Review: The Celtic Stone by Nick Hawkes

Warning: Biased review ahead

(I edited The Celtic Stone.)

Chris Norman finds himself in possession of a strange object after almost losing his life in an airplane crash. It’s a celtic cross, and this leads Chris on a journey to the Isle of Skye, where he has inherited the croft his forebears farmed, and where he still has one distant relation. That relation is a small boy, Ruan, and Chris arrives on Skye to find himself the next-of-kin to a complete stranger.

Morag Daniel has retreated to her family home on the Isle of Skye after being blinded four years ago. She has taken Ruan in following the death of his father, and is suspicious of this newcomer, but finds herself drawn to him as they work together to keep Ruan in his home community, find the story behind The Celtic Stone, and fight for their island family.

The twisting and turning plot is one of the strengths of The Celtic Stone. The other is the characters. These are, without exception, well-drawn with real personalities: likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses. The plot has complexity not always found in Christian fiction, and the writing is strong and occasionally beautiful. Nick Hawkes has a background as a research scientist and a pastor, and both come through in his writing. The Christian aspects have the ring of a pastor and teacher, and there is a real gentleness in the way different characters experience and present their faith journeys.

The Celtic Stone is the first book I have edited by Nick Hawkes, and you’ll have to believe me when I say the next two have equally compelling characters, with strong suspense plots, a solid Christian message and a touch of romance.

There seems to be a small but growing readership for Christian novels with unique settings, and I consider The Celtic Stone to be a valuable addition to that genre. Of course, I worked with the author on the editing, so there is the slightest chance I'm biased ...

You can find out more about Dr Nick Hawkes at his website.

Review: A New Resolution by Rose Dee

Anika Demeur has always been determined to escape the curse of teenage pregnancy and solo parenthood, but still finds she is repeating her mother’s mistakes. Together with her son, Kye, she accepts a job on Resolution Island on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef. Life is good, until a letter—and the arrival of a rich Texan—threaten everything. Nate is on a mission to fulfill his mother’s last wish. But he didn’t anticipate that keeping this promise would mean getting involved in illegal fishing, a murder—and an unexpected attraction to an exasperating woman who doesn’t want anything to do with him.

Now, there is a small chance I’m biased here (because I worked with Rose Dee on the editing), but I really enjoyed A New Resolution. The characters are strong, the plot interesting, and I especially like the way the Christian elements were integrated into the story, in a way that felt quite realistic, without preaching or moralising.

I also enjoyed the developing relationship between Ani and Nate, the way the attraction was developed into a friendly relationship before either of them acknowledged that there might be something more than mere attraction. And the first kiss was great.

In real life, things aren’t always perfect and people are a little rough around the edges, and A New Resolution reflects the Australian spirit well. It is an enjoyable and original novel, with a unique and beautiful setting. A New Resolution is the final book in the Resolution trilogy, following Back to Resolution and Beyond Resolution. However, it can easily be read as a stand-alone novel. Recommended.

Thanks to Rose Dee and Even Before Publishing for providing a free ebook for review. You can find out more about Rose Dee at her website.

Review: The Greenfield Legacy by Meredith Resce, Paula Vince, Amanda Deed and Rose Dee

Mattie’s life changed when her fiancé didn’t come back from Vietnam. She was forced to give up their baby daughter for adoption, and has never forgotten her, despite her marriage to (and divorce from) Doug, the birth of her second daughter, Connie, and her successful management of the family vineyard, the Greenfield Estate. But now she has been contacted by the daughter she gave up.

Connie has always resented her mother for breaking up their family, but neither her husband, Dennis, nor her daughter, Brooke, understand her drive to succeed. When her mother calls and asks her to visit, she resists but goes at the insistence of Dennis and Brooke. But when Connie arrives, she finds more than she expected.

Brooke is currently studying fashion design, and it looks like this will be the fourth course she drops out of. She jumps at the chance to visit Grandma Mattie and the Greenfield Estate—and to reconnect with Aiden, the boy she left behind. But will their history be too much to get over?

Navy is Annette’s daughter, but hasn’t seen her mother since she abandoned their family years ago. Now Annette is ill and has asked to see Navy again, to reconnect with her daughter. When Navy arrives, she meets the grandmother she never knew she had—and a new aunt and cousin who are not pleased to meet her.

Four women, with four very different backgrounds, all related in some way to Annette, and all struggling to understand what those relationships mean. Will they be able to move past their issues to restore broken relationships and find love? The Greenfield Legacy is a fascinating mix of relationships and romance, with an underlying Christian message, and its’ share of humour.

At first I thought The Greenfield Legacy was going to be a four-in-one novella collection, but it isn’t. It’s a single novel, with each of the four points of view written by a well-known Australian Christian fiction authors. I have to really congratulate them on how well the stories fit together – I was able to pick who wrote which bit (will you?), but if I hadn’t known, I would have thought it was all written by one person. Recommended.

Thanks to Even Before Publishing for hiring Christian Editing Services to proofread The Greenfield Legacy.