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Christmas Haven
Shock is police captain Morgan Wright's first reaction to seeing his former sweetheart, Julie Burns. But concern soon follows. The lovely social worker left Port Whisper behind years ago. Why is she back…and what's got her so scared?
Her hometown was the only safe place Julie could turn to after witnessing a kidnapping. She didn't count on trouble following her. And she certainly didn't expect to run into Morgan, or to feel that old love rekindle. Morgan wants to help her, and she wants to let him—but now that danger has intruded on her safe haven, everyone's at risk….
Her hometown was the only safe place Julie could turn to after witnessing a kidnapping. She didn't count on trouble following her. And she certainly didn't expect to run into Morgan, or to feel that old love rekindle. Morgan wants to help her, and she wants to let him—but now that danger has intruded on her safe haven, everyone's at risk….
224 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
24 people are currently reading
140 people want to read
About the author
Hope White
52 books76 followersAccused of being an eternal optimist, I was born and raised in the Midwest and migrated to the Pacific Northwest a few years ago. I began spinning tales of intrigue and adventure when I was in grade school, and wrote my first book when I was eleven — a thriller that ended with a mysterious phone call the reader never heard!
My college sweetheart and I have been married for over 20 years and are blessed with two wonderful sons, a bossy kitty and feisty Golden Retriever.
When not dreaming up inspirational tales, I’m usually out hiking in the Cascade Mountains, enjoying a fine cup of tea with friends, or hiding out in a movie theatre. I love to hear from readers! hopewhiteauthor@gmail.com
My college sweetheart and I have been married for over 20 years and are blessed with two wonderful sons, a bossy kitty and feisty Golden Retriever.
When not dreaming up inspirational tales, I’m usually out hiking in the Cascade Mountains, enjoying a fine cup of tea with friends, or hiding out in a movie theatre. I love to hear from readers! hopewhiteauthor@gmail.com
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Displaying 1 - 24 of 24 reviews
November 24, 2024
I liked the characters and the book.
May 10, 2020
3.5 nice mystery. Spotted the bad guy right away though
December 17, 2011
High school sweethearts Morgan Wright and Julie Burns were expected to get married, but Julie left the small town of Port Whisper and now is a social worker in Portland. Will they ever find their way back together?
After a series of events, including a kidnapping Julie witnesses, she feels like she is in danger and feels someone might be watching her. She decides to return to Port Whisper, where it's safe - or she thinks it is, but will danger follow her even there?
Christmas Haven is the first book I've read by Hope White, but I definitely plan on reading her other books.
From the beginning pages of Christmas Haven there was suspense and the book held my attention. I loved the characters and especially enjoyed the "love story" between Morgan and Julie.
While I was able to guess one of the culprits (and something else that happens in the story) fairly early in the novel, I will say that I still found it to be thrilling and enjoyable.
Overall, Christmas Haven was a great suspense/romance book that I loved and definitely recommend! I look forward to reading the next book by Hope White.
*I received a complimentary copy of Christmas Haven from the author to review. I was not required to give a positive review, only my honest opinion - which I've done.*
After a series of events, including a kidnapping Julie witnesses, she feels like she is in danger and feels someone might be watching her. She decides to return to Port Whisper, where it's safe - or she thinks it is, but will danger follow her even there?
Christmas Haven is the first book I've read by Hope White, but I definitely plan on reading her other books.
From the beginning pages of Christmas Haven there was suspense and the book held my attention. I loved the characters and especially enjoyed the "love story" between Morgan and Julie.
While I was able to guess one of the culprits (and something else that happens in the story) fairly early in the novel, I will say that I still found it to be thrilling and enjoyable.
Overall, Christmas Haven was a great suspense/romance book that I loved and definitely recommend! I look forward to reading the next book by Hope White.
*I received a complimentary copy of Christmas Haven from the author to review. I was not required to give a positive review, only my honest opinion - which I've done.*
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July 25, 2015Julie Burns had planned to come home for Christmas but not running home scared for her life. She was a social worker in Seattle who had seen two boys who were her cases being kidnapped. She reported the abductions to the police and she was now receiving threatening calls and emails. She knew someone was following her. She was on a ferry headed back to her hometown, Port Whisper.
