For Camp CCR, hosted by the Clearly Christian Readathon, I thought I would make my way to the Rescue Ridge campsite for romantic suspense and thrillers (earning this lovely badge), and read Shadowing You by Robin Patchen.
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing a complimentary copy of this book for review consideration. All opinions are my own.
Content to be aware of: marital dishonesty, violence, death
Book Synopsis
When the wife he believed dead calls from China, an ER doctor races to find her before her enemies silence her forever.
Ethan Wright never recovered from the death of his first love.
Six years ago, Mei Lin discovered evidence linking powerful officials to a human trafficking ring. She planned to smuggle the details out of China and join her new husband in America—but COVID sealed the borders before she could escape. Snatched by the men she’d been investigating, she was wrongfully imprisoned while authorities claimed she had died in quarantine. Now, Mei Lin’s sudden release doesn’t mean she’s free.
Ethan will stop at nothing to get his wife out of China, but he has no idea where she is. He must reach out to his estranged father, a former CIA officer who has powerful connections. With his dad’s help, Ethan begins a desperate search. He finally finds Mei Lin, but she refuses to run without the evidence that could expose the conspiracy—and ensure they’re never hunted again.
Reunited after years apart, Ethan and Mei Lin must rediscover the love they thought they’d lost—while staying one step ahead of enemies who will stop at nothing to keep their secrets hidden.
Source: Amazon
Book Thoughts
This is an interesting book to read as a Chinese woman in that the facets of culture, geopolitical activity, and faith all intersect in Shadowing You. Not having picked up the author's works before, coming into book ten of a series is a little daunting; however, the plot captured my attention right away and I knew that I had to read this harrowing and inspiring story. After stumbling upon depraved and criminal activities, Mei Lin ends up in the fight of her life while fighting for her own life. This is a nail-biter of a book, involving evil in its rawest form through the trafficking of human beings. In trying to find escape from a notorious criminal, the author successfully immerses readers into a surveillance state where every move seems to be monitored by a gamemaster several steps ahead.
With each action potentially resulting in life or death, I appreciate that Ethan and Mei Lin desperately cling to God and continually seek His help. Additionally, having Ethan's extended family provide needed assistance offers the book a little levity as he becomes better acquainted with them. The cultural aspects are well-portrayed, depicting a woman who chooses to obey Christ over her background and any current political systems. Though the characters' marriage is fraught with plenty of obstacles, it is refreshing to see how self-sacrificial love is demonstrated, mirroring Jesus' love for His church. If you've already encountered the Wright family, this story brings everyone together on the most important mission of all—that of rescuing the innocent, bringing about justice, and restoring what the locusts have taken, all while pointing to God and His heart for those who are enslaved.
Side note: While I appreciated the in-depth research done in this book and the majority of the storyline, a few things didn't quite sit right with me that other readers may want to be aware of. I will try to share these as generically as possible so as to avoid giving spoilers away.
The first set of concerns have to do with the marriage between Ethan and Mei Lin in that there is dishonesty between them that abounds for a significant portion of the book. This can be triggering for readers who are sensitive to lying and deception. There is also the matter of more than one person being hurt by a perpetuated unwillingness to speak truth, which is unfortunately not addressed again.
Second, due to the extreme measures required to rescue a protagonist's life, lines are crossed into thievery, violence, and murder. It's certainly a grey area of morality as to what means justify the ends, and while we should wrestle with these questions, the conclusions were assumed without further examination (which, given the urgency of some scenarios, it would be difficult to do so in the moment; however, it would have been interesting to see how the Christian worldview would apply to these cases upon reflection).
Book Summary
- Format of book: 📱
- Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Recommendation: 👍
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