Author: Fiona McCallum
ISBN: 9781743692400
RRP: $29.99
Fiona McCallum has penned six Australian bestsellers, Leap of Faith is her seventh novel and set in the picturesque Adelaide Hills.
All of the books I have read by McCallum have been set in South Australia but this is the first in my neck of the woods. I’m not sure exactly where the farm is but I’m familiar with the surrounding towns and the roads mentioned so it had a very familiar feel to me right from the start.
I am not sure where my headspace is at just of late but it is affecting my reading and my empathy with heroines. I enjoyed the premise of Leap of Faith which has McCallum’s signature writing style and well drawn characters. Her animals are characters in their own right and you can’t help but be drawn to them. My issue was I couldn’t connect to lead character Jessica, I couldn’t get past some of her attitudes and decisions.
In the early pages Jessica has a traumatic accident in the middle of a horse riding event; leaving her hospitalised but thankfully her horse Prince suffers only a few scratches. Jessica’s broken ankle means she is out of action for six weeks with little to occupy her. The extremely capable, physical and independent Jessica is unable to ride, unable to teach and perhaps the most frustrating she is unable to care for her horses or help husband Steve on the farm.
All of this time off her feet gives Jessica way too much time to think, and to question EVERYTHING. A lot of her self evaluation is to be expected and completely natural but it seemed to me that she got a little melodramatic about it all for a while there. Jessica is concerned about the loss of condition in her horses and all of the extra responsibility on her husband looking after them so she rushes into a decision that those around her think she will come to regret. And, to top it all off she tries to isolate herself at home away from the entire horse community, and her town, because she’s not ready to face anyone.
Jessica is given time to look at her career so far and analyse what she has achieved, and why. Her pit of self-pity is quite deep but I think it needed to be for her to grow and tackle things from a different angle. The time and distance from her competition offer a very different perspective and allow her to recognise things she had never noticed throughout her career, and her rash decision allowed a second chance at happiness.
Faith is the rundown and forlorn horse Steve brings home from a clearing sale, after Jessica has sold hers. There’s a lot at play here and it seems quite obvious that Steve picked up the horse to try and rekindle Jessica’s passion but she is determined to keep her distance. It turns out that Faith affected Steve in a way he wasn’t expecting and he just couldn’t bear to leave the horse behind.
Every character has a story and Faith is no different, her story is heartbreaking and she too needs a second chance. The slow unfolding of Faith’s story broke my heart. It was beautiful to watch the blossoming relationship and growth of trust between Faith and Jessica as they both had a lot to learn.
Leap of Faith is an aptly named and beautifully told story of love, loss and second chances. It tells a tale of self discovery and demonstrates the need for honesty and the importance of in sickness and in health, and sharing with your partner because trying to hide it and struggle through alone hurts both of you.
A beautiful weekend read for a journey to the lush greenery of the picturesque Adelaide Hills.
Leap of Faith is book #14 for Australian Women Writers Challenge 2015.
For more about Fiona and to get a look at all of her titles you can find her on Facebook, her website and the Harlequin website.
We have copies of Leap of Faith to giveaway to 5 of our lucky readers. If you want to be one of them tell us in the comments below about an injury that had you out of action and appreciating all the things you take for granted.
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I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
I was renovating my home and carrying my Grandmother’s antique bedhead down the stairs, the cat ran in front of me and I tripped and slipped, gliding down the stairs with the bedhead on top of me. I was heavily winded / injured and lay down the bottom of the stairs for an hour before I could move enough to ring the ambulance. I had broken my ankle, wrist and had a concussion. Unfortunately, the bed head didn’t survive the crash either, but with the help of my neighbour we carefully restored it and it’s back to it’s former glory. A message from the Wise: “Cats are nature’s way of teaching humility to humans” and “To err is human…Purrfection is feline”.
I am a klutz, but thankfully those around me are my airbags & wings & everything good, kind and necessary.
A Hysterectomy at 33yrs put me out of action for 6 weeks no worries I thought but then I realised no basketball to play ,no soccer to go & watch for a couple of weeks but more importantly I couldn’t lift up my kids to give them a cuddle or help them with manual things they had to do so it just shows what we take for granted everyday.
I had just turned 21 when I was hit by a speeding car in a pedestrian crossing. I wasn’t expected to survive but I’m still here, 50+ years later. It was 14 months before I was able to walk again and I have never forgotten the horror of realising I couldn’t just walk, I needed to LEARN to walk again. All through that time I was able to count my blessings and be thankful for the love of family and friends. I felt that I’d been given an insight into life that would sustain me through difficult times.
Dealing with my husband’s cancer with the support of our son and darling Daughter-in-law opened my eyes to the intense suffering of many, especially the very young dealing with cancer. Through all that time my husband never complained and we faced it all together. We celebrate 52 years of marriage this week, looking forward and valuing every moment.
My injury was a broken ankle whilst on holiday to attend a wedding mid last year. The broken ankle kept me immobilised for 12 weeks and then it was discovered I had developed a DVT (blood clot) in my calf, so I can sympathise with the heroine of this book!
I twisted my uncle three times in 3 seconds and I couldn’t stand for a week. I couldn’t get anywhere and I couldn’t sleep.
Hahaha even with an injury there’s no ‘out of action’ for this energizer bunny, responsibilities nor circumstance allows it.
hahaha….. falling down stairs and landing in a rose bush to top it off….ended up with a broken arm and fractured the other wrist… twisted my knee….and had bark off me everywhere…..
ohhh and thorns….and more thorns…. hahaha..
everything was a hassle from eating, bathing, getting dressed ohhh and the loo what a nightmare…haha
or the time i was running to catch a ball and run straight into a concrete wall and ended up with stitches in my head….
or the time i went roller skating and fell over big time…. thought i broke my bum….agony!!
or ice skating…the same thing…thought i broke my bum then too….absolute agony!!
or roller blading at 42….and couldn’t stop and went straight into a park bench…. could see my shin skin on the edge of the seat….stitches and never to roller blade again….lol
geez the list goes on…
Im so accident prone….pushing 50 these days and I still do alot of damage to myself….hahaha
im in need of a good read atm…..
so if you want to hear some more of my accidents as i like to call them…please dont hesitate to ask im more than happy to share….hahaha
I had surgery on my achilles tendon. I couldn’t put my foot on the ground for two weeks. Unfortunately, due to shoulder problems, I couldn’t use crutches. I was forced into a wheel chair. That made me appreciate lots of things. From driving the car to getting on and off the toilet. From taking a cup of coffee from the the kitchen to lounge room to going outside to water the garden. Even getting out of my lounge chair was near impossible. Thankfully my husband was able to modify my chair so I could get up out of it on one foot.
My injury was a cut to the back of my right hand. It went from the knuckle of my little finger right across to the last knuckle. A total of 8 stitches and my right hand out of action for over 3 weeks. Needless to say I was right handed at the time. I had to learn to do everything left handed and the biggest thing that caused me the most problems was trying to brush and plait my long hair. Trying to wash myself, dress myself and do the simplest thing like brushing my teeth were a nightmare. I am a perfectionist and I ended up in tears many many times a day and would not leave the house as I was upset with my appearance.
I am now ambidextirous and have a scar across the knuckles of my right hand to remind me of 3 weeks of tars, frustrations and the time I was the sloppiest dresser I have ever been!!!!!
tears****