A family centered story with a unique plot and a bit of mystery. Living in a small town had its benefits, including helping each other in times of need. Jillian's friendship with Nia, the bed and breakfast owner, and Jillian's attorney dad, Nolan, brings timely help when Nia's mysterious new employee goes missing the day after she is hired.

The dual timeline worked well in this tale, pulling together a family history that made a difference in the present turmoil of Meri's family. Family genealogy can be very interesting and eye opening. I never thought of it as a tool to help someone in a family crisis, as it is used in this story. Families are all so different that it does sometimes help to bring clarity to the present by looking at the past, as the author points out. Jillian is like a detective in that way, pulling pieces of family history together to help bring resolution. Her father Nolan was an interesting character, using his skills of negotiation to help someone in a crisis. They were so willing to help Meri out, dropping everything to do it. I enjoyed their relationship and look forward to more of their story in the next book.

Recommend to readers looking for character driven stories with some real history mixed in, some faith elements, and no romance.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2762169977

Goodreads as Jeannie Huie

As the review above states, this is an outstanding story! The historical story regarding the yellow fever outbreak in Memphis is especially interesting and horrible to see how it played out in real life! The family relationships were so well-written and realistic. I really loved the book and want to read the other books in the series!

The Inn at Hidden Run by Olivia Newport is WONDERFUL! And yes I meant to shout wonderful. Sometimes I read a review and make a decision by just reading the first couple of lines. I want to make sure I have your attention. Lol So to start I thought I was reading two separate books by the same author. Let me explain. The story begins with Jillian, a professional genealogist and her dad, Nolan, a lawyer and mediator. Jillian is friends with her former babysitter, Nia, who has hired an assistant to help at her inn. Nia is positive Meri has a secret. Of course Nia is correct and the mystery begins!
Fade to 1878 in Memphis, Tennessee during the yellow fever epidemic. We meet Eliza and Callie. Eliza is a wealthy woman who stays behind when everyone escapes the city to help the nuns with the epidemic. Callie is her freed black servant who stays to take care of Eliza. Honestly, for the longest time I couldn’t find the link between the two stories but both were so intriguing that I didn’t care. I figured eventually Newport would connect the dots. Well she certainly did! I don’t want to give anything away but let’s just say I wish I was a genealogist! It was fascinating reading Jillian’s strategy to help Meri tie the generations together.
I can’t praise this book highly enough. I really enjoyed every word. Now, if you will excuse me, I have to go take a nap since I was up late reading!
I voluntarily received a copy of this book from Netgalley.

Meri, a young college student, takes refuge from her family in a small Colorado town, she takes a job doing the cleaning and laundry for an Inn in Canyon Mines, Colorado, but she has a degree in Biology and Chemistry - so why does she take a domestic job?
Jillian, a genealogist who researches cases for law firms and private individuals, is intrigued by Meri, and she decides to look into her family history as a favor to Meri’s employer, her friend, Nia.
As a part of Jillian’s research, and Meris’ history the author gives personal flashbacks to Memphis, Tennessee, in the year 1875, when a ravaging yellow fever outbreak hit the city - this was a time when the wealthy fled the city and the poor were left ravaged with disease and death. We have medication and high tech emergency personnel in our day, but in the 1870’s, an epidemic was treated with quarantine, cleanliness and good food. You will become involved with Eliza, a wealthy young woman, who stayed behind and helped the poorer residents to survive.
You will enjoy getting to know how Jillian, and her father Nolan, help Meri to find her life’s purpose.

The Inn at Hidden Run by Olivia Newport is a feel good read.
Where you put yourself in the story and get emotionally involved.
Great vacation or rainy day reading.

"The Inn at Hidden Run” by Olivia Newport is a well-written, time-split story that arrests our attention, when a genealogist daughter and her lawyer-cum-mediator father sort out the baffling problems between Meri, the main character and her family. The story is split into two time frames, with a strong Christian theme, providing ample food for thought. It is a moving story about family relationships, reconciliation, depicting how the same family members are influenced by different family traits. An interesting, inspiring and immersive read, this book deftly portrays how to pursue one’s own dreams, in a love letter to the past, a romantic mystery in which Olivia Newport uses the “time slip genre” to root her story in the interesting art of genealogy, reaching back to past generations. The first book in the Tree of Life Series, “The Inn at Hidden Run” celebrates unforgettable family stories and interesting family histories that inspire readers to connect in unique faith journeys. Olivia Newport expertly examines the innate human desire for a sense of roots and belonging, creating a unique patchwork quilt of family histories, intricately woven into the daily fabric of human lives.

I tried three seperste times to sit and read this book. I tried with music, in silence and just with a show on in the background. I couldn't fall into the story.

It felt slow...so I tried skimming. Nothing I tried worked. So I'm going to walk away. In a few months I'll try to reread this, I want to give it a fair shot. For now my rating is 1 star....due to reader error

A split time novel, and first in a series.

Present day:
Genealogist and coffee purist (there is a lot of food talk in this book, in fact) Jillian lives with her father Nolan in the small mountain town of Canyon Mines. Her mother died when she was a teenager, and she works from home at her thriving business creating family trees, among other things. Her lawyer father is a skilled negotiator and mediator. Her best friend Nia owns a local Inn/B&B, and Nia has just spontaneously hired the clearly-in-crisis-but-they-don't-know-from-what-yet, Meri Davies.