She felt someone was following her and was trying to hide on the ferry when she tripped and fell. A police officer noticed that she appeared scared and looked like she could use some help. He stopped to help her get up and realized that the woman was his ex-girlfriend who had left him ten years earlier. Morgan had never stopped loving Julie. Julie had left town after a friend of hers had died in a boating accident. Julie blamed herself for being so wrapped up in her relationship with Morgan that she wasn't there when her friend needed her. Suzy had taken and ridden out in her boat late one night and never come back. Julie left town and moved to Seattle to help other teens who had problems. She worked with William and Helen. She like William but didn't get along with Helen.
Morgan, who was now the police chief of Port Whisper, drove Julie home from the ferry and went inside with Julie. She went upstairs to her room and Morgan asked her mother if she knew what was bothering Julie. Julie came back and told them she was just burned out at work. Morgan didn't believe her but went to his car and decided to watch the house and called his friend, Ethan Beck, of the Seattle police dept. to see what he could find out about Julie. Julie received another threatening phone call early in the morning and decided to run in order to protect her family. She packed her things and went and threw her cell phone in the water in case she was being tracked using her cell phone. A man spotted her and called out to her. She started running and literally ran into Morgan, who had been watching her. Morgan guessed that she was running away and wasn't going to let her run from him this time. He was persistent in asking Julie what was wrong and she told him about the calls and that she thought someone was following her and she didn't know why. She told him about the boys being taken and that she was really scared. Morgan told Julie that she had to stay and he would move her and her mother int his father's house with him. Morgan's father was in the hospital dying of cancer. Ethan called and told Morgan that they had found a boys body and he thought it was Andy Trotter, one of the missing boys. Julie had been unconsciously rubbing a necklace she wore and Morgan asked her about it. She told him that Andy had given the locket to her as a gift and he had even made a point to show her the receipt so that she would know that he hadn't stolen it. Morgan drove Julie back home.
Lana, Julie's sister was at the house when they got back. She started teasing Julie about her and Morgan being back together. Julie told her to stop. Morgan was only helping her. Lana helped them pack up to move to Morgan's house. It was during that time that Morgan noticed that Julie had distanced herself from God too.
Julie and Morgan traveled to Seattle to identify the body and it turned out that it wasn't Andy. Morgan tried to talk to Julie about God but Julie wasn't interested. Her response to Morgan was to ask where God was when all these kids were being left on the street after being abused and neglected. While in Seattle, they stopped by her place and found out that it had been ransacked. Morgan told Julie to wait outside the apt. door until he checked out the place. Julie heard someone heading her way and jumped inside. William Pratt, who worked with Julie knocked on the door. Morgan told Julie to pack up as much as she could in three minutes and they were headed out. Julie gave William her new cell number and he told Julie that they needed her help with a presentation to continue funding from Dynacorp, one of the largest donators to their Teen Life organization. Julie told him that she was taking a leave of absence for awhile until she could figure out who was following her and why. William asked where she was staying but Morgan interrupted and said that maybe it was best if he didn't know. William told Julie that she should be ok since Morgan seemed to know what he was doing. She said that he should since he was a cop. They went to visit Morgan's dad who was in the hospital in Seattle.
Morgan's dad had been the police chief before Morgan. Morgan's mother had left the two of them when he was young and after that, he became abusive towards Morgan. He often beat him. Morgan was in pretty bad shape when he met Julie in high school. Julie helped him though his problems and they fell in love. Morgan expected them to stay together but Julie left after Suzy's death. She blamed herself and wouldn't let it go. Morgan's dad didn't like Julie much since she left Morgan and gave her a hard time during the visit. Morgan told him what was going on with Julie and around town and they left to go back to Port Whisper.
Morgan spotted a teenager outside the house and caught him. It turned out to be the grandson of one of Julie's mothers friends. He liked the girl who worked for Julie's sister, Lana. The kids nickname was Sketch and he liked Ashley. Sketch had dropped out of high school and was really good with computers. He was thought of as a trouble maker around town. He had put a virus on the mechanic's computer because he felt like the guy had ripped off his grandmother.
