Without Warning by Lynette Eason

Without Warning by Lynette Eason

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Still reeling from the death if his brother, Daniel's life once again spirals into chaos when a series of violent crimes strikes his restaurant chain. His niece, worried that she'll lose him too, convinces him to hire the Elite Guardians for protection. Katie is fighting her demons the best way she knows how - avoidance - when she takes on the case for a man who might just change everything and make her face her fears.

Characters

Nothing feels natural about character introduction or development. Their communication feels stilted by abrupt revelations. All of the sudden, Steve (a sub-character) shows up and jumps into a really deep and direct conversation. The awkward moment magnified by the fact that those characters are teenagers - by definition lacking the maturity to handle a situation in the manner described. The killer switches between sociopathic and psychopathic tenancies, making the character incongruous.

I'm reading about the initial attraction between Katie and what's his face (Yes, I still didn't care enough to remember his name when I was making notes about half way through the book - Daniel) Matthews, but I can't really feel it. The author's descriptions of what the man notices in the book are entertaining to me. It's never about her figure or the softness of skin or anything feminine, but the strong jaw or toned muscle of her arms. I can guarantee those things are NOT what he is noticing about the woman in his arms. Sadly, I simply never felt the heat that the book describes. *Spoiler* The "toe-curling kiss* falls a little flat.

Plot

Drama drama drama. But I guess that's what your get when you have a whole crew of females. It's just a little overwhelming when even sub character Bree has drama on the side.

When every character is going through some crazy stuff, it becomes the status quo, and I become numb as a reader to any tension that I should be feeling. Her villains seem really obvious to me, but there's always a huge question mark for the motive that doesn't really seem to warrant that large of a vendetta, which is consistent in both this and the first book in the series.

Setting/Description

Great vivid descriptions to set the initial scene. Setting discriptions throughout the book were well done. You can really picture the surroundings as if you were there. The PTSD sequence was a little scary and felt kind of out of place, but it was well-described.

Style

There aren't any glaring grammatical errors and the characters are likable despite a lack of depth. Without Warning would be an okay read if you want to kill time and don't want the trashy stuff in secular romance novels. The dialogues feel forced, never developing naturally, but just diving in to deep conversations out of nowhere. One minute the characters are discussing the case, then a non sequitur offer to go flying, then back to the case.

Theme

Trusting God even when we don't understand the "why" remains the central theme throughout this book, some characters having a better grip on that than others (according to Eason fashion, the women, of course, are superior in this area). The theme was well done throughout the book, characters having real, relatable issues with why they have difficulty trusting in God's will.

My Thoughts

I'm trying a little new formatting here, so feel free to let me know what you think!

The thing I love about Christian fiction is that even when you don't really connect with the book or the characters, you can still get something great from the story. This book in particular reminded me that even when it's hard to see, God has a big picture plan. The gospels talk about suffering being something we are to rejoice in because we can share in it with our Savior. Trials build character and yield perseverance. The "death" of a believer is to be celebrated because they are no longer on this imperfect world, but getting to live it up in heaven.

I've had times when I really struggle in seeing how God is working through my circumstances for his glory and the good of his people, but looking back, I can see glimpses of the truth in that.

"Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for me?" Jeremiah 32:27

One of my favorite verses (above) comes just before God tells Jeremiah that he has great plans for his life, so not only can we be confident that God has the best plans laid out, but that he has the power to make it happen.

Tomorrow, check in to see my review of Moving Target and find out what I'll be reading next!

TheModestMillennial