is action-packed， yet filled with truths and philosophical and religious themes。 Murphy Shepherd is an amazing man who puts everyone else's needs above his own。 He rescues girls from human trafficking situations and brings them to Freetown w Charles Martin's books are always inspiring to me。 They are filled with hope， sacrifice， and love。 The Letter Keeper is the second book in the Murphy Shepherd series and I hope there will be many more to come。 The characters are vivid and arresting。 The plot is action-packed， yet filled with truths and philosophical and religious themes。 Murphy Shepherd is an amazing man who puts everyone else's needs above his own。 He rescues girls from human trafficking situations and brings them to Freetown where they can heal。 Even though the subject of human trafficking is horrible and violent， Charles Martin handles the subject with sensitivity and doesn't dwell on the dark side。 You could read this book without having read the first in the series; however， I would recommend that you start with the first book just to provide background。 Also， it is well worth the time as The Water Keeper is an awesome book as well。 I highly recommend reading anything Charles Martin writes and， yes， he is one of my very favorite authors！Many thanks to Thomas Nelson--FICTION through Netgalley for an advance copy of this wonderful book。 。。。more
Tamara
，
The Letter Keeper is the second book in the Murphy Shepherd series by Charles Martin。 I don’t think I have ever given any of his books a rating lower than four， but with The Letter Keeper， I am。 This doesn’t mean in any way that the writing wasn’t up to par， the characters weren't well drawn out because they all were。 It was all me。 The Water Keeper was full of action and The Letter Keeper just didn’t keep me engaged enough。 I didn’t connect to the characters as I had in the first book like I wa The Letter Keeper is the second book in the Murphy Shepherd series by Charles Martin。 I don’t think I have ever given any of his books a rating lower than four， but with The Letter Keeper， I am。 This doesn’t mean in any way that the writing wasn’t up to par， the characters weren't well drawn out because they all were。 It was all me。 The Water Keeper was full of action and The Letter Keeper just didn’t keep me engaged enough。 I didn’t connect to the characters as I had in the first book like I was hoping to。The Letter Keeper was too introspective at the beginning for me。 Yes， it was good to learn about Murphy Shepherd/David Bishop’s background but I would’ve （in my opinion） appreciated it more in the first book。 I wanted to run and catch the bad guys with Murphy and it took a while before I could do that（of course， safely reading at home about his adventures）。 However the ending made up for a lot of it， it’s good！My gratitude to Thomas Nelson and Netgalley。 All opinions expressed are mine alone。 。。。more
Lisa
，
A very compelling read。 Sequel to the Water Keeper， ties up some of the loose ends from The Water Keeper。 Genre-defying。 blend of the best of Contemporary Christian fiction， thrillers and romance。 Previously I had read two other Charles Martin books， but I'll be reading more。 A very compelling read。 Sequel to the Water Keeper， ties up some of the loose ends from The Water Keeper。 Genre-defying。 blend of the best of Contemporary Christian fiction， thrillers and romance。 Previously I had read two other Charles Martin books， but I'll be reading more。 。。。more
Denise Talen
，
I am turning into a big fan of Charles Martin！ I really enjoyed this second book in the Murphy Shepherd series。 I enjoyed this page turning story and learning more of the back story of the characters。 I so appreciate how Martin is tackling the difficult issue of human trafficking through this work of fiction。 It is so important。 The characters are very complex and will stick with me for a long time。 Now I am sad that I need to wait a while for the next in the series。 I hope it is not too long！
2sonreader
，
Martin continues the story of Murphy Shepherd and his family。 As always， there is a lot of adventure， danger， and great character development。 The plot revolves around those he has rescued and continues to rescue from captivity。 Recommended。 Readers will want to read previous books in the series before this one as it refers back to characters and situations in those books。 Review based on an advance copy provided by NetGalley。
Gina
，
Thanks to NetGalley for ecopy for my Kindle。I really enjoy Charles Martin's books， and this one is no exception。 Such a "clean" story about forgiveness and redemption。 It's a sequel to "The Water Keeper，" and I would suggest reading it first。 Looking forward to 3rd book in this series。 Thanks to NetGalley for ecopy for my Kindle。I really enjoy Charles Martin's books， and this one is no exception。 Such a "clean" story about forgiveness and redemption。 It's a sequel to "The Water Keeper，" and I would suggest reading it first。 Looking forward to 3rd book in this series。 。。。more
Melony
，
When you turn the last page of a Charles Martin book， you just say， "Wow！" and The Letter Keeper was no exception。 I cannot wait for book 3 in the trilogy。 This second book really went deeper into getting to know Murphy and the people in his life。 I could not read this fast enough and wanted to savor each word at the same time。 The raw intensity of this character is like none other， and perfectly illustrates what it means to leave the ninety-nine for the one。 Another phenomenal masterpiece。 I re When you turn the last page of a Charles Martin book， you just say， "Wow！" and The Letter Keeper was no exception。 I cannot wait for book 3 in the trilogy。 This second book really went deeper into getting to know Murphy and the people in his life。 I could not read this fast enough and wanted to savor each word at the same time。 The raw intensity of this character is like none other， and perfectly illustrates what it means to leave the ninety-nine for the one。 Another phenomenal masterpiece。 I received an ARC copy of this book through NetGalley and my opinion is my own。 。。。more
