Customer Reviews

The Quarry

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Laurie Loveman's second Firehouse Family novel, The Quarry, is another beautifully evocative tale of small-town life in Ohio during the Depression. The story follows on from Memories but stands alone quite effectively, with only occasional references to the past. Relationships are moving on and new characters are introduced, or brought to the fore. Young Eli still struggles with memories of his past. New-comer Aaron struggles to keep the quarry alive. And women struggle to be accepted as more than just home-makers. There's a new age dawning, but meantime there's sheep to be fed and stores to be stocked, and fires to be fought.
Farm, firehouse and quarry all come to life through the author's evocative prose. The story may be slow to gather speed, but the characters soon become very real; by the time danger and mystery rear their heads, the reader's as eager as everyone else to learn what might come next. Will the quarry close? Will Jess get married? Will Maudie take her pills?
The conclusion kept me guessing for pages, then satisfied me completely. Another truly engaging tale, The Quarry will soon have you looking for Firehouse Family #3.

Disclosure: I read this ebook as a judge in the mystery section of the Dan Poynter Global eBook Awards.

Review of The Quarry by Laurie Loveman
A riveting story

The story is the second in the Firehouse Trilogy series by Laurie Loveman. We meet Eli Sheffler, the senior first aid technician at Woodhill Fire Department. Tragedy struck when his mom died giving birth to his little sister, Ruth. What would Eli do now? What does his dad do after the death of his wife? Did they have a pleasant, carefree childhood together?
Jessica Malloy, M. D. is the only Emergency room doctor in town. She cares for Boris' mom, who is very ill. Boris works in the Quarry, along with many of the citizens of Woodhill. Boris and Dr. Malloy develop a romantic relationship, in spite of their age difference.
The town politicians decide to have the Quarry's financial status investigated. What will happen if the Quarry is forced to close? Those people in town will be left destitute without shelter and work. Will Aaron Chandler be able to solve the Quarry's financial problems?
What tragedy befalls Boris while he's at the Quarry? Is his life in danger?
This story is riveting. You'll love reading about problems facing the characters. Laurie Loveman carefully weaves suspense throughout the story. You won't want to put it down!
Reviewed by Deanie Humphrys-Dunne, author of: Tails of Sweetbrier, Charlie the Horse, and Charlene the Star

Eli Sheffler is the senior First Aid man at the Woodhill Fire Department. Eli's mother died giving birth to his sister, Ruth, who had cerebral palsy. Eli helped raise Ruth because many people did not understand her illness. Eli's father abandoned them a few years after his wife died. They ended up in an orphanage that a friend had taken them to.
Jessica Malloy is the town's Emergency Room doctor; she is the only woman doctor in town. She also takes care of Maudie Hegerty while her son, Boris, is working at the quarry. Jessica feels herself falling in love with Boris even though there is a big age difference.
Aaron Chandler is brought to Woodhill to investigate the quarry's profitability. If the quarry can not make enough money it will be shut down, leaving many people without jobs and homes, as many of the employees live in quarry housing. He finds himself befriending Boris while trying to make safer working conditions for the quarry to keep it open for a number of years.
When the quarry is shut down by the big guns, Boris is hurt in a terrible accident. Jessica is helpless and must stand by to wait to see if he will survive. At the accident scene Eli is brought fact-to-face with his long lost father. Can he set his bitterness at being abandoned aside to talk to his father and hear his story?
THE QUARRY is the second in a trilogy of the FIREHOUSE FAMILY series. It is set in 1934 in Woodhill, Ohio. Jessica is a compassionate woman who you want to see find her happiness. Eli want to understand why his father never came back for him and his sister, but his anger prevents him from this. He needs Jessica to help him through his pain and overcome his bitterness. Laurie Loveman has the knack of pulling the reader in by telling a great story. It is a story that makes you fall in love with the characters as if they were your own friends and family.