Stevie‘s review of Families and Other Enemies (Cape Charade, Book 1.5) by Christina Dodd
Contemporary Suspense published by HQN Books 01 Jan 19
Kellen Adams remembers little of the months leading up to the head injury that left her in a coma seven years ago, although some of her memories have been returning as people from her old life have got in touch. At the end of the first novel in this series, Kellen met for the first time her daughter, born while Kellen was in a coma, and was struggling with how to cope with sudden motherhood. Now recovering from the injuries she sustained fighting that book’s bad guys, Kellen is trying to face up to spending time with both her daughter and the family she had already left behind when her daughter was conceived.
Kellen’s aunt, mother to the real Kellen – whose identity Kellen stole after her death – is in a care home, suffering from dementia. Kellen decides to visit her first, and tell her the story of what really happened to her and her cousin, now that all those involved, who might have been a threat, are dead. The visit doesn’t go well, and Kellen finds she can’t face seeing her daughter and the man she once loved – her daughter’s father who has changed careers to facilitate single parenthood – right away. Instead, she drives up to Virtue Falls and meets up with her friend who is the Sheriff there.
At her friend’s suggestion, Kellen checks in at the only hotel with a room available and, the next day, begins a stint volunteering at the town’s food bank. There she meets up with a diverse group of volunteers and people in need of help, all of whom help her gain some perspective on her issues, even as Kellen finds ways in which she can help them individually based on her own experiences.
I greatly enjoyed this short story. It packed a lot into not so many pages, and we even got to see Kellen doing her action hero stuff again. I particularly appreciated seeing that while there are no easy answers to the problems of those using the food bank, some of them do get their lives turned around – as we see towards the end of the story when various former recipients of help return to throw a party for one particularly special volunteer. I may have to read this again before starting on the next full-length novel in the series.
Grade: A
Summary:
I still don’t remember, but I know what happened now.
Kellen Adams has fought battles, saved lives and earned the respect of her colleagues and the love of her friends. But now can she triumph against the greatest challenge of her life–her family?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
