The Separatists by Lis Wiehl, Sebastian Stuart
Published by HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Thomas Nelson on June 27, 2017
Genres: Fiction, Mystery & Detective, Women Sleuths
Pages: 340
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When America is threatened from within on a scale not seen since the Civil War, Erica Sparks is on the front lines reporting. But what can she do to stop it?
Star newsmaker Erica Sparks is in Bismark, North Dakota, covering the first recall of a governor in that state since 1921. Mary Bellamy, who is trying to unseat the current governor, keeps talking about going through the political process to gain more freedom for the state. She seems peaceful and level-headed . . . but with other secessionist groups making noise around the country, Erica can’t help but wonder what Mary’s goal really is.
Then Erica receives a desperate call from a woman downstairs in the lobby of her hotel. Erica goes down to meet her and discovers the woman in the ladies room with her throat slit. There’s obviously more going on here–and someone doesn’t want Erica looking below the surface.
Meanwhile, Erica’s marriage to Greg Underwood seems headed for disaster . . . and her relationship with her teenage daughter Jenny may not be far behind.
Erica feels a civil war looming in her own home, and all the signs indicate that military action will be required in North Dakota. And then she discovers that the threat to all Americans is even greater than anyone imagined. Can she find the answers to save her family and her country in time?
I first read Lis Wiehl’s book, The Newsmakers, back in 2016 (see review HERE). Next, in 2017, I read her second book in the series, The Candidates (see review HERE). The third book in the series had already come out by that time so I was running behind. Now, I’m going to share with you about the third and final book in this series – The Separatists by Lis Wiehl.
Erica Sparks is the protagonist of this series. She’s a successful national news reporter starting a new investigative news program. Erica’s first story is about a secessionist group headed by charismatic Mary Bellamy called Take Back Our Homeland. The group wants the state of North Dakota to secede from the United States and form their own independent nation. It’s very clear that the group is very well organized and they’ve obviously been working quietly behind the scenes toward their agenda for quite some time – this group is not what they seem to be. It doesn’t take long before the whole situation with the succession becomes explosive and gains the attention of the entire country. Of no surprise is the fact that Erica finds herself right in the center of things.
The Separatists was a great read full of suspense. I loved the personal issues in Erica’s own personal life, including the problems developing with Erica’s new husband, Greg Underwood, and her teen daughter, Jenny. Because I’ve read the previous two books from this series, I look back and have to wonder why a savvy news reporter like Erica could come off so clueless when she keeps trusting the wrong people. You’d think she would have figured out her own tendency to trust folks too easily since she keeps getting hurt because of it!
Regardless, I will say that all of the books in the Newsmakers series are great reads and I would definitely recommend the series to folks looking for contemporary suspense stories. While this book is part of a series, I really feel it could stand on its own if a reader hadn’t read the previous books. The story is fast paced and the characters are well written. I found the plot in this political thriller to be unique and full of suspense. It really made me think if the events could possibly really happen in real life.
As it turns out, on September 11, 2018, you will be able to buy The Newsmakers Collection: The Newsmakers, The Candidate, The Separatists in Kindle Edition!! Click the link: HERE.
Lis Wiehl is one of the nation’s most prominent trial lawyers and highly regarded commentators. Currently, she is the legal analyst and reporter on the Fox News Channel and Bill O’Reilly’s sparring partner in the weekly “Is It Legal?” segment on The O’Reilly Factor. Prior to that she was O’Reilly’s co-host on the nationally syndicated show The Radio Factor. She is also a Professor of Law at New York Law School.
Prior to joining Fox News Channel in New York City, Wiehl served as a legal analyst and reporter for NBC News and NPR’s All Things Considered. Before that, Wiehl served as a Federal Prosecutor in the United States Attorney’s office.
Wiehl earned her Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School and her Master of Arts in Literature from the University of Queensland. Wiehl is also the author of The 51% Minority, which won the 2008 award for Books for a Better Life in the motivational category, and Winning Every Time. She lives in New York.
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I received a copy of this book without cost from the publisher through The Fiction Guild, a Thomas Nelson/Zondervan Elite Reader book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.
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