At it's simplest, this is a book about books and a family road trip through the Midwest but it is more, so much more. And I loved it!

Younger daughter, Chloe, invites her mother Edie on a literary road trip, hoping to spend some time together and also to divulge her up- coming plans to move to Prague and work as an elementary art school teacher. Her mom agrees, half heartedly, to the trip if Chloe's older sister Lauren is welcome as well. Plan's are made and they're off. A fantastic idea but, reality sets in quickly as car issues, a broken finger, hotel cancellations, and a fall in the river cause escalating tensions. Chloe does her best to bring joy and peace to the trip seeking God and prayer with her faith filled optimism and sense of adventure. Edie, set in her ways and wanting the best for her daughters has her own ideas of what their successful lives should look like. Meanwhile Lauren is holding herself aloof, hiding shame and secrets she feels are too painful to share. .Will the trip pan out? Will their relationships survive the trip intact?

As a daughter, mother and a sister this was such a relatable story. We try, we make mistakes, we fail. We hold expectations for ourselves and others, yet may not feel as though we measure up. This was a terrific intergenerational story of hope and resilience, faith and family bonds.

I loved the literary road trip idea and I'm ready to book my reservation!

Thank you to #netgalley, #revell and the author Sara Brunvold for this opportunity to read the e-arc in exchange for an honest review

This one was a bittersweet read but I still enjoyed it. I just don't think for me personally that it would ever be a reread.

Chloe Vance, dreamer of the family, needs to tell her pragmatic mom, Edie, that she has accepted a low-paying art instructor role at a Christian school in Prague. Her older sister, Lauren--the "responsible one"--is doing all she can to hide the fact she's been fired for a foolish mistake and is desperately seeking her next career move. Meanwhile, Edie, estranged from her own sister following their mother's recent death, is frankly in no mood for anything else to change. The one thing they can all agree on? Life in books sure is easier to navigate than life in the real world. As the three women embark on a nine-day road trip to visit significant literary sites throughout America's heartland, they hope to find inspiration through the works and lives of literary greats.

I am always drawn to books about books, and the author used the literary sites to help the family be honest with themselves and their family with their losses and failures. This author shows the characters change for the better during this road trip and her descriptions of the literary sites were fascinating. Anyone who loves a "family book" and stories about books will like this. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the opportunity to read this book which, by the way, is my Book Club Selection for this month.

Beautifully written and quietly powerful, The Atlas of Untold Stories is a heartfelt journey through memory, healing, and the stories we carry—both told and untold. Sara Brunsvold weaves past and present with such tenderness, inviting readers to reflect on the impact of legacy and the quiet resilience of everyday people. Thoughtful, emotional, and deeply human. This one lingers like a whispered truth you didn’t know you needed to hear.

I wrote this in my notes around the 30% mark, “I didn’t dislike them, but I had trouble connecting with them because they all felt a bit too much like one dimensional caricatures of what a judgmental older woman and an anxious type a older sister particularly, but also the happy-go-lucky type b younger sister “should” be. So while I still liked them overall, I wasn’t as invested in their story as I could have been.”

Then, as the book progressed, I realized that was the whole point—and I started to love it. These three women, the mother and the oldest daughter mainly, due to various anxieties and happenings during their lives have placed themselves into the boxes that they could not see their way out of, nor wanted to get out of. And through the road trip happening in the book and the persistence of the youngest daughter we get to follow them on this journey of realizing there is more to life, and to themselves, than these strict parameters they created. And once I understood them in that way, I started to thoroughly enjoy the book and their journey. By the end, I was highlighting passages and sympathizing with and rooting for the characters, the mom especially.

This is a moving book with characters that will both grind your gears and pull at your heartstrings, and is a great look into family dynamics and how they can change through different stages of our lives.

My, my, my.

I'll start by saying that my rating is not a reflection of the author's writing ability. As I've come to expect from Brunsvold, the writing is rich and beautiful.

I just couldn't care about these characters. As the oldest of three daughters who is incredibly close to my mother, I selected this book because I know the nuances of the mother-daughter + mother-sister relationships. And towards the end, my heart was tender toward those dynamics.

But unfortunately, most of this book was spent in road trip details I didn't care much about and ungrateful characters who I would have left on the side of the road. For me, the vast majority of the book felt like trudging through negativity and unnecessary details when I just needed these women to go to therapy.

The redemption is beautiful once you get there, and I teared up in the epilogue. This book just wasn't for me.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley. All expressed opinions belong to me.

This book is a little different from my usual reads (not a romcom, but there is a little romance!) - but I loved the first Sara Brunsvold book I read, so knew I wanted to check this one out too!

This story follows a mom and her 2 daughters - who all are very different, and trying to prove themselves to each other in different ways.

