Freefall

GIVEAWAY

HEITZMANN, KRISTEN
FREEFALL

The blow came like the torrent blow, hard and swift and unexpected. She screamed...and fell...

When a young woman stumbles out of the Hanalei Mountains on the island of Kauai with no memory of who she is, Monica Pierce knows she's been brought there by God. Her bother, Cameron, reluctantly agrees to investigate the mysterious circumstances surrounding the stranger's arrival. He suspects her injuries were no accident, but he's far from convinced she's an innocent victim. And there's that nagging feeling he's seen her somewhere before...

Now known as Jade, the woman begins to recall fragments of what led her to this place. Cameron believes the danger isn't over, but she just wants to recover what she's lost. Jade and the cynical investigator attempt to reconstruct the threads of her identity, but the stakes are higher than either expected.

My Review:

Published in 2006 this book is, in a word, mesmerizing. A layered tale of truth and deceit and how they affect relationship. The suspense is enthralling...from the moment Jade staggers out of the jungle until the final resolution, Heitzmann expertly weaves an intriguing mix of clues around a heart-stirring romance. And, oh my, is it ever complicated! She breathes life into her characters. They are realistically flawed, plagued by unique insecurities that motivate their actions for good...or evil. I especially love the depth of connection to God seen in different characters. They don't always get it right but they keep trying. An uplifting and captivating read that I inhaled in one day.

And just because I can totally relate to this line from the book I feel the need to share: "...while he didn't look for God's hand in everything, he paid attention when it slapped him in the face." (p.141) :-)

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of  Freefall please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email address, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday May 8 2016. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

The Breath of Dawn

GIVEAWAY

HEIZTMANN, KRISTEN
THE BREATH OF DAWN

Corporate turnaround specialist Morgan Spencer, dubbed the "success guru," has a Midas touch in business. But losing his wife sent him to the brink, and his two-year-old daughter, Livie, is all he's living for--until they encounter a woman whose trouble just might draw him out of his own.

Four years ago Quinn Reilly did the right thing. Now the man her testimony put in jail is getting out. Though she has put up barriers to protect herself and those around her, she has come to care for the Spencer family, especially the winsome Livie and her mercurial father. Unwilling to put them at risk when the threats begin, she requests something she hopes the super-successful Morgan might be able to deliver.

Fixing problems is what Morgan does best, but his counterproposal takes them in a direction neither is equipped to handle. Determined to confront the past, will they survive to build a future?

My Review:

Complex. Multi-layered. Consuming. I've been wrestling with finding the right words to convey the power and depth of this story for hours. Characters became family and danger became personal.  What a riveting read! I'd have tons to say at a book club meeting but am hesitating here because I don't want to post any spoilers.

One of the things that struck me the most is the incredible characterization. Heitzmann has thought each one through from motive to reaction and on to redemption. Amazing. This reads real.

The suspense is drawn out with expert care. There are scenes I knew were significant early on in the book but I didn't know how they would play out in the full spectrum of things. Thankfully Heitzmann did...and I just have to say 'amazing' again!

If you like depth and spirit paired with romance and hope mixed up in an incredibly suspenseful plot, you are going to love The Breath of Dawn!

Giveaway Opportunity:

If you would like an opportunity to win a copy of The Breath of Dawn, please leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you post a comment and add your email, please use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in the address to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email please remember to put the title in the subject line so that it's easy for me to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Sunday December 16 2012. Offer open to international readers. Good luck!

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.Available at your favourite bookseller from Bethany House, a division of Baker Publishing Group". 

Indelible

GIVEAWAY!

HEITZMANN, KRISTEN
INDELIBLE

In a clash of light and darkness, can courage prevail?

Rescuing a toddler from the jaws of a mountain lion, Trevor MacDaniel, a high-country outfitter, sets in motion events he can't foresee. His act of bravery entwines his life with gifted sculptor Natalie Reeve -- and attracts a grim admirer.

Trevor's need to guard and protect is born of tragedy, prompting his decision to become a search and rescue volunteer. Natalie's gift of sculpting comes from an unusual disability that seeks release through her creative hands. In each other they see strength and courage as they face an incomprehensible foe.

When a troubled soul views Trevor as archangel and adversary, Redford's peaceful mountain community is threatened. Together with Police Chief Jonah Westfall, Trevor presses his limits to combat the menace who targets the most helpless and innocent.

My Review:

Heitzmann has crafted another bestseller with her latest gritty and hard-hitting offering. Gripping suspense, puzzling clues, intriguing characters all cloaked in mystery make this a read to devour. I couldn't put it down. I love the unique spin Heitzmann puts on a suspense -- I was way off course when trying to put the pieces of this puzzle together and that's one of the reason it made reading Indelible so much.

