Undercurrent of Secrets is another installment in the Doors to the Past series. Each book in this series contains a dual timeline and revolves around a particular historic American landmark. In this case, it is a 100 year old steamboat called The Belle of Louisville. Let me start with the historic timeline. Simply put, I loved it. The way Rachel Scott McDaniel interwove mystery throughout was brilliant. I found it intriguing and unpredictable. I also thought the characters were endearing and the romance sweet. I was engrossed throughout. 5 stars from me here. As for the contemporary piece, I do admit I struggled a bit. I thought the storyline farfetched and predictable. I was rooting for the characters, but didn't feel a strong connection. Overall, this gets a 3.5 (rounded up) from me.

I received a complementary copy of this book. Opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Undercurrent of Secrets moves back and forth from present day to the 1920s. Devyn Asbury works as a wedding coordinator on a hundred-year-old steamboat, The Belle of Louisville. She has recently seen her engagement called off and then finds out that the Belle is one of the finalists in a wedding contest. As she is preparing for an event for the contest, Chase Jones comes on the scene with a torn photo of Hattie Louis from the 1920s. He thinks the photo was taken on the Belle. The two begin an investigation of who this woman is and why was the photo torn in two. Who is in the other half of the photo?

Going back in time, Hattie Louis works on a steamboat where she had been adopted by its captain. She entertains people with her music as well as helps cook. She is surprised one evening by Jack Marshall who she finds out is the First Mate. Strange things start to happen aboard the boat and Hattie and Jack begin to investigate.

The author does a splendid job of going between the two periods of history. I enjoy reading historical fiction and always look forward to the end of the book which brings in historical facts. This was no exception.
There is suspense and romance in this fun book and I enjoyed reading it. I’d recommend it to others. I received a complimentary copy from Barbour Publishing and NetGalley and was under no obligation to post a review.

It’s no secret that I’m a sucker for a well done split time novel, and I’ve been loving the Doors To The Past series. That being said, this book was superbly written, full of adventure, romance, some laugh out loud moments, and a twist that I never expected at the end. Hattie and Jack have a nautical meet cute in the 1920s like no other, and their romance was one for the ages. Meanwhile in present day, Devyn and Chase have some exceptional moments digging through history to solve a complex mystery that made my heart sing. I loved both timelines, both swoony heroes, both spunky heroines. I highly recommend! I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley and was under no obligation to write a review.

1926 and present day Kentucky and nearby states

Engaging time slip novel! My favorite of this series so far.

In the present day, a year after being publicly dumped by her fiance, Devyn is still healing. She's not pining for her former fiance, but rather recovering from trusting her heart to another and having it torn to shreds. She buries herself in her job as a wedding coordinator aboard the Belle.

In 1926, Hattie is an orphan that was taken in by riverboat captain Duffy. She loves her life, but feels abandoned by her birth parents.

The mystery and story lines in both time periods were captivating. The tomboy personalities of both leading females was refreshing. I especially loved the humor throughout and the banter in the current day thread. One of my favorite lines by Devyn: "Breakfast with Jesus and chocolate. The arsenal needed to survive this day."

Rachel McDaniel has written her best work yet with this time slip novel.

Louisville KY, Devyn Asbury is a wedding coordinator on the Belle of Louisville, on a 100 yr. Old steamboat. Chase Jones is looking for "Hattie" a calliope player on the boat in the 1920s. A dual timeline with plots an twists that keep you guessing. Who is Hattie, and is Chase who he says he is? You will be suprised. I was given a complimentary copy of this book from Barbour Publishing and was under no obligation to post a review.

A fantastically drawn time-slip romance that crosses multiple genres with expertise. What starts with a wedding contest, leads to a mysterious photo and onto dual couples, who navigate love with faith guiding their way. The pace is fast, the banter is effortless, and readers will not soon forget their journey on the Belle of Louisville/Idlewild

Wow, wonderful story! It is full of so much intrigue, suspense, history and romance. A time lapse plot of present day, back to the 1920’s. A historical steamboat, an old photo ripped in half to hidden love notes, make up a great read. The story itself held my attention, but the twists and turns pushed it to a 5 ⭐️ for me! The characters are so well defined and written. Both timelines could have been a story themselves; a modern day Romcom of Chase and Devyn and a historical romance of Hattie and Jack. The way the author wove them together, was captivating. I am totally in love with this series, Doors to the Past, all are time lapse stories. This one is a keeper!
I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Very good historical and Christian fiction, time-slip, mystery and love story all rolled into the pages of this well written novel.

This love story spanning decades and the one timeless thing that bridges the years kept me reading and living the characters lives straight through to the end.

