Kathy M. Howard

My Review of Clear Confusion:
Here’s another suspense! This was clearly not your normal suspense. I enjoyed the story and the plot twists surprised me – the book wasn’t too predictable and I enjoyed the romance. My only complaint is that the point out view jumped around. Nicholas was a fantastic character that makes a winning teacher, surprisingly. And his little teaching quirks are so funny. I was slightly confused by the point of view at times and the pacing was slow in the beginning which annoyed me. But I loved the spiritual content, the faith of Sydney was sweet. Through I wondered if it was realistic or not for things to happen as they did in this book.

I have voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from JustRead Tours. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.… (lisätietoja)

“Clear Confusion” is a Christian, contemporary, romantic-suspense novel by Kathy M. Howard.

Thank you in advance to JustRead Tours and Ambassador International for this copy to voluntarily review. A positive review was not required, all thoughts are my own.

“Clear Confusion” centers on Charlotte Halloway who recently lost her father. Due to the fact he was her only family and she wasn’t handling her grief well, she was on a bus trip to clear her mind and take some time to process everything. That was until a bus stop that led her to being a witness to a drug deal and murder. She then wakes up in the woods of Jennings, Georgia with no memory of how she got there or who she is. And, she doesn’t remember the crime she was a witness to either.

Charlotte is found by hunters Nicholas Nelson and his friend Vincent Cobb. It is Nicholas, along with his sister Nellie, who takes her in while she works on getting her memory back and to recover from some sort of “accident” she doesn’t remember. As Charlotte doesn’t know her real name, she adopts the name “Sydney”. This proves a tad problematic later on in conversations and identifying the characters in a scene.

As Charlotte struggles to remember her name and what happened, the Nelson family is struck by tragedy. It is at that time that Sydney/Charlotte is told, rather than learns, what happened about the murder and drug deal. She suddenly remembers her real name and contacts the police who already know what is going on.

Charlotte is asked to stay in Jennings – not only for her safety, but to help the police. She reluctantly agrees. As she stays there, she grows closer to Nicholas. But, she is unaware that the real threat that brought her to Jennings is right there, and close to Nellie.

While I enjoyed the characters and premise, I had a problem with the story wrapping up too quickly. The story starts off April 7 at 1:15am, with the concluding events on/at April 23rd at 1:45am. Thus, the story itself is only about sixteen (16) days long.

With regard to the police department scene – a detective or someone would’ve (or should’ve) had Charlotte examine mug shots or consult with a sketch artist to make sure she was talking about the same people as they were. This would prove problematic in a court room when it comes time to testify. As someone who studied Criminal Justice, it doesn’t sit quite right with me.

Also, there was no formal statement taken as most of it was done on the phone, the detective should’ve at least taken a formal statement for her to sign. There was also no offer for Charlotte to talk to a counselor to make sure she was all right and mentally healthy to do what was asked of her. She had been having issues handling the death of her father, witnessed a murder, had a traumatic accident, and had just gotten her memory back.

In addition, the police usually go to more lengths to protect “material witnesses”, especially one as essential as Charlotte. While not 100% safe, they usually work hard to assure their safety.

As I understand the book was more of a romance, it did have suspense elements and I expected a bit more in the way of an investigation. There was room to build the story up with a bit more tension and suspense, perhaps a bit more realistic encounter with the police detective.

The relationships with Nicholas and Nellie were heart-warming, endearing, and inspiring. It definitely showed how faith in God works, highlighting both Nicholas and Charlotte’s relationship with God in not only good times, but bad as well. His with what is family was going through and Charlotte with what she had been through.

The book isn’t a long read, the paperback version comes in at just 234 pages. The chapters tend between very short and very long. The first one was a challenge to get through at 55 pages long. The second was five (5) pages in comparison. Chapter five (5) was about 50. After that, they tend to pace themselves out pretty evenly, except for chapter nine (9). I mention this because some people like to stop reading at a chapter and at over 30 pages per chapter, it can be tedious.

