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Review: Nick of Time, by Tim Downs

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Nick of Time cover artNick of Time, by Tim Downs (Thomas Nelson, 2011)

“The Bug Man is getting married on Saturday … if his fiancée can find him.”

Nick Polchak is a forensic entomologist: he studies bugs, specifically the ones attracted to corpses. One thing these bugs do is help him pinpoint the time of death.

His fiancée, Alena, trains rescue dogs for work sniffing out drugs or finding cadavers. They’re her family. She lives in a locked compound outside of town, and she doesn’t encourage visitors.

For all his eccentricities, Nick shares one thing with most engaged men: the whole wedding preparation thing bores and scares him. Maybe that’s why he insists on leaving town for a cold-case meeting with his colleagues.

It’s the week before the wedding, but he can back the next day. Except one of his friends dies, he clashes with the responding police officer, and things progress from there. Suddenly Nick is following clues that take him farther from home—and his wedding date is getting closer.

When he doesn’t phone her as promised, Alena sets off after him with three of her best dogs. She’s a formidable tracker and good at getting the information she needs, but Nick is on the move and she’s always one step behind.

Page one of the novel hooked me, and page four had me laughing aloud. Yes, Nick works with gross bugs with fancy Latin names, but the story doesn’t have a significant ick factor. (If you hate bugs, you might disagree…) It does have a lot of funny bits, usually to do with Nick’s words and actions.

Nick and Alena are blunt-spoken, borderline socially-dysfunctional characters. I loved reading about them—I want to go back and start the series at the beginning—but I sure wouldn’t want to live with either of them. They’re a good match.

Nick of Time picks up where Tim Downs’ previous Bug Man novel, Ends of the Earth, left off. I was able to pick it up cold and enjoy. If you want to start with book one in the series, look for Shoofly Pie. At Tim Downs’ website, you can read the first three chapters of any of his books.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Review: Words in the Wind, by Yvonne Anderson

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Words in the Wind cover art Words in the Wind, by Yvonne Anderson (Risen Books, 2012)

Words in the Wind is book 2 in the Gateway to Gannah series. Book 1, The Story in the Stars, introduces Dassa, the sole survivor of planet Gannah, and Dr. Pik of planet Karkar. Dassa looks like most humans, but Karkars are taller, with six fingers and toes per hand/foot, and the only emotions they show are through their ear movements. The two planets, Gannah and Karkar, have a bloody history.

I can’t review book 2 without giving spoilers for book 1, so if this is a new series to you, click over to my review of The Story in the Stars. You may want to read that novel first.

[Scroll down for the rest of the Words in the Wind review]

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Words in the Wind takes place 20 years after Dassa, the last Gannahan, is rescued, and 10 years after she and Pik have married. They’re leading a settlement of humans whose goal is to repopulate Gannah according to the Old Gannahan customs, culture and language.

It’s a harsh culture in some ways, based on honour, truth and communal living. Many of the Old Gannahans had embraced Christianity when it was shared from Earth, partly because God (they call Him the Yasha) spoke directly to them. The settlers are Christians as well.

True Gannahans have a meah organ in their brains, allowing them to hear one another as well as God. A Gannahan was never truly alone, until Dassa became the last survivor.

In Words in the Wind, Dassa is stranded on the far side of the planet when her shuttle crashes. The impact damages her meah and she’s cut off from her children and from her God. She must survive in harsh surroundings and find a way home if her people can’t locate her. And she needs to learn to live her faith the way other races do, relying only on the words in the Bible and on God’s providence.

Pik has no contact with her but he’s convinced she’s still alive. Weather and equipment foil his rescue attempts, and the harder he tries to keep the settlers together and to lead in her absence, the worse he seems to do.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. Dassa’s journey is an adventure, and while it’s dangerous, I wasn’t afraid for her. And then there’s the whole rediscovering Gannah aspect: this amazing planet with habitations and archives ready to be explored and put to use. Plus there’s the trust these people (most of them) have in their God to be with them in the hard times and to make a way.