The next day, Lana needed help at work. She was a tour guide. Julie volunteered and Morgan wouldn't let her go anywhere without him. So, they went to work with Lana. They were on Sahalish Island and Julie was thinking and go too far away from the group. Morgan went to find her. Julie had heard someone and was running and tripped again. Morgan helped her up and held her for a minute. They were walking back to the group when her cell phone rang. It was Andy. He said that Mr. Pratt (William) had given him the number. Julie told Morgan that something was off in the way he was talking. Ethan called later and told Morgan that the other missing kid, Dane had also been spotted in a park in Seattle. Maybe he should re-think Julie's position regarding the boys being kidnapped. Morgan said that still didn't explain why someone was calling Julie and breaking into her apartment.
The next day, Julie and her mom were discussing her relationship with Morgan for a bit. Lana came for dinner along with Ashley, who worked with her, Morgan was there and Sketch came over. While they were eating, the deputy, Scott Finnegan, came by. He told Morgan that there was a new guy in town asking about Julie. Morgan made a couple of calls while still on the porch to two local hotels and they didn't have anyone new checking in so Morgan had no new clues. Julie had overheard one of the calls and told Morgan that she should leave. Morgan told her she was going anywhere and Julie kissed him, then apologized. When they went back inside, the topic of conversation was a place called Horizon Farms. It was a new place for troubled kids to straighten out their lives.
The next morning, Julie was in church for the first time in six years. The sermon was about forgiveness and there was a social afterwards. She couldn't find Morgan and stepped outside to see if she could spot him when she saw the guy who had been following her around town. She panicked and turned to go back inside when Morgan grabbed her. The guy was Joe Wilson of Horizon Farms. He wanted to talk with Julie about his plans for the farm to get ideas from her on how to help troubled kids. He wanted her to listen to his proposal and get her feedback on his ideas since he was new to the community and she knew everyone.
The next day. Caroline asked Julie's advise on what to do with Sketch. Julie suggested that she put pressure on Sketch to take his GED and take some computer courses to help him get a good job. She also suggested finding a mentor who would agree to spend time with Sketch, showing him the correct path to follow in life. Her suggestion was that Morgan be this mentor... She was interrupted by a phone call from Helen saying that William had been beaten and it was all Julie's fault that he was in the hospital. She talked with William who told her the injuries weren't all that serious and he would be OK.
Julie wanted to go to Seattle to see him but Morgan told her no. He told her that he had a better idea. She should pray for William to be OK. She told Morgan that it had been so long she had forgotten how and asked him to pray for her and he prayed with her. She called the hospital later and found out that he had been released so she figured the injuries really weren't that serious. William had asked where she was but all she told him was that she was staying with an old friend. Julie was going stir-crazy so Morgan got her a job and the local restaurant for a couple of days doing dishes. Julie was told to stay in the back no matter what but the waitress needed a break so Julie went out front to take one of the customers a piece of pie. She overheard a conversation where a guy said that he would find her and finish this in a day or two. Julie went and hid in one of the storage closets and called Morgan to tell him what she heard. He came and picked her up at the restaurant.
They caught the guy and he turned out to be a private investigator who was hired to find one of the kids who was one of Julie's cases. Rick McDonald had been hired by the parents of Kurt Windemere to find him. The parents were wealthy and had kicked Kurt out when he turned sixteen. Julie suspected there was money involved. They checked out his story with Ethan and let him go.
Julie's family decided to call a meeting of the Community Cares group which was a neighborhood watch committee. They decided to have the town's neighborhood watch group as a whole keep an eye out for strangers in town, especially those who might be asking about Julie. Morgan had Sketch map out the areas where there was a neighborhood watch group to see if the whole town would be covered. He noted a couple of weaker areas and talked to the two leaders of those areas to get the watch expanded. Then Ashley came in telling Morgan that she couldn't find Lana and her office was a wreck. They all were afraid that Lana had been taken. The meeting broke up and some of the guys went to help look for Lana. Her office was trashed and her boat was gone. Julie then got a weak signaled phone call from Lana, giving enough information to tell them she was in the Sahalish Island and needed help. They headed there and found Lana in a hole about 5 feet deep. She couldn't get out and she had sprained her ankle. Morgan and Scott lifted her out and took her back home. Morgan had heard someone leaving the island in a motorboat and found out later that the hole had been dug and camouflaged.
Morgan told Julie that night that he was taking a leave of absence from work until they found out who was after her. Then he kissed her. Julie's phone rang and it was Dane. Julie talked Dane into meeting her at the park by Edmonds Ferry. Morgan and her left to meet Dane. They found Dane and he tried to put up a fight with a knife when he found out that Julie had brought a cop with her but he collapsed. They took him to the hospital and found that he was dehydrated and had an unknown substance in his system. Dane answered some of the questions about what was going on...