One final issue was two of the names in the book were quite interesting – Bob Crane (a well known actor who met a rather suspicious end) and Tom Jones (a well known singer).

Despite the faux pas, it was a delightful read and I would be interested to see where the other characters (Nellie and Vincent) end up since the two main characters also seem to have a “happy ending”.… (lisätietoja)

This is the first book I’ve read by Kathy M. Howard. I’ve also been in a romantic suspense zone lately, so there was a lot to compare this one to. I believe Clear Confusion is more a romance with a touch of mystery/suspense thrown in.

The story has a lot of potential—a woman who witnesses a crime then loses her memory—but it didn’t quite deliver for me. There wasn’t enough tension for my taste, and I figured out who the players were fairly quickly. Too often, Sydney is simply told what’s going on instead of uncovering it for herself. And there was a lot of head hopping (not a defined POV from one character but instead jumping from one character’s thoughts to the next).

There were, however, some high points to the story. First, there’s Nicholas and Nellie, whose friendships with Sydney are formed fast and firm. This brother and sister welcome her into their lives and stand beside her as she struggles with her memory loss and who she is. Then there’s Sydney’s faith. Despite not remembering most things about her life, her relationship with God is firmly cemented. In the discouraging and dangerous times, she places her trust in Him. And in the sweet times of contentment, friendship, and love, she praises Him.

Readers who are overwhelmed by the fast pace and violence of some romantic suspense reads may enjoy this more moderately paced story. There is some violence at the beginning and end of the book but it’s minimal in comparison.

Disclosure statement:
I receive complimentary books from publishers, publicists, and/or authors, including NetGalley. I am not required to write positive reviews. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.… (lisätietoja)

I thought From Dishes to Snow, the debut novel of author Kathy M. Howard would be an interesting read because of the similarities between the subject matter and my own life of late. In the novel, the main character Bayne Harris, is struggling through the grief of losing her husband and children in a car accident. I am perhaps just far enough removed from my own loss to find this of interest, but it may have also made me somewhat critical of the topic as well.

In the novel, one year after losing her family, Bayne escapes her community and good-intentioned friends by moving to a mountain town for an extended vacation. There, she hides away from interactions with people to lick her wounds. But a few poeple manage to infiltrate her solitary existence in her new home — her lovely landlords, the caring real estate agent she had contacted and his spunky teenage daughter, and a young mother and little girl with their own problems who stumble into her yard.

As Bayne grows to care for her new friends and neighbors, she also emerges from her own grief to aid little Mary and her hurting mother. In doing so, Bayne begins to find healing of her own, and eventually opens up to Wren and by the end of the novel Bayne is not only hopeful for the future, but possibly even falling in love again.

I enjoyed the cast of characters in From Dishes to Snow. The neighborly landlords reminded me of some special landlords I once had, and Wren and his daughter appear to be friends of the very best kind — who would do anything for you. The storyline of Mary and Kara feels a little far fetched (and kind of stuck in the larger plot), but still they are endearing characters.

The aspect of this book that I struggled most with is fairly predictable — grief. I am the first to say that I am not an objective observer. Grief is very, very real to me right now. And I’m learning a lot about the nature of grief that I could only cognitively have known before. And I do understand that everyone’s grief journey is different. But.

I found it difficult to believe that a women living in such heavy grief for so long (a full year already of hiding away, not working, struggling just to get out of bed), can go from full-blown grieving to healing and falling in love within the two month span the book gives. And through the help of strangers when those she was closest to couldn’t reach her? It’s just hard to swallow.

I struggle with the idea that this book would put out there unrealistic expectations of healing — both for those who are trying to help a loved on grieve and for those who may put these kinds of expectations on themselves. That said, however, kudos to Howard for tackling such a difficult subject and not shying away from grief, and in her first novel too!

The book was well-written for a debut novel, and I will be curious to see what else this author has to offer.

I received a copy of From Dishes to Snow from Ambassador International, but I was not otherwise compensated for this review. All writing, thoughts, and opinions are solely mine.… (lisätietoja)