Teresa
，
I am a Charles Martin junky; I have read many of his books， several of them are in my all-time top reads， “When Crickets Cry” is in the top 5。 But I knew at some time Charles would change genre’s and he would lose me。 He did…。I gave the Murphy Shepherd series a second try and it struck out again。 I think this series just goes over the top。 The story starts out with a bang， a lot of action going on， then we mellow out for a while， deal a lot with women/child trafficking and then we have a bunch o I am a Charles Martin junky; I have read many of his books， several of them are in my all-time top reads， “When Crickets Cry” is in the top 5。 But I knew at some time Charles would change genre’s and he would lose me。 He did…。I gave the Murphy Shepherd series a second try and it struck out again。 I think this series just goes over the top。 The story starts out with a bang， a lot of action going on， then we mellow out for a while， deal a lot with women/child trafficking and then we have a bunch of action again。 It loses the believability when Murphy just keeps going and going， like the energizer bunny。 I guess at 64 years old and being a CM fan for years， I just didn’t want him to change。 I want him to write more like Chasing Fireflys， Wrapped in Rain， and The Dead Don’t Dance。 He had everything I love。 Will I pick up another Charles Martin to read， you betcha I will， will I pick up another Murphy， probably not。 I want to thank Thomas Nelson along with NetGalley for allowing me the opportunity to read an ARC。 This one earns 4 stars。 。。。more
Leslie Ponder
，
This is the third novel I have read by Charles Martin。 Wow！ This book grabbed me from the first sentence。 This book was full of emotion and very deep philosophical thoughts and oh my。。 the action！ As Martin always does he weaves lessons of faith and hope throughout。 Loved the characters and I'm in love with Murphy Shepherd and maybe he's really MacGyver or Jason Bourne。 I didn't realize this was a sequel so。。 I'll be reading the first one next！ I also think this would be an amazing action movie！ This is the third novel I have read by Charles Martin。 Wow！ This book grabbed me from the first sentence。 This book was full of emotion and very deep philosophical thoughts and oh my。。 the action！ As Martin always does he weaves lessons of faith and hope throughout。 Loved the characters and I'm in love with Murphy Shepherd and maybe he's really MacGyver or Jason Bourne。 I didn't realize this was a sequel so。。 I'll be reading the first one next！ I also think this would be an amazing action movie！ 。。。more
Dawn
，
In order to read this book， I went back to the first installment to be prepared。 I did not care for the first book， and really had to struggle to get through this one。 I think maybe if the main character was written as a 'supernatural' person would this book be believable。 He is severely injured time and time again， and heals completely。 Though the characters are really great， the writing is repetitive and long winded。 Murphy comes off as some sort of intuitive therapist of sorts and it gets ann In order to read this book， I went back to the first installment to be prepared。 I did not care for the first book， and really had to struggle to get through this one。 I think maybe if the main character was written as a 'supernatural' person would this book be believable。 He is severely injured time and time again， and heals completely。 Though the characters are really great， the writing is repetitive and long winded。 Murphy comes off as some sort of intuitive therapist of sorts and it gets annoying after a while。 I really tried to like these books， because of the great rating that this author and these books get， but this is the end of the road for me。 。。。more
Jeanne Alfveby Crea
，
4，5 starsThe Water Keeper was the first Charles Martin story I encountered and I absolutely loved that fantastic action-packed novel where evil and sacrificial love in unequal parts， shine a light on human trafficking， and those who attempt to rescue the ones caught in its web。 Thrilled to read The Letter Keeper， the second in the Murphy Shepard series。 It is very good。 The Letter Keeper brings back the characters we have come to know and love。 With more details and backstories， we learn a lot m 4，5 starsThe Water Keeper was the first Charles Martin story I encountered and I absolutely loved that fantastic action-packed novel where evil and sacrificial love in unequal parts， shine a light on human trafficking， and those who attempt to rescue the ones caught in its web。 Thrilled to read The Letter Keeper， the second in the Murphy Shepard series。 It is very good。 The Letter Keeper brings back the characters we have come to know and love。 With more details and backstories， we learn a lot more about Bones and Murphy。 This time the setting is partially set in the secret town set up in the mountain solely for healing and recovery of those rescued who are on their way to freedom。"If my life experience had taught me anything， it's this: the wounds of the past carry a lot of weight when it comes to walking into one's future， and it anything can rob you of now， it's yesterday。""Stripped bare， the human soul has one real desire: to know and be known。 And in that moment， I was。"I highly recommend this series and I cannot wait for book #3Thank you to the Net Galley and the publisher for allowing me to read an early copy！ 。。。more