Dane, Andy and a few other kids were asked to test some drugs that they were told were to help kids kick their drug habit. Turns out they were just another drug that made kids high. The people who were giving them the drugs wanted the kids to sell the drugs to their friends. Andy said no. They took Andy and told Dane they wouldn't hurt Andy if he sold the drugs for them. Dane then passed out again.
Morgan told Julie that he was going to call Ethan and get the DEA involved. Morgan told Julie that Andy's body had been found and that he was dead. William had identified the body and they were saying he died of a drug overdose.
Julie was filling out the paperwork to dismiss Dane from the hospital and he wasn't in the room when she went back to get him. They found him in the stairwell crying. Henson, the drug guy, had called and told him that he had killed Andy and they were going to kill him next. Morgan put his cell phone in a delivery truck and took Dane back to Port Whisper with them.
Morgan had asked Julie's family to go through her files and give any information in the files that they felt was significant to Sketch. He asked Sketch to put the information in the computer and see if he could find anything linking the kids. They were working on that when Morgan and Julie arrived with Dane. After dinner, she called William to check and see how things were going there. She told William that she had found Dane. William told Julie that Helen didn't think she was ready for the presentation to Dynacorp to retain their funding of the program. He looked like he had been run over by a truck and that their other co-worker, Andrea, was distracted by her mother being sick. Julie said that maybe she could call in during the conference to help out. William then asked if he could talk to Dane. Dane handed Julie back her phone and said that William had to go. Morgan had left and called Julie to tell her he would be home soon.
Julie went into the kitchen and Dane was there. He pulled a knife on Julie and told her to give him her locket. Julie refused and told Dane that he would have to take it from her. She didn't think Dane would hurt her and she was right. He started to cry, dropped the knife and took off. Just then, the deputy showed up and told her that Morgan had been run off the road and was in the hospital. Julie went to see Morgan and he was angry at himself. He felt like he was getting nowhere and had failed to protect Julie. She told him that Dane had tried to steal her locket. He was frustrated and told her that she should go back to Seattle and get help from Ethan. He was giving up. Julie didn't know what to do to help him. She felt that she was losing him again and she didn't want that to happen.
She tried to sleep that night and just tossed and turned. She then received a call from Williams number. It was Henson, He said that he had William and he would trade William's life for her files. She agreed to meet him at Squamish Harbor at 7am. She got ready to meet him and made sure she had her pepper spray. She went downstairs to leave and saw Morgan passed out on the couch, passed out from the drugs that the hospital had given him. She left.
Soon afterwards, Morgan awoke to a noise on the porch. He woke to find Dane bleeding and telling him that he needed to go help Julie that she was in danger because it was a trap. Morgan called his deputy, took Julie's family to Sketch's grandmother's and headed out to find Julie.
Julie had chosen the place to meet Henson because the police dept. was in sight. At 7 am, the shift change and officers going in and out. Julie noticed a speedboat behind them. Henson told her to leave the files and she would let William go. She left the files and William walked towards her. She told William that she was sorry and he said he was too. He grabbed her locket and pulled it off her. Henson grabbed Julie and started dragging her to the boat. Morgan had a gun and was standing at the end of the dock. Henson told him to drop his gun or he would shoot Julie. Morgan started lowering his gun when a shot rang out. William and grabbed Julie and thrown her into the boat. Julie didn't want to get too far away from help so she sprayed her pepper spray in William's eyes. She tried to spray Henson but he avoided it. She shoved the now blinded William into Henson and jumped into the icy water. He heard another shot and she thought she was going to drown when she was pulled out, by Morgan. She then passed out.
She woke up on the couch at Morgan's place being tended to by her family and Morgan. Julie was told that Dynacorp was behind the entire mystery. They were using William to find kids for testing the drugs. They needed Julie's files so that know one would have record of the kids who were disappearing. They also needed her necklace because the locket contained a sample of the drugs they were giving the kids.
Morgan asked Julie why she went to the dock without him. He was upset that she felt that she had to protect him. She didn't trust him to protect her and he was a cop. He felt that he was a failure and was questioning his abilities because he was just a small town cop and he would never be good enough for her. Her mom came into the room with the phone and Morgan kissed Julie on the forehead and left. The phone call was for Julie with an offer for a job with Horizon Farms.
