Hideaway (Hideaway, Book 1) [Paperback]

Hannah Alexander (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2003

Devastated by her sisters death while under her medical care, ER doctor Cheyenne Allison retreats to an isolated farm in Hideaway, Missouri. But this picturesque town tucked into the Ozarks is not the tranquil haven Cheyenne imagined but a community terrorized by a dangerous vandal. When Cheyenne becomes the vandal's target, she can only hope her trust in her charismatic neighbor and his faith in Providence are not misplaced. HIDEAWAY is the launch title for Steeple Hill Books' new inspirational fiction program.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this gentle romantic suspense novel for the Christian market, a competent physician finds faith, love and healing after her world crumbles. When Dr. Cheyenne Allison is unable to save the patient she loves the most, she is threatened with a lawsuit and ordered to go on leave. Angry with God and at loose ends, Cheyenne repairs to a dilapidated house on 65 acres of land in Hideaway, a rural Missouri town where she hopes to find quiet and healing. But country life is anything but peaceful. It's not long before the good-looking divorce Dane Gideon cajoles her into helping with a dyslexic teen at his ranch for troubled boys, and the widowed mayor, Austin Bartow, angles for a date. Tension simmers when a vandal wreaks havoc on the town, and Bartow blames a boy at the ranch. Cheyenne finds herself caught up in the melee, which culminates when a beloved elderly friend turns up missing. The tension is low-key; the romance between Dane and Cheyenne simmers but never boils, and Cheyenne's search for faith is slow and rather refreshingly undramatic. Some scenes feel wooden, however, especially when a young teen is accidentally electrocuted and Cheyenne works to save his life. Genuine humor and an interesting cast of characters keep the story perking along, and although some of the plot twists are a stretch, there are a few surprises. CBA readers who appreciate escapist romance with a dollop of suspense should find this an enjoyable read.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Hannah Alexander . . . is masterful at creating places so real you'll be looking for them on the map . . . " -- Deborah Raney, author

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Steeple Hill; Regular Print/Single Titl edition (October 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0373785070
• ISBN-13: 978-0373785070
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #455,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Well Paced, Suspenseful Read, January 24, 2004

By 

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

This review is from: Hideaway (Hideaway, Book 1) (Paperback)

True confession: this is the first Christian suspense novel I've read, and I wasn't expecting much. Given the secular suspense novels all over bookstores chockfull of gore, sex and expletives, I couldn't imagine how Hannah Alexander would put together a story without them. What would the main conflict be --- that the church coffee hour ran out of sugar?

Like all sinners who confess, I must now admit my wrongdoing: HIDEAWAY, while gentle, is a well paced, suspenseful read. That bag of missing sugar hasn't been poured into Alexander's prose, either; the novel isn't treacly. Even the requisite adorable elderly country couple, Bertie and Red, are rendered clearly. Bertie, given to concoctions of roots and herbs, isn't made to seem like a fount of wisdom or like a Wiccan-on-the-edge; instead, her homemade remedies are place in counterpoint to Cheyenne Allison's medical training.

Cheyenne Allison, a thirtysomething ER doctor, has retreated to colleague Ardis Dunaway's home in the Ozark town of Hideaway, Missouri, after her sister is in a car accident and dies on her watch. Without giving away too much of the plot, it's important to know that Allison has inner demons pursuing her, and outer ones too, in the form of a lawsuit. She thinks the quiet of country life and the challenge of helping to spruce up her friend's ramshackle house will be all that she needs to fill up her life while she recovers.

But soon she is meeting the neighbors: Dane Gideon, who runs a ranch for troubled teen boys, his ward Gavin, or "Blaze," the aforementioned Bertie and Red, Mayor Austin Barlow and his son Ramsay, and other people curious about the lone woman from the big city of Columbia. Before she can say "How quaint!" Allison finds herself aiding Gideon, tutoring Blaze, treating Red, and fending off Barlow. Her quiet period of recovery soon turns into an eventful sabbatical that leaves her wondering if she really wants to go back to what she once had.

Some of the events seem flat. For example, as the book gains speed, accidents and incidents tumble so quickly over each other that when Blaze is badly electrocuted by a ground wire, the injury almost fails to register. This may be a weakness of the collaboration; "Hannah Alexander" is the pen name for Dr. Mel and Cheryl Hodde (Hod-dee), who have written several books together and plan more novels in this "Hideaway" series.

However, weaknesses are more than offset by the strengths in this book. Some of the events are tragic, including those affecting Allison, as her brother-in-law's suit against her turns ugly and Red's deep-vein thrombosis even uglier. And as things turn ugly in town, too, with repeated acts of vandalism being blamed on Blaze, the doctor slowly, slowly, slowly begins to wonder if there might be more to the quiet, strong Christian faith of her new friends than she could have ever imagined.

Allison's road to spiritual recovery is rendered without dramatics, as befits her training and beliefs. Other characters are also attractive --- Dane Gideon, quirks and flaws included, is a fitting foil for the doctor, a female protagonist who does not conform to any particular doctrine's idea of womanhood but is nevertheless deeply attractive. However, when I finished, the character of Blaze was the one who stayed with me. An author (or authors!) who can create an African-American boy with emotional issues, whose skill with animals can bring tears to the eye, is (are) talented indeed. And so my confession ends with a penance and redemption that are one and the same: I look forward to the next Hannah Alexander suspense title!

--- Reviewed by Bethanne Kelly Patrick

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Another great read from Hannah Alexander!!, October 6, 2003

By 

E. J. Whyte "KiwiElle" (Taihape, New Zealand) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hideaway (Hideaway, Book 1) (Paperback)

Once again Hannah Alexander captures your imagination, introducing characters with heart and soul and settings with vivid realism. With thrilling suspense interwoven with gentle romance, humour, and medical drama, Hannah Alexander has served up a tale that leaves you waiting anxiously for more. Hideaway is a stellar debut in a riveting new series. ~~Ellie Schroder, owner of The Christian Fiction Site

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars It's a Keeper, July 18, 2004

By 

C. Hardin "CJ Hardin" (Asotin, Washington USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Hideaway (Hideaway, Book 1) (Paperback)

FANTASTIC....couldn't put it down...didn't want it to end.
The writing is supherb with believable characters and situations...I love how the two were entroduced to each other....I found myself chuckling... I keep all of Hannah Alexander books for my personal library and for friends to read...these books do NOT go into the 2nd hand book store bin.
Please, Hannah Alexander, never ever quit producing!