Hearts in Hiding is Betsy Brannon Green’s first published novel and it is one of my favorites. She introduces Kate Singleton whose husband, Tony, is an undercover FBI agent.
Unfortunately, he’s been killed and Kate’s life and the life of her unborn child are now in danger. Mark Iverson is assigned to keep her safe and they pose as husband and wife in the small town of Haggerty, Georgia. There they meet Miss Eugenia, a lovable busybody.
The setting makes up a large part of the story’s charm, and the characters are so real you feel like they could really be your neighbors. The story is fresh and spine-tingling, with unpredictable twists and turns that leave you shaking your head in amazement.
Betsy Brannon Green has an incredible talent for creating a believable story with well-rounded characters that quickly find a place in your heart. Her setting is particularly well done, and proves to be the setting in several more of her subsequent books.
My copy of this book is well worn because I have read it many times over, just because it feels like coming home every time I open it.
My other favorite of Betsy’s is Until Proven Guilty. Beth Middleton suffered a horrific tragedy on what was supposed to be her wedding day, and since then she has practically hidden from life. She is asked to do a favor for her former boss, and meets Jack Gamble, a defense lawyer involved in a high profile case.
This story has so many layers to it, it was truly enjoyable to me to try and figure them all out before the story ended. Is Jack’s client truly guilty? Is someone trying to kill him?
Besides the mystery, there is also the question of Jack’s ability to be a good parent to his daughter, especially when he is a single parent with an intense job. Beth steps in to evaluate him to a family court judge and finds herself caught in the whirlwind that is Jack Gamble’s life.
Miss Eugenia also appears in the book, with her sister Annabelle, and they are as winsome as ever. The mention of the soap opera, the Brave and the Relentless, and the formation of the Genealogical Society is particularly unusual and funny, providing another thread throughout the book that eventually leads to wrapping up the story.
You also get to peek in on Mark and Kate and how their life has progressed which is gratifying as a reader. I have also read this book many times, and see something different in it every time I read it.
Sometime I hope that Betsy will do a sequel on this one, just because the characters were so memorable and I’d love to see what she could do with them and how they settle into their new life.
Betsy is one of the most entertaining mystery writers in the LDS genre today and I highly recommend any of her books. Her newest one is Poison, however her website http://www.betsybrannongreen.net/ has a sample chapter of an upcoming release Double Cross that left me waiting with bated breath for it.
About the author: Julie Coulter Bellon is a Canadian-born LDS Romantic Suspense novelist who loves incorporating her native country with its complexities into her writing. Julie and her husband Brian are the parents of six children and her greatest joy is being a mother. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education–English teaching, and she currently teaches a high school journalism course for BYU Continuing Education. Visit Julie’s site at http://www.juliebellon.com/
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