Finding Amy by Carol Steward released on Jul 23, 2004 is available now for purchase.
Jessica Mathers enters the hospital confident that her little girl, Amy, is being cared for. But when Jessica awakes from surgery, her daughter and the sitter have disappeared . . . As a favor to his mother, Detective Samuel Vance reluctantly assists on the kidnapping case, because his first impression of Jessica had not been favorable. Yet as together they search for Amy, Sam learns that Jessica is a caring, warm woman. Can they call upon their faith to help them find the abducted girl and form a relationship?
2020 Although I like the story, I didn't like Jessica as the heroine too much. Well, that's not exactly true. I respected her as a mother. Thought she was fun and sweet and clever. However, I didn't like the relationship between her and Sam. I think most of it was because it seemed forced somehow. Like, I think if there wasn't a kidnapping of Jessica's daughter that the romance would have been fine. But I struggled with her and Sam kissing one moment after she's been stressed that her daughter has been taken. Like, it just didn't work for me.
The back cover blurb isn't entirely descriptive of this book. There's a whole section that occurs before Jessica's surgery. Sam seems more reluctant to be a participant in the bachelor auction than he does to get involved in the investigation of Amy's kidnapping. And Sam seems to be well on his way to discovering that Jessica is a warm, caring woman long before the plot has them start searching for Amy.
I've heard friends say they "just knew" that the other person was the right one to become their spouse. So I guess the pull between Sam and Jessica could happen in real life. But I think Jessica had it right when she said she wasn't really in any position to be making major decisions about a long-term relationship. She's had major surgery and is on painkillers--prescription ones that are apparently powerful enough to make her sleep. She's also distraught about Amy going missing (which is entirely correct) and the stress of that coupled with her medical stuff--she really should be waiting to make a life decision. And given her history with Tim, I have a hard time believing she'd jump in so easily with both feet.
On the plus side, stress does seem to tear masks off people so she has seen Sam in that way and he has seen her. She does say that even when they're fighting or she's mad at him, she knows that he loves her. Sam seems to be a caring man.
Still, the wedding seems rushed into to me and not something I could support in real life.
I also had a bit of concern with Jessica's and Sam's discussion about using God as a crutch. I almost kind of felt like the author had to force a Biblical moral lesson into the text because it doesn't really flow for me. I have no idea why Sam thought Jessica was using God as a crutch at that particular point of the story. It just didn't jibe for me. God is our helper, our comforter. He wants us to reach out for him when we're hurting. What's wrong with that? What's wrong with leaning on God when the world seems out of control?
I can see that if it's done excessively or in the wrong way, it (the crutch) could be a bad thing, but that didn't seem to apply to Jessica at the time they had the conversation.
So I have a theological issue with the story as well as reservations about the relationship.
This is the 1st book I read by Carol Steward. This book's storyline was okay. I liked Sam's character. I liked the scenes with Sam & Amy. I liked Jessica's character. I felt sorry for Jessica. I loved ❤ Amy, she was adorable. I liked the ending.
I liked the story, but after having many family members who have had back surgery, there is no way Jessica could have been running around searching for her daughter a week after having back surgery like she did.
Jessica Mathers had been in a car accident 16 months before. Sam Vance had been the detective on the scene and when he saw a car seat in the back of the car he started looking for a child. He did not give up looking in the cold snowy area and he found little Amy Mathers.
He has been seeing Jessica around the Cafe with different men and a stemmed glass so he has tagged her as a party girl.
After his mother introduces her at Adam and Kate's engagement party he starts to see another side to Jessica, a side that attracts him.
While Jessica is in the hospital for back surgery, an injury from the accident, her caretaker kidnaps Amy.
Then Sam and Jessica really get to know each other after spending more time together.
Great addition to the series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Freaky reading about events that occurred so close to where I live and work. Kudos to the detectives and their tenacity in finding her killer and seeing him incarcerated.