Kelly Irvin

With its fast, unrelenting pace and irresistible characters, the pages flew by!

A Deadly Wilderness, the debut Christian romantic suspense novel by veteran author Kelly Irvin, updated and re-released, is an absorbing tale of police work and personal relationships. The compelling story is sure to grab readers from the start and not let go until the final page. With its fast, unrelenting pace and irresistible characters, the pages fairly flew by.

Set in San Antonio, Texas, the story looks at the murder of the youngest son of a prominent local family in one of the city’s many public parks. Partner homicide detectives Ray Johnson and Deborah Smith lead the investigation when Ray discovers the body while hiking in a park’s wilderness area. They are under pressure from city leaders to find the killer because of the victim’s father’s political connections.

The partners’ relationship is a complicated one. Newly assigned as a team, neither one is familiar nor comfortable yet with the other. She sees Ray as a “Bible Boy” or “Jesus Freak,” and he knows she has a problem with alcohol and men. This situation made for compelling reading, wondering how it would all work out.

Deborah Smith is a strong woman, but her early and meteoric rise through the ranks to her current position has taken her to the edge of burnout. Ray Johnson is a strong and forthright hero who is carrying a torch for his immediate supervisor’s sister, Susana, with whom he has a history. Susana Martinez Acosta has her hands full. A widowed former firefighter, she’s going to school in preparation for a career change, caring for two small and active boys, and making ends meet while torn by grief for a fallen husband and guilt over her interest in Ray. Long undisclosed backstories for several of the characters confused me, making me wonder if there was a previous book to this one that I had overlooked.

Besides the murder, the story examines several troubled relationships and heavy topics such as adultery and alcoholism. However, the plot remains fast-paced, with the killer just out of reach of the investigators. The villain is suitably evil, and I was on the edge of my seat for Ray and Deborah to unmask and stop him as soon as possible. The detectives are persistent, and a couple of twists kept the story extra exciting.

I recommend A DEADLY WILDERNESS to readers of contemporary Christian fiction, romantic suspense, and mystery, especially those interested in San Antonio or locations in Texas and fans of the author’s other work.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author through Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours.… (mehr)

This was a truly new experience for Christian fiction and I don't mean that in a good way.
You may think this is a suspense book, but you'd only be partly right. First and foremost, it is a book meant to push liberal views in your face constantly. There was extreme steryotyping done of those with opposing viewpoints and the characters are not tolerant in the slightest.
Note to the main character: Show me why you believe what you believe instead of lecturing on why someone is a bad person if she doesn't believe what you believe.
I quit 1/3 of the way through because I could not take any more of that crap.

1 Star

Content (up to 33%): many mentions of suicide, comments about race, LGBT, global warming (Greta Thunberg also), steryotyping of Muslims… (mehr)

Well, this book jumped right into the action. No worries about a slow book if you pick up Closer Than She Knows. However, it did seem a tiny bit abrupt to me.

While this was a good book, it was not for me. A large part of that had to do with the characters. It was difficult for me to relate to them. (It was just a personality thing between me and the characters.)

The writing was typical of Kelly Irvan and I enjoyed getting to read it again.

I do NOT ship Teagan and Max. Don't ask me why, it is difficult to explain. I think it may have to do with the different opinions of the characters. Some different opinions are good but they had a lot of differences with political stuff.

Since I mentioned politics, I might as well mention it more. There was A LOT of talk about guns and the Second Amendment. The talk did show both sides, which was good, but still, a lot of political talk.



Rating: 3/5

Language: n/a

Romance: one kiss (very non-detailed)

Spiritual: Max is a paster

Violence: a book about a serial killer, need I say more?



*I received a copy of this book from the publisher. All thoughts are my own and a positive review was not required.… (mehr)

What a heartrending story encompassing the hard subjects of a cancer diagnosis, divorce, estrangement, and spiritual questioning.
The characters and situations came across as very realistic. I applaud the author for using her own cancer experience to enlighten her audience. She truly has made lemonade out of lemons.
Forgiveness is a big theme as was getting your priorities straight, living in the moment and actively loving your family. It was told in several voices. Kristen was an oncologist who wholeheartedly gave to her patients. But she learned that she could not do enough when the patient was her sister, Sherri. The story showed how cancer affects the whole extended family, not just the person with the diagnosis.
Recommended for fans of women’s fiction.
*i received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.*… (mehr)