Chloe is about to leave for Prague and needs to tell her mom. Lauren has lost her job and needs to tell her family. And Edie, the mom who holds it all together has been talked into taking a road trip with her daughters - even though she'd much rather stay at home with her husband.

This road trip takes you to so many fun literary landmarks, and also stirs up quite a bit of family drama! We meet Edie's estranged sister along the way, which gives a peek into Edie and why she is the way she is about things.

This story took on so many different family dynamics, and in the end, brought everyone together in a real and believable way.

I listened to the audiobook, and it was fantastic! I will definitely continue to read anything @sara_brunsvold writes! Thank you to @bethanyhousefiction for my #gifted copy!

Well, Sara, you're going 2/2 in making me sob during your books. I LOVED this book so much and I highly recommend it if it sounds interesting to you!

Sara Brunsvold is an auto-buy author for me - I awarded her first two novels five-star ratings. She sets her stories in and around Kansas City, and I feel so “seen” in her plots as a lifelong Midwesterner.

I love the idea of going on a road trip to places featured in classic novels, especially when the destinations include Kansas, Iowa, and Nebraska (my state) as in The Atlas of Untold Stories. While reading it, I visited the giant book spine murals at the Kansas City Public Library which brought this well-written fiction to life. Then I saw Sara's books featured at an independent bookstore as a local author - so fun! I might plan my own road trip to trace the journey of Chloe, her sister Lauren, and her mother Edie.

This is much more than a bookish travel story. Sara is skilled at creating realistic characters who have complicated relationships with important people in their lives. It’s emotional to experience their struggles, but the payoff at the end of each character's story arc is so worth it. I gave this 4.75 stars rather than 5 only because I don't have a sister so I didn't resonate strongly with the sisters storyline.

Road trip books are popular right now. Readers searching for one that includes flawed yet loving mothers and daughters, memorable secondary characters, humor, and heart, all through a very down-to-earth Christian lens, should definitely consider The Atlas of Untold Stories.

Wow! I'm almost left speechless as I finish reading this book -- words fail me. This book will definitely be one of my top reads of the year!
As a mother and a daughter myself, there is so much in this story I could relate to.
Family is oh so important, but that doesn't mean that those relationships are going to be easy!
This is the story of Chloe, her sister Lauren, and their mom Edie. And their bookish road trip.
They went to find sites, but they were on a completely different journey. Each of them looking for something different.
I found myself wiping tears at times, and just overall really loved this book!
Disclaimer: I receive complimentary books from various sources, including, publishers, publicists, authors, and/or NetGalley. I am not required to write a positive review, and have not received any compensation. The opinions shared here are my own entirely. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255

ARC Review:

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Needing to break unexpected and unwelcome news to her rigid and pragmatic mother, Chloe Vance, plans a literary road trip. While the mother/daughter duo has struggled to connect over the years, the hope is that nine days spent in close proximity will lay the foundation for a new beginning. But when a third Vance woman is added to the mix (Lauren-daughter/sister), Chloe’s plan is quickly hijacked.

The Atlas of Untold Stories is the latest novel by Sara Brunsvold. The award-winning, contemporary, Christian author is back with another must-read story. Readers can once again count on her to bravely tackle female relationships and complex family dynamics.

Brunsvold beautifully conveys it is never too late to rewrite your own story, redefine relationships, and heal from old wounds. While all three women embarked upon the journey for varying reasons; they leave having learned important life lessons. Their biggest takeaway being how to offer and receive forgiveness, self-acceptance, and love.

I highly recommend reading if you enjoy:
-books about books
-tons of literary references
-faith themes
-road trips
-female relationships

Special thanks to NetGalley, Revell, and Sara Brunsvold for gifting me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

*trigger warning: this book briefly mentions disordered eating and emotionally abusive parenting.

The Atlas of Untold Stories is the second book I have read written by Sara Brunsvold, and each time it has been such a pleasure. This was such a sweet story with classics wrapped into a road trip adventure, bringing this mother-daughters crew closer together as they go through some hard things and learn to let go. This is the perfect summer read.

Chole was such a fun character. I loved her bright, sunshiny attitude. Planning out this road trip with the hopes of proving she is an adult and can plan. While multiple things don’t go as planned. She has a Pollyanna attitude and is able to find the good in each circumstance.
Lauren is internally unraveling while trying to portray that she is the oldest sister with a put-together life. Watching her navigate through the loss of job and eating disorder brought some real life to the character. Edie is struggling with her childhood trauma. Which makes it hard for her to let go of her daughters. She shows how generational things can cause a trickle-down effect. The characters were great, and I loved watching them develop over the course of the book.

