This book is a bit different from the other historical fiction I’ve read by Liz Tolsma. It involves the true crimes committed by a Georgia Tann in abducting children and selling them to the highest bidder between 1924-1950 in Tennessee and focuses on one fictional young widow who loses her three year old daughter to Ms. Tann in 1933. Cecile is barely getting by after the death of her husband but loves her daughter Millie and does her best to care for her. Millie, at three years of age, is rambunctious, stubborn, and often rebellious but is well-loved by her mother. When Millie is stolen by Ms. Tann, Cecile does everything in her power, from begging to breaking and entering, to get her back. Percy is a struggling lawyer who’s been unknowingly helping Ms. Tann with the abductions and “adoptions” and has his own troubled and painful childhood. Cecile’s persistence wins Percy over and they set out to find her missing Millie while taking on the crooked political giants in Memphis, TN.
The story has an interesting premise, plot and series of events that are loosely based on historical information. The heartache that Cecile endures as a mother is so real, as is the joy and fulfillment of adoptive parenthood that RD and Darcy (secondary characters who help Percy) cling to.

I received a copy of the book from Barbour Books via Celebrate Lit Tours and was under no obligation to post a positive review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.

Tolsma’s tale revolves around the battle between a widowed mother and Georgia Tann, the head of the Tennessee Children’s Home and child trafficker. Her gang stole more than 5,000 babies and adopted them our for profit on the black market.

It was an enjoyable to read in a suspenseful, I really-hope-it-turns-out type of tale. The sweet romance element added a little extra something to the drama and hopeless expectation, underdog vs. corruption focus of the story.

Tolsma presents a likeable story marked with a clear picture of horrendous events. As a mother, I found it difficult to read at times. It was “clean” in language, romance, etc.

It was a good book. It piqued my interest in the Tennessee Children’s Home scandal. It was easy to read… but even though I enjoyed it, it felt like it was missing just little something – it’s a three-star rating from me – not bad at all, but not rave-worthy either. We’ll call it a good way to pass by a quiet afternoon.

I wanted to push three stars. but as I sat here trying to think of why I liked it . . . I found few reasons somehow?

Don't get me wrong - it was a good book, as far as content goes. There wasn't really anything that should cause a lower rating. Except for the fact that I just . . . didn't really like it. I wanted to. I tried. But sometimes there's just those books that you can't like. This was one of them.

First of all, it never really caught my interest. But of course, being a review copy, I had to finish it. so I did. Am I glad I did? I guess. I wanted to know how it would all play out. The ending was suspenseful.

But that's pretty much the only thing that somewhat hooked me.

The whole book seemed to be about telling instead of showing.

Let's talk about the characters, shall we?
-Miss Tann. Oh boy. That woman made me so mad. Which, of course, was the intent, in which case, the author completely succeeded. She was a heartless villain. *shudders*
-Cecile Dowd. A loving mother. Stubborn. But her stubbornness made perfect sense. I mean, her baby was stolen, so of course she was going to be a mama bear and get her little girl back in any way possible. But there were like . . . no emotions. I mean, yeah, there was a boatload of tears, but they were all in the book, and not on my face. None of Cecile's tears pulled on my heartstrings. I might just be heartless, buuuuut I felt like all the emotions in this book were sorely lacking.
-Percy Vance. He was good. I liked him. But that's about it. It seemed like none of the characters really had any depth, or development. They cried. They fought. They got mad. They were all stubborn.
-R.D. Griggs. I was so confused by this guy. I was never really sure of his exact role . . . but maybe I just wasn't paying much attention.
-Millie. The only character I fell in love with. She was sooooo adorable!! I could envision her saying everything exactly the way a 3-yr-old would. Kudos to Ms. Liz for that!

Some of the elements in the story confused me. Like, there were some things that just seemed thrown in randomly. Like Griggs and Vance having grown up together? Um, that would've been something we should've been told before 3/4 of the way through the book. And Percy has a drawl? I guess that makes sense since they live in TN, but he was the only character mentioned to have an accent, and only THEN towards the end of the book.

