Catching Katie (HeartQuest) [Paperback]

Robin Lee Hatcher (Author)

Book Description

Series: Heart Quest (Unnumbered) | Publication Date: January 1, 2004

In 1916 Idaho, Katie Jones has dedicated her life to the campaign for women's suffrage. Until now she has successfully avoided the ties of marriage, fearing it would obscure her message. Will her growing love for childhood chum Ben Rafferty compromise her calling?

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Robin Lee HatcherThe Christy Award for Excellence in Christian Fiction and two RITA Awards for Best Inspirational Novels are just three of the many honors received by international best-selling author Robin Lee Hatcher. In 2001, she received the Romance Writers of America's Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest honor bestowed by the organization. Robin and her husband share their Idaho home with a Persian cat, three dogs, and enjoy the visits of their two grown daughters and young grandchildren.

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. (January 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0842360999
• ISBN-13: 978-0842360999
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #232,812 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I'm the author of 60+ novels and novellas. My home is in Idaho, where I spend my time writing stories of faith, courage, and love; pondering the things of God; and loving my family and friends. Please note that the list of my books on Amazon includes novels written for the general romance market from 1984 to 1999. My Christian fiction has been published from 1999 to present. I no longer recommend my older fiction. Purchase used books with caution. For more information, please visit my web site at http://robinleehatcher.com.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Delightful and Fresh Take on the Historical Romance, February 28, 2004

By 

FaithfulReader.com (New York, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Catching Katie (HeartQuest) (Paperback)

For many years, one-time president of Romance Writers of America Robin Lee Hatcher wrote bestselling romance novels, including KISS ME, KATIE, about a young Idahoan fighting for a woman's right to vote. While Hatcher had accepted Christ in 1976, in the early 1990s she began to walk closer with Jesus, and she began reading inspirational fiction. She realized that she wanted to write novels that fit her new ideals and that some of her previous books could be tailored to fit her new writing model. Thus, her latest book, CATCHING KATIE, is her fifth "redeemed" one (Hatcher's term), an update of KISS ME, KATIE that incorporates a strong faith story into its romance.

Katie Jones is a graduate of Vassar College and has spent several years in Washington, D.C. lobbying on behalf of women's suffrage. She decides to move back home to Idaho, a state that had granted women suffrage in the late 19th century, in order to build momentum there --- and perhaps a platform for her own ambitions, although she's not completely aware of them as she rattles into the town of Homestead in her newfangled Model T Ford, nicknamed "Susan B" after Katie's hero.

What she is aware of is her burning desire to accomplish her goal of universal suffrage, and she doesn't consider what anyone else will think as she begins to do so. Her dear childhood friend, Ben Rafferty, is now the editor of the Homestead Herald, and Katie immediately "applies" to write a column about the subject closest to her heart. However, before she knows what's happening, that subject of her heart has changed --- it's become Ben. His former engagement broken off, it seems there's nothing to stand in the way of the childhood sweethearts getting married. In fact, they do (I won't spoil why, or how), but that doesn't solve the real dilemma for Katie, which is how to reconcile her feminist principles with marriage.

Hatcher tackles this subject head-on, by providing insight into the history of women's rights and by grounding Katie in a solid, no-nonsense pioneer Christian spirituality. Pioneer tradition had to acknowledge women as powerful and equal, because the work of building towns like Homestead couldn't have been done without them. It's small wonder that Idaho had early women's suffrage, and it's small wonder that Katie has no qualms about being seen as equal to men before marriage.

Of course, given the opinions of so many around her and given the culture of her era, Katie finds that once she and Ben are married in the eyes of God and man, she has a much more difficult time understanding herself. Fortunately, Hatcher helps the reader understand all sides of the issue, and grounds the conclusion in Scriptural as well as historical terms (for example, she demonstrates that many serious Christian women were also serious suffragettes; the movement was not filled with atheists and agnostics).

While Hatcher herself clearly believes that Christian marriage is about mutual submission and not about male dominance, she also clearly believes in the primacy of her relationship with Jesus Christ. Even readers who disagree with her views on men and women will find this tale of a bubbly young lady growing into womanhood a delightful and fresh take on the historical romance.

--- Reviewed by Bethanne Kelly Patrick

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Light and Easy, October 12, 2004

By 

itsjustme (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Catching Katie (HeartQuest) (Paperback)

I'd never read anything by Hatcher before, but "Catching Katie" makes me want to read all her novels. Hatcher's style is easygoing, and moves along while it still gives details. Unlike some genre novelists, she could be called a "good" writer, as well as someone who knows how to tell a good tale.

There's nothing very deep about this novel; it's a tale of a woman fighting her heart, and trying to balance career with love. But it's the perfect novel to read when you just want to get away from the world for a while.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't miss this one!, February 27, 2004

By 

Robin (Meridian, ID, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Catching Katie (HeartQuest) (Paperback)

Katie has become one of my favorite all-time heroines. She was spirited, impetuous, and had some growing to do which she did over the course of the book. Ben was solid and loving and patient. He really won my heart. I like that they were people of faith who trusted God to guide them. This book is full of historical information that is carefully woven throughout the story. Romances don't get any better than this. I would highly recommend it.