The setting was great. I loved the road trip dynamic and the different literary and film references in the book. Makes me want to do my own road trip featuring book stops. The storyline was great. The struggle that each lady was dealing with in such tight quarters was very real.

Sara Brunsvold did a great job intertwining faith throughout the book.

*I received a complimentary copy from the author and voluntarily chose to review it. All opinions are my own.

<b>A fabulous Christian women's fiction tale about three women bonded by blood but not much else...</b>

Ms Brunsvold's latest story follows the perspectives of three Vance women: Edie and her two daughters, Lauren and Chloe. Their strained relationships are tested when Chloe suggests they go on a 9-day bookish roadtrip through Midwestern USA, a "stalling tactic" to build her confidence before telling her mum she's moving overseas.

The first scene in the book reveals the challenging relationship Edie shared with her own mother and helps readers understand the dynamic between the three Vance women... even though it was still hard to understand why Edie and Lauren, in particular, acted the way they did.

I understood/sympathised/related to Chloe throughout the story. Her faith and ability to hold her tongue (most of the time) were inspiring, as was her indomitable enthusiasm and positivity. Her heart was pure and despite the way her mother and sister treated her, she still chased her dreams.

I'll be honest and say I didn't like Edie or Lauren a lot of the time. My heart would soften toward them when I discovered (or was reminded of) their pain, but their prickly and judgemental attitudes brushed me the wrong way... which was the whole point of this story. Family dynamics can be complicated, even in the most "perfect" families. No one truly knows what happens behind closed doors, and not everyone is willing to open their hearts to The One who can hold us securely in His arms.

For readers who love real-life struggles and tension in their women's fiction, this book is for you. Enmeshed with faith elements and God's grace throughout, this novel is a satisfying (albeit frustrating at times!) read.

NB Many thanks to Revell and NetGalley, I received an ARC of this book.

Who doesn't love a literary roadtrip?! I enjoyed this Christian contemporary fiction book so much! It was my first book by Sara Brunsvold, but now I want to go back and read her earlier books too. The story had a lot of depth as it focused on the strained relationships of a mother and her two adult daughters. The complexities of their relationship are woven throughout the story and we are given glimpses into the mother's past that help us understand her self-protective and sometimes cold behavior. Chole was such a faithful light throughout the story and her joy was contagious. The character development was excellent and I especially loved to the way their relationships grew and changed. Also who doesn't love a book with loads of literary references?!
Definitely put this one on your summer TBR!

Read if you like:
_ Books about books
- Literary roadtrips
_ Vulnerability
_ Mother-Daughter stories
_ Complicated family dynamics
- Relatable characters
_ Strong faith thread
! Content warning: eating disorder

Chloe Vance is sitting on the most exciting news of her life. She's accepted a job teaching art at a school in Prague. Now if only she can find a way to break the news to her always-do-what's-expected mother.

In order to prove that she can take care of herself, Chloe spontaneously invites her mother on a roadtrip touring the literary sites in America's heartland. Her older sister Lauren tags along too. As they visit sites in Kansas, Nebraska, Missouri, and Oklahoma, they experience the wonders of the written word but face the fact that it's our own stories we might have the most trouble sharing.

The characters in this book are all very unique. Chloe has a wonderful free spirit, full of grace. Edie is shackled by invisible tethers of expectations from generations before her. Lauren holds deep secrets and has lost a grasp of her own self-worth. Can the ties of family love triumph in the face of all they are not saying?

This was a great story, especially if you are a literary fan and have visited some of these same sites. It's a study in how we view ourselves, how we view others, and how we can shut others out or let them in. At times it was a difficult book to read, because what we say or what we don't say has the power to hurt others, and unfortunately there are hard moments of pain in the story. But that's not the end. I won't spoil the ending, but I will say it brought happy, touched tears to my eyes.

Recommended for all fans of women's fiction.

I received my copy of the book from the author. All thoughts in this review are my own.

The Atlas of Untold Stories is a heartwarming road-trip adventure with a complicated mother & her two very different adult daughters. Each carries hidden secrets that once revealed will change their lives for the better if they have the courage to share. With humor, faith, heartfelt prose, & a delightful adventure across the Midwest, this story kept me eagerly reading.

Chloe Vance is the idealistic youngest daughter of a pragmatic mother. Her artistic talent & unwavering faith led her to accept a 2 year teaching position in Prague. Though she’s 26 years old, she’s afraid to tell her often disappointed mother of her plans. Instead of telling her directly, she offers to take her on a road trip across the Midwest visiting famous literary sites from some of America’s greatest authors including Laura Ingalls Wilder, John Steinbeck, & Mark Twain. She hopes this’ll prove to her mother she can make it on her own in Prague & provide the perfect opportunity to share her plans.

