Customer Reviews

Blood Ransom (Mission Hope Series)

5 star:		(25)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Natalie Sinclair went to the Republic of Dhambizao to find ways to bring healing to the African country but what she finds is a sickness far more devastating and insidious than Ebola or Malaria. Just five days before national elections, which hope to prove peaceful, Natalie meets Joseph Komboli. The young man tells her a horrifying story of "Ghost Soldiers" that raided his village and took his family away to work as slaves in the mineral mines. Somewhere near that village is the proof, a camera he used to record an evil everyone from high government officials to humanitarian workers refuse to admit even exists. Soon Natalie, Joseph, and Dr. Chad Talcott find themselves in a race for their lives to prove what no one wants to believe.

Though better known for her cozy mysteries and light romance, author Lisa Harris moves to new ground in this the first of her Mission Hope Series. Sure, there's a budding romance and the usual relational issues one might expect from Lisa's writing but that is where the similarities between her previous works and Blood Ransom end. Human trafficking and modern day slavery is real and too often either ignored or glossed over. Through the medium of fiction and suspense we are immersed in a world that unfortunately is far from fiction. The author is a missionary in Mozambique and it is obvious she knows what she is talking about. There is nothing cozy or romantic about a people abused by their own government and exploited by the greed of those they will never see face to face. Blood Ransom is about slavery but it focuses more on those who need to be convinced rather than those who are actually suffering. We see little of the plight of Joseph's family mining for precious metals so we can have cheap cell phones in the Western world. Instead, the author focuses on the difficulties involved in proving such atrocities are real and in finding anyone who cares. But there is hope in this story. Good men like Dr. Talcott do exist and others who have become callous and cynical can still have their hearts pricked.

This is an excellent first suspense novel for a seasoned romance writer. The pacing is good and we are swept along with the main characters in their desperate attempt at shining the light on a great darkness. While the ending is bit rushed, all in all Lisa Harris had done a great job of telling a good story while at the same time dealing with a difficult topic. That balancing act is seldom accomplished with great success and this novel is an exception to the rule. We look forward, as this series continues, to the hope this author shines on her beloved continent and the people that live, love, and suffer there.

This is a book full of heart-pounding adventure. A young 15 year old boy named Joseph returns to his village. He sees his family and friends being attacked by "Ghost Solders", who many believe are rumor and nothing more. He watches his mother, sister, father and other love ones being taken into slavery. He knows they will be put to work in the diamond mines. Others like his grandfather, who are either too old or too weak to work are killed on the spot. Young Joseph knows people will not believe his story alone, so he decides to get some evidence. He takes some very incriminating photos and overhears a very incriminating conversation.

When people first hear Joseph's story, they think he made it up. But then they realize he would have no reason to lie. When they see the photos, they can no longer deny the existence of the Ghost Solders and how serious the situation really is. Joseph tells his story to two Americans, one a doctor, the other doing vaccinations in the area. Natalie Sinclair and Dr. Chad Talcott. They agree to help Joseph. What they don't realize, is that there are some people, high up in the country's government who will do anything, even kill, to keep those photos from being released to the press or anyone else. They quickly learn that a high ranking public official is involved, though they don't know how much.

They begin a race against time. They need to get the photos into the right hands, while avoiding the people who want them at any cost. This book is full of tense situations, narrow escapes, and will keep you on the edge of your seat. There are certain books that lend themselves to being made into a movie. I believe this is one of those books. I think this book would make an excellent movie. There's adventure, suspense, likeable characters, and even a little romance thrown in.

But these characters are not perfect. They sometimes lose their temper, they make bad decisions or use poor judgment, make mistakes, and question how a good God could allow such horrible atrocities. But you will root for them. A lot of the time, I can predict how a book is going to end very early on. But there is a twist at the end of this book that caught me completely by surprise. Throughout the book, you find yourself wondering which characters you can trust and which you can't. Some appear trustworthy but aren't, and others who at first glance don't elicit trust, are people you could trust with your life. This book will leave you guessing. I will definitely read other books by this author and highly recommend this work.

In the African republic of Dhambizao, Natalie Sinclair works with Dr. Chad Talcott to eradicate diseases that are claiming whole towns. Meanwhile, Joseph Komboli returns to his village to find rebels abducting his family. When Chad and Natalie help Joseph expose the modern-day slave trade, they're courting disaster.

