I was recently sent a copy of Heather Gudenkaufs'One Breath Away'to review, and was lucky enough to be asked to be a part of Heathers promotional blog tour. My review will follow later today, but in the meantime, you can learn a little more about the book from the excerpt and guest post below.
In the midst of a sudden spring snowstorm, an unknown man armed with a gun walks into an elementary school classroom. Outside the school, the town of Broken Branch watches and waits.
Officer Meg Barrett holds the responsibility for the towns children in her hands. Will Thwaite, reluctantly entrusted with the care of his two grandchildren by the daughter who left home years earlier, stands by helplessly and wonders if he has failed his child again. Trapped in her classroom, Evelyn Oliver watches for an opportunity to rescue the children in her care. And thirteen-year-old Augie Baker, already struggling with the aftermath of a terrible accident that has has brought her to Broken Branch, will risk her own safety to protect her little brother.
As tension mounts with each passing minute, the hidden fears and grudges of the small town are revealed as the people of Broken Branch race to uncover the identity of the stranger who holds their children hostage.
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Excerpt:'Mr. Ellery, my teacher and one of the only good things about this school, is sitting at his desk grading papers. Everyone, except Noah, of course, is writing in their notebooks. Each day after lunch we start class with journal time and we can write about anything we want to during the first ten minutes of class.
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Heather Gudenkauf on what draws her to write suspenseful'women's fiction:'
I've enjoyed writing since I was a childyes, I was one of those kids who did a fist pump whenever the teacher assigned a writing projectbut as is typical with most writers, I was and am, first and foremost an avid reader. As a child my favorite place in the world was our public library and I spent as much time as possible with my nose in a book. I loved mysteries and plowed my way through all the Encyclopedia Brown and Nancy Drew Mystery books. One of my favorite mystery series growing up was The Boxcar Children which I recently learned was originally published in 1924. I read all the books that were available when I was a child, and again as an adult I read them to my own children with enthusiasm. Who can resist a story about a tight knit set of orphaned siblings, an abandoned boxcar, a dog, and the mystery surrounding a long lost grandfather?
As I got older, I continued to enjoy mystery and suspense novels but my interests expanded to a variety of genres, including books that explored the intricacies of the human heart: Sherwood Anderson's'Winesburg, Ohio,'Elizabeth Berg's'Pull of the Moon, Margaret Atwood's'The Handmaid's Tale,'and so many more.'I've always admired the way writers could take me away to different places and times through the written word. I knew I wanted to try my hand at writing but didn't sit down and seriously begin until after I was married and had my children.' But when I did, I remembered all the stories and books I've read through the years, remembered how deftly authors could arrange the words on a page to be suspenseful, heart wrenching, or heart-warming ' to evoke all varieties of emotion. My hope is to do the same for my readers.
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Boxcar Children for the win! I loved that series. And Im saddened that so many of my peers never read them. What? Also, why has no one heard of The Bobbsey Twins? Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys were also awesome, but there were other children mystery solvers.
One Breath Away sounds like a really good, emotional read. Waiting in anticipation for your review!
I never read the Boxcar Children, either! I was a Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys obsessive, though. :)
Also, I sometimes get lost in our time warp, and realized after I commented that of course I could just go and read your review. :D
Let me know if you want me to tell you what the futures like :)
Ill keep that in mind for future events. :)