New Augsburg

New Augsburg Trilogy, Book 1

De: Christa Petzold

Narrado por: Sarah Kramer

The year is 2117, and Lydia Klein has lived a sheltered life in New Augsburg, a small town established as an oasis in an increasingly secular world. In the face of a government that heavily regulates publishing of explicitly Christian materials, Lydia’s family operates a privately owned press dedicated to printing books that proclaim the timeless Word of God.

Faced with the loss of their parents, her brother’s unwillingness to carry on the family business leaves Lydia uncertain of the future.

When the charming and polished Zachary Barrett, a wealthy son of the town, expresses interest in marrying her and buying her family’s press, she imagines that her problems may soon be solved. But as disagreements and new acquaintances threaten to come between them, will Lydia learn to act out of trust or be trapped in fear?

©2023 Christa Petzold (P)2025 Christa Petzold

Simple, sweet, romance and great characters!

This was a sweet story! A great listen as an audiobook. I enjoyed it so much I couldn’t wait to find out what happens in book 2 so I purchased the kindle version as the audio for book 2 is not yet available. I quickly fell in love with all of the characters, they’re well developed. It’s a fast paced story which I enjoy. Highly recommend especially if you’re looking for an audiobook to enjoy when your kids may happen to overhear. Also this audible account is my husband’s 😋 my name is Melissa - not Ben. Just wanted to leave a review and rating this audiobook deserves good ones!

Captivating!

NEW AUGSBURG BOOK 1

@christa.petzold is a new-to-me author, so when I got the chance to check out her audiobook release of New Augsburg Book 1, I jumped at the chance, and I'm happy to say that it did not disappoint.

This falls under the umbrella of "dystopian Christian fiction," and it is fairly unique. Dystopian always fascinates me because it can be present or future that often has a vibe from the past. In this case, New Augsburg is a town founded to maintain a certain kind of life and is run pretty much off the grid and only by a handful of families in the community. It is meant to be a kind of utopia, but as all humans are susceptible to temptation, not all is as it seems.

You won't find big battles in this dystopian story, and the only world at stake is the town of New Augsburg. However, there is a fairly significant struggle for power as the sweet FMC tries to keep her family business and considers a marriage of convenience to make it happen. She was so relatable, and I really loved the internal struggle she went through as she tried to evaluate what she must to to keep her family's press business. The worst bad guys are also sometimes the ones that feel the most real and you know could really happen (and possibly have IRL).

The story captivated me, and the narration by Sarah Kramer was excellent. I will definitely be continuing on through the series to find out what happens next!

I received a complimentary copy of the author's story to listen to and review. All thoughts contained here are my own.

The cozy dystopian Christian romance you need in your life!

Loved the characters - relatable, realistic, and well-developed. Once I got about halfway through I didn't want to stop listening! Audiobook is well done and made the story all the more immersive and enjoyable. I'm excited for the next two books in the trilogy to be available on Audible!

Truths of God’s Word, practical applications of it.

The girls friendship. The Older woman mentoring. Little bits of Humor. Liked the Lutheran references to worship.

Couldn't stop listening

It was a great story, with sound theology throughout. I enjoyed the characters and the relationships that unfolded. It was a lovely story to listen to while doing chores!

A little slow to start but a great story

I really enjoyed the narration by Sarah Kramer!! Kudos! Very believable character voices, very smooth narrating through the story. But I had difficulty accepting the basic premise of a future town ruled by a council solely made up of male landowners, who follow ironclad primogeniture rules in which property can only pass to the eldest son. I understand that the intention is to create a “Jane Austen” type society in which the heroine has limited options, but it was too difficult for me to believe. Perhaps if the author had set the story back 70 -100 years ago, the weak, dependent femaie characters might be more believable. But overall it was enjoyable to listen to as it came to a happy ending.

Good characters

I liked the loves story here. David and Lydia are characters you want to root for.

Cozy, effortless read

The book made me laugh, cry, cringe, celebrate and reflect. Beautiful performance by Sarah Kramer. The pace and twists in the story are enough to keep you wanting more without feeling like you’re on a roller coaster or taking an emotional toll on the reader. I’m thrilled to be able to hand this book to my older daughters without hesitation and would recommend to a friend as a cozy, grounding read. If you’re Lutheran, you’ll appreciate the many faithful nods to our beliefs, history and practice. So looking forward to the rest of the trilogy!

Thought Provoking

The setting in the future makes you ponder what might the world be like a hundred years from now. This book is well written and intriguing. I almost finished the book in one day… but my kids wouldn’t allow it.

Clean & Entertaining Romance

I did this one by audio and i thoroughly enjoyed it! As a Lutheran pastor’s wife myself, it was nice to know I wasn’t going to have to deal with anything coming out the book that would make it a DNF for me. It was clean, it was cheesy, it contained some very Lutheran parts and I ate it up. I was more excited to get back to it than I have been for a book in awhile.

It is not heavy on the dystopia part - there are elements of it yes - but it will be interesting to see how it develops as the trilogy goes on.