Stacy
，
Wow， just wow。When you think Charles Martin's writing can't resonate with you more than it already does， he tops that by adding deep character dives， raw-panged emotion， and tense scenes。Murphy Shepherd is a man to be reckoned with if you're on the wrong side of the law， and as heroic as the Duke for those needing to be saved。 This novel can be read as a stand-alone， but read The Water Keeper too。 But， have tissues nearby for both， you're going to need them。I want 2022 to hurry up and get here， Wow， just wow。When you think Charles Martin's writing can't resonate with you more than it already does， he tops that by adding deep character dives， raw-panged emotion， and tense scenes。Murphy Shepherd is a man to be reckoned with if you're on the wrong side of the law， and as heroic as the Duke for those needing to be saved。 This novel can be read as a stand-alone， but read The Water Keeper too。 But， have tissues nearby for both， you're going to need them。I want 2022 to hurry up and get here， I've got a "book date" with Murphy Shepherd， and I don't want to be late。One amazing read。 I received this book from the publisher but was under no obligation to post nor write a review。 。。。more
Tabitha Bouldin
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This book is a dance between hope and heartbreak。 Hope takes the lead， only to have heartbreak step on its toes， but darkness cannot stand in the light。 This look into Murphy's world was wonderfully wrought with emotion。 I laughed with Summer and cried with Casey， all while cheering Murphy on as he put one foot in front of the other， always ready for that next time when he must leave the ninety nine in search of the one。While The Letter Keeper is not a light read， the impact and needed truth mak This book is a dance between hope and heartbreak。 Hope takes the lead， only to have heartbreak step on its toes， but darkness cannot stand in the light。 This look into Murphy's world was wonderfully wrought with emotion。 I laughed with Summer and cried with Casey， all while cheering Murphy on as he put one foot in front of the other， always ready for that next time when he must leave the ninety nine in search of the one。While The Letter Keeper is not a light read， the impact and needed truth makes it necessary。 The emotional depth of Murphy's character and the lives of those who've been exploited gives rise to one of the best books I've ever read。I received a copy of this book from NetGalley。 I was not required to leave a positive review。 All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own。 。。。more
Anissa Telle
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The Letter Keeper by Charles Martin is a suspenseful， heartwarming， and fully satisfying thriller with a wonderful storyline that keeps you guessing from page one。 The book opens with a dramatic scene of a young girl being rescued from horrific sex traffickers。 Then the rescuer is off again to save someone else from this unspeakable fate。 It follows the adventures of the beloved hero David Bishop from The Water Keeper。* I would recommend you read The Water Keeper first if possible， but if not th The Letter Keeper by Charles Martin is a suspenseful， heartwarming， and fully satisfying thriller with a wonderful storyline that keeps you guessing from page one。 The book opens with a dramatic scene of a young girl being rescued from horrific sex traffickers。 Then the rescuer is off again to save someone else from this unspeakable fate。 It follows the adventures of the beloved hero David Bishop from The Water Keeper。* I would recommend you read The Water Keeper first if possible， but if not the quick synopsis is David and his friend and mentor， Bones， are real life action heroes who are able to rescue those who seem impossible to find。 They have great financial and technical resources at their fingertips。 At their true heart they want the best for those who they have saved from this awful fate and house them in a remote Colorado compound to heal their bodies and hearts。 * This book has it all， and I mean all！ The adventures of Bish are on full view but what is most striking to me about Martin’s books is the underlying message and clarity of emotions that he shares in such evocative language， I have multiple quotes I have highlighted but I will share this one。 “The wounds of the past carry a lot of weight when it comes to walking into one’s future。。。。left untreated， experiential pain becomes a fortress in our gut that houses a lie spoken by fear。” So， as per usual Martin has entertained my adventure loving self， blessed my desire to right the wrongs， touched my soul with his treatment of those who need love， and opened my mind up to new ways of thinking。I will warn you that you are left with a cliffhanger of massive proportions that will have you questioning much of what you thought you knew。 But， this book answers multiple questions from The Water Keeper。 You can not help but be drawn in and especially touched by the growth of the girls who are under the care of Bishop and Bones， A romance might also be in the works， but no spoilers here！I was provided a free advance reader copy from Thomas Nelson - Fiction in exchange for my honest review on Net Galley。 The opinions shared in this review are my own。 。。。more
Wade