The spiritual content was lacking. I mean, yeah, they prayed, but in between prayers, I forgot that they were even Christians. It wasn't because they were awful people, but simply because God didn't seem to be anything other than Someone to pray to when they needed help. The ending really made more mentions of God, though, so I was glad for that. And Mrs. Dowd's dialogue about heaven . . . um yesssss please! <3 <3

So lastly . . . the romance. It seemed so . . . so . . . disjointed? Well okay, the whole book seemed kinda disjointed. BUT the romance seemed just THROWN IN. Everything was either heat or electricity. "Her temperature rose at his words." "She touched his hand, and a spark passed between them." "Her leg rubbed against his, setting his limb on fire." Now, I'll admit, it wasn't nearly as heavy as it could've been, save for 2 (or maybe 3?) kisses, for which I was thankful. But AFTER HE'S KISSED HER and SAID 'I LOVE YOU', she's convinced that he doesn't really care that much. For which I wanted to knock her head. Kind of.

So, yeah. The book wasn't awful. I guess I kinda made it sound awful, but it wasn't. I just somehow couldn't bring myself to enjoy it.

The Pink Bonnet by Liz Tolsma is a remarkable book based on a horrific time in history when children were regularly stolen from parents who loved them. While this is a work of fiction, it is part of a true crime series and based on the real person of Georgia Tann. Ms. Tann was a criminal who routinely stole children even from the streets and made money off their adoptions. This story tells of Cecile, a single mom working hard to provide for her young daughter. One day, a neighbor watches the daughter while she is at work and she returns from work to find her gone. But this young mom will stop at nothing to track her down and get her back. With danger and difficulty at every turn, this story is told in an engaging manner and will definitely keep your interest throughout. You will be rooting for Cecile throughout. I highly recommend it! I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher with no obligations. These opinions are entirely my own.

The Pink Bonnet is an engaging true crime novel that had me in suspense up through the end. The sincere characters and their story drew such sympathy and attachment that I had trouble putting this book down. As one reads the book, you’re inclined to really root for Cecile, Millie, and Perry, and develop a terrible distain for Tann. Plot twists kept me guessing at the whereabouts and fate of Millie throughout the story, and the apex of the plot was incredibly exciting. I don’t want to give too much away, but I certainly never thought the story would escalate to such a level. From a practical perspective the climax actually had me wondering whether that portion of the story was still ‘true’ crime or if it had been fabricated a little. However I do believe Liz Tolsma did an incredible amount of research and kept the story true to its core.

I also thought the book was interesting from a psychological perspective – hitting on the morals, responsibilities, and obligations of raising a child. Cecile struggles to provide for Millie in the story, feeling both guilty and inadequate despite striving to do everything possible to support her small family. This insecurity makes you sympathize with Cecile, but also consider her dilemma. Is it better to keep a child with their loving family even if conditions are sub-optimal, or tear the child away to a more providing environment with a new family? In this case of course there are complications with the ‘adoption process,’ but the question remains an interesting moral point to consider.

Despite how engaging and plot-driven this book was, I did have mixed feelings after putting it down. Firstly, I felt the relationship development between Cecile and Perry was a bit predictable and cliche. It also wasn’t the content I was looking for when I picked up a true crime novel. The book wasn’t categorized as containing romance and it just wasn’t something I enjoyed. That being said, I’m also not big into the romance genre and for other readers I could see how it may have enhanced Cecile’s character and made the story richer. Taking the liberty to harp on Cecile a little more, I was impressed with her tenacity but also disappointed in how selfish her thoughts/behavior read at times. She was singly focused on Millie and appeared to have total disregard for Perry’s career and safety in some critical plot points. Perhaps this is due to the severe trauma of a parent losing a child which I thankfully can’t directly relate to, but I’d imagine there would be some remaining concern for the kind lawyer.

Overall I enjoyed the book but personally didn’t find it to be my style. If it were categorized slightly differently I might not even have picked it up. I felt there was more ‘romance’ content than ‘Christian’ so I would have appreciated having that additional information as a potential reader. However this would be an exciting and captivating book for readers interested in suspenseful true crime who don’t mind a side of romance.

3.5 stars- This is the second book in the True Crime series. It’s a fictional story about a true crime in history. Georgia Tann ran the Tennessee Children’s Home Society and from 1932 to 1950 she stole thousands of children from their homes in Memphis, TN and sold them to the highest bidder. Many city officials, among others, were also a part of the scheme. It is shocking to me that so many people could do such a thing to the most innocent members of our society.
The story begins when Cecile Dowd’s elderly neighbor “gives” Cecile’s 3 year old daughter Millie to Georgia Tann while Cecile is out looking for a job. Oh my word, I am still so angry at Cecile’s neighbor. What kind of person just gives someone else’s child away?
Percy Vance is one of Georgia Tann’s lawyers. His path crosses with Cecile’s as she is searching everywhere for her daughter. Coming from humble beginnings he is hesitant to question that his employer is not as benevolent as he thought.
This book was at times hard to read because of the subject matter. As a parent, I cannot imagine what Cecile and many other parents went through during this time. As for the story itself, I at times had a hard time connecting with all of the characters. Cecile and Percy’s relationship at times felt more told than shown.
This was an intriguing look into a dark period in Memphis’ history that made me curious to know more about the true events. I admit I am learning a lot of history through this series. I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Pink Bonnet, by Liz Tolsma, is part of the True Colors series which are fictional stories based on true American crime. Having read the first book in the series, The White City, I was looking forward to reading The Pink Bonnet and was not disappointed. The author drew me in immediately as, in the first few pages she describes the kidnapping of a three-year-old little girl, Millie, and the horror, grief, and desperation of her mother, Cecile. Set in Memphis during the 1930s, the book tells the heart-wrenching story of a persistent mother’s search for her daughter and the lengths she would go to get her back. The book tells of the Tennessee Children’s Home Society, run by Georgia Tann, where over a number of years, it is estimated that thousands of children were stolen and sold. Politics and riches seemed to trump everything even the welfare of innocent children. The author brings a turbulent time in Memphis to life with finesse as she portrays the terror that families must have felt as children continued to disappear, the desperation and determination of parents who tried to find them. The characters are realistic and either likable, relatable, or despicable. Dialogue flowed seamlessly without sounding forced. I had a hard time putting the book down and pretty much read it in one sitting. The story pulls on the reader’s emotions, shock and horror, anger and revenge, sorrow and compassion. It is a thought-provoking book and I look forward to reading more from this author.
I received a complimentary copy of the book and was not required to write a review. The opinions are my own.

Having read Lisa Wingate's book, Before We Were Yours, I was familiar with the abhorrent story of Georgia Tann and the Tennessee Children's Home Society. This story is written from the perspective of one mother whose child was taken and who is fighting to find her child. I read this story in a long, late night because I couldn't put it down. It is very much a plot-drive book. Cecile and Percy, a lawyer for Georgia Tann who definitely feels there is something rotten in Denmark, join forces to find out what has happened to find Millie.

Percy has been duped into working for Georgia who is connected or has bribed every official in the state of Tennessee. He senses the evil, but continues to look the other way until it touches his heart when he sees Millie taken away on only a neighbor's word. He made choices that would be difficult for anyone to make knowing full well that he was probably going to lose everything he had worked hard for in his life. Cecile, on the other hand, had nothing to lose and everything to gain by digging until she found what had happened to Millie.

With twists and turns at each corner, with villains popping up everywhere they turned, persistance paid off in the end. Liz Tolsma's historical research is evident on every page, and her exposing of this little known piece of history should make us all aware that adoption agencies should be very carefully researched as Tann even managed to dupe some very well known people including the actress, Joan Crawford. Tann spread her web both wide and deep for almost 20 years.

**I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Books through NetGalley. Opinions are mine alone. I was not compensated for this review.

