Rutabaga's Reads 2019: Part 3

Welcome to my first inspirational fiction compilation post of 2019. While YA fiction continues to lead my TBR list, this post shows that I continue to read plenty of inspirational fiction as well.

Caught by Surprise (July 31, 2018) by Jen Turano.

*This is the final book in a trilogy.*

In the few years that Temperance Flowerdew has resided in New York City (it’s now 1883), she’s established herself as a quiet, almost meek, member of the Wallflower set. But no more! Since being ousted from the home of her Flowerdew cousins, who despised taking her in in the first place after the untimely death of her parents, she’s been residing and teaching at Miss Snook’s School for the Education of the Feminine Mind. Unfortunately, she’s one day mistaken for her cousin, grabbed off the sidewalk, dumped unceremoniously into a carriage, knocked out with too much sleeping draught and stuffed into a coffin. Although not a damsel in distress, she’s rescued in Chicago by her childhood best friend Gilbert Cavendish. They return to NYC, but not before a member of society observes them talking together un-chaperoned, which prompts talk of engagement. Gilbert is for it; Temperance is adamantly not.

            The drama does not settle upon return to NYC. It’s been heard that someone has a price on Temperance’s head, but why? Pinkerton agents are on-hand to provide protection, and Gilbert and the other men carry at least one weapon on their persons. Amidst the scares, Gilbert accepts swiftly that he would engage himself to Temperance and finds that he cares about her quite a lot, even if he lacks romantic gestures. When Temperance realizes she’d very much miss Gilbert if something happened to him, she turns to denial. He’s always been a friend, even with their years apart, but for him to be something more catches her by surprise.

            As with the other inspirational fiction novels I’ve read by Turano, I found “Caught by Surprise” to be as delightful as a luscious puff pastry. Turano impresses me with the way she creates her lead female characters to be independent and assertive without being annoying. The story never slows down and her plot is multi-layered like a cake, but isn’t mind-numbingly sweet. I very much enjoyed this concluding novel in the Apart from the Crowd trilogy.

            Book One: Behind the Scenes

            Book Two: Out of the Ordinary

The Cost of Betrayal (Sept. 4, 2018) by Dee Henderson, Dani Pettrey and Lynette Eason.

*This is a novella collection featuring three authors.*

This novel is actually a trio of romantic suspense novellas from three bestselling authors of such fiction. Each novella contains characters who’ve experienced betrayal, but also realize the healing power of faith.

1. Betrayed by Dee Henderson.After almost seven years in prison for a crime she didn’t commit, Janelle Roberts has been pardoned. This is thanks, in large part, to Ann Falcon, a retired homicide detective, and her husband, Paul, a current homicide detective. Ann happens upon the murder weapon in a hodgepodge box of items that she bought at an auction. “I found a murder,” she states, but who’s the murderer? With a keen eye, she makes her decision and Paul agrees. Janelle is taken to an island to remain out of the media spotlight, but also to process with the help of Gregory Tate, one of Ann’s contacts. Ann presents her case and how she came to her conclusion, but Janelle cannot accept it.

2. Deadly Isle by Dani Pettrey.A storm is rolling in, effectively trapping residents on an already isolated island. Talbot (fictional) is a small island off the coast of Maryland. Crisfield is the closest town on the mainland, and it’s still an hour’s boat ride away. Tennyson “Teni” Marlena Kent is an officer with the National Resources Police with specialization in underwater investigations, and former flame Callen Frost works as an Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigator. With their work, they have unilateral statewide jurisdiction, which allows them possession of a body until the ME can safely arrive from the mainland. Unfortunately, the body is Teni’s cousin and best friend, Julia, whose death is found to be a murder. But who is the murderer? Talbot is small, and there are only so many places someone can hide, especially during a storm surge. And now, the killer looks to have set murderous sights on Teni. Why?

3. Code of Ethics by Lynette Eason.When a GSW lands Detective Isaac Martinez in the ER, trauma surgeon Ruthie St. John is there to take it cleanly out. Isaac has been a whistleblower to alleged corruption against a coworker. Nobody likes a tattletale, but it’s seen as the worst betrayal to report a colleague. Isaac’s onto something, though, if someone trying to attack him while he’s recovering in the hospital isn’t telling enough. He plans to head off on his own, but Ruthie won’t allow it, for he is her patient, and she doesn’t want him ripping out stitches. At first, Isaac is dismayed to learn Ruthie belongs to those St. Johns. As in, Ruthie’s five other siblings all work in law enforcement, and their mother, Tabitha, is the Chief of Police. He thinks they won’t understand his side of the story, but it’s obvious that he’s greatly underestimated them. The St. John siblings are not all enlisted to help as they show up and help anyway, because that’s what they do as a family. Should Isaac and Ruthie fall in love while seeking evidence they need to end the danger and outrun and capture the killers, well, surely stranger things have happened.
   
   Overall: I am satisfied with my purchase of this novel featuring a trio of romantic suspense novellas. As expected, there is a continuous current of faith running through each story. It’s not usually obvious like if you had a constant surge of static electricity shocks, but more subtle, like the purring of a cat that’s been purring well before you realized it was purring. I couldn’t choose a favorite story between Pettrey’s and Eason’s; I was an equal fan of both. Regrettably, I didn’t care for Henderson’s. I appreciated Ann’s perspective based on years of investigative skills and an objective lens and found plausible Janelle’s perspective, highly subjective though it was. The island was too perfect a place, but what I missed was that there wasn’t a satisfying conclusion to who killed Andrew. Fortunately, I enjoyed the stories of the other two authors enough that I’d pre-order a novella collection from the three of them again without hesitation.

The Lieutenant’s Bargain (Dec. 4, 2018) by Regina Jennings.

*This is the second book in a series.*

When the stagecoach she’s on is attacked, Hattie Walker is left with no food, no money and none of her possessions, not even her oil paints. Hattie runs for her life, spending a cold night outside and praying that the gunman doesn’t find her. Knowing she can’t stay where she is in unfamiliar Indian Territory, she vacates her hiding spot only to encounter a group of Arapaho. Not knowing they’re friendly, she goes the route of difficult houseguest (they do not call her “One Who Spills Stew in Anger” for nothing). She’s rescued by John “Jack” Hennessey, someone she knew in her youth, but does not recognize right away, Jack having gone from nervous nerd to good-looking lieutenant. Jack recognizes Hattie right away, having been smitten with her since they were youngsters. Wanting to be the hero, Jack makes “saving” Hattie a big deal, complete with a ceremony. Unfortunately for him and despite the progress he’s made learning the language, Jack doesn’t realize the ceremony is a wedding ceremony and is binding in the eyes of the Arapaho.

            Once Hattie learns she’s now Mrs. Jack Hennessey, she is understandably dumbfounded and resistant. She and Jack come to a truce in which she’ll act the part of doting wife in public, but she needs put no fronts on when they’re homebound. Jack struggles not to show how much he truly cares for and loves her, because he knows he’ll let her go to Denver as she planned, and he’ll have to be re-assigned so as not to disgrace the Arapaho. Hattie remains resistant until she doesn’t. Until she really takes notice of the man he’s become. Jack is her safety net, especially since the stagecoach robber and murderer is still at large.

            Having read the first story in The Fort Reno Series, I was anticipating this one, as Jack was my favorite character thanks to his comic relief, but I was missing his wit in this story (guess he was too nervous in this installment). Still, I found Book Two in the series to be overall likable. I liked Hattie’s culture shock with being introduced to the Arapaho and then finding herself on a military base, far from her usual comforts. Those experiences encourage new growth in any of us who trek from our norms. Hattie’s character comes a long way in this story, which is her saving grace, as, for much of the story, I found her to be a shallow woman who thought of nothing and no one outside of herself. This story is one of growth, both personal and spiritual, in the context of historical fiction, but with an element of danger, and Jennings assembles it as deftly as Major Adams commands the fort.

            Book One: Holding the Fort