Title: Burning Justice
Author: Helena Smreck
Genre: Romance
Rating: 1.5/5
# pages: 301
Date read: March, 2015
Pacifist Mennonite social worker Nora Martin is on the verge of opening a residential facility for first-time offenders. After years of planning, she'll finally be able to rescue young men from the violence of prison... or what has been their only other option, the violence of the military.
But then a stranger in camouflage and combat boots marches through her front door and claims to own her house. And he's not interested in letting Nora change it.
Who is Petty Officer Jacob Schwartz, and why does no one in the close-knit town of French Lick, Indiana want to acknowledge that he exists? What are they hiding? What had seemed like a safe community is now full of secrets and old heartaches, and Nora is caught in the dangerous middle. Her only ally is her best friend, FBI agent Alicia Yu, but even Alicia can't protect her from the way Nora's heart races every time Jacob's in the room.
Can she trust a man in uniform?
Nora and Jacob's choices have taken them down different paths, but God may still show them a safe way back.
I was contacted by the author for an honest review.
As I started reading "Burning Justice", I didn't really know what to think of it. I liked the plot well enough - small-town secrets are always a great way to pull me in - but thought the writing left quite a bit to be desired, as it seemed to occasionally get in the way of itself, with flowery passages and sometimes awkward imagery like "With a speed of a new laptop, I memorized other details that would possibly be useful in the future police report" and "The deep remorse and guilt I felt when I went to the hospital were only the messengers of a new heartbreak now on the horizon of my soul. They were like the sunrise in a barren desert, heralding the arrival of scorching heat that would bring death to those who dared to venture out unprepared". But though eye-roll inducing in places, it wasn't bad enough for me to actually put down the book, and I read the first 50-60% of the story pretty quickly, despite such dubious moments as the suddenly political twist, and when an FBI agent couldn't stop Nora from contaminating a crime scene.
However, at about the half-way point, it turned out that I'd entered into the book with completely wrong expectations. The novel was described as a "romantic suspense novel" and where my mind immediately focused on the "suspense" part, it really is first and foremost a romance novel. And unfortunately the romance part didn't really work for me. There was too much telling, and too little showing, so while I could believe in lust/attraction at first sight between Nora and Jake (as proven by phrases like "His good arm briefly caressed my back, and I felt as if my deepest cravings were satisfied), I never bought into there being any real feelings between them -- they barely spoke throughout the book and hardly knew anything about each other -- which made the ending both too saccharine and too unbelievable for my tastes.
At the end of the day I do think that Helena Smreck shows potential though, and my problems with the book are nothing that a good editor can't fix. So if you like romance novels, do check her out in the future. But if you found yourself wincing at the passages I quoted, better give this one a miss.
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Title: Månen over Østerbro (Lover's Moon)
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