When I reached the end I kept wanting to turn pages but there were no more! I’ll be eagerly waiting for book 3, Ransom in the Rock. In the mean time, if you like Christian science fiction that’s light on the science and more about the people and the planet, I highly recommend the Gateway to Gannah series.

You can learn more about Yvonne Anderson at her website, Y’s Words. Or follow this link for more about the Gateway to Gannah series. Yvonne is also part of the team at Novel Rocket.

[Review copy provided by the author in exchange for a fair review.]

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Review: Death of a Highland Heavyweight, by Jayne E. Self

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Death of a Highland Heavyweight cover artDeath of a Highland Heavyweight, by Jayne E. Self (Harbourlight Books, 2012)

Gailynn MacDonald designs artisan jewellery and works as a medical receptionist in the small seaside town of Hum Harbour, Nova Scotia. She’s perky, impulsive, and afraid of the ocean. And she can’t seem to stop getting involved in murder investigations.

She doesn’t go looking for them, but she does walk the beach each day looking for bits of seaglass to use in her jewellery. That’s how she found the first body (Mystery in Hum Harbour), and it’s what now brings her within earshot of screams from Hunter Hall.

Heavyweight champion Claude Oui (affectionately dubbed “Wee Claude” because of his large size) lies dead in the Hall, his wife Carrie Hunter-Oui helplessly trying CPR.

Claude suffered from post-concussion syndrome, and Gailynn’s fiancé Geoff, the town’s doctor, is afraid he missed a clue that could have saved the gentle giant’s life. Or did Claude trip on the stairs? Or fall victim to the burglar who stole some of Carrie’s collection of frog ornaments?

This last frightens Gailynn most of all, since her young cousin Ashleigh’s boyfriend has been stealing other frog ornaments as gifts. Josh seems like such a nice guy. But what if he’s a murderer?

Gailynn tries to leave the murder investigation to her police officer brother and his team, but she can’t help her suspicions. And she can’t stop asking questions, even though she’s supporting the grieving Carrie (including chairing the Hum Harbour Daze committee) and trying to plan her own wedding.

Death of a Highland Heavyweight is a cozy mystery with a strong sense of place and with characters who could be ordinary people like you or me. Well, not the athletes, but Gailynn, Geoff, Ashleigh and their families are everyday people.

I like Gailynn, with her kind heart, gentle spirit and overactive imagination. I like Geoff, too. He’s a decent man. And I like reading stories set in my home province. Locals like me can hear little things in the dialogue that authenticate Jayne Self’s right to write about us. This was true in Murder in Hum Harbour too. She knows this setting, despite living “away”, and that knowledge adds depth.

I also like the humour. It’s dry, understated, and slips in when you least expect it, adding yet another thread of pleasure to the story. I hope there’ll be a Seaglass Mysteries #3 in the works soon.

Visit Jayne E. Self’s website for more information on the author and her books. You can also find her on Facebook and at Canadian Christians Who Write, where she does regular interviews (including one with me).

[Review copy provided by the author in exchange for a fair review.]

Review: The Soul Saver, by Dineen Miller

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The Soul Saver cover artThe Soul Saver, by Dineen Miller (Barbour Publishing, 2012)

Sculptor Lexie Baltimore has an unusual spiritual gift: some of her creations are commissioned by God. She wakes in the night with a face and possibly a location in her mind, and sculpts that face before the image fades. That person is her next assignment, someone God wants her to help.

Her husband, Hugh, doesn’t share her faith, and he’s swamped by duties at the university where he’s pursuing tenure. He and Lexie don’t have a lot of common ground anymore. When God sends her to meet an attractive, widowed pastor, is she really on the right path? The spiritual battle that ensues has more at stake than the participants realize.

Lexie is stronger spiritually than many of us, but she’s carrying so much pain (and occasional petulance against God) that she never feels unattainably perfect. She, Hugh, and Pastor Nate are so deeply tangled in their own hurts and perceptions that readers can’t help but care about them.