Lauren Vance, Chloe’s older sister has always been the responsible daughter. When she makes a disastrous social media blunder & is fired from her prestigious job, she’s afraid to admit her failure. With nothing to do, she accepts an invitation to go on Chloe’s road trip.

Their mother Edie’s had a difficult year with her mother’s death & all the deep emotions that brings, & her estrangement from her own sister. She’s never been away from her husband & reluctant to go on Chloe’s trip. With his encouragement, she goes, but has low expectations.

I absolutely enjoyed this story! These siblings & mother each have their own issues going into this trip. Along the way though, they connect in a profound way as only mothers & daughters can. I adored all the literary sites they visit & learning more about these beloved authors. I enjoyed the family dynamics & seeing their walls come down. There’re hilarious, relatable experiences like Edie dealing with menopause, some of Chloe’s less than idyllic reservations, & more. But, there are also beautiful moments of sharing & faith.

Highly recommend this moving story to book lovers & women’s fiction fans! I received an advanced copy from the publisher with no expectation of a positive review. All opinions are completely my own & voluntarily provided.

Sara Brunsvold's The Atlas of Untold Stories was a poignant depiction of complex family dynamics. With moments of vulnerability and brutal honesty, Brunsvold delivers a journey of awareness, change, and growth. I loved how she wove American literature into the plot, which awakened my youth spent reading the classics.
The characters, while flawed, were utterly relatable, inviting my heart and mind into their journey of discovery. Reminiscent of Robin Jones Gunn's Sisterchicks books, this story truly gripped me. I loved every moment.

I received this book from Netgalley. All opinions are my own.

I love the idea of taking a bookish road trip. It was fun learning more about various authors and their homes and settings. I did travel to Hannibal, MO to learn more about Mark Twain and found it fascinating. I enjoyed Chloe's optimism and hopefulness and eagerness for adventure no matter what happened and despite her sister's and mother's skeptical and unwilling attitudes.

This book has a lot of awkward family dynamics...comparison, trying to feel worthy and meet everyone's expectations, over-powering help and opinions and more. I appreciated the growth and the willingness to barge in with help "like a prairie storm instead of waiting to be summoned" (location 1365).

The pace of this book is pretty slow. If you read a lot of suspense and high action books, it may not be for you. If you like a more measured, poignant read, give it a try. Thank you to Revell for providing me with a free e-copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

Well, she's done it again. You will not find daring adventure, reckless abandon, or passionate embraces in a Sara Brunsvold novel. But what you will find is repaired relationships, hard conversations, and depths that you'll long to explore even within yourself.

This book, like her previous books, is a multigenerational one. Edie in particular resonated with me. As a mom who is [very slowly] learning to let her kids go, I understood her far too well.

Where will my children end up? How will I protect them if they aren't close? If they move away, did I do something wrong?

Yeah. I was ugly crying.

All I can say is that I'm so grateful that my children aren't MINE to protect. They're in God's hands, come what may. What a relief that is!

Anyway, I'm seriously getting off the point here. This is a beautiful story of a mom and her daughters who are getting to know each other. Maybe for the first time ever.

Road Trip! And what a journey it is! Sara Brunsvold is now one of my favorite authors because she can take the ordinary and turn it into a thoughtful, fun, and inspiring tale of family dynamics. The ATLAS OF UNTOLD STORIES is a clever jaunt to explore a mother and her two daughters’ dysfunctional relationships. And haven’t we all been there? Even if the reader hasn’t experienced the heartbreak of broken bonds or disappointing expectations, this story will touch the heart.

THE STORY: Irrepressible dreamer Chloe Vance needs to tell her pragmatic mom, Edie, that she has accepted a low-paying, two-year art instructor role at a Christian international school in Prague. And her older sister, Lauren--the "responsible one"--is doing all she can to keep the family from finding out she has been fired for a stupid mistake, plus figure out her next career move. Meanwhile, Edie, estranged from her own sister following their mother's recent death, is frankly in no mood for anything else to change.

The one thing they can all agree on? Life in books sure is easier to figure out than life in the real world. As the three women embark on a nine-day road trip to visit significant literary sites throughout America's heartland, they hope to find inspiration through the works and lives of literary greats. And as they experience firsthand the adventure and wonder of the classics, they'll have to come to terms with their own needs and desires, as well as those of the most important women in their lives--each other.

Brunsvold knows how to drive us to the heart of those untold family stories! I totally identified with the “organized” overachiever daughter—the people-pleaser. How I loved that it takes the “flighty” daughter to think outside the box and drive her mother and sister batty, but also take them on a journey of freedom.

Highly recommended to Sara Brunsvold fans, contemporary stories, unique stories, meaningful stories. Stories about road trips, family dynamics, faith, and restorations.

I received a complimentary copy from Revell Publishers for my honest review.