"Shattered Peace is the heartbreaking story of families torn apart in the aftermath of World War I. Set in a small Washington town, this dual timeline novel follows the lives and tragic deaths of soldiers haunted by their memories of war. Inspired by real events, Julie Zander unveils a century of secrets through past and present characters, skillfully revealing the corruption of power on both sides of Centralia’s gut-wrenching massacre. A poignant historical exposé about a mob lynching in Centralia and a compelling tribute to the soldiers who lost their lives more than a hundred years ago during their Armistice Day Parade. 

~ Melanie Dobson, award-winning author of Catching the Wind and Memories of Glass.

Julie Zander has penned an incredible dual-time story with nuance, empathy, and insight toward war veterans in both the past and the present. She explores the 1919 Centralia Tragedy, a violent conflict between Great War veterans and the Wobblies, and sheds light and eventually hope for victims of trauma and wounds of all kinds, no matter the century or circumstances. Her storytelling is timeless—and exactly what we need today.

~ Leslie Gould, award-winning author of A Brighter Dawn 

Shattered Peace is a great read. It also achieves something remarkable: bringing to vivid life the real experiences—sweet and sad, violent and victorious, hard-charging and heartbreaking -- of the kinds of people who surely surrounded and had their lives forever changed by ""the battle of Centralia,"" when men were shot down on the street, armed militias roamed the town, and city fathers hung a man from a bridge in the last lynching ever to take place in Washington state. 

I've studied the history of this event for more than 20 years, but it's never been as real to me as when I read this book. Her treatment of all sides is compassionate and understanding. Out of divisions that have lasted a century, she sees a path to peace, forgiveness and even love.

~ Brian Mittge, author of Framing Tragedy: The Chronicle Chronicle’s Changing View of Its 1919 Hometown ‘Massacre’ and co-author of George Washington of Centralia

Shattered Peace, the second novel by journalist Julie McDonald Zander, holds multiple layers in its title. A contemporary setting features a woman veteran battling the scars of war as she claims her ancestors’ home. The diary she discovers opens the unspoken horrors of an actual event, the Centralia Tragedy of 1919 and the bloody clash of labor and World War I veterans in the streets of a small American town.

The themes of secrets and post-traumatic stress resonate through this action-packed, white-knuckle historical novel. Zander’s journalistic research and her intense plot development make Shattered Peace an unforgettable novel—that rings very close to truth and a shattered peace in all of us.

Sandra Crowell, author of The Land Called Lewis and The Ravaged Forest 

Author Julie Zander has taken a piece of Centralia's little spoken of past and beautifully woven fact with fiction to create a compelling story. The back and forth in time is masterfully done and readers will fall in love with her well-developed characters. I eagerly look forward to reading more of Ms. Zander's work.

~ Barbara Tifft Blakey, author of The Angel of Second Street

In Shattered Peace, Ms. Zander brings to life the details of horrific events in Centralia, Washington, in November 1919. Two polarized factions were at odds with each other—wealthy, unsympathetic lumber barons and union members who wanted better working conditions. While both sides had valid points, their attempts to handle those differences with violence left five people dead.

I was drawn into the story from page one, and it has stayed with me since. The story line was well written and easy to follow. The characters were both believable and relatable. Though some of the subject matter was hard to read, I’m glad I read it.

Ms. Zander brings other true-to-life events into the narrative, such as the Spanish Flu epidemic and a contemporary story involving a female Seabee and the struggles she faces with PTSD. I highly recommend this thought-provoking book that makes one look inward and assess the things in life that really matter.

~ Debby Lee, author of Beneath a Peaceful Moon