1878 Memphis:
When yellow fever attacks the city, people are dying left and right -and at the cost of all good sense, Eliza is determined to help in any way she can. She partners with the Sisters and pitches in, taking food and providing aid to numerous ill and dying families around the city. When her close friend and housekeeper Callie leaves to help her sister's family, Eliza is alarmed when she doesn't hear any word.

I did find the 'quick' connection of Nia and Nolan to Meri somewhat unusual; I won't go quite as far as to say it was unbelievable, but their deep emotional investment in helping Meri was unusual. Perhaps that was the point.

Also, I found Meri to be a little too abrasive for my personal preference. I found her slightly off putting rather than sympathetic. I loved the 'small town' friendships, and overall I enjoyed this book. I am looking forward to the second one in the series (teaser chapter at end that was intriguing!)

But just how are these two timelines and stories connected? You'll have to read all the way to the end to find out!

I was provided a complimentary copy of this book by Barbour Publishers in exchange for my honest review.

Another one that I wanted to love but didnt. It started off strong but then it slowed down to much for my tastes that I didnt want to finish it but I did and wasnt satisfied with it.

This is a very well written book that holds your attention. This is a time split story that was really interesting and inspiring. This book is full of emotion and it is written in such a way that you can feel all of them. I really enjoyed this book. Thank you Barbour Publishing via NetGalley for the ARC copy. This is my honest opinion.

If I was rating thing review based off the portion that takes place in Memphis 1878, I would rate it 5 stars. If I was rating this based off the contemporary Colorado portion, I would rate it 1 star. So I decided to just rate is 3. I'm going to review each portion as a separate story, because that's how it felt.

Memphis 1878: 

I thoroughly loved this. I was born and raised in Memphis and I've never read a book set here!! I loved reading this little bit of history from my home. This story took place during the 1878 yellow fever epidemic in Memphis. This really happened, and most of the characters are based off real people who helped the city during this time. During this particular epidemic there was 17,000 cases and more than 5,000 people died, most being African Americans.

I really loved Eliza. She does everything within her power to help people, and I admire that so much. She risked her own life multiple times to care for the sick.

Eliza is a 'spinster' who is in her early 40s and not married. I admire this a lot. This story had absolutely no romance and it wasn't something Eliza yearned for. I LOVE this. I don't like how much stories feel the need to have unnecessary romance plots. I'm really glad this one didn't.

One of the things I really enjoyed about this part of the story was how we get to learn a little bit about how medicine was practiced in the 1800s. This has always been a source of interest in me.

The ending of Eliza's story was really good and made my heart happy.

Colorado 2019:

I despised this part of the story. It's the reason why it took me so long to read, and is why this book is not a 5 star book for me.

A big part of the reason I disliked it so much was Jillian. She is one of the most boring characters I've ever read in my life. She did nothing in the book but work. She is friends with the owner of Hidden Run Inn, but I honestly have no clue why. They have nothing in common and Jillian doesn't leave her office.

I also don't really understand why this part of the story is in Jillian's POV and nor Meri's??? I think it would have been SO much more interesting in Meri's POV. Jillian could have still easily been part of the story, just not the center of it.

I will say that I was very pleased with how Meri was related to Eliza and the end of the book.

I did enjoy this story, but I hated part of it too.

One thing that really caught me off guard was the amount of religion in this. I found it in the historical fiction section on netgalley and the summary had no hints that it is a Christian novel. As someone is mainly agnostic this made me slightly uncomfortable, but it wasn't unbearable. Just wanted to give a heads up that there is quite a bit talk about religion in it.

THE INN AT HIDDEN RUN by OLIVIA NEWPORT is a really good read. I find it interesting that the author uses Jillian, a genealogist, and her father, Nolan, a family lawyer and mediator, to sort out the problems between Meri and her family. I love the easy relationship between Jillian and her father and between her and her excitable friend, Nia, and the way they all join Meri's corner, even before they have any idea what her problem is. The Inn owned by Nia and her husband serves as the backdrop for a lot of the action.
The story is split into two time frames and moves between the present day in the small town of Canyon Mines, and Memphis during the Yellow Fever epidemic of the late nineteenth century.
It is heartbreaking to see what went on in Memphis during that terrible time, but also wonderful to see the unselfish, hard work of those who risked their lives to care for the sick, the orphans and the destitute in the plague swept town.
The Christian message is strong and gave me a lot of food for thought. It is interesting to see how members of the same family can be influenced by different ancestral traits.
It is a story about relationships, reconciliation and following one's own dreams. I can highly recommend the book as an interesting and inspiring read.
I was given a free copy of the book by NetGalley from Barbour Publishing. The opinions in this review are completely my own.

The writing style absolutely did not work for me--I wasn't able to finish this despite being very interested in the topic. A good editor could have helped with things like avoiding cliches.

An immersive read populated by characters as rich as the carefully crafted Colorado setting of Canyon Mines, The Inn at Hidden Run is at once a love letter to the past, a romance and a mystery. Newport smartly differentiates herself in the popular ‘time slip genre’ by rooting her story in the art of genealogy. At home with both the historical canvas of epidemic-raged late 19th Century Memphis and her contemporary frame, Newport examines the core human desire for a sense of roots and belonging. Anyone who has ever wondered how the patches of their histories are sewn into the fabric of their lives will feel completely at home in Hidden Run.