When Women Took the Helm: Two Novels of Courage on River and Sea

History is filled with moments when courage rises quietly—and leadership comes from unexpected places. When Women Took the Helm reflects stories where women step forward in faith, take responsibility when circumstances demand it, and lead with conviction across dangerous waters. From a WWII riverboat to the open sea, these novels remind us that courage doesn’t always announce itself—it simply takes the helm and moves forward.

Title: Books Afloat

Author: Delores Topliff

Genre: Historical Romance

Series: The Columbia River Undercurrents

Other books in the series: Strong Currents

In the middle of World War II, one woman’s floating library becomes the last line of
defense against enemy sabotage.

Anne Mettles, a resilient Oklahoma Dust Bowl survivor, has built Books Afloat, a floating library
that brings hope, stories, and education to isolated communities along the Columbia River. But
as wartime budgets are slashed, Anne faces an impossible choice: shut down the program she
loves, or accept a secret mission from Washington’s governor to conduct covert military
surveillance along the river.

Determined to serve her country and protect the people who depend on her, Anne agrees, but
only if she can operate Books Afloat on her own. That plan quickly unravels when mechanic Ted
Vincent insists on joining the voyage and begins uncovering evidence that the boat’s mysterious
damage is no accident. Someone is deliberately trying to stop them.

As sabotage escalates, Anne and Ted are joined by a young man eager to win Anne’s affection
and an ambitious reporter chasing a wartime story. Each passenger brings complications,
secrets, and rising tension as the journey grows more dangerous with every mile downstream.
Inspired by real historical events and set in America during World War II, Books Afloat is an
uplifting WWII historical fiction novel that blends espionage, romance, and adventure. It is a
story of a strong woman answering a dangerous call to serve, of ordinary citizens showing
extraordinary courage, and of a fragile hope for love in the midst of war.

Perfect for readers drawn to uplifting World War II stories, library-based historical novels, strong
women’s fiction, and gentle romance woven with suspense, Books Afloat is a powerful reminder
that courage does not always march onto the battlefield. Sometimes it floats quietly
downstream, carrying hope where it is needed most.

READ FIRST 3 CHAPTERS

Title: The Seafaring Women of the Vera B.

Authors: Susan Page Davis and Jim Davis

Genre: Historical Fiction

Series: Hearts of Oak Series

Other books in series: The Scottish Lass (releasing 4.14.26) and Faithful Seafarers (releasing 8.22.26)

A ship without men. A crew of women with everything to lose.

When Captain Ruel Packard dies in a foreign port and his men desert to the goldfields, his wife, must decide: abandon the Vera B or take the helm herself.

With a weather-scarred boatswain at her side, Alice scours Melbourne and melds together a fisher girl, a barmaid, a farmer’s widow, a countess and her maid, and a handful of women fleeing a brothel to make up her new crew.

Across tempest and betrayal, these women learn to splice rope, reef sail, and mend their own shattered hearts. Each mile tests their faith and their friendship. Each horizon brings pirates, storms, and a question the charts cannot answer: how far will they go to keep a promise?

This historical fiction blends danger, devotion, and quiet heroism.

From the bustle of colonial Australia to the wild reaches of the Coral Sea and the Indian Ocean, this maritime saga brims with peril, hope, and the strength of women who dare the impossible.

Readers who relish the seamanship of Patrick O’Brian and the heart of Kristin Hannah will find both in The Seafaring Women of the Vera B—a sweeping, faith-infused voyage of survival and courage.