Review: With Every Breath by Elizabeth Camden

Elizabeth Camden has done it again

Elizabeth Camden is fast becoming one of my favourite authors. She’s won well-deserved RITA and Christy awards with her previous novels, and she just keeps getting better.

Kate Norton lost her chance to go to college in 1879 when Trevor McDonough won the scholarship they were both competing for. She has worked as a statistician at the census bureau since then, but is now offered a new opportunity working for Dr T M Kendall at Washington Memorial Hospital, analysing data and predicting trends in health. She is shocked to find Dr Kendall is her high school nemesis, but soon finds there is more to him than she knew.

Trevor is attempting to find a cure for tuberculosis, an infectious and misunderstood disease. He’s convinced that rest, good diet and sunshine are key, but a series of malicious newspaper articles bring the project under scrutiny, and he and Kate have to work together.

I thought everything about With Every Breath was excellent—the characters (especially the brilliant but socially awkward Trevor), the plot, and especially the writing, which was a masterful exercise in restraint in the way so much was happening beneath the text. With Every Breath is Christian fiction, although the faith elements are understated.

The information around tuberculosis gate a poignant and bittersweet note to With Every Breath, because I knew Dr Kendall wasn’t going to discover the cure. My great-grandfather, a postman, died of pulmonary tuberculosis and exhaustion on Christmas Day 1925, and Her Daughter's Dream by Francine Rivers (and based on her family history) featured a character suffering from the disease in the early 1950’s. Reading this made me thankful for the men and women like Kate and Trevor who have dedicated their lives to finding cures for horrible diseases over the years. Recommended.

Thanks to Bethany House and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review. You can find out more about Elizabeth Camden at her website.

New Releases: August 2014

It's a new month, which means the fabulous Ellie Whyte has another New Releases post up at Soul Inspirationz, and offering another bumper load of book giveaways! Enter at her website.



I'll be reviewing several of these books, including With Every Breath by Elizabeth Camden, and The Hesitant Heiress by Dawn Crandall (both excellent!).

Review: Out of Hiding by Rachel Dylan

Enjoyable Debut

Sadie Lane is a private investigator with a mission: to bring down the man who gunned down her parents when she was eight, and left her an orphan in the Witness Protection scheme—and with an abiding distrust of the FBI, who she sees as failing her family. Enter FBI agent Kip Moore, who she is forced to work with—and who might just change her mind. They are both on the trail of the same man, and the race is on to find a missing girl before they are exposed.

I’m a long-standing fan of romantic suspense, but haven’t always been impressed with the offerings from Love Inspired Suspense. I can see they are written to a definite structure (surely it’s not coincidence that they all have ten chapters?), and this can work against them. Not so with Out of Hiding. It started with a blast (well, actually with a gunshot), and the pace didn’t let up as it moved from Texas to Mexico, and then to the one place Sadie had promised never to go.

I liked both the lead characters—always important in a romance. It took a long time for each of them to get over their initial distrust, but the ending was worth the wait. My one grouch is that in the first portion, Sadie in particular was so busy being suspicious of Kip that she missed the obvious link between their cases (and so did he). They got there, and the story continued it’s fast pace, and managed to surprise me with an unexpected plot twist more than once. An enjoyable first novel, and I’ll look forward to reading more from Rachel Dylan.

Thanks to the author for providing a free ebook for review. You can find out more about Rachel Dylan at her website.

Author Interview: Rachel Dylan

Today I'd like to welcome American author Rachel Dylan. Her debut novel, Out of Hiding, has recently been released by Love Inspired Suspense (very good—I'll be reviewing it tomorrow). Welcome, Rachel.

First, please you tell us a little about yourself. Where are you from?

I write inspirational romantic suspense. I live in Atlanta, Georgia with my husband and five furry pets. I was born in Georgia, but have lived in a few different states. I enjoy the warm weather in Atlanta though!

What motivated you to start writing?

I actually started writing at a very young age. When I was in elementary school, I wrote some short stories, and I loved to write poetry. It wasn’t until the past few years that I wrote my first novel.

What kind of books do you write? Where and when are they set?

I write contemporary romantic suspense. My stories usually have law enforcement/military type characters. So far the stories I’m working on are set in the United States in various cities, but I’d like to write a story that has international elements soon.

Tell us about Out of Hiding. Who will enjoy it?

Out of Hiding is about a private investigator named Sadie Lane and FBI agent Kip Moore. Sadie comes face to face with the man who murdered her parents—who is now running an organized crime network. I think those people who enjoy suspense novels with twists and turns and a sweet romance will enjoy it.

Where did the characters and story come from? What were your influences?

You know, I really don’t know where any of my characters come from. It’s just part of having an active imagination and a healthy dose of creativity. While I’m influenced by other books I read, I try to bring my own self and journey into everything I write.