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“Trafficking in people is an evil without comparison。”“I don’t really understand it， but somehow， in some impossible way， love reached down inside me， took out all the old and dirty—the scars and the stains that no soap anywhere would ever wash out。 And love didn’t just clean me but made me new。 And maybe the craziest part of that is how I see me。”“For we alone are the keepers of the letters that set us free。”4。25 Stars Out Of 5The Letter Keeper， the sequel to The Water Keeper， is a great read。 “Trafficking in people is an evil without comparison。”“I don’t really understand it， but somehow， in some impossible way， love reached down inside me， took out all the old and dirty—the scars and the stains that no soap anywhere would ever wash out。 And love didn’t just clean me but made me new。 And maybe the craziest part of that is how I see me。”“For we alone are the keepers of the letters that set us free。”4。25 Stars Out Of 5The Letter Keeper， the sequel to The Water Keeper， is a great read。 In my review of The Water Keeper， I mentioned that it was one of the best books I had ever read。 It’s one of those books that can be hard to read at times because of the subject matter， but important in shining a light to a global problem。 Evil exists in the world and Charles Martin shows us what other evil and love can do。 Sequels are hard。 You find yourselves comparing it to the previous book。 So 4。25 stars might seem unfair to a book that as good as this。 But compared to The Water Keeper， I felt like something was lacking。 There was a long stretch of between a quarter to a half of the book that had a lot of backstories that caused the book to drag at times。 While a lot of this was necessary to the action packed second half， this was a large contrast to The Water Keeper。 And a lot of it was really just a set up to Book Three， which I cannot wait to devour。 But what made this book so great in its own right is that it was so character driven。 And because of that， this one packed a lot of emotions at various times。 Maybe even more so than The Water Keeper。 And I loved the familiar characters of Murphy， Bones， Summer， Angel， Clay， Ellie， and of course Gunner。 So I hope Book Three comes sooner than later！* I received a complimentary copy of this book from Netgalley and Thomas Nelson。 Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own。* 。。。more
Cheri
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After reading The Water Keeper， which I consider one of Charles Martin’s best novels （and I’ve read almost all of his novels）， I couldn’t wait to read The Letter Keeper。 It did not disappoint！ Continuing the story of David Bishop，， the story’s highs and lows take the reader on quite an emotional yet enlightening ride。 Highly recommended。
Chris Jager
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Charles Martin is going to ruin human kind for us。 He holds his characters to a high standard and we are going to start demanding that of ourselves。 The Letter Keeper is number 2 in the Murphy Shepherd series and once again， Martin does not disappoint。 Loads of action， but a time of recovery and understanding。 This novel is the perfect transition to the third book in the series。 We begin to understand the characters better， understanding what makes them tick。 While we learn about them more， a ba Charles Martin is going to ruin human kind for us。 He holds his characters to a high standard and we are going to start demanding that of ourselves。 The Letter Keeper is number 2 in the Murphy Shepherd series and once again， Martin does not disappoint。 Loads of action， but a time of recovery and understanding。 This novel is the perfect transition to the third book in the series。 We begin to understand the characters better， understanding what makes them tick。 While we learn about them more， a bad guy surfaces， one that may change Murph and Bones forever。I am ready for book #3。 。。。more
Heather
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If ever there was a more consistent author whose writing would blow you away， it would be Charles Martin！ The Letter Keeper is no different。 Murphy Shepard and his long time cohorts have made their lives about saving the un-savable。 Individuals that have been taken from their families and made to do unthinkable acts， Murphy finds them and gives them a whole new life。 He has made a perfect， protected world away from the danger and cruelty of the real world。 Until the day comes and someone infiltr If ever there was a more consistent author whose writing would blow you away， it would be Charles Martin！ The Letter Keeper is no different。 Murphy Shepard and his long time cohorts have made their lives about saving the un-savable。 Individuals that have been taken from their families and made to do unthinkable acts， Murphy finds them and gives them a whole new life。 He has made a perfect， protected world away from the danger and cruelty of the real world。 Until the day comes and someone infiltrates the walls of his fortress。 His wife， daughters and two others are stolen away。 Will Murphy be able to find them in time before they are taken away never to be seen from again？ Charles Martin knows how to suck you in and keep you glued to his book。 His writing is spot on and keeps you guessing。 I highly recommend any book of his including this one， The Letter Keeper。 I will continue to look for Martin's other works。 Special Thanks to NetGalley， Charles Martin， and Thomas Nelson Publishing for sending me an advanced digital Copy in exchange for my honest opinion。 #TheLetterKeeper #NetGalley 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Letter Keeper
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Letter Keeper&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Letter Keeper&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0