Into the Fire

A valid question sung with a great voice and melody. A hit for sure back in the day. 

Father, so many great voices, gifted by your divine touch. May they all know who gave that terrific voice to them. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Book 2 in the Morgan Dane Series delivers what appears to be Melinda Leigh's stock and trade: likeable lead characters and truly psychopathic killers. In Her Last Goodbye a mother of two young children disappears after a scheduled girls' night out which never happens. As is usually the case, her husband is the primary suspect for police so he goes to Sharp Investigations for help in finding his missing wife. The case is complex with little evidence and the lingering question haunts the husband and at times her investigators. Did the woman (Chelsea) willingly take a break from their colicky baby and little girl or was she kidnapped?

Since Morgan cannot fathom Chelsea leaving her children – and those interviewed insist she never would – Morgan refuses to entertain that thinking, believing someone has taken her. During the process of the investigation, another woman is found dead. This only intensifies the search for Chelsea.

Melinda shares the motives, thoughts, and brutal actions of her killers, allowing the reader to feel the evil that oozes from the existence of these perpetrators in her stories.

With Lance as Morgan's bulwark, and always extra muscle in this investigation, their relationship advances as they begin to understand they both need each other in more ways than the obvious.

Morgan is convinced something is missing in their investigation, but when they find it, the reader gets that "gotcha!" moment.

(As a side note, since there is one of these scenes, I'm not a fan of graphic sexual encounters in novels or films, finding them gratuitous and unnecessary. I feel the same way about overused profanity. A little goes a long way to implicate actions and thoughts. To use too much spoils it for me, making sex clinical and language crass – leaving the abilities of imagination on the cutting room floor.)

Another very good murder mystery by Melinda Leigh from the general market.

Father, you're the Author of Life, and I thank you for all of those who you've gifted to tell stories. May they experience the awesome power of knowing from whom their talent comes. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

The wages of the righteous bring them life

   but the income of the wicked brings them punishment.

. . .

The discerning heart seeks knowledge,

   but the mouth of a fool feeds on folly. 

Proverbs 10:16; Proverbs 15:14 (NIV) 

Five things I loved about my youthful summer visits to the Flying Horseshoe Dude Ranch:

The horses of course. My first summer I rode "Dude", second summer "Minnehaha", third and final summer "Friday".

The incredible beauty of the country in the Teanaway Valley in eastern Washington.

The ice cold milk from a big machine in the kitchen and the bowls of sweet plums (first time I'd ever had them like that).

The campfire at night, the songs sung.

That I got to go with my BFF Debbie all three years! (We went for one week the first summer and two weeks the next two summers.)

Father, those are irreplaceable memories I will always treasure. Thank you for Debbie and our wonderful times together loving horses and having fun. And thank you for bringing us back together again, another huge treasure. In the Name of Jesus, Amen. 

Nothing makes a novel fail like poor dialogue. Here are some of the problematic types of dialogue I've found in contemporary fiction.

1.Stilted conversations where contractions aren't used and/or more formal language is used when it should be casual.

2.Unnatural dialogue. This isn't easy to explain, but you know it when you read it. The characters don't come off as real because of the things they say in conversations. 

3.Unrealistic angry responses to less than angry-worthy actions with lame excuses for behaviors.

4.Teenage-seeming or "immature" language spoken by adults in romantic situations. 

What problems do you find with dialogue? 

Father, your Word says words matter. Help us to use them well. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Interesting pattern of lovely flowers and manicured lawn(s). 

Thank you, Lord, for such creative beauty. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.
 

Ooh, I loved this song! They had so many good ones!

Lord, bless those who use what you've given them to bring beauty into the world. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

The murder of a young former babysitter has another young neighbor arrested. Morgan Dane is just now two years later recovering from losing her husband in Iraq as a single mother devoted to their three young children. Having put her career as a prosecuting attorney on hold as her grief robbed her of any measured focus other than raising her daughters, she, her grandfather, and her live-in nanny Morgan rescued from addiction keep their home in working, loving order. 

Morgan knows she's going to have to pursue something to take her out of the cycle of grief and she's been offered an assistant prosecuting attorney's position. However, when the disturbing murder of her former babysitter affects the young man across the street, who plays chess with her grandfather and who her girls love, is arrested for the murder, everything changes in Morgan's life.

Lance, former cop, is recovering from a serious leg wound and taking care of his mother who suffered a psychological break when his father disappeared many years ago. The retired detective (Sharp) who worked his father's case until it went cold, and still does, runs his Private Investigator business and helps Lance with his mom. Lance has signed on with Sharp in spite of his health nut tendencies he forces on Lance.

Morgan and Lance knew each other in high school. Morgan needs the help of Sharp Investigations. The UST is on between the two lonely friends as their friendship is rekindled through the search for the truth in the murder case.

Melinda Leigh delivers a well-written murder mystery with likable characters and a psychopathic killer, solid scenes of fear, loneliness, realistic romantic tension, and intense personal pain. There is profanity but not excessive. (For me, it would be near perfect if there was a faith element which seemed to hover on the fringe of these characters and plot.)   

For general market reading from Book 1 in this series, I recommend the cleverly titled Say You're Sorry by Melinda Leigh. 

Father, thank you for the generous supply of serious talent. You know I always hope those with so much recognize the source of it all. Please continue to bless Melinda with the stories you have for her to tell. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

     Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God. All those who heard him were astonished and asked, "Isn't he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name? And hasn't he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?" Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Christ. 

Acts 9:19-22 (NIV)

Five affirmations I never tire of hearing:

Mmm. You smell good.

I loved this book (in regard to one of mine).

I appreciate you listening to me and/or thank you for praying for me.

Thanks for the recommendation. I really liked the book (in regard to "word of mouth" or a review of another's book).

I love your kitchen and/or your house. 

Affirmation is a reward we often don't get often enough. Encourage when you can . . . 

Lord, your affirmations fill our souls. Thank you is never enough. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.