Review: This is not your typical fiction book. Lisa's story is based on real situations that exist in the world around us - especially in Africa. I applaud Lisa for being the voice of these hurting people and for making us aware of the horrific conditions and treatment of humans through this compelling story. Gabby is the journalist in this story who feels led to be the voice of this hurting nation and is willing to do the right thing, no matter what it costs. Lisa Harris gives voice to Gabby and her concerns in this startling story.

"Ghost Soldiers" were supposed to be nothing more than rumors--a myth--what if these rumors are true and people are disappearing from their villages because of them? Hundreds and thousands of people have vanished. It's not a rumor or myth, but a reality that Lisa Harris writes about.

Natalie Sinclair exterminates the diseases decimating whole villages. She comes in contact with fifteen year-old Joseph, who has proof the Ghost soldiers are real. Joseph is hurt, so Natalie takes him to see Dr. Chad Talcott, a surgeon on sabbatical from his medical practice where he volunteers in a small clinic. They recognized each other from High School.

Dr. Chad tells her not to get involved; it's best. Natalie takes Joseph back to his village to show her where his family disappeared. Joseph took pictures of people being killed and abducted by the Ghost Soldiers. After seeing proof, Natalie couldn't walk away. This wasn't right; they were selling and using people as slaves.

Natalie tells Dr. Chad of her discovery. Natalie and Chad embark on a mission to get this proof to the American Embassy. That's when the trouble begins. Natalie sends the proof to her journalist friend, Gabby, who says, "It's time we force these businesses and investors to change the despicable working conditions thousands are forced to live under. Nothing will change if they aren't held accountable. They need a voice. It's a heart-wrenching reality in our world, especially when one realizes human trafficking, child slavery and a booming sex industry, are all alive and well right here in the United States."

Lisa pens a heart-felt, thought provoking and compelling drama you won't soon forget. Blood Ransom is book one in the mission series. I'm so thankful to have received a copy of the powerfully moving book. I can't wait to read the next book.


ACFW Book Club Coordinator

Professionally they made a good team--Natalie Sinclair worked to eliminate diseases in Dhambizao and Chad Talcott was a doctor volunteering at a small clinic there. How they met and came together is an adventure that quickly pulls you into Lisa Harris's latest novel, Blood Ransom.

Joseph Komboli had come to Natalie for help; he had just witnessed the destruction of his Village, his family and friends abducted. The Ghost Soldiers were real! But Joseph was hurt and she forced him to go to the clinic with her before anything else!

There had been many rumors about Soldiers coming to take human laborers to work as slaves for the mines. Joseph had watched as they killed the ones unable to work and made the others move off ahead of them. Joseph had, however, just returned from a visit with his uncle who had given him a special wonderful gift, a camera. Now he would use that gift to capture and record the truth!

Having those pictures brought about a chase that led Natalie, Chad and Joseph through danger and death. Both Chad and Natalie were caught up--in each other first, and then into local events that had never been proven. Now with the pictures, if they could be used properly, it could result in the freedom of all those who had been enslaved.

All Joseph thought about was finding his family before they killed them like they had his grandfather!

But Joseph had also heard a snatch of conversation while he took those pictures. "The president will be taken care of...only four more days until we are in power." Something must happen before the scheduled election took place or the president might indeed be assassinated!

Harris lives with her family in Mozambique, Africa, where they are missionaries. She writes with an indepth knowledge of the people, the setting, and highlights the slave trade happening there. She challenges readers throughout the book--Where is God in this chaos? Will their prayers, their pleas to Him be answered?

Blood Ransom by Lisa Harris is an excellent adventure novel that shows how God uses us to work His miracles. Faith in action is a clear message in this exciting story!


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G. A. Bixler

I thought this book was going to talk more directly about human trafficking. It was a bit of a godly action love story all mixed in with corrupt government issues that do sadly occur. In particular, this story is about a woman who gets involved in helping a boy who finds her and tells her that his village was rampaged and that they were brought to a slave labor camp to get minerals for our use of cell phones, laptops, cameras, etc. This is a reality that I don't believe gets touched up on enough, but at the same time this wasn't a primary focus in the book which let me down. I loved the idea of the power of prayer in here, but at the same time some of the situations and instances were very abnormal and unrealistic that it was a little corny at times. I guess with all the books I've read on human trafficking (this being the 18th or so), I have created higher expectations for what I expect in the books! It wasn't bad though. I'm not much for fiction so that's probably why I didn't like it as much.

