Indivisible by Kristen Heitzmann

Coming May 2010...

Description:

Something sinister is happening in Radcliff, Colorado-and police chief Jonah Westfall must stop the twisted behavior. His investigation forces him to involve his childhood friend Tia Monroe; new veterinarian Liz Rainer; and the local baker. Haunted by his past, can Jonah ignore his personal demons to protect the town-and the people he cares about?

Preview:

I thought Kristen Heitzmann was finished writing, but obviously she wants to retell her same old story again. Just compare the description above to so many of Kristen's other books. Granted, Secrets, Unforgotten, and Freefall are original enough, but if I were a betting man, I would bet all my money that this book has a similar ending to Halos, A Rush of Wings, Twilight, or Echos. I thought Kristen was finished because she needs to be finished unless she is going to produce good books like Secrets. Otherwise, there's no hope for Kristen.

Twilight by Kristen Heitzmann

Cal Morrison was the best firefighter in Montrose. But then the accident happened. The accident that made him change his career from firefighter to fire safety promoter. He never wants to return.
Laurie Prelane comes back to Montrose, running with her children from a disastrous marriage to a sports star. Memories of a lost love are stirred when she finds that Cal is still living there.
But someone wants Laurie dead. Someone who is willing to vandalize her home to do so. Cal is the only one who can save her, if he can face his fears.
I don't know why Cal is the only one who can save her. Why can't any other person do it? I guess Kristen Heitzmann had to have a perfect male lead in there somewhere.
Cal is the picture of perfection. Not a spot on this sheep. Or ram, more like it.
Laurie and the rest of the characters are created straight from molds. They remind me of some many other romantic suspense books.
But to say this book is suspense would be an overstatement. It's boring, even without any traces of sensationalism at all. It's just mediocre and bordering on stoic.
Believe it or not, there are many opportunities for this book to make it onto the Elite List. There are lots of almost original aspects to the plot. But every time one came up, Kristen went the other direction.
Everything works out perfectly in the end. Not a single thing left undone or imperfect.
Lots of people will like this book, but it's just another one of those romantic suspense books.
2 stars

A Rush of Wings by Kristen Heitzmann

A Rush of Wings is basically an unedited version of Halos with the character names and setting changed. Otherwise it's the same.
Noelle is running away from home and from her painful past. She lived all her life in her rich father's protective bubble, and now she's leaving the nest. She takes up lodging at a ranch in the mountains owned and operated by two brothers. Morgan is the wild child; Rick is the perfect child. Morgan captures her heart at first.
The obsession with seeing halos is replaced with an obsession for hearing the flapping of wings (hence the title).
Instead of a short, novella-style book, we have a long-winded, typical Kristen Heitzmann book.
The characters are as bad as ever. Rick is the perfect male lead without flaws; Noelle is the scared female lead with secrets. Someone from her past is stalking her, blah, blah, blah. We've heard it all before.
I think Noelle should have had to endure consequences for running away instead of falling onto a perfect male cushion. Nobody learns anything in the end.
There are several plot holes at the end, including how Kristen worked out a way for everything to turn out perfect at the end. Several "bad" characters become good and the one "bad" character that doesn't become good just dies.
Basically, I was not impressed by this book because I've heard it all before.

Freefall by Kristen Heitzmann

When a woman wakes up in the middle of a rain forest with no recollection of where she is or what her name even is, she knows she's in deep trouble.
Kristen Heitzmann seems to like plots about human struggles in the mind. Freefall is no exception.
The woman gets acquainted with the two people she is staying with-an old woman and a middle-aged man who she doesn't like at first. This plot device has been worn thin, especially by Kristen.
To tell anymore about this plot would be to give away secrets. Who the woman is and what she does when she finds out who she is is interesting.
The main problems with this plot are the inevitable romantic subplot and the unnecessary villain.
But all in all, there are no major problems with this plot.
3 stars

Halos by Kristen Heitzmann

Halos is about a twenty-year-old woman who is on the run away from home and ends up in a small town. While there, her car is stolen. There she meets several people who don't like her at first because of her view on life.
Now, the first problem is Kristen's lack of usual deep character background. It drops you in the middle of the story and forces you flow along with it.
But that's not even half the problem.
The main character is very shallow, having a strange obsession with halos. Whenever she sees a halo, she takes that as a sign from God to proceed. She's a very childish character in that aspect.
The other problem is the whole book in general. The plot is worn out: perfect male lead whom she doesn't like at first, dumb dramatic scene at the end, engagement, the whole nine yards. This book is a huge disappointment, especially since Kristen has wowed us with interesting plots and characters before.
1.5 stars

The Edge of Recall by Kristen Heitzmann

By the end of The Edge of Recall, I had mixed feelings about the novel. It's about an labyrinth architect who's been called by her former boyfriend to come design a labyrinth at a mansion he's currently remodeling. The only problem is, she's battling mental issues: she thinks there's a monster chasing her everywhere. While this sounds cheesy, it's really very interesting.
The beginning of the book was very interesting and different in itself. The body of the book is entertaining, and the characters are good, except for the male lead, who is suffering for a real personality.
The entire plot is as if it has two layers. Near the end, Heitzmann unfolds both of them. What's under the first is very surprising. What's under the second is slightly typical.
But the problem came in when she unfolded an unnecessary third layer that ruins the book entirely. It makes everything beyond good at the end; it makes it all perfect, even several unnecessary aspects.
Overall, the plot structure and the plot idea are both original. But as I've said before, a bad end can ruin a great plot. It's not that I wouldn't recommend the book to someone. I probably would, especially if it was someone who liked a good Christian fiction book and didn't care about analyzing good plot structure.
2.5 stars

Echoes by Kristen Heitzmann

At some point in a series largely based on characters, the main characters achieve hero personalities and new characters are introduced to replace their roles. This is the biggest mistake Heitzmann has made in Echoes, the much awaited sequel to Secrets and Unforgotten. I never like much awaited sequels.
The plot follows Sofie Michelli, Lance's sister, an odd character to choose for this role. She falls in love with the social worker that comes to investigate the situation with Maria Espironza's baby. Meanwhile, Rese and Lance immediately get engaged and begin planning the wedding.
The characters meander through life, bumping into obstacles along the way, such as Carly, Sofie's step-daughter, and Eric, Sofie's estranged husband. I needn't tell you the end, you already know it. The characters of Sofie and Matt, the social worker, are not up to Kristen's usual standards, however.
My one piece of advice for this book is for it to be rewritten, this time from Star's viewpoint. That would truly be an interesting read.
2.5 stars

Secrets by Kristen Heitzmann

The best thing about Secrets is that I can't compare the plot or the characters to any other books. The characters are the most realistic and complex I have ever "met". I use the word "met" because I feel like I really did meet them, instead of merely observing the plastic lives of manufactured characters.
Anyway, the plot of Secrets is about a female carpenter names Rese fixing up an old lodge on the outskirts of New York City. Her character alone goes completely against all female stereotypes. While she is fixing it up, a man names Lance comes along looking for work at her lodge. His line of expertise: cooking and music. His character also goes against all male stereotypes. From here, I can't really explain the plot, it's just a viewpoint of their lives. The end, I must say, is a little worn out, but it's really no object. Basically, this book reflects Heitzmann's want to write excellent books.
4 stars