Christian Fiction Devourers discussion

by Dee Henderson

Sara is terrified. She's doing the one thing she cannot afford to do: fall in love with former pro-football player Adam Black, a man everyone knows. Sara's been hidden away in the witness protection program, her safety dependent on staying invisible--and loving Adam could get her killed! Introducing the O'Malleys, an inspirational group of seven, all abandoned or orphaned as teens, who have made the choice to become a loyal and committed family. They have chosen their own surname, O'Malley, and have stood by each other through moments of joy and heartache. Their stories are told in CBA best-selling, inspirational romantic suspense novels that rock your heart and restore strength and hope to your spirit.

I love this series! I've not yet participated in a Book of the Month discussion on here, so is there a reading plan for how many chapters a week we read or when the discussion questions will be coming?

I can't wait to reread this one and discuss it with y'all.

Blessings,
Andrea

Glad you are joining us Andrea. I will be reading it too.

Thanks for the welcome, Loraine! Will this be your first time to read Danger in the Shadows?

Yes! But I have read other Dee Henderson books and have loved every one of them!

Everyone reads it at their own pace. Usually we start discussing about half way through the month to give most a chance to finish it. Then I will start posting some discussion questions or others can throw out their own questions/comments for discussion. We're pretty laid back:)

Well, you are in for a treat. Danger is a great book. I hope you love it as well as you have the other Dee Henderson books you've read.

Have the book and will start as soon as I can. This will be my first Dee Henderson.

Oh, Hannah, you're going to love it! The entire series is fabulous (my favorite series ever, actually!). I hope you'll enjoy it enough to want to read the other books in the series. I look forward to discussing the book with you as we go along in our reading.

I have read all of her O'Malley books and loved them. This is a reread for me. All I can say about Danger is --what a horrible way to have to live.

This is a reread for me too, and I agree on the horrible way to live part. I've only read this one once or twice, so I'm eager to get to it later this week and refresh my memory.

Doesn't it seem strange how many people were on her protective team? The cost must be astronomical.

ChrisGA wrote: "Doesn't it seem strange how many people were on her protective team? The cost must be astronomical."

I'm sure they probably get a bit of a discount since her brother is an agent; but I take it that she comes from a moneyed background.

Finished this one last night and really liked it. Loved that Adam was so supportive and caring.

I just finished The Story Keeper yesterday (great book, by the way), so I began Danger in the Shadows today. It's a reread for me, but I'm already picking up on things this time around that I wasn't quite aware of last time. The first couple chapters are so beautiful. The panic Sara felt was written so accurately; I've felt similar paralyzing fear in the past and this rang so true to life. It was impossible for me not to have chills while I was reading.

Finished! Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

How is everyone else coming along on it?

What would you do if you were in Dave's shoes?

(view spoiler)[Being the one kid that got shoved aside would be tough to live with. I'd probably go into hyper-protective mode just like he did, but I'm not sure I'd ever let Sara out of my sight. (hide spoiler)]

Andrea wrote: "Finished! Here's my review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

How is everyone else coming along on it?

What would you do if you were in Dave's shoes?

[spoilers removed]"

I agree with your spoiler comment!

Glad to know I'm not the only one, Loraine!

I am going to start some discussion questions since we are halfway through the month. Please jump in if you have questions or comments of your own.

What were your feelings regarding Sara's 2 distinctly different genres of writing - children's vs hard mystery?

Interesting reflection of her life....her surface e sweetness and innocence and dealing with the dark forces of her memory..

ChrisGA wrote: "Interesting reflection of her life....her surface e sweetness and innocence and dealing with the dark forces of her memory.."

I thought the same thing ChrisGA. I felt like the hard mystery was her outlet for the nightmares she experienced.

It verged on multiple personality disorder to me, but that's understandable after what she'd been through. I think it was great she had an outlet for the terror she'd gone through and yet could recapture the innocence she lost at such a young age. Goes to show how well she came through the trauma, even though she couldn't see the strength she had through most of the story.

She was indeed a strong person Andrea. She had dealt with so much in her life but still was fighting to regain control of her life.

Read all of this today! Definitely five stars. I really enjoyed the descriptions of life under protection and how restrictive it must feel. You wouldn't even be able to join a support group, wouldn't be able to tell anyone the whole truth. I love Sara's courage and how romantic Adam was as he realized just how much he'd have to sacrifice to be with her.
I really liked Dave and look forward to reading his story next.

To me, it's not surprising that she writes in two styles, not at all. The children's books are an expression of the innocence and beauty she misses, while the hard-boiled mystery-thrillers are an expression of the pain she's experienced. Add to that the cathartic properties of putting difficult thoughts on paper, and I can easily picture a normal writer taking two routes for different facets of self-expression.

Hannah wrote: "To me, it's not surprising that she writes in two styles, not at all. The children's books are an expression of the innocence and beauty she misses, while the hard-boiled mystery-thrillers are an ..."

Well said Hannah.

Another question for discussion:

Who was your most favorite or least favorite character and why?

I liked each of the three main characters for different reasons, and they each drove me crazy in other aspects.

Sara: Like that she's trying to overcome her painful past; dislike that she doesn't let other people choose to be close to her or not.

Adam: Like that he is so understanding and encouraging to Sara; dislike that is comes across as controlling sometimes.

Dave: Like that he's protective of his sister; dislike that he takes things too seriously sometimes (even though I understand why).