Love the depth of her characters too. From main to secondary, they are all fleshed out with exacting detail. Relationships are never simple but Heitzmann makes it worth the struggle. I had never heard of Natalie's disability before but found her story inspiring. And the way Trevor broke down barriers until he could totally accept it and therefore a relationship with Nattie. Wow. Real-life stuff that breathes fresh life into romantic suspense.

Trevor isn't without his own baggage. He's a tortured soul who struggles with the consequences of past choices. He can't forgive or forget and he's the one he blames. But still, he's made a good life for himself and found a way to bring some normalcy to his life as he commits himself to helping others. The proverbial rescuer. What Heitzmann does with these two characters as she guides them into a relationship is absolutely stunning.

There is nothing typical or predictable about Indelible. It stands on its own as a must read if you love romantic suspense...and even if you don't.

Giveaway Opportunity! : If you would like a chance at winning your own copy of Indelible by Kristen Heitzmann, leave a comment below. The draw will be held on Sunday June 19. Open internationally. And if Blogger is messing with your brain (or your log on) just email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca and let me know you'd like your name added to the draw.

Indivisible

HEITZMANN, KRISTEN

INDIVISIBLE

An inseparable bond. An insatiable force.

Battling his own personal demons, Police Chief Jonah Westfall has experienced the dark side of life and is committed to eradicating it. When a pair of raccoons are found mutilated in Redford, Colorado, Jonah investigates the gruesome act, seeking to unmask the perpetrator before the crime escalates and destroys the tranquility of his small mountain town. Jonah fights for answers -- and his fragile sobriety -- amid a rising drug threat and never-ending conflict with Tia Manning, a formidable childhood friend with whom he has more than a passing history.

But he can't penetrate every wound or secret -- especially one fueled by a love and guilt teetering on madness.

From best-selling Kristen Heitzmann comes a spell-binding tale of severed connections and the consequences of life lived alone.

HEITZMANN HAS LOADED THIS TALE WITH GRITTY REALISM AND CHARACTERS WHOSE LIVES ARE LESS THAN PERFECT. IT IS A HAUNTING, DISTURBING AND ULTIMATELY HOPEFUL READ. THAT BEING SAID, I HAD DIFFICULTY READING SOME OF THE PASSAGES. DETAILS OF THE CRIMES ARE IN NO WAY EXPLICIT BUT MY TRUSTY IMAGINATION KICKED IN AND IT WASN'T PRETTY. BUT I STILL COULDN'T PUT THIS BOOK DOWN.

THE SUSPENSE IS INCREDIBLE AND THE WAY HEITZMANN WEAVES THE SOLITARY LIVES OF THE MULTIPLE CHARACTERS TOGETHER IS SHEER BRILLIANCE. THEY ARE ALL SO DIFFERENT BUT EACH ONE UNCONSCIOUSLY BONDED BY THEIR SOLITARY LIVES. EACH OF THEM IS A DIFFERENT KIND OF LONER, AND FOR DIFFERENT REASONS WHICH WAS REALLY INTRIGUING.

THERE ARE GREAT DETAILS IN THIS BOOK -- THE QUOTES AT THE BEGINNING OF EACH CHAPTER -- THE DEPTH THAT WENT INTO BUILDING CHARACTER BACKGROUNDS -- THE SUBTLE REVELATIONS SCATTERED THROUGHOUT A MYRIAD OF SUB-PLOTS.

IN A WORD: MASTERFUL. READING INDIVISIBLE HAS LEFT ME WITH A LOT TO PONDER.

A Rush of Wings

HEITZMANN, KRISTEN

A RUSH OF WINGS

Though her panic is real, Noelle St. Claire is uncertain what danger she is fleeing. Fragmented images and slivers of memory have driven her to abandon her wealthy, sheltered life for the hope of a haven -- remote and safe.

Noelle's arrival at the Rocky Mountain horse ranch owned by Rick Spencer and his brother Morgan causes more than a little stir. Beautiful, vulnerable, yet strangely secretive, Noelle is an enigma the two contrasting brothers seek to unlock. Is her impenetrable shell protecting her from true danger -- or imagined fears?

ANOTHER EXCEPTIONAL READ FROM HEITZMANN. SHE IS QUEEN OF COMPLEX CHARACTERS AND TWISTY TALES. I LOVE HOW SHE DRAWS OUT THE SUSPENSE, DOLING CLUES OUT PIECEMEAL. IT MAKES ME LEAP TO CONCLUSIONS THAT ARE ONLY HALF-RIGHT AND I'M ALWAYS REFORMULATING MY THEORIES AS I READ.

