Remember the Lilies

Written by Liz Tolsma

Narrated by Carol Jacobanis

How will two very different people find love—and survive the impossible circumstances of war?

In 1941 Rand Sterling was a wealthy, womanizing club owner and an American of note among ex-pats and locals alike. Now two years later, Rand is just another civilian prisoner of war—one whose planned escape from the Santo Tomas Internment Camp could put him and others in grave danger.

Irene Reynolds grew up as a missionary kid in the Philippine jungle. Now she works for the paranoid Japanese authorities, delivering censored messages to the other American prisoners in Santo Tomas.

When Irene’s negligence leads to Rand’s failed escape attempt, Rand is sent to the torture chambers of Fort Santiago—and Irene suffers under the weight of her guilt. Yet when she crosses paths with Rand again after his unexpected return to the camp, something more than mere survival draws the unlikely pair together.

As life in Manila becomes more and more desperate, and another threatening letter finds its way from Irene’s hands to Rand’s, the reluctant couple struggles to find a way to stay alive . . . and to keep their growing feelings for each other from compromising the safety of everyone around them.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson
• Release date: Sep 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9781401607210

Liz Tolsma

Bestselling author Liz Tolsma loves to write so much it’s often hard to tear her away from her computer. When she closes her laptop’s lid, she might walk her hyperactive Jack Russell terrier, weed her large perennial garden or binge on HGTV shows. She’s married to her high school sweetheart, and together they adopted three children. She’s proud to be the mom of a US marine.

Reviews for Remember the Lilies

[heatherlinc · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I thoroughly enjoyed "Snow on the Tulips" by the same author and had it read over a weekend, but this book took me a week to plough through. I found it lacked the history and depth that the other book had. I was also frustrated that I couldn't create a clear picture in my mind of the Santo Thomas Internment Camp in Manila during the Japanese occupation simply because it lacked descriptive detail.I liked Irene, although I was annoyed at her on more than one occasion, and I loved her Aunt Anita, I soon found Rand's childish rhymes extremely irritating as was Tessa's 'bangers and mash' phrase which was used constantly. The dialogue was often stilted and I didn't really feel the chemistry between Rand and Irene. I was never emotionally invested in their lives or their survival which is always a bad sign. Overall, an okay read but certainly not one of the best WWII novels I've ever read.

[cinachilders · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Remember the Lilies is a war story about survival, hope, and love. Set in the Philippines during WWII, this is the story of two people who lived very different lives, but endured many trials and suffering during a horrific time that eventually brings them together. A young missionary woman and a man whose life revolved around money and clubs wouldn’t have very much in common and perhaps never would have even met had it not been for their captivity. Their friendship starts slowly and as time goes on both begin to fall for one another.I fell in love with this book. I tried to read similar books before and they failed to really capture me. Remember the Lilies is one of those haunting, tragically beautiful books about not just the facts of war, but the heart and the courage of people. No matter how weak human bodies become, the spirit stays strong. It’s ultimately what keeps hope and the desire for freedom alive no matter how far away it may be.I adored both Irene and her aunt Anita. There were some moments between them that had me very close to tears. Irene and Rand’s relationship, as I said before, started off slowly. They became friends and then the feelings of love began to grow as they learned and discovered secrets they both were keeping. And the more it seemed unlikely of survival, the more they relied on each other and kept going despite the hunger, illness, and mistreatment everyone had to deal with at the hands of the enemy soldiers.I’m happy with the ending of this book. I can only wonder what happened afterwards with Irene and Rand, and with the friends they both had made during their years of captivity in the Santo Tomas Internment Camp.

[wrbinpa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Manila, Philippines – WWII – These are trying times where nothing is easy and nothing is as it should be. The horrors of war and survival are told in detail. The Japanese were horribly cruel and maintained strict control of the prisoners. Taking place in the Philippines, in a Japanese internment camp, this is a setting that I was not familiar with during WWII. Conditions were terribly grim and at times unbearable. This is a story of faith, survival and forgiveness told with slight religious overtones.The writing is just what you’d expect from this author, well researched and easy to read. Liz Tolsma certainly knows how to weave historical facts into fiction. The middle of the story did seem to lose its flow, and my interest declined somewhat, but soon picked up and I became fully engaged again. I highly recommend with a 4 star rating.I received a complimentary copy of this book from Book Look Bloggers in exchange for an honest review.

[vintagebeckie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Liz Tolsma has taken a subject not well known in the United States and brought it to life in her historical fiction novel, Remember The Lilies. Set in the Santo Tomas internment camp in Manila, The Philippines during WWII, it is rich in historic detail, life and death drama and a message of hope in the midst of the darkest storm. A great novel for those who love historical fiction with a dash of romance set amid the struggle of WWII.The two main characters of Irene and Rand could not be more opposite. Yet their shared experiences of survival in an internment camp under the tyranny of the Japanese binds them together. Both characters grow during the course of the novel. Their struggles with faith in times of trial and forgiving those who hurt them ring true. I was amazed at what the mostly AmericanSanto Tomas Internment Campcivilians endured under the Japanese and also by the indomitable spirit of those who attempted to bring a bit of normality to the situation. Remember The Lilies did what all good history does — it made me want to know more.The spiritual themes found in Remember The Lilies are those faced by Christians the world over. How can I forgive and pray for my enemies? How do I keep my trust in God when the world seems turned upside down? I found the reactions and actions of the characters very true to life. Their flaws made the story even more real.A great book for discussion, Remember The Lilies would make a good choice for your book club. Another winner by Liz Tolsma!Recommended.Audience: adults.Great for book clubs.(Thanks to Thomas Nelson and LitFuse for my review copy. All opinions expressed are mine alone.)

