Sunday, October 2, 2011

Line of Duty by Terri Blackstock



book cover

Line of Duty
by Terri Blackstock


ISBN: 0-310-25064-1
Trade Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Zondervan
Released: 2003


Source: Library book sale.

Book Description from Goodreads:
A bomb explodes at the Icon International building in New Orleans while lawyer Jill Clark Nichols is in the top floor boardroom. The thirty-story building goes up in flames and fire departments from all around the area are called in. The firefighters from Newpointe are especially concerned since they know Jill is inside the building. Dan, her husband, rushes in to save her. But as firefighters work to evacuate the upper floors of the building, a second and third bomb explode, causing the lower floors to cave in. Firefighters and civilians are buried beneath the rubble.

When the smoke finally clears, a count is taken. Jill narrowly escapes the chaos of the explosions and fire only to find Dan missing.

Were the bombs the act of a terrorist, or a scheme coming from a heart of greed? Can Jills faith carry her through these long days of pain and uncertainty? And will Dan survive this tragedy . . . or sacrifice his life in the line of duty?


My Review:
Line of Duty is a Christian suspense novel that turns into a general fiction with a mystery. This is the fifth book in the series, but it reads like a stand-alone.

The suspense in the first part was mainly created by the physical danger that the various characters were in and then wondering which characters survived. After that, the suspense was created by relationship tension, regret and sorrow leading characters toward potentially bad decisions, and the side mystery of who blew up the building. The mystery was handled realistically and was not easily guessable ahead of time.

The characters were varied, interesting, and dealt with realistic problems. The story's focus was mainly on dealing with loss (and why God would allow it) and on loving people who are different. Most of the characters were Christians who were mutually struggling to understand why God allowed some to live, some to die, and some to have life-changing injuries.

There were no sex scenes. There was a very minor amount of "he cussed" style of bad language. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting novel.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt from Chapter One
Ashley Morris sensed the doom in the Icon International Building. She had listened to the news reports of layoffs and the companies crashing stock value with the detached interest of a sixteen-year-old, but it was hard to ignore the reality now. In the lobby, grim-faced employees spoke in low voices. Some wiped tears as they carried boxes out to their cars. Reporters with camera crews waited outside, interviewing exiting employees who'd just gotten the ax.

She'd picked a lousy day to hit her mother up for money.

Popping her gum, Ashley got into the elevator with two women and a man. One of the women gave her a look as if she had just parachuted out of a UFO. Ashley looked right back at her an blew a bubble. The woman looked away.

Read more from chapter one using Google Preview.

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