Who is your favourite character and why? Do you have anything in common with him/her?

This is a tough one! My heroine Sadie Lane is probably my favourite. She struggles on a difficult journey in the story. Trying to get past the death of her parents and trying to manage the feelings of revenge she has toward the man that killed them. Sadie and I don’t have a lot of commonalities except our faith and our commitment to our careers.

I see on your website you have shots of your pets (furkids), and your characters also have pets. Is this a coincidence? Are they actually your pets?

I love adding animals to each story. I did name the animals in this book after my own because I love the names so much :) My furkids are very special to me, and I love supporting animal rescue organizations.

What are you working on at the moment? What other books do you plan to write?

I am currently working on a story about a forensic sketch artist and U.S. Marshal. I have tons of ideas for other books, it’s just a matter of finding the time to fit it all in.

There is a view that Christians shouldn’t write novels: they should write non-fiction, because this is truth while fiction, made up stories, are lies. What is your opinion of this?

I don’t agree with that opinion. I think my creativity is a gift from God, and I embrace it.

What made you choose to write for the Christian market?

I saw that Love Inspired Suspense was having a writing contest. I had always thought about trying to write a Christian romance novel, so I decided to give it a try. I am so glad I did!

What do you see as the main differences between fiction written for the Christian market compared with the general market?

I think the main difference is that there is a certain content expectation for the Christian market regarding the level of romance, language, behaviour etc.

Why have you chosen to write category romance? Do you think you will stick with category, or will you move into full-length novels?

For now, I’m focused on category because I’d like to really get a few of those published first. But I would be interested in branching out to full-length novels.

People often criticise romance novels (and especially category romance) for being formulaic. Is there a formula? Does this make it easier or harder to write a novel that is accepted for publication?

I wouldn’t say it’s a formula so much as an expectation that the story will have certain elements. Readers of category romance are very loyal and they know what they like. Therefore, the book needs to fall into those parameters. For a new author, it does take some time to make sure your story fits into the line you are writing for (in my case Love Inspired Suspense). Reading other books in the line helps with that.

What has been the hardest part of getting a book written, edited and published?

I think the waiting! The publishing journey in general is a lesson in patience. I’ve learned that while you’re waiting to hear about one book, it’s best to start writing the next one.

What advice do you have for someone seeking to write and publish a novel?

Write, write, write. And read, read, read. I believe hard work and dedication are also key ingredients to becoming a published author.

You can find me at www.racheldylan.com or email me at racheldylanauthor@gmail.com. I’d love to hear from readers. I’m also on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RachelDylanAuthor and Twitter @dylan_rachel

Out of Hiding is available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Christian Book.

Thank you, Rachel, for joining us today, and best wishes for the success of Out of Hiding.

Review: When I Fall in Love by Susan May Warren

Yum!

When I Fall in Love is the third book in Susan May Warren’s Christiansen series, following Take a Chance on Me (2014 Christy Award winner) and It Had to Be You. When I Fall in Love is about daughter Grace, who wants to be a chef. It’s set partially in Deep Haven, so there are some mentions of characters from the Deep Haven series. But it’s also partly set in beautiful Hawaii, where Grace participates in a cooking contest with hunky hockey player Max Sharpe. Hawaii and food. What’s not to love?

Despite the title, When I Fall in Love wasn’t the standard lightweight romance (Susan May Warren novels never are). There are family complications in the relationship between Max and Grace, one of whom is Owen, Grace’s younger brother, who used to play on the same pro hockey team as Max. The other complication is Max, who has decided never to marry because of his family history. There’s also a subplot featuring Raina Beaumont (Liza’s niece, from Happily Ever After), and this looks as though it’s setting up the next novel in the series.

I’ve read a few foodie novels over the last few months, including A Table by the Window, While Love Stirs, and Stones for Bread. They’ve all been excellent, as is When I Fall in Love. Is there some kind of subliminal message there? I even highlighted her sauce recipe: brown sugar, molasses, honey (that’s three kinds of sugar. It sounds good already), Worcestershire sauce, mustard, liquid smoke, salt and pepper. Yum. It’s not exactly barbecue season here in New Zealand, but I’ll have to try this sometime.

However, it’s not the food that most impresses me about Susan May Warren’s writing. It’s the way she manages to seamlessly integrate solid Christian principles into her novels without ever sounding preachy. In When I Fall in Love, it’s Grace who has the spiritual lesson to learn, a lesson about abiding in Jesus and not just following Him. It’s a lesson we can all benefit from. Recommended.

Thanks to Litfuse Publicity for providing a free ebook for review. You can find out more about Susan May Warren at her website. Susan May Warren has a giveaway to celebrate the release of When I Fall in Love. To enter, either click on the giveaway button to the right, or visit yesterday's giveaway post.