[mbarkman_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

5 stars *****out of fiveHistorical RomanceWe do not often associate flowers with war, and yet Liz has chosen flowers to commemorate her World War II stories. This is the third one, coming after Snow on The Tulips and Daises Are Forever, but though they take place at more or less the same time, they are stand alone stories. I do think that if you have not already done so, you will be eager to pick up her other books.Rand and Irene are as different in all ways as two people can be. Irene is a missionary kid, Rand is a womanizer and owns night clubs. Basically, I do not think they would have ever had occasion to meet, but war does that. And both are thrust into Prisoner of War status. Liz paints a stark and honest picture of what life in an occupied country was like in the 1940s. As I read it I felt that perhaps life had been even more unfair. Unconditional love can thrive and my heart was warmed by those incidents where this was obvious. Forgiveness does not condone the transgressor, and that was a very clear theme throughout the story.I am in awe how some authors are able to transport me from warm Arizona, a country where we are free to live as we will, to a country occupied by the enemy in a war torn, unstable place, and I feel I know what and who they write about. I guess that is why I continue to pick up books, for the chance to broaden my experiences without having to live them.Thank you to Amy Lathrop of Litfuse Publicity Group and TNZ Fiction for the opportunity to read this novel. I was given a free book in exchange for an honest review. A positive critique was not required. The opinions are my own.

[lanehillhouse · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wednesday, February 11, 2015Remember the Lilies by Liz Tolsma, © 2015Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. --Luke 12:27After reading the two previous novels by Liz Tolsma, Snow on the Tulips and Daisies Are Forever, I was awaiting this third story, Remember the Lilies. Interesting that flowers are intermingled with seemingly dismal places, showing hope and faith can bloom again in dust and decay of ruins.The story begins in early December of 1941 in Manila, Philippines. The morning of December 8 began like any other morning with bird song and fair weather ~ picnic outings to be enjoyed. Until the subsequent attack following Pearl Harbor, WWII comes to the Philippines. The research by author Liz Tolsma brings us to the sorrows and future hope of surviving the internment camp as day-to-day is revealed of the atrocities of war.I was surprised that the internment was at the university and had a hospital with camp doctors. Families and individuals were in captivity more than three years. This story tells of their lives and how they coped while being imprisoned. Regardless of where they had been materially and occupationally before the war, they were now one in their attempt to survive low food rationing and living conditions. Natural disasters occurred, with weather conditions added to by an expected lineup of prisoners twice a day, regardless of what must be endured. Weakened because of diet and lack of exercise, expectations of bowing to their captor became a hardship for many.An important supporter in the story is by the older missionary, Anita Markham. So uplifting in trials and ill health, she clung to God and biblical truth, sharing with her niece, Irene Reynolds, and a man, Rand Sterling, she meets in an ambulance on their way to the hospital for medical care. Irene has already told her Aunt Anita about him. Irene first met him as she delivered a message she memorized while at her work in the censor office from incoming mail.As Irene and Rand begin their attraction to each other, I am talking to them, to "tell the truth," while reading the story. Honesty and not holding back will benefit them the most. Both attempt to keep secrets they feel would separate them from the other. There are unexpected surprises in this story, but the best part how their character changes.This is a strong story weaving history of the past, confirmed by an actual person who was interned with her family during this time.***Thank you to Litfuse Publicity Group and Thomas Nelson Publishers for sending me a copy of Liz Tolsma's Remember the Lilies for review. This review was written in my own words. No other compensation was received.***

[alekee_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

The setting for Remember The Lilies is in the Philippines and we are in an internment camp, a University Campus, run by the Japanese who have control of the Island. The story seems to start around the beginning of the internment, at the beginning of WWII, when life was rough, but much different than I was expecting.Irene and her Aunt Anita were rather poor missionaries when then are sent to the camp along with the people they were visiting with on that fateful Christmas. They have rather rough huts and very few possessions, but they are surviving. There is another part of the camp, which rather surprised me, where people with money at the time they were sent here have nicer huts and more possessions, and are doing a bit better with more food. This is where Rand, a womanizing former club owner resides.We experience the brutality of war and the daily trials of trying to survive; through all of this Irene and her Aunt have God to lean their trials on. This verse appears several times in the book, “Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these” Luke 12:27.There is an attraction between Irene and Rand, she is lovely, but definitely not his type, or is she? He also has his hidden secrets and has lived on the wild side, and we go deep into his life and who was there for him as a child. There is evil lurking in the camp and not always in the form of the Japanese, and this individual, never saw all that was coming, blew me away. There are several twists and turns in the story, and some of the happening I was so surprised with. What a great book, and I definitely want more by this author, a captivating page-turner.I received this book through Net Galley and the Publisher Thomas Nelson, and was not required to give a positive review.