Storm Warning
by Elizabeth Goddard

My rating: 2.5 / 5
Genre: Christian romantic suspense

Remi Grant has come to Hidden Bay, a remote resort where visitors come to watch storms on the coast, to try to recover memories lost during a traumatic event that seems to have left her a target by unknown persons. Hawk Beckett has come to Hidden Bay to forget a recent tragedy that cost him his job and the life of a friend. When a masked menace seems to be stalking Remi and Hawk saves her life multiple times, they realize that they may already be more connected than they realize.

The thing I liked most about this book was the setting—the descriptions of the ocean, forest, and storms were all really immersive. Unfortunately, I found the characters and story only okay. I didn’t get much of a feel for Remi’s character at all, and the only real personality I could ascribe to Hawk is that he’s protective (which is fairly standard fair for the MMC in a book like this). I do like that he’s trying to track down a certain person (don’t want to spoil anything) to try to turn him around (from the “dark side” as is so often said by different characters). The book takes place over only about 4 days, and by the end of the first day, which is quite a ways into the book, Remi and Hawk are already trying to talk themselves out of wanting a future with each other. It’s just too fast of a connection like that for my taste, though I understand that a romance book with such a short timeline would require a quick connection. I didn’t see that connection as natural, though, and besides, maybe in a case like this, it doesn’t always have to involve romance that is actually acted upon by the end of the book. 

The writing is a bit stilted as well, both in the prose and in the dialog. I struggled a lot with the flow and pacing and ended up skimming a lot to get past multiple paragraphs that rehashed the same musings about Remi’s missing memories or Hawk’s difficulties. The book is billed as Christian, but it’s barely that. Not that I need every Christian-genre book to have some kind of strong message, but it’s mostly silent, single-sentence prayers every once in a while, pleading with God for other characters to be all right. Hawk, at least, does have a bit of a progression of his faith, but it’s fairly meager as well.

I don’t think the book was bad, exactly, but I’m learning that this sub-genre of books may just not be for me. It’s clean overall—no language and light on the violence—and though the Christianity in it is a little light, based on other reviews, I think it’s safe to say that if you’re interested in this type of book, you should check it out. There are plenty of reviews in favor of it, so be sure to read some of those too.

I received a free review copy from the publisher in exchange for my honest unedited feedback.
Publication date: February 18, 2025

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