The Tagline Ain't a Joke Folks! Over the Edge by Brandilyn Collins ~ Review

This week, theChristian Fiction Blog Allianceis introducingOver the EdgeB&H Books (May 1, 2011)byBrandilyn Collins



ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Brandilyn Collins is an award-winning and best-selling novelist known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense®. These harrowing crime thrillers have earned her the tagline "Don't forget to b r e a t h e..."® Brandilyn's first book, A Question of Innocence, was a true crime published by Avon in 1995. Its promotion landed her on local and national TV and radio, including the Phil Donahue and Leeza talk shows. Brandilyn is also known for her distinctive book on fiction-writing techniques, Getting Into Character: Seven Secrets a Novelist Can Learn From Actors (John Wiley & Sons). She is now working on her 20th book.





In addition, Brandilyn’s other latest release is Final Touch, third in The Rayne Tour series—young adult suspense co-written with her daughter, Amberly. The Rayne Tour series features Shaley O’Connor, daughter of a rock star, who just may have it all—until murder crashes her world.



ABOUT THE BOOK

Torn from the front lines of medical debate and the author's own experience with Lyme Disease, Over the Edge is riveting fiction, full of twists and turns—and powerful truths about today's medical field.




Janessa McNeil’s husband, Dr. Brock McNeil, a researcher and professor at Stanford University's Department of Medicine, specializes in tick-borne diseases—especially Lyme. For years he has insisted that Chronic Lyme Disease doesn't exist. Even as patients across the country are getting sicker, the committee Brock chairs is about to announce its latest findings—which will further seal the door shut for Lyme treatment.




One embittered man sets out to prove Dr. McNeil wrong by giving him a close-up view of the very disease he denies. The man infects Janessa with Lyme, then states his demand: convince her husband to publicly reverse his stand on Lyme—or their young daughter will be next.



But Janessa's marriage is already rocky. She's so sick she can hardly move or think. And her husband denies she has Lyme at all.



Welcome to the Lyme wars, Janessa.

“A taut, heartbreaking thriller. Collins is a fine writer who knows how to both horrify readers and keep them turning pages.”
--Publishers Weekly




“Tense and dramatic. Holds its tension while following the protagonist in a withering battle.” –NY Journal of Books




“A frightening and all-too-real scenario. Very timely and meaningful book.” –RT Reviews

“If you know someone who suffers from Lyme, you need to read this compelling novel.” –Lydia Niederwerfer, founder of Lyme-Aware

If you would like to read the Prologue of Over the Edge, go HERE

Watch the book video:

My Review:

“Seatbelt Suspense- Don’t Forget to Breathe”—the tagline ain’t a joke folks! I think I lost air several times while reading this book.

I have never come into contact with Lyme disease, but I had heard of it prior to reading the novel. From the very beginning, this book gave me the strongest premonition I had contracted the disease. The author lived through this disease, she knows she is talking about—and it shows on the page. Not only was the writing vivid, it was paired with a mystery that left me short of breath on several occasions.

I always know when I’m reading a good book: not only can’t I put it down, it keeps me up late without a wink of sleep in sight. There isn’t an overflowing amount of bead bodies or red herrings, but the sense that something BIG is coming is a strong premonition through the entire story. When I got there…there was NO WAY I could have put that book down in any circumstance.

The writing grabs the attention, the story, the heart and mind. I loved how deep into the heroine the author dug, it made her pop from the page.

Cover to cover—great book, highly recommended to suspense fans and it won’t be my last Brandilyn book. (smile)

This review is my honest opinion. Thanks to the publishers through CFBA for my copy to review.