Serials and Scenarios ~ Brandilyn Collins's Dark Justice ~ Review

This week, the Christian Fiction Blog Alliance is introducing Dark Justice B&H Books (October 1, 2013) by Brandilyn Collins

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Brandilyn Collins is a best-selling novelist known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense®. These harrowing crime thrillers have earned her the tagline "Don't forget to b r e a t h e . . ."® Brandilyn's first book, A Question of Innocence, was a true crime published by Avon in 1995. Its promotion landed her on local and national TV and radio, including the Phil Donahue and Leeza talk shows. Brandilyn's awards for her novels include the ACFW Carol Award (three times), Inspirational Readers' Choice, and Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice.

Brandilyn is also known for her distinctive book on fiction-writing techniques, Getting Into Character: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn From Actors (John Wiley & Sons). The Writer magazine named Getting into Character one of the best books on writing published in 2002.

When she's not writing, Brandilyn can be found teaching the craft of fiction at writers' conferences.

ABOUT THE BOOK

If I’d had any idea what those words would mean to me, to my mother and daughter, I’d have fled California without looking back.

While driving a rural road, Hannah Shire and her aging mother, who suffers from dementia, stop to help a man at the scene of a car accident. The man whispers mysterious words in Hannah’s ear. Soon people want to kill Hannah and her mother for what they “know.” Even law enforcement may be involved.

The two women must flee for their lives. But how does Hannah hide her confused mother? Carol just wants to listen to her pop music, wear her favorite purple hat, and go home. And if they turn to Hannah’s twentyseven- year-old daughter, Emily, for help, will she fall into danger as well?

Pressed on all sides, Hannah must keep all three generations of women in her family alive. Only then does she learn the threat is not just to her loved ones, but the entire country . . .

If you'd like to read the first chapter of Dark Justice, HERE.

MY REVIEW: Brandilyn Collins's Dark Justice is a whiplash read. From the first page Collins begins building tension as the reader is introduced to the main character, Hannah, and her mother who is fading into dementia. The opening pages are a mere shadow of Hannah's trials. As Hannah and her mom head for home after a relaxing weekend away, trying to forget that the future holds a lot of confusion and sadness, they happen upon a wreck. A whispered request from the wounded man turns their lives upside down and inside out as they are put into a cat and mouse game that will require every ounce of Hannah's strength and courage. When Hannah's daughter Emily gets involved the stakes zing higher. And the body count grows. The resolution offers a peek into an uncomfortable place for anyone concerned about the reality of terrorism or our dependence on anything outside of God. This is a terrific edge of seat read that may cause the reader to lose some sleep. Collins has loaded the novel with realistic characters who are facing the things that many face on a daily basis, and a compelling and comforting message.