After finishing Liz Tolsma’s “The Pink Bonnet”, book two in the True Colors series, my opinions are mixed. This story needs and deserves to be told, and yet the grimness of it is oppressive, truly making it difficult fodder. Prior to this novel, I knew of the Tennessee Children’s Home Society by name only, so this story was shockingly enlightening. As with so many appalling events throughout history, this one seems incredulous in its scope and longevity. Targeting victims who were poor and vulnerable forms a sadly effective modus operandi, indicating the ongoing need for reform. In seeking to dispel the evil associated with this organization, the depth of complicity becomes evident and has far-reaching consequences that echo still today.

“The Pink Bonnet” opens innocuously enough, with a mother and her three-year-old daughter struggling to make ends meet in 1933 in Memphis, Tennessee, low on money but rich in love. Almost immediately, however, foreshadowing forms storm clouds on the horizon, and soon events come to a head. Entrusting little Millie to a neighbor for a few hours, Cecile Dowd returns to find her daughter gone, given over to the custody of Georgia Tann, the unscrupulous director of the Memphis Tennessee Children’s Home Society. What follows demonstrates the lengths a mother will go to in order to recover her child.

Incredibly pervasive, the extent of the corruption demonstrates the result of crony politics and the danger of being a parent in Memphis during this time period and also serves to remind us that such threats continue now as well. Child trafficking is an insidious business, and in this story Miss Tann is truly diabolical. Because of the guise under which she operates, a moral dilemma emerges: Is the child better off in an adoptive home? If the birth parents find their child and the child has a good life with their adopted parents, who gets custody? Pearl’s and Fanny’s characters offer a good balance by showing both sides of the adoption issue.

Harrowing and sinister, “The Pink Bonnet” merits words of warning. There is very little humor or lightheartedness to relieve tension, and due to the nature of the subject matter, there is mistreatment and physical abuse of a child as well as domestic violence, albeit with no graphic details. As such, I would not recommend this book for everyone. A few unanswered questions raised during the story remain, and the conclusion was more open-ended than I prefer, although part of this is attributable to the historical event itself. Faith in God does not truly become a strong contributing factor until the denouement, a fact which I found disappointing but which does point to the characters’ spiritual growth. One of the characters sums it up best: “The life, welfare, and happiness of children and their parents was priceless. Jesus had already purchased their lives with His blood. They were no longer up for sale.” Thank the Lord that none of us are orphans and that we will always be at home in Him!

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and CelebrateLit and was under no obligation to post a review.

Georgia Tann, a corrupt Memphis Tennessee Children’s Home Society director is suspected of the disappearance of hundreds of children and this story takes you right into the thick of it! Georgia is described as a terrible person and you can almost smell the stench of her evil as the author introduces us to the main characters. When I finished reading this book I just felt heartbroken for all the parents whose lives were forever changed by this woman. If you like fictional stories based on true crimes.. read this one. "I received a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review." My review is voluntary.

The Pink Bonnet is Liz Tolsma’s first full-length novel and her first romantic suspense, and she did an excellent job with both. As a mother myself, I found this to be a very emotional book, and its really about three mothers, not just one. The pain that each of these women faced is something no mother (or father for that matter) wants to have enter their life. The wickedness that drove Georgia Tann was far beyond anything I had understood before. I knew she kidnapped children during the 30’s-50’s, but I didn’t understand the lengths she went to get her hands on them, nor the extent of her crimes. At the end of the book, Mrs. Tolsma shares some background on the story behind the story. I was agog at how many children Georgia Tann kidnapped over those years, how long she facilitated her evil, and the fact that she was never brought to justice.
The author did an excellent job at carrying the suspense through the book, as several times it feels like things will be resolved only to have the carpet ripped out from under the characters. I felt the sorrow that each of these mothers endured. Not only to have your own child taken from you, but also those that realized that the child they have loved as their own is not legally theirs. Could you do the right thing?
This may be a tough book to read for those who have ever lost a child or for the more sensitive reader, there are some elements of child abuse, spouse abuse, and other violence.
I recommend this book for those who love suspense, history, and romance combined, and for those who love true crime stories.