Part of the ammunition Lexie needs to fight this battle comes from a Bible study she attends for women whose husbands don’t share their faith. This is one of Lexie’s deep hurts, but she’s always thought she was the only one in this position. The friends she makes, and the insights she gains in how she’s been relating to Hugh, may well be the difference between the success and failure of her mission.

Some spiritual warfare novels are scary or borderline horror. Not this one. It’s compelling and hard to put down and I wasn’t keen on reading about the demon character right before bed, but I’d call it a safe read. If you like relationship stories or know someone who’s the only Christian in a marriage, this is a novel for you.

Visit Dineen Miller’s website to watch the book trailer or to read an excerpt from The Soul Saver. Dineen Miller is also the co-author, with Lynn Donovan, of Winning Him Without Words, a non-fiction book on how to thrive in a spiritually unequal marriage.

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Review: A Tumbled Stone, by Marcia Lee Laycock

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A Tumbled Stone cover artA Tumbled Stone, by Marcia Lee Laycock (Word Alive Press, 2012)

Andrea Calvert grew up on the Canadian prairies with foster parents who provided for her but were never able to show their love. Now 19 and pregnant, Andrea would rather take her chances alone than live with their silent reproach.

She finds a job and caring friends at Evie’s Diner. Evie, the owner, is a Christian who welcomes the strays she says God sends her. At the moment, that includes Andrea and a young mentally challenged man named Benny, who makes it his mission to protect Andrea’s unborn baby.

Author Marcia Lee Laycock writes with a contagious compassion for her characters. Andrea feels real, as do her foster parents. Edna and Earl aren’t cardboard, rigid people. They’re silent because they’re trapped behind walls of hurt from the past. As Andrea tries to find her own way and the brother she doesn’t know exists tries to find her, this wounded couple move toward finding one another.

The first book in the series, One Smooth Stone, tells the story of Alex Donnolly, Andrea’s older brother, whose experience in foster care was horrific. In A Tumbled Stone it’s good to see how far Alex has come in recovery and in his new Christian faith. He’s a work in progress, and the urgency he feels to find Andrea brings more pressure to bear.

The characters in A Tumbled Stone drew me in. The word “tumble” in the title refers to rock tumbling, which smoothes a stone’s rough edges and texture. Evie makes jewellery from stones, and she tells Andrea “God is always doing things in our lives, but it takes time. He knows exactly when to take the pressure off or to increase it. He knows  just how much tumbling we need.” (p. 76)

Andrea faces more “tumbling” before the book is done.

A Tumbled Stone is a good read that kept calling me back to finish. Marcia Lee Laycock is a gifted writer, and I hope we’ll see more fiction from her. She’s also the author of the non-fiction books Abundant Rain, Spur of the Moment and Focused Reflections. You can learn more about Marcia Lee Laycock and her books at her website.

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A Tumbled Stone, by Marcia Lee Laycock

Fiction by Marcia Lee Laycock

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One Smooth Stone was the best Christian fiction I read in 2007. After a long wait, the sequel is finally out: A Tumbled Stone.

Here’s a refresher on One Smooth Stone, and a link to a review of A Tumbled Stone.

One Smooth Stone is a compelling read about hurt people fumbling toward healing, and about a God who won’t let go.

Marcia Laycock’s writing style is vivid and rich with sensory detail. She draws on her time in the North to evoke a strong sense of place. It would be worth reading just to experience the Yukon setting from our warm living rooms, but she also gives us lifelike characters to root for, suspense, and a puzzle to unravel.

Protagonist Alex Donnelly is a man with secrets, and Marcia Laycock brings them to light slowly, compassionately, and with a defter touch than a debut novelist should have. Alex’s and the other characters’ pain is neither minimized nor exploited, and it’s brought to light in a way that didn’t traumatize this chicken reader.

Hard questions and spiritual issues are treated naturally, with none of the heavy-handed preaching or pat answers found in some Christian novels. The story feels real, and it offers hope.