A week later, Morgan was talking with Sketch and not paying much attention. The community was behind Morgan to take his position back as police chief but Morgan was questioning his life and future. Sketch told Morgan he was being an idiot. Morgan told Sketch that Julie left him because he wasn't good enough for her. He loved her so much he let her go and she loved him so much, she left. This made no sense to Sketch. He told Morgan he needed to get over himself. He had helped Julie and kept her safe, he kept her from drowning and renewed her faith in God. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a note that Julie had left him before she went to the harbor and it said that she loved him with all her heart. Always had. Always will. Morgan called Lana.
Julie wasn't yet ready to go back to work. She decided to take some time off and plan a vacation. She took a couple days and stayed at a cozy bed and breakfast inn. She turned in her resignation to Helen. She called Lana and arranged to take a tour aboard a boat. Turns out that Lana had arranged for her tour guide to be Morgan. He told her that he loved her and always would...
She felt someone was following her and was trying to hide on the ferry when she tripped and fell. A police officer noticed that she appeared scared and looked like she could use some help. He stopped to help her get up and realized that the woman was his ex-girlfriend who had left him ten years earlier. Morgan had never stopped loving Julie. Julie had left town after a friend of hers had died in a boating accident. Julie blamed herself for being so wrapped up in her relationship with Morgan that she wasn't there when her friend needed her. Suzy had taken and ridden out in her boat late one night and never come back. Julie left town and moved to Seattle to help other teens who had problems. She worked with William and Helen. She like William but didn't get along with Helen.
Morgan, who was now the police chief of Port Whisper, drove Julie home from the ferry and went inside with Julie. She went upstairs to her room and Morgan asked her mother if she knew what was bothering Julie. Julie came back and told them she was just burned out at work. Morgan didn't believe her but went to his car and decided to watch the house and called his friend, Ethan Beck, of the Seattle police dept. to see what he could find out about Julie. Julie received another threatening phone call early in the morning and decided to run in order to protect her family. She packed her things and went and threw her cell phone in the water in case she was being tracked using her cell phone. A man spotted her and called out to her. She started running and literally ran into Morgan, who had been watching her. Morgan guessed that she was running away and wasn't going to let her run from him this time. He was persistent in asking Julie what was wrong and she told him about the calls and that she thought someone was following her and she didn't know why. She told him about the boys being taken and that she was really scared. Morgan told Julie that she had to stay and he would move her and her mother int his father's house with him. Morgan's father was in the hospital dying of cancer. Ethan called and told Morgan that they had found a boys body and he thought it was Andy Trotter, one of the missing boys. Julie had been unconsciously rubbing a necklace she wore and Morgan asked her about it. She told him that Andy had given the locket to her as a gift and he had even made a point to show her the receipt so that she would know that he hadn't stolen it. Morgan drove Julie back home.
Lana, Julie's sister was at the house when they got back. She started teasing Julie about her and Morgan being back together. Julie told her to stop. Morgan was only helping her. Lana helped them pack up to move to Morgan's house. It was during that time that Morgan noticed that Julie had distanced herself from God too.
Julie and Morgan traveled to Seattle to identify the body and it turned out that it wasn't Andy. Morgan tried to talk to Julie about God but Julie wasn't interested. Her response to Morgan was to ask where God was when all these kids were being left on the street after being abused and neglected. While in Seattle, they stopped by her place and found out that it had been ransacked. Morgan told Julie to wait outside the apt. door until he checked out the place. Julie heard someone heading her way and jumped inside. William Pratt, who worked with Julie knocked on the door. Morgan told Julie to pack up as much as she could in three minutes and they were headed out. Julie gave William her new cell number and he told Julie that they needed her help with a presentation to continue funding from Dynacorp, one of the largest donators to their Teen Life organization. Julie told him that she was taking a leave of absence for awhile until she could figure out who was following her and why. William asked where she was staying but Morgan interrupted and said that maybe it was best if he didn't know. William told Julie that she should be ok since Morgan seemed to know what he was doing. She said that he should since he was a cop. They went to visit Morgan's dad who was in the hospital in Seattle.
Morgan's dad had been the police chief before Morgan. Morgan's mother had left the two of them when he was young and after that, he became abusive towards Morgan. He often beat him. Morgan was in pretty bad shape when he met Julie in high school. Julie helped him though his problems and they fell in love. Morgan expected them to stay together but Julie left after Suzy's death. She blamed herself and wouldn't let it go. Morgan's dad didn't like Julie much since she left Morgan and gave her a hard time during the visit. Morgan told him what was going on with Julie and around town and they left to go back to Port Whisper.
Morgan spotted a teenager outside the house and caught him. It turned out to be the grandson of one of Julie's mothers friends. He liked the girl who worked for Julie's sister, Lana. The kids nickname was Sketch and he liked Ashley. Sketch had dropped out of high school and was really good with computers. He was thought of as a trouble maker around town. He had put a virus on the mechanic's computer because he felt like the guy had ripped off his grandmother.
The next day, Lana needed help at work. She was a tour guide. Julie volunteered and Morgan wouldn't let her go anywhere without him. So, they went to work with Lana. They were on Sahalish Island and Julie was thinking and go too far away from the group. Morgan went to find her. Julie had heard someone and was running and tripped again. Morgan helped her up and held her for a minute. They were walking back to the group when her cell phone rang. It was Andy. He said that Mr. Pratt (William) had given him the number. Julie told Morgan that something was off in the way he was talking. Ethan called later and told Morgan that the other missing kid, Dane had also been spotted in a park in Seattle. Maybe he should re-think Julie's position regarding the boys being kidnapped. Morgan said that still didn't explain why someone was calling Julie and breaking into her apartment.
The next day, Julie and her mom were discussing her relationship with Morgan for a bit. Lana came for dinner along with Ashley, who worked with her, Morgan was there and Sketch came over. While they were eating, the deputy, Scott Finnegan, came by. He told Morgan that there was a new guy in town asking about Julie. Morgan made a couple of calls while still on the porch to two local hotels and they didn't have anyone new checking in so Morgan had no new clues. Julie had overheard one of the calls and told Morgan that she should leave. Morgan told her she was going anywhere and Julie kissed him, then apologized. When they went back inside, the topic of conversation was a place called Horizon Farms. It was a new place for troubled kids to straighten out their lives.
The next morning, Julie was in church for the first time in six years. The sermon was about forgiveness and there was a social afterwards. She couldn't find Morgan and stepped outside to see if she could spot him when she saw the guy who had been following her around town. She panicked and turned to go back inside when Morgan grabbed her. The guy was Joe Wilson of Horizon Farms. He wanted to talk with Julie about his plans for the farm to get ideas from her on how to help troubled kids. He wanted her to listen to his proposal and get her feedback on his ideas since he was new to the community and she knew everyone.
The next day. Caroline asked Julie's advise on what to do with Sketch. Julie suggested that she put pressure on Sketch to take his GED and take some computer courses to help him get a good job. She also suggested finding a mentor who would agree to spend time with Sketch, showing him the correct path to follow in life. Her suggestion was that Morgan be this mentor... She was interrupted by a phone call from Helen saying that William had been beaten and it was all Julie's fault that he was in the hospital. She talked with William who told her the injuries weren't all that serious and he would be OK.
Julie wanted to go to Seattle to see him but Morgan told her no. He told her that he had a better idea. She should pray for William to be OK. She told Morgan that it had been so long she had forgotten how and asked him to pray for her and he prayed with her. She called the hospital later and found out that he had been released so she figured the injuries really weren't that serious. William had asked where she was but all she told him was that she was staying with an old friend. Julie was going stir-crazy so Morgan got her a job and the local restaurant for a couple of days doing dishes. Julie was told to stay in the back no matter what but the waitress needed a break so Julie went out front to take one of the customers a piece of pie. She overheard a conversation where a guy said that he would find her and finish this in a day or two. Julie went and hid in one of the storage closets and called Morgan to tell him what she heard. He came and picked her up at the restaurant.
They caught the guy and he turned out to be a private investigator who was hired to find one of the kids who was one of Julie's cases. Rick McDonald had been hired by the parents of Kurt Windemere to find him. The parents were wealthy and had kicked Kurt out when he turned sixteen. Julie suspected there was money involved. They checked out his story with Ethan and let him go.
Julie's family decided to call a meeