Monday 7 June 2010

Hannah Alexander

Hannah Alexander is the pen name of a husband a wife team who write christian novels. I had not read any of their books before but having read alot of really gory books recently I felt the need for something different and a bit lighter. They have written many books but I started with an ER trilogy the titles of which are, in order:

Sacred Turst Cover    Solemn Oath Cover      Silent Pledge cover
 
 
These books were written in 2009 but have been reprinted. Copies can be obtained direct from the authors' Website or from Amazon who have second hand copies quite cheaply. 

These books are set around a busy ER department in a small town in America, and details the lives of both the staff who live there and the patients they treat. The main characters are Dr Lukas Bower and Dr Mercy Richmond. These novels are both easy to read and packed with detail and I found myself wanting to know more about the characters. As I say, these are Christian novels and many of the characters are Christians. However, they are pportrayed realistically, and they have their own foibles and troubles. However, their faith shines through despite everything happening in their lives. There are those in the book who question God and his motives, and these are real and very honest questions. They are answered realistically and the authors do not sidestep the issues.

The medical side of things also seems to be very realistic, however, I am British so cannot give a definite yes on this as I don't know a lot about the American Health care system. There a re a range of different medical stories which are interesting and kept me gripped and reading.

The stories and the characters evolve throughout the books, and although they can be read individually, I feel that I got more out of them by reading them in order. Having started number one I felt that I couldn't put it down, and quickly moved on to the other two. By the end I felt as if I was part of their lives. These are well written books and enjoyable to read. My one and only criticism is that I felt that the very end of the last book was a bit rushed. There were a few sentences about what was happening to the characters in the future. I feel that this could have been developed a bit more, or even made into another book. Otherwise, very enjoyable and definitely recommended.