AUTHOR: Susan May Warren
DATE: 2018
PUBLISHER: Revell
STARS: ***
Billionaire Ian Shaw can have everything he wants--except a happy ending. Or at least that's what it feels like with his fortune recently liquidated, his niece, Esme, still missing, and the woman he loves refusing to speak to him. In fact, he doubts she would date him even if they were stranded on a deserted island.
Despite her love for Ian, Sierra Rose knows he has no room in his life for her as long as the mystery of his missing niece goes unsolved. The only problem is, Sierra has solved it, but a promise to Esme to keep her whereabouts secret has made it impossible to be around Ian.
When the PEAK chopper is damaged and Sierra lacks the funds to repair it, Ian offers a fundraising junket for large donors on his yacht in the Caribbean. But the three-day excursion turns into a nightmare when a rogue wave cripples the yacht and sends the passengers overboard. Shaken up and soaked to the bone, Ian finally has a chance to test his theory when he and Sierra do indeed find themselves washed up on a strange, empty shore.
It will take guts and gumption for the PEAK team to rescue the duo. But it will take a miracle to rescue Ian and Sierra's relationship.
I expected to enjoy this book, and parts were good. The pace was intense, the action well-written…but there were problems. The two main characters, Ian and Sierra, continued to wrap themselves in their own fears and self-absorption rather than being honest with one another, so much that there were many times I wanted to Gibbs-slap the backs of their heads.
Troubled Waters is billed as Christian fiction, but faith played little to no part in the story, other than desperate cries for help, until almost the end. Then at last, Jesus was mentioned once. But the final knell, for me, came after the big rescue. Only the rich and beautiful were saved from the disaster, and no one even mentioned the loss of the crew, as though they didn’t matter. That left a sour taste in my mouth.
I appreciated the chance to read this book, but I can only award it three stars. I was given a copy of Troubled Waters by the publisher. All opinions are my own.