Safe Beginnings [Paperback]

Christine Duncan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2002

When the battered women's shelter's fire alarm goes off, counselor Kaye Berreano rushes to evacuate her residents. But it's too late. The new resident, Mary Ellen, is dead.

Farrell, the blue eyed, police arson investigator, believes Kaye knows who set the fire. He even goes so far as to accuse Roger, Kaye's soon to be ex, who had been at the safe house earlier, arguing with Kaye. Farrell's other theory is that Mary Ellen set the fire herself in a suicidal moment.

Kaye knows three things. She's no murderer, and jerk though he is, neither is Roger. And she'd bet her career as a counselor that Mary Ellen wasn't suicidal.

The safe house residents are moved to a Red Cross shelter and Kaye's hours are cut. Broke but determined, she launches her own investigation while still attending to her divorce and caring for her two teenage children.

Could it be the roommate who fought with Mary Ellen on the night of the fire? How about Amanda who beat her husband George and is stuck in the safe house by court order? Then there is the fanatical minister who unwillingly brought Mary Ellen to the safe house. Could this be murder in the name of Jesus?

Come along with Kaye, as she finds out.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a fast, enjoyable read.

The storytelling is straightforward, the clues nicely plotted, and the heroine is strong,...appealing." -- Toby Bromberg, Romantic Times Book Club, Aug 2002

"Safe Beginnings is a unique and compellingly written mystery ...very highly recommended...." -- Midwest Book Review, Aug 2002

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Treble Heart Books (July 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931742855
• ISBN-13: 978-1931742856
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,858,361 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST FOR MYSTERY LOVERS!!!, May 9, 2003

By 

"lovefantasy" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Safe Beginnings (Paperback)

What a truly wonderful read! Ms. Duncan's characters are so real you feel they're family and you really care what happens to them. This is a book that draws you in from the first page and you can't put it down until you find out what happens. A possible murder in a battered women's shelter? Learn about the families involved in the shelter as the suspects are sorted out. And help Kaye, one of the counselors, that is going through a difficult divorce and trying to raise two teenagers, as she tried to put the pieces together. Loved it!! A real page-turner, Christine Duncan is a name for mystery lovers to watch!

5.0 out of 5 stars CAPTURING THE LOCALE AS A SETTING, June 1, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Safe Beginnings (Paperback)

Duncan does a great job of describing life in Jefferson County for middle class workers. She also captures the essence of living in a battered woman's shelter. Her description of Gunther Toody's cracked me up as I feel the same way as the protagonist--spare me!

It is great fun to read about your back yard in fiction, especially a mystery. It is the first novel I have read describing the areas I haunt. More writers need to writeabout this area using fiction as a tool.