Saving Grace by Pamela Fagan Hutchins is a fantastic book. My favorite book reading time is after lunch on a Sunday, as it lets me settle down , dig right in and enjoy the book to its fullest. And that's exactly what I did.
Here's the synopsis of the book:
Sometimes the problem with running away is the things you can’t leave behind.
Texas attorney Katie Connell escapes professional humiliation, a broken heart, and her Bloody Mary-habit when she runs to the island of St. Marcos to investigate the suspicious death of her parents. But she trades one set of problems for another when she is bewitched by the voodoo spirit in her abandoned rainforest house and, when worlds collide, finds herself reluctantly donning her lawyer clothes again, to defend her new friend Ava who is accused of stabbing her very married Senator-boyfriend.
While I am a huge fan of Pamela Fagan Hutchins’writing and know all her books are fantastic - Saving Grace simply grabbed my heart! This book had everything that points to a bestseller for me – it has mystery, thrills, romance, a ghost, fantastic characterizations, great writing and the superb brand of humor that's truly and distinctively Pamela. She definitely knows how to make the reader want to turn into the characters and think for them, worry with them, cry with them, celebrate with them, laugh with them and - just be them!
I just loved the flow of the book and didn’t put it down until I (regrettably) finished it. I would keep sneaking looks at the page numbers as I reached the inevitable end. Oh well, my nails are now bitten to the quick and I can safely blame Pamela for that.
When I read a glimpse of Saving Grace in "Puppalicious And Beyond: Life Outside The Center Of The Universe " I thought, how great it would be if this were a standalone story. I am excited that it is not only a book, but a series! There’s nothing more lyrical than knowing that a book I love is going to be a series - because when Pamela writes, I never want the book to end. So get thee behind the book Pamela, and publish!
What really made me fall in love with this book, besides the fact that I adore legal thrillers – mystery, romance, great storyline – was the central character, Katie. She is so real! The bonding between the three friends made me nostalgically think of my own besties and left me in a major feel-good state.
Just some of the things I loved in the book:
- The setting – I really would love to visit the US Virgin Islands now.
- The references to 80’s music. My kinda music. I kept the YouTube page open so I could listen to those much-loved songs again. Yay for those days.
- The Pamela-esque humor: Here’s an example. Katie is thinking: “I had been fighting off the urge to slip my arms around Nick's neck and bite the back of it, but I was aware that most people would consider that inappropriate at work. Pretty small minded of them, if you ask me!"
- The first person writing. Always love it!
- The examples of OCD: “combing the fringe on throw pillows.” “Tangled Fringe” “vacuum backwards because I don’t like how footprints look on the rug.” So hilarious!
- Did you know that when you read on Kindle, you can make your own notes in the book? Yes! I loved finding that out when I accidentally ran the cursor over a patch of text.
- I loved the tension I had as the book came to a close – when Walker had both Ava and Katie in that truck. Thank God for martial arts! Although I admit I felt a little sad when Katie buried her Mother’s ring. Sigh.
- I loved the jumbie spirit of Annalise. I swear I’ve heard true stories of occurrences like that. What can I say? I believe in magic.
- That the dogs were named Cowboy, Laila...
- I loved that Katie sang.
- It was cute to see Katie wavering over Nick – and burying her sim card in a ziplock bag
- Loved the characterization of Ava, Rashidi, Emily and Collin.
Saving Grace is the first book in the Katie and Annalise series. It is also:
- Winner of the 2010 Writers League of Texas Manuscript Contest (Romance)
- Winner “Best Ghost Story” in 2012 from the Houston Writers Guild (adapted excerpt). In addition to appearing in the novel itself, this adaption appears in Ghosts!.
- Right now Saving Grace is no.1 on Amazon.com downloads for free Kindle books and number ONE on Kindle's best free books list, with 33,000 downloads!
I got just one word for Saving Grace – it is...
“Irie!”
So – I am feverishly wondering what the next book in this series will be about. Will Nick feature in it? Will all the other characters continue to be? Will it be about a case Katie takes up? But she doesn’t enjoy practicing law, does she? I guess we’ll just have to wait and find out.
Saving Grace officially launches on November 1, 2012. Do grab the book – if you didn’t already when I urged you to download it for free in my previous post.
Join Pamela’s launch party here - Sadly I guess I’ll just have to be a "jumbie" there!
Pamela Fagan Hutchins writes mysterious women’s fiction. She also writes non-fiction focusing on special needs parenting, blended families, relationships, indie publishing, and athletics. She is an employment attorney, human resources expert, and business owner living in Texas with her husband and hodgepodge of kids and animals.
She blogs at http://PamelaHutchins.com
(Here is my review of Pamela’s delightful book: Puppalicious and Beyond.)
Happy reading!