I received a free copy of The Pink Bonnet from Net Galley in exchange for an unbiased review. I loved this story. What an amazing job Liz Tolsma did in immersing the reader into this story. You feel like you are right by this mothers side. You feel the pain and heartache, the betrayal. You can also see the parallels to God's love for His children and how He searches for us. You will not want to stop reading until you finish it and then you will want to read it again..

Cecile just grated on my nerves. I was on her side only because she was a mother looking for her child, not because I cared about her as a character.

I’ve read some of Liz Tolsma’s historical fiction in the past and love her writing style. She’s almost poetic in her description of scenes. For some reason, her typical prose often seemed stilted and rushed in The Pink Bonnet. In several passages, I had to reread sentences to understand what was going on.

Don’t misunderstand me. There were some good parts to the story, too! I loved seeing how women banded together in times of need. It was interesting to read about the abuse of power that clearly dominated Memphis during that time period. I enjoyed the author’s note which described some of the historic truths included in the book. I just had bigger hopes about The Pink Bonnet.

Wow! Talk about a book that will grip you and hold you captive from cover to cover! I started this too late into the evening to read in one sitting, but believe me when I tell you I cam home from work today anxious to finish. This book had me hook, line, and sinker! By sharing several points-of-view throughout the novel, Liz Tolsma was able to hold the reader in suspense not only to show how events would unfold for each character, but keep them wondering if one of the voices belonged to Cecile's daughter. Everything was masterfully woven together to form the perfect narrative. The best way I can explain how I feel after closing the cover is that I'm caught up in a book fog.

Last year I read the book Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, and that was my first introduction to the madness of Georgia Tann and the Tenesee Children's Home Society. Knowing how many of the people's stories actually turned out, I wasn't sure if I was going to be digging into a book with a happy ending or not. I will not spoil this for you, but I will tell you that the mystery held me captive with an anxious heart. Sometimes history hurts, but it's history. While the majority of the characters in this story were fictional, Georgia Tann was not. She was a real woman who was responsible for countless kidnappings and murders.

To say that I felt emotionally connected to this story would be an incredible understatement. Do yourself a favor and start this book in the morning on a free day, because this is one you won't want to put down! This one is absolutely a must-read!

*I received a copy of this book through CelebrateLit. Thoughts and opinions expressed are mine alone.

Memphis 1933. America is still in the throws of the Depression and Cecile Dowd is trying to make ends meet after her husbands death, fighting to support herself and her rambunctious three year old, Millie. During this time in Memphis there existed the Tennessee Children's Home Society, a real organization that served as a type of social service, that was ran by a woman named Miss Tann. On the outside she donned the disguise of an angel that rescued children out of dire and desperate situations and put them in safe, nurturing homes where they would be better cared for. The reality was far more sinister and Cecile is about to find out Miss Tann's true mission.

From the beginning this book is an emotional rollercoaster. When I read what happened to Millie I was shocked that this actually happened to families in Memphis and was allowed to continue for 25 years. Anger and frustration coursed through my veins at every dead end and every time Miss Tann got her way, craving for justice to be served and all the wrongs being made right. The ending was pretty much what I expected and was a mixture of happiness and sadness.

Loving historical fiction like I do I am enamored by the True Colors series though it is heart wrenching that these events, to some degree, really happened. The writing is gripping, like any great suspense, the depth of the characters perfection, and the imagery incredibly vivid. I devoured this book within hours fighting, like poor Cecile, to see how it would all end. A wonderfully, gut-wrenching story that will keep you on the edge 'til the bitter end.

The Pink Bonnet is the second book in the True Colors Series. I wasn’t overly impressed with the first book, The White City by Grace Hitchcock, but thought I’d give the series another go, since each book fictionalizes a different historical crime and is written by a different author. This particular story takes on the black market adoption racket in Tennessee during the Depression: a horrifying crime that went unchecked for too long and a brutal reminder that child trafficking still happens to this day.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t overly impressed with this novel either. I just couldn’t seem to get swept up in the story. The dialogue too often felt trite, the storyline was quite contrived and predictable. The emotion was sometimes realistic and sometimes awfully melodramatic. I am sorry to say that I found it a bit of a chore to read.
At first I thought that maybe if I was a mother myself, the story would resonate more deeply with me. But then I stopped to remind myself that if a story is truly well-written, it doesn’t matter what the subject is, the reader can fall into it and not want to climb back out. That never happened for me with this book.
Your experience may be different, if you feel like giving this book a chance. I wish that I’d enjoyed it more. Bummer.
Thanks anyway to Barbour Publishing and NetGalley for the digital ARC of this novel for review purposes. I was not required to give a positive review. All opinions are my very own!