In the Republic of Dhambizao there have been rumors of Ghost Soldiers raiding villages and all the people simply disappearing, but young Joseph Komboli has seen it with his own eyes as he watches his family attacked. Desiring to find his father before he's killed, he seeks the help of Natalie Sinclair, an American woman working for disease control, but she has no idea of the web of danger that she is about to get tangled in.

I liked the book, but I'm sorry to say I just didn't love it. The suspense was there, although more so toward the latter half of the book. I found the story somewhat difficult to get into, though. It could be that I didn't care very much for the characters, as they didn't have much depth to me.

I'd say my biggest struggle with the book was with the portrayal of the characters. I know for sure that Natalie and Chad were Americans, but I'm not certain who else was American. Since the story was set in Africa I had to assume that all the other characters were African, but they seemed very American in all the dialog. I felt like there should've been a better distinction made in the storytelling.

I will say that I appreciate Lisa Harris as a Christian writer who writes a "clean" romance. Some Christian authors just go a bit over the top for me.

I wish to thank Zondervan for providing me with a free copy of the book for review. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

I finished Blood Ransom over a couple of days - trains, planes, I took it everywhere with me so it was on hand whenever I had ten minutes spare to read.

This story centers around a health worker and a doctor who discover that "Ghost Soldiers", rumored to be responsible for entire villages "disappearing", are not a just a myth as the government claims, but reality. With hard evidence to prove it, they take off on a mission to rescue one such village on the eve of an election. It sounds a bit cliched, but the author's brilliant writing manages to turn it into a definite page-turner.

While fiction, Blood Ransom highlights very real issues happening in the world today. People ripped from their homes and lives, trafficked away to become slave labour, soldiers or sex slaves. For some who have no knowledge of this issue it would probably be easy to believe/hope that this book overdramatizes the issue, but I have friends who work in this world and if anything the reality of human trafficking is much worse and more widespread and taking place in almost every nation, not just poverty stricken corrupt African ones.

I, for one, am looking forward to Book 2 due out in February.

This book held my attention to the end. It was one of those books that I couldn't put down. I loved the characters in the book. Each character had his/her own struggles. I felt the tension, the fear and the excitment through the characters. Lisa wrote in such a way as to put me in the jungle, the river and the city. I've been on African soil and this book describes Africa very well. It brought back many memories.

Joseph Komboli has managed to make a life for himself away from his remote village. But when he returns home to visit his family, he finds "Ghost Soldiers" already there. He watches from the forest as they kidnap the entire village, killing the elderly, but taking the rest to work as slaves in the mines. Then he overhears two men talking about a government take-over. Joseph takes pictures, but when his presence is discovered he loses the camera while trying to escape.

Natalie Sinclair is sympathetic to Joseph's story, but doesn't know what to do about it. The Dhambizao government denies all charges of the "Ghost Soldiers." And since Joseph has no proof...

Dr. Chad Talcott is on sabbatical from his American medical practice, helping to take care of those in Dhambizao who need medical help. Chad doesn't believe Joseph at first, but eventually evidence comes to light that indicates he might be telling the truth. When a high-ranking political figure involved, disaster nips at their heels. But can Chad and Natalie expose this modern day slave trade in time?

BLOOD RANSOM is the first book in Ms. Harris' Mission Hope Series set in the African soil where she and her husband serve as missionaries. The prologue starts out with Joseph watching the horror in his village, and it is gripping. I had to keep reading to find out if he was able to prove what he saw.

I enjoyed reading this very well-written thriller, and getting to know the characters. Natalie is kind and considerate, and so is Chad, but he is a bit more skeptical than Natalie, and more willing to consider ulterior motives than she. I had to cheer for this couple as they took on a cause to help a village boy. If you are interested in a thriller, then BLOOD RANSOM is definitely a book to consider! It will hold your interest to the end.

I very much enjoyed this book. Ghost soldiers are supposed to be a myth but Joseph gets evidence that they are real and that an important figure is involved in the slave trade that has demolished his village. Natalie and Chad are working to make Dhambizao a better place for the people who live there. They are pulled in to a race against time when Joseph comes to Natalie for help...

I like that the characters in this book are realistic. They react like a normal person would and not like a 'perfect' person. Joseph is the character I was most drawn to because he is so brave for his age. All the characters are very relateable though! I enjoyed the twists and turns that kept me guessing the whole way through and the light romance was an added bonus. I also love that the author shows through the book how God uses us to do His will.
I rate this book 4/5. Good start to a series I intend to read the rest of!


Thank you to Zondervan for the review copy of this book. I received this book in exchange for an honest review and the opinions stated above are 100% mine.