Head on
by Colleen Thompson
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Book Reviews of Head on
Book Review: riveting drama
Summary: 5 Stars
Beth Ann Decker's life changed with a terrible accident. She was in a car with three other fellow cheerleaders, and they were hit by another car. Her friends were killed, and she was left crippled and scarred. What was really scarred was her whole life. What followed was endless surgeries, endless days of physical therapy and the endless pity of the small Texas town that couldn't seem to let go of the terrible memory.
Now years later, Beth Ann works as a hospice nurse, easing the final days of the terminally ill. But tragedy comes to call again, sending Beth Ann to deal with the grief of the present and the past.
The driver of the original accident, Mark Jessup, also survived the crash. He's now a rich businessman and a single parent. Mark returns with his son, to the small town of Eudena to care for his failing father. It's not a joyful homecoming. Mark and his father never got along, and after that fateful night when three cheerleaders died, his father washed his hands of Mark. See Mark not only caused the death of three young women, one of them was his sister.
Fate comes full circle when Beth Ann is sent to help ease the final days of Mark's father. Beth Ann had once held a crush for Mark, but all the memories¯good and bad¯crash in on her as Mark opens the door. Worse, she is sad that he sees before him a woman who is less than perfect. Only, Marks sees the woman beneath.
In a small town were memories are long and grievances are never forgotten, the past arises once more to haunt Mark and Beth Ann. Someone has decided that the time for payment has fallen due for past sins.
Thompson gives a realistic portrayals of people whose lives changed on a flip of the coin, of people struggling to build a future from the rubble of their past. She weaves the small town mentality, suspense and romance into a heady mix, which keeps the reader spellbound.
Very highly recommended.
Book Review: fine thriller
Summary: 4 Stars
In Hatcher County, Texas, using a cane to walk, Beth Ann Decker works as a dedicated hospice nurse while most locals feel pity towards her because she survived a deadly tragedy with noted physical reminders. Sixteen years ago her life changed dramatically when an automobile accident left three cheerleaders dead and she badly injured in her car; to this day she still limps notably. The driver of the other vehicle, Mark "Hell on Wheels" Jessup walked away without a scratch although he spent time in jail for vehicular homicide and never recovered from his sister being one of those he killed.
Mark returns to Hatcher County for the first time since the deadly crash to care for his dying father, who rejected him when he most needed his dad. The older Jessup has not forgiven Mark for the death of his daughter and even now takes his anger out on his grandson, Eli, snubbing the lad. However, Mark has other problems as he quickly becomes the prime suspect when a murder occurs. He also finds he still desires Beth Ann, but feels guilty over what he did to her. She reciprocates as the demon she always though he was turns out to be a false assumption; instead he is a caring father and son struggling with what he caused. When someone tries to kill Beth Ann, Mark risks his life to keep her safe.
Although sixteen years have past since the trauma that shook Hatcher County, few if any have healed. Thus when Mark returns home festering wounds reopen as this town without pity forgives no one. Interestingly readers will believe in the love between Mark and Beth Ann although they would seem more obviously natural enemies and in Mark's case a whole lot of regrets. The murder subplot seems unnecessary, as the plausibility of the lead couple's relationship and the reaction of the townsfolk to the return of the prodigal killer make this a fine tale.
Harriet Klausner
Book Review: Heartbreaking suspense
Summary: 4 Stars
The two survivors of a deadly collision find themselves face to face after 16 years. Beth Ann is a hospice nurse who comes to care for the dying former town patriarch Hiram Jessup, who gave up on life after his wife died soon after his daughter's tragic accident. Mark is the former bad boy who was behind the wheel of the other car and spent time in jail, but has continued to feel the guilt of destroying his family. He has returned to reconnect and care for the dying Hiram, much to his father's unyielding displeasure and has brought his mixed race son to a racist town to get to know his grandfather. When Beth Ann's mother is found viciously murdered, all eyes turn to Mark, despite the fact that he is now a wealthy and successful businessman. Soon Beth Ann and Mark are forced to confront the event that altered their lives forever, while fighting the attraction that continues to bind them as her memory of the fateful night starts returning and someone will do anything to keep her from learning a long buried secret her mother appeared to take to the grave.
Thompson weaves a suspenseful and very heartbreaking story about love, loss, corruption, redemption, and forgiveness. The slang and bubba dialect was a bit distracting in an otherwise pretty good story, but the characters are well drawn, particularly secondary characters like young deputy Damon Stillwater - who wants to prove he can crack the case. I could have lived without the details and introspection of the killer - or as the person is referred to in the story "the appointed one," it got almost as annoying as all the slang. I really liked how Thompson did not wrap this one up in a happy red bow where everyone lives happily ever after - the tragedy that was central to the story set the tone and I thought that the conclusion was fitting for a fractured town that continued to be in mourning.
Book Review: Head On
Summary: 5 Stars
Beth Ann Decker is a hospice nurse in Eudena, Texas. For sixteen years she has strived to overcome the title of "Poor Beth Ann". A title given to her after a gruesome accident that left her severely injured and three of her friends dead. She was made stronger and learned to live with the past hanging over her head. Now her future, thanks to a murder, has been thrown into a state of utter upheaval.
Mark Jessup is the black sheep of Eudena, Texas. His own father has not spoken to him in the sixteen years since the fatal car accident. He has come home to attempt to make peace with the only family he has left in Eduena, his father. He has made peace with himself and grown into a stronger human being. It does not, however, make it easy for him to go home again.
In a town as small as Eudena, memories survive longer than people do. Memories of football victories and life altering accidents survive the longest. Can Beth Ann and Mark survive small town gossips, their own memories, intruders and murder? Can they move forward to the future?
The first chapter of Head On draws the reader into a tale of heartache, intrigue and the "joys" of small town life. It develops into a tale of forgiveness, acceptance and personal responsibility. Head On looks at the result of what effect an accident can have on the victims and their families even sixteen years later. Colleen Thompson gives you all the clues you need to figure out what is going on, then throws you with a climax that you just don't see until it hits you.
Emma
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed
Book Review: Wonderfully gripping, sexy, suspensful romance
Summary: 5 Stars
Head On has the sort of "ripped from the headlines" feel that one encounters when hearing tragic events played out on the local news. One always wonders, "What ever happened to the survivors? How did they learn to go on?" Head On answers that question in a gripping, suspensful, sexy and emotionally entrancing read. I couldn't put it down. There are so many elements in this mix: grief, tragedy, forgiveness, lust, revenge, gossip, even a peek at racism in a small town, and all of these elements are handled with the skill of a master. Ms. Thompson's ability to create an evocative setting and then people it with characters you won't want to let go of will be the reason readers will find themselves sitting up late at night, turning pages when they should be asleep. Head On is one great book. I'm looking forward to the next one, as Ms. Thompson just keeps getting better with every book.