Thoroughly interesting story line. I love the concept of historical events being told through a fresh fictional perspective. In this case, children were being stolen and then sold through the Memphis Tennessee Children’s Home Society corrupt director. As a mother, I cannot even imagine the horror that those poor women and children faced. This particular telling of the story fell a little flat for me though. Rushed in some places and repetitive in others, it just didn’t capture my attention like I had hoped it would. This is a difficult topic and hard to capture well without leading to utter hopelessness for the reader. I did, however, love the redemption and happy ending for the main characters.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

‘Love. Compassion. Kindness. Those constitute a parent whether blood or not.’
This book vividly portrays the darkness in some souls. Meet Miss Georgia Tann, director of the Memphis Tennessee Children’s Home Society, who kidnapped and sold over 5,000 children during the years 1924 - 1950. These children were stolen from their families whether well cared for or not. Very few, if any, were ever returned to their families. One can’t help but wonder if they ever connected with those blood relations again.
The author has taken this dark point in history and fashioned the fictional story of one such child and her loving mother. I must admit I sat at the edge of my seat, had tears in my eyes and even held my breath at times while reading this book. Wow! You really want to be ready for the emotional reaction this novel will stir up in you. Under the best of circumstances, adoption can be difficult for all parties. Imagine if you are torn away from your parent(s) without consent! Millie experienced just that. How was she to ever find her momma again? Cecile, Millie’s momma, wondered if it was even possible for her to locate her daughter in the midst of all this horror.
The anger I felt with this injustice was alleviated by the time I reached the ending of this incredible book. Would that there had been justice for all those children.
I had the privilege of receiving an ARC through Barbour Publishing, NetGalley and CelebrateLit. This review gives my personal impressions and opinions.

I usually very much enjoy Liz Tolsma but for some reason, this book did not flow well. It felt clunky and I really did not love the book. The historical aspects of it were intriguing but it just didn't come together for me in this book.

The Pink Bonnet by Liz Tolsma is a marvellous Christian historical suspense that will have your heart racing and your emotions ripped to shreds.
In The Pink Bonnet fact meets fiction as Liz Tolsma weaves her story around the real life figure of Georgia Tann who kidnapped children and sold them to the highest bidder. The story is set in 1933. It is a difficult read. Liz Tolsma has perfectly captured the despair and grief of the mothers whose children go missing. It is horrendous to realise that though this is fiction, it was for many a reality.
At the heart of the novel is a mother’s love. It is a mother’s love that clings on to hope. It does not let go and it is unconditional. This reminds us that we have a heavenly Father who loves us unconditionally, who will not let us go and who will leave no stone unturned in His pursuit of us. God pursues us not because He has to but because He loves us and He wants us to come home to Him.
Within the novel there is a network of corruption and a continual question of trust. Just who can be trusted to do the right thing?
Money corrupts. Within the novel we see the dangers of being motivated by money.
The 1930’s was a period of the Great Depression in America and in the wider world. People had very little financially but that did not mean that love was in short supply. Our material circumstances do not affect our ability to love.
Greater love hath no man than that he lay down his life for a friend. We see this sacrificial love being played out in the novel.
The Pink Bonnet is a difficult emotional read. It consumed me as my heart raced and my emotions lay in tatters. I did not know about Georgia Tann but have now ordered a book on her life to delve deeper. Thank you Liz Tolsma for highlighting this appalling trade and for writing such a powerful story.
I received this book for free. A favourable review was not required and all views expressed are my own.