This is a story for adults, male or female, wounded or whole. You can read the opening chapter of One Smooth Stone here.  [Review copy from my personal library.]

Marcia Lee Laycock is a Canadian writer, speaker and pastor’s wife who lives in Alberta. You can learn more about Marcia and her books (novels and non-fiction) at her website, Vinemarc Communications, and read an interview on the Hot Apple Cider site. A Tumbled Stone, by Marcia Lee Laycock

Laura Davis’ review of A Tumbled Stone at Maranatha News begins like this:

A Tumbled Stone by Marcia Lee Laycock is the much anticipated sequel to One Smooth Stone and it doesn’t disappoint. Laycock is a gifted writer and has written a flawless story that tackles many issues such as teenage pregnancy, abortion, forgiveness and even autism. [Read the full review.]

I haven’t read the novel yet but I’m looking forward to it! Marcia’s books can be ordered through her website or through your regular bookstore.

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Storm Surge, by Rene Gutteridge

Review: Storm Surge, by Rene Gutteridge

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Storm Surge, by Rene GutteridgeStorm Surge, by Rene Gutteridge (Tyndale House, 2005)

FBI Agent Mick Kline is a storm chaser in his spare time. Not that he has much of that these days. The suspect he and his partner have been investigating dies in a suspicious fire, and suddenly his case is tangled with another bureau’s ongoing arson investigation.

The two departments aren’t known for working well together, but a mutual attraction between Mick and his opposite number, Special Agent Libby Lancaster, helps—until she’s sidelined by an injury. Mick’s feelings add another complication: after years of being single, there are now three women on his radar.

At the same time, Mick is receiving anonymous notes that point to a long-ago crime and suggest that a man on Death Row may be as innocent as he claims. Mick needs to uncover the truth before the execution.

There’s much more to this novel, and including flashbacks to the Vietnam War and to the trial that convicted a possibly innocent man of murder. It builds to a life-or-death climax in the heart of a hurricane.

Storm Surge is the third in Rene Gutteridge’s Storm series, and is heavily influenced by Mick’s experiences in the first two novels, Splitting Storm and Storm Gathering. Leave it to me to unintentionally start a series at the end, but everything a new reader needs to know is provided. Mick is an enjoyable character, and I’d like to go back and read the first two novels even though I now have major spoiler information.

The Tyndale House website says Storm Surge is out of print, although there are still copies available through cbd.com. The novel is also available as an ebook.

Besides the Storm series, Rene Gutteridge has written the popular Boo series and other novels. Her first novel, Ghost Writer, releases as a reprint in June 2012.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Review: Gone to Ground, by Brandilyn Collins

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Gone to Ground, by Brandilyn CollinsGone to Ground, by Brandilyn Collins (B&H Publishing Group, 2012)

Amaryllis, Mississippi, is like any other small town. Except for the serial killer.

Gone to Ground opens with an excerpt from the (fictional) Pulitzer-prize-winning article on the first five killings, by local-born journalist Trent Williams. Portions of the article appear throughout the novel to give readers more background.

When a sixth victim is found, three Amaryllis women know who killed her. They each have evidence. They’re each afraid to go to the police. And each one would name a different man.

Brandilyn Collins gives us three vibrant, believable characters: Cherrie Mae is a widow who cleans houses, and she’s getting up in years; Tully is barely 20 and pregnant, with an abusive husband; Deena operates a hairdressing salon and used to be married to one of Amaryllis’ police officers.

The three women take turns telling the story, each one in first person. That doesn’t usually work for me but it does in this story because each of the three has a distinct voice.

Chapter headers tell us who’s sharing this part of the narrative, but I always knew even if I forgot to look. Cherrie Mae, Tully and Deena have similar southern accents, but they’re each so focused on what they know (or fear they know) that it’s easy to tell who’s talking by what they’re talking (and thinking) about.

One thing they agree on: the police chief may be more interested in making an arrest than in getting the right man. Unless they can solve the mystery and present proof he can’t ignore.

Best-selling suspense author Brandilyn Collins is one of my favourites in the genre, and I look forward to each new release. Gone to Ground is a satisfying read with a well-crafted plot and appealing characters. I especially liked Cherrie Mae.

Visit Brandilyn Collins’ website to view a trailer for the novel and read an excerpt.

Other reviews of Gone to Ground: TitleTrakk.com, Reading with Monie, The Suspense Zone (spoiler alert), Book Reviews from an Avid Reader and The Random Thoughts of Crazy Mandy.

[Review copy from my personal library.]

Review: Shades of Truth, by Sandra Orchard

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Shades of TruthShades of Truth, by Sandra Orchard (Love Inspired, 2012)

Kim Corbett works with her brother Darryl at Hope Manor, the youth detention centre founded by their dying father. This is a Christian facility, and it’s recently lost the government funding required to keep in operation. Kim’s so desperate to get the funding back, she won’t say anything that could bring bad press—even if it means keeping quiet when a former resident nearly runs her down.

Ethan Reed was recruited from Toronto’s city police to go undercover at the centre as a new employee. One of the workers is setting the youth up as drug dealers when they get out. And at least one of the small town’s own officers is likely involved.

This is a rough assignment for Ethan, because he’s a former young offender himself. His past lets him bond with the kids, but it brings back a lot of pain he thought he’d already dealt with. Falling for Kim doesn’t make things any easier when he’s convinced himself he doesn’t deserve love and happiness.

Shades of Truth is the second novel in Sandra Orchard’s Undercover Cops series, set in the same town of Miller’s Bay, and readers of the first book will recognize Kim’s friend Ginny, the previous heroine.

It’s a fast-paced read, with believable characters. I like how we get to see the young offenders as real people and not just trouble-waiting-for-a-way-to-happen, and how we see Kim and Ethan each struggling with their own areas of growth.

Shades of Truth will be on-shelf in stores for early March 2012, so now’s the time to get your copy the easy way. If you miss it there, it’ll still be available online in print and ebook formats.

Canadian author Sandra Orchard’s next Love Inspired novel will be Critical Condition, releasing October 2012. You can visit her website, and be sure to check out the fun “extras” for readers of Deep Cover. Sandra blogs at Conversations About Characters, and there’s an interesting interview with Sandra at Fiction Finder and another at Canadian Christians Who Write.

[Review copy provided by the author.]

Review: Medical Error, by Richard L. Mabry, M.D.

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Medical Error, by Richard L. Mabry, M.D. (Abingdon Press, 2010)

Dr. Anna McIntyre is a respected ER surgeon in a Dallas hospital—until she becomes the victim of identity theft. Someone is prescribing narcotics under her ID, maxing out her credit cards, and more. And when her team loses a patient through what looks like medical error, she may be in for a malpractice suit too.

The hospital gives her a two-week “vacation” while their legal experts scramble. Faced with hostile investigators, Anna decides to find the truth and clear her own name. Following up on the autopsy of her dead patient introduces her to Dr. Nick Valentine, and attractive pathologist who wants to help—and soon wants to be more than friends.

Medical Error is a fast read that kept me awake past my bedtime to finish it. And that doesn’t happen often. I liked Anna, Nick and the others, and was sure I’d spotted the villain early on. Naturally, I was wrong.

The novel includes enough medical details for realism, but not enough to make my eyes glaze over. And it’s certainly got me thinking about identity theft and precautions I should take.

Medical Error was a finalist in the 2011 Carol Awards. You can read a sample chapter of Medical Error and learn more about Richard Mabry and his books.

This is the second novel in the Prescription for Trouble series. Different main characters let each title stand alone. I’ll definitely be checking out the other two. Dr. Mabry has also written the non-fiction Tender Scar. 

[Book from my personal library. Amazon link is an affiliate link from the author’s website, with no benefit to me.]