“Nothing like a beautifully woven story of a young woman’s journey to understanding that the past shapes us but does not define us, and that it is love that gives us the courage to live like we believe it. With prose that is luminous and lyrical, THE BRIGHT UNKNOWN is a compelling read from the first page to the last.”
About Elizabeth
Award-winning author Elizabeth Byler Younts writes historical fiction for Harper Collins/Thomas Nelson. She gained a worldwide audience through her first book Seasons: A Real Story of an Amish Girl. She is also the author of the Carol award-winning novel The Solace of Water, critically-acclaimed novel The Bright Unknown, and The Promise of Sunrise series. She has consulted on Amish lifestyle and the Pennsylvania Dutch dialect for two award-winning television shows. Elizabeth lives in Central Pennsylvania with her husband, two daughters, and a small menagerie of well-loved pets.
“I knew Elizabeth Byler Younts was a wonderful writer, but her lyricism, empathy, and psychological understanding of the broken human condition took The Bright Unknown to a whole different level. I didn’t read Brighton’s story for mere endorsement; I read her story because her plight haunted me. This is the kind of journey that has the power to change lives.”
UPCOMING RELEASE
october 2019
The bright unknown
This poignant and heartbreaking novel explores the power of resilience, the gift of friendship, and the divine beauty to be found in the big, bright world—if only we’re willing to look.
Narrated in Elizabeth Byler Younts’s gorgeous style, The Bright Unknown is a sparkling search for answers, family, and a place to call home.
Pennsylvania, 1940s. The only life Brighton Friedrich has ever known is the one she has endured within the dreary walls of Riverside Home—the rural asylum where she was born. A nurse, Joann, has educated and raised Brighton, whose mother is a patient at the hospital. But Joann has also kept vital information from Brighton—secrets that if ever revealed would illuminate Brighton’s troubling past and the circumstances that confine her to Riverside. Brighton’s best friend is a boy she calls Angel, and as they grow up together and face the bleak future that awaits them, they determine to make a daring escape.
Nothing can prepare Brighton and Angel for life beyond Riverside’s walls. They have no legal identities, very little money, and only a few leads toward a safe place to land. As they struggle to survive in a world they’ve never seen before, they must rely on each other and the kindness of strangers—some of whom may prove more dangerous than the asylum they’ve fled.
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“Elizabeth Byler Younts writes with heart, a poet’s pen, and courage. Younts has given us a story which is at once powerful and compassionate, revealing and dignified, heartrending and lyric. Compelling and infused with hope of redemption, The Bright Unknown ushers readers on a journey of empathy. I, for one, am grateful to have read it.”
BOOKS AVAILABLE NOW
The solace of water
“Younts has set herself apart with this exquisite story of friendship and redemption . . . I’ll be talking about this book for years to come.” —Rachel Hauck, New York Times bestselling author of The Wedding Dress
The Solace of Water offers a glimpse into the turbulent 1950s and reminds us that friendship rises above religion, race, and custom—and has the power to transform a broken heart.
Seasons: A Real Story of an Amish Girl
EXCERPT: "When considering my life I am struck by my season of spring. It's a journey of love lost and found, heartbreak, fears, and even dreams come true. I am not sure that in my later seasons I would feel so deeply, love so strongly, and strive with such desperation if it weren't for what I experienced as a young girl in the bittersweet spring of my life. Here are my memories, how I remember the season of my girlhood. Welcome to spring."
Praise for The solace of water…
'VERDICT Younts's powerful novel reverberates with love that crosses religious and racial boundaries to find the humanity that connects us all. Highly recommended.'
—Library Journal STARRED REVIEW
The Solace of Water is a gripping coming-of-age historical fiction story that will stick with readers for some time after the final word is read. Hauntingly beautiful prose is bountiful in this tightly woven tale… The characters demonstrate the impact secrets, guilt and unforgiveness can have on a person in this emotive gem.
—Romantic Times — 4 1/2 STARS — TOP PICK!
PROMISE TO RETURN (The PROMISE OF SUNRISE, BooK 1)
When World War II breaks out, Miriam Coblentz’s peaceful Amish world is turned upside down. Two worlds collide in this unforgettable debut novel, providing a fascinating and rare look into Amish culture during World War II. While Henry is battling enemies across the ocean, Miriam struggles between her devotion to Henry and her love of the Amish way of life.
PROMISE TO CHERISH (The PROMISE OF SUNRISE, Book 2)
As World War II draws to a close, nurse Christine falls in love with roguish Amish boy Eli and must choose between a new, uncertain life in the Amish faith or face the judgment of a conservative postwar American society for her past mistakes.
PROMISE TO KEEP (The Promise of Sunrise, Book 3)
World War II Marine Joe Garrison returns home from war longing to be a father to his deaf daughter, Daisy, only to find that she is attached to Esther Detweiler, the Amish woman who has raised her since his wife’s death in this touching historical romance.
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