This is a wonderful time slip novel! I love both historical and contemporary romance novels, so it’s so much fun to read a book that combines both of those genres together. I had a hard time putting this story down; the different timelines are woven seamlessly together, and each section would end with a hook that left me anxious to keep reading so I could find out what would happen next!

I loved the characters and the storyline. The characters were dynamic and intriguing, and I enjoyed the mystery element to the storyline! The themes of trusting in God and of not allowing your circumstances to define your happiness were beautifully written.

I highly recommend this novel! I’m looking forward to reading more books by Rachel Scott McDaniel.

5/5 stars!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I have really been getting into these time slip novels recently, I found myself flying through this one. I have loved these books in the Doors to the Past series. This one is about a riverboat and a mystery surrounding it.

The stories are fantastically intertwined and definitely encourage delving into the past. This particular mystery was carefully laid out and fantastically written. I loved the depth and obvious love for history that was present throughout. I felt like I was truly riding the riverboat in both timelines.

There was suspense, more than one romance, and a delicious payoff at the end. The romances were natural and organic which I love. It takes masterful talent to develop two couples and side characters that you want to root for and others that you want to see lose.

This had a slow build of suspense that held me in place as I read it in one sitting. I will definitely be reading this again if only to experience the riverboat all over again.

I received an early copy from the publisher through NetGalley and this is my honest review.

Undercurrent of Secrets is an excellent novel by a new-to-me author.

I’ve never read Rachel Scott McDaniel before, but this book has made me a fan.

McDaniel does a masterful job balancing the contemporary and historical storylines, weaving them together as bits and pieces of the underlying mystery are revealed.

Devyn is definitely a heroine I can relate to, and I found it easy to root for her from the beginning. And Hattie has everything I love about historical heroines: grit, sass, and determination. I loved watching them as they struggled and picked themselves back up again, as well as their honest discussions of their faith.

Loving these characters so much is what had me glued to the pages through every plot twist, every flirtation and romantic interlude. I read this book in a day, reading long into the night because I could not part with it until I was finished. And I’m still amazed at the way McDaniel brings everything together.

Overall, Undercurrent of Secrets is a fantastic dual timeline novel mystery and romance fans will love.

This was a great time-slip book about two women who share a secret about a steamboat and more. It's a great secret! You will want to read this one. The book has mystery, suspense and of course, romance!

Devyn is a wedding coordinator and her determination is bound to lead her to her dreams.

I loved the steamboat and the historical aspect of this for a wedding venue. I can totally picture the beauty of this setting. As Devyn and Chase search for answers the story totally takes off!

I loved Duffy who adopted Hattie as she is left by her mother. Hattie is determined to find out about her past. There is definitely more to the story than meets the eye. Don't want to share too much, so I will suffice to say I really enjoyed the book, the mystery kept me turning the pages. I think you will really enjoy it!

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

Two women two decades apart, one steamboat, The Belle of Louisville, many secrets, some romance and a mystery to see how these all are related makes for a very interesting reading.

At first the book was confusing to me trying to keep the characters straight, until several chapters in of reading. Once I figured it out, the book flowed smoothly and made for an interesting read. Just enough mystery and romance to keep you quickly turning pages until the surprising ending.

I received a copy of this book from Barbour Publishers and NetGalley. Opinion expressed are my own.

** “But isn’t that what love’s about? Taking risks? Committing to a person no matter what the future holds? … Kind of like when we choose to serve God. We don’t know the entire course, what lies behind life’s many river bends, but He does. We can trust Him to hold our hands and lead us through difficult waters.” **

Rachel Scott McDaniel adds to the delightful “Doors to the Past” dual timeline series — a series that focuses on places and people with histories — with “Undercurrent of Secrets.”

In present day, Devyn Asbury is a wedding coordinator on the historic steamboat The Belle of Louisville (which is an actual, historic vessel). When her path crosses with the mysterious Chase Jones, they dive in together to solve the identity of a woman in a 1920s photograph cherished by his great-grandfather, all while Devyn is trying to arrange a huge event to enter into a major wedding magazine contest.

Hattie Louis was raised aboard the Belle after the ship’s captain found her abandoned as a baby. When Jack Marshall joins the crew as first mate in 1926, Hattie quickly begins to think there’s more to his story. They soon find themselves immersed in harrowing situations, all while trying to deal with their increasingly fond feelings toward each other.

As the stories of Hattie, Devyn, Jack and Chase slowly intermingle, will Devyn and Chase be able to overcome past traumas and secrets and settle into their quickly blooming relationship? And will they ever determine just who the woman in the photo was, and whatever happened to her?

