In The Shadow of the River - Review

If all the world's a stage, Jacci will play her part.

She only hopes her story does not turn out to be a tragedy.

In 1881, Jacci Reed is only five years old when a man attempts to kidnap her from the steamboat her mother, Irena, works on. Badly wounded during the confrontation, Irena takes Jacci aboard the Kingston Floating Palace, a showboat tied up beside them. There, Jacci's actor grandfather tends to her mother, and Jacci gets a first taste of the life she will come to lead.

Fifteen years later, Jacci is an actress aboard that same showboat and largely contented with her adopted family of actors, singers, and dancers. Especially Gabe, who has always supported her, and the gruff grandfather she has come to know and love. Jacci's mother has been gone for years, but the memory of the altercation that ultimately took her life--and the cryptic things Jacci has overheard about her past--is always there, lurking in the back of her mind.

When someone on the showboat tries to kill Jacci, it's clear her questions demand answers. But secrets have a way of staying in the shadows . . . and the answers she craves will not come easily.

Download Excerpt 

 Set on Riverboats, In the Shadow of the River, brings a mystery. It starts early from the points of view of 5 year old Jacci and her mother Irena. What unfolds in the early chapters takes the whole of the story to unravel. There are twists and turns and an ending that I am certain I did not see coming. 

This is a well written and enthralling tale, ultimately set on a showboat. Jacci is embraced by the actors of the Kingston Floating Palace including her grandfather. Jacci comes to know nothing but this life, However, after a certain politician makes an appearance, questions that Jacci has had for years refuse to be silenced. 

The mystery deepens  when she finds herself in a perilous situation. 

This is a gripping tale that may seem slow at times, but that is an illusion delivered by a master. Jacci and Gabe are a wonderful pair, he has loved her since she came to the boat and she just needed to grow up. 

The mystery is subtle and picks up as things unfold. The answers come and some are unexpected. This was a wonderful story. There are faith building moments and moments of personal growth for both Jacci and Gabe that occur organically but not drawn out nor forced. 

I received an early copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest review.

Ann H. Gabhart is the bestselling author of many novels, including Where the Meadow Blooms, Along a Storied Trail, An Appalachian Summer, River to Redemption, These Healing Hills, and Angel Sister. She and her husband live on a farm a mile from where she was born in rural Kentucky. Ann enjoys discovering the everyday wonders of nature while hiking in her farm's fields and woods with her grandchildren and her dogs, Frankie and Marley. Learn more at www.annhgabhart.com.