Beyond Resolution by
Rose Dee
Even Before Publishing, 01 April 2012
Samara lives a life filled with fear. After being discarded and beaten by her drug dealing boyfriend, she takes one easy out after another. Her choices lead her down the road of self-destruction, into the degrading world of stripping and a life spent looking over her shoulder. Until an encounter with a stranger on a Kings Cross Street provides the catalyst for a life changing event that leads her back home.
Resolution is the last place in the world Jed wants to be. One drastic decision has led him to the Island resort and back into strained contact with his brother, Flynn.
From the bright lights of Sydney to the blue waters of Resolution Island, Beyond Resolution is a story that provides a window into the joy of forgiveness, trust and peace.
This is the follow on book to Rose Dee’s debut novel, Back to Resolution. Beyond Resolution is the story of Samara, a character who is mentioned in Back to Resolution, but whom we never actually met. Beyond Resolution has a strong romantic element, however it does not conform to the definition of an actual romance novel. The hero is not introduced for quite some time, and he does not appear in the same scene with the heroine until almost half way.
The book starts in Sydney – far away from the tranquil and tropical Queensland Resolution Island. Samara is living a less than ideal life – struggling with the ghosts and threats of her past mistakes, and suffering under the consequence of her current choices. Aussie readers probably won’t bat an eyelid at the seedy setting of the first few chapters, but our international friends might be taken a little off guard. That said, there’s nothing inappropriately or overtly described – but be warned the book deals with drugs, strip clubs and assaults.
When Samara finally finds God and allows him to fill the void in her life, she finds the courage to return home to Kiissay Point on the tropical coast of Queensland. She has a strained relationship with her father to repair, and encounters with ex-boyfriends to deal with. A forced stay at Resolution Island with her father as he recovers from an accident makes it impossible to avoid Jed – the man who broke her heart some years ago.
There’s a great deal of “telling” in this novel – particularly when it came to introducing characters. For me, this made the first half of the book slow going. Aside from the predicaments Samara finds herself in Sydney at the start of the novel, most of the action happens in the later half. There’s some drama when Samara is confronted with the remnants of her former life, and some unsavoury characters pay a visit. There was a surprising plot twist at the end when the identity of the attacker is revealed.
I didn’t enjoy this book as much as the first book. I don’t think Samara and Jed spent enough time on the page together for me to get as emotionally invested in their relationship as I would like. There was quite a bit of predictability and a few scenarios that were just a wee bit too convenient for authenticity. I also felt that some of the minor characters from Back to Resolution were forced into cameo appearances in this book.
Samara’s spiritual journey is subtle and natural, so it didn’t feel forced. There’s a great message throughout the book in terms of releasing our fears to God, and forgiveness and restitution.
Helen’s favourite genre is historical fiction with a strong romantic element. She also enjoys contemporary romance, chick-lit and YA. She’s not caught up in the spell of fantasy fiction, despite The Faraway Tree series being a strong influence in her childhood.
Helen is currently working on her first book, a Christian young adult novel set between two opposite but equally fascinating places in Australia.
Helen is a strange combination of fiction editor and web strategist. That’s because she loves fiction and the internet – and analytics! A former business analyst and IT support manager, Helen now spends her time parenting her three children as well as running her editing and web agency businesses. As a book reviewer and fiction editor, her one true love and specialty is Christian romance fiction.
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Hi Helen, Its interesting how we are all different in what we think of a book. I did find the first part of the book darker but I found I didn't want to put it down. For myself I liked this book even more than the first book. I love how each reader has a different take on a book they read. I am looking forward to the last book. I think cos the books are so different, this one had more suspense in it than the first and its interesting but this year I am liking suspense.