“Undercurrent of Secrets” is a great blend of romance and suspense, with enough romance to curl your toes but enough suspense for the mystery lover too. The author does a great job of creating real and flawed yet interesting characters. She also fills the story with great themes, like the heart of a relationship must be strong; we should have the courage to enter the race, even if you don’t finish; things aren’t always as they seem; and security comes from God, not the world.

A huge theme obviously deals with love — that love is bold and drives out fear. (“[Love] doesn’t cower, but expresses itself. Think of Jesus. What He did on the cross was bold. He gave His life without any guarantee that anyone would love Him back. It was daring and beautiful.”)

“Undercurrent of Secrets” is another great addition to the “Doors to the Past” series, and can be read as a standalone.

Five stars out of five.

Barbour Fiction provided this complimentary copy through NetGalley for my honest, unbiased review.

What an awesome job the author does of melding the past with the present, and she does keep you on your toes, with the past meeting the present!

I never expected how everything did turn out, and we are kept on the edge of our seats, not knowing if all will survive, and will evil prevail.

Wedding Coordinator Devyn Asbury doesn't expect how much her life is about to change again, when dashing Chase Jones comes aboard the old steamboat, and we are along for the bumpy ride.

This one will quickly become a page turner, and in the end you won't want it to finish!

I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Barbour, and was not required to give a positive review.

A time-split story set in the 1920's and modern day on and around a river boat. As the story progresses, it is reveled that everyone is carrying a secret for one reason or another. I enjoyed the very real lifeness of the navigation of secrets held and told while dealing with past hurts, current hurts, and falling in-love. A well woven story that was intriguing from the get go.
I recieved an ARC copy of this book and all opinions are my own.

This was another wonderful dual time line story of an old 100 year old steamboat, the Belle of Louisville, on the Ohio River. I don't usually mind the dual time lines, but this one was so good I was annoyed because I was so engrossed in the current one I was reading I didn't want to switch. The stories were wonderful, they each could have been written as two seperate books but they were woven into one seamlessly.

Devyn is still mourning the public breakup of her engagement of almost a year ago. She can't seem to get past it and is trying to stay out of the public eye. She is working on the Belle. She is given the job to try to win a prestigious contest that would feature the Belle as a premier wedding venue. Thinking Chase is a secret jidge Devyn gives him a tour of the Belle. Chaise is actually trying to solve a 100 year old mystery of a woman in a torn picture from the 1920’s. He enlists Devyn’s help to find out who the mysterious woman is in exchange for help with the contest.. This story will go back to the past as we learn about the woman from the photo.

I highly recommend this story. It is engaging and wonderfully written with the past and the present perfectly brought together.

Undercurrent of Secrets by Rachel Scott McDaniel is the next installment in the Doors to the Past series. Each book contains a hint of mystery as readers are engulfed in a split time story full of romance and intrigue.

In this particular novel, we meet Devyn and Chase, two strangers uniting to uncover a century old mystery. With exquisitely timed plot twists, exceptional character development, and the perfect blend of contemporary and historical settings, this book was hard to put down! I found myself devouring chapter after chapter as the characters unveiled their lives before me.

I highly recommend picking up their book along with the rest of the series. Each can be read as a stand-alone, but they are all exceptionally written by a variety of authors. You will not want to miss out on these good, clean reads!

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

It is unusual when I read a dual time story that I can’t pretty quickly tell you which storyline I enjoy more. Not so with The Undercurrent of Secrets. The riverboat history was interestingly written into both time periods. The story was easy to read but not shallow, very engaging, and flowed along smoothly. It enjoyed every minute I spent in this book. It is yet another book in Barbour’s Doors to the Past series that makes me look forward to more to come.
Thank you to Net Galley and Barbour Publishing for the chance to read and review.

Having enjoyed one other story in this Doors to the Past series, “Undercurrent of Secrets” by Rachel Scott McDaniel, new author to this reader was a pleasure to read. This story immediately captured my attention from beginning until the end. The author was skillful in developing well-rounded and life-like characters, while the plot flowed seamlessly throughout each chapter.

There are moments when dual timelines in stories are not my preference, however, the author did a wonderful job connecting both timelines and making it easy to follow throughout the book. The main characters, Hattie and Devyn were very likable protagonists. Their stories are heartfelt, touching and intricately expressed on every page. Each woman’s narrative highlights the tragic trials and hurts that these women endured from a perspective in the past and one in the present. Hattie and Devyn’s faith in God, whatever His Plan, enabled them to overcome the obstacles they had to face.

So far this year, I have had very few new authors where I have given them a high rating. This author was pleasingly impressive. An astonishingly historical Christian story full of faith and another in this series that was worth the read. Looking forward to continuing this series and highly recommend the read.

Thank you NetGalley and Barbour Publishing Inc. for this ARC in exchange for my fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.