NOELLE IS A PARTICULARLY COMPELLING CHARACTER. THIS IS ALMOST A SLEEPING BEAUTY TALE AS WE WATCH HER COME AWAKE IN SO MANY WAYS -- THE MOST POWERFUL BEING HER FAITH STORY. YOU HAVE TO ADMIRE HER STRENGTH AND TENACITY WHICH ARE IN STARK CONTRAST TO HER VULNERABILITY. THERE'S A MAGICAL QUALITY ABOUT THE WAY HER STORY UNFOLDS, IT'S PARALLELS TO DESTINY THE HORSE RICK IS TRAINING. AND I LOVED BEING 'PRESENT' AS THE PIECES FELL INTO PLACE.

HEITZMANN TOOK A GAMBLE AND CREATED TWO INTRIGUING POTENTIAL HEROES. IT WAS CLEAR NOELLE WAS GOING TO END UP WITH RICK, BUT MORGAN TUGGED AT MY HEART STRINGS. HE NEEDS A LOT OF WORK, A FEW LIFE-ALTERING MOMENTS AND A DEFINITE REACQUAINTING WITH GOD, BUT HE'S A HERO IN THE ROUGH AND I'M PLEASED TO SEE THAT HE TAKES CENTRE STAGE IN A COMPANION TO THIS BOOK -- THE STILL OF NIGHT.

Halos

HEITZMANN, KRISTEN

HALOS

The halos she glimpsed around the sun was the first sign that this might be it -- the place she was searching for. Filled with hope and promise, Alessi Moore pulls into Charity amidst her first real snowfall. Enraptured by the pure, serene beauty of the little town, she just knows something good is coming.

But her almost heavenly impression is quickly dashed by an unforeseen loss. Left with nothing but the clothes on her back, Alessi is cast into the care of a reluctant party. Yet in a place where nothing could be wrong, darkness sometimes lurks.

WOW!!!! THERE IS SO MUCH I WANT TO SAY ABOUT THIS BOOK I'M NOT SURE WHERE TO START. FIRST OFF, IT WOULD MAKE A GREAT CHRISTMAS READ SINCE IT STARTS A COUPLE OF WEEKS BEFORE CHRISTMAS AND ENDS JUST AFTER CHRISTMAS AND THERE IS AN UNDERLYING MESSAGE OF CHRIST'S LOVE. IN MY MIND IT'S A CHRISTMAS CLASSIC WITH AS MUCH HOLIDAY IMPACT AS IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE. IT HAS THAT KIND OF FEEL TO IT. THE WRITING IS EXQUISITELY DESCRIPTIVE -- IT PLAYED LIKE A MOVIE IN MY MIND AS I READ. HERE'S AN EXAMPLE OF HEITZMANN'S SKILL AS A WORDSMITH:

"SO MANY LIVES HAD TOUCHED HERS AND MELTED AWAY, WALK-ONS IN HER MEMORY. BUT THESE PEOPLE WERE SINKING IN."

HEITZMANN IS ALSO SKILLED AT PACING BOTH HER CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT AND HER PLOT. SHE DOESN'T RUSH HER READERS OR OVERLOAD THEM WITH TOO MUCH INFORMATION. INSTEAD I FOUND MYSELF RELUCTANT TO PUT THE BOOK DOWN BECAUSE I WANTED TO KNOW MORE. WHAT MADE ALESSI AND STEVE REACT TO THINGS THE WAY THEY DID? WHY WAS THE SHERIFF ACTING SO STRANGELY? SOMETIMES THE WHOLE TOWN SEEMED LIKE SOMETHING OUT OF THE TWILIGHT ZONE. WHAT WAS GOING ON HERE? HEITZMANN MADE SURE HER READERS STUCK WITH HER TO THE VERY END BY ARTFULLY CRAFTING A BLEND OF FRIENDSHIP, LOVE AND SUSPENSE THAT CONTINUED TO DEVELOP OVER THE COURSE OF THE BOOK.

ALESSI IS OPEN AND LIKABLE AND VULNERABLE AND KIND...ALMOST TOO INNOCENT FOR THIS WORLD. I WAS IMMEDIATELY DRAWN TO HER CHARACTER AND ENJOYED PUTTING TOGETHER THE PIECES OF HER PAST SO I COULD GET TO KNOW HER BETTER. I LOVED HER FREE SPIRIT -- THE PULL SHE HAD TOWARD HALOS OF LIGHT AND HER SURETY THAT THEY FORETOLD SOMETHING GOOD. SHE CREATED A MAGICAL FEEL TO THE STORY -- A BRILLIANT CHRISTMAS SPIRIT THAT ANCHORS EVERYONE AND EVERYTHING ELSE.

STEVE IS A BEAR. GROWLING, CLUMSY, AWKWARD -- WITH A TALENT FOR SAYING THE WRONG THING. AND CYNICAL. HOW DID HE GET TO BE SO CYNICAL? HE IS CRIPPLED BY HIS INABILITY TO WORK THROUGH PAST HURTS. THEY HAVE WARPED HIS MIND, AND WHILE AWARE OF THAT, HE DOESN'T REALLY WANT TO CHANGE...UNTIL ALESSA COMES TO TOWN. AND EVEN THEN, IT'S NOT SO MUCH THAT HE WANTS TO, BUT THAT IT HAPPENS IN SPITE OF HIMSELF, A LITTLE BIT AT A TIME. AGAIN IN HEITZMANN'S WORDS:

"SHE HAD UNLOCKED HIS HEART AND HIDDEN THE KEY IN HER OWN."

THERE IS A POWERFUL CLIMAX THAT PULLED SO MANY EMOTIONS OUT OF ME. FURY, IMPATIENCE, HORROR, DISBELIEF...HOPE, IN JUST A SPAN OF A FEW PAGES AND THEN, ONCE AGAIN WITH SLOW DELIBERATION, HEITZMANN LEADS HER READERS TO AN EMOTIONALLY SATISFYING ENDING.

THIS WOULD MAKE A FANTASTIC BOOK CLUB CHOICE. THERE ARE SO MANY WONDERFUL THREADS WORTHY OF DISCUSSION -- FROM HOW WE VIEW OUR PLACE IN THE WORLD TO HOW LIFE'S HARSHER MOMENTS DEFINE US AS INDIVIDUALS TO EXAMINING CHRIST'S PURPOSE AND WHAT CAPACITY WE ARE SERVING HIM HERE. THERE ARE JUST SO MANY LAYERS TO HALOS, I THINK IT WOULD INITIATE A VERY ANIMATED DISCUSSION! PLUS, IT WAS PUBLISHED IN 2004 SO IT SHOULD BE EASY TO FIND IT AT YOUR PUBLIC LIBRARY TOO WHICH IS ALWAYS A PLUS FOR BOOK CLUB SELECTIONS.

The Edge of Recall

HEITZMANN, KRISTEN

THE EDGE OF RECALL

Tessa Young is a landscape architect who specializes in the design and creation of labyrinths. For years she has immersed herself in the healing aspects of these elaborate structures, searching for God and hoping to make sense of the nightmares that have plagued her since childhood.

When Smith Chandler, a colleague who once betrayed her, offers an opportunity to reconstruct a remarkable Colonial-era labyrinth, she can't resist this project of a lifetime. But one evening, as dusk falls, an assailant ambushes Tessa and Smith and the real nightmares begins.

OH.....

MY....

GOSH....

THIS WAS SO GOOD I'M SPEECHLESS.

IT WAS SUPERLATIVE. EXCEPTIONAL. INCREDIBLE. ENTHRALLING...OKAY, I JUST FOUND MY VOICE.

HEITZMANN HITS HARD WITH THE SUSPENSE IN THE FIRST CHAPTER -- WHICH ACTUALLY TAKES PLACE ABOUT TWO THIRDS THE WAY THROUGH THE BOOK. TALK ABOUT AN INTRIGUING START THAT PACKS A PUNCH! CHAPTER TWO BEGINS WITH FIVE WEEKS BEFORE...AND WE TAKE OFF RUNNING. I WAS HOOKED FROM PAGE ONE, SO FULL OF QUESTIONS AND RABID FOR THE ANSWERS. THIS ONE HAS A REAL PAGE TURNING, SUSPENSEFUL PLOT COMPLETE WITH UNEXPECTED TWISTS THAT GO ON RIGHT TO THE VERY LAST PAGE. IT'S A MASTERPIECE.

AND THE ROMANCE. OH....MY....GOODNESS...SPEECHLESS AGAIN. TOE-CURLING, SPINE-TINGLING, HYPERVENTALING...THUD!

TO TOP IT OFF, HEITZMANN HAS CREATED VERY COMPLICATED, GRITTY, REAL PEOPLE IN BOTH HER HERO AND HEROINE. TESSA AND SMITH JUST SEEM DOOMED FROM THE START -- LIKE THE ENTIRE COSMOS IS AGAINST THEM. THE INTRICACIES OF THEIR RELATIONSHIP, THE WAY IT DEVELOPS, THE STEPS FORWARD AND SLIDES BACK PULLED THE EMOTION RIGHT OUT OF ME. ASTOUNDING!

THEN THERE'S TESSA'S SEARCH FOR THE PEACE THAT ONLY GOD CAN BRING AND THE MOMENT WHEN SHE FINALLY FINDS IT IS POWERFUL.

IN CASE YOU HAVEN'T FIGURED IT OUT BY NOW -- THE EDGE OF RECALL IS DEFINITELY ON MY MUST-READ-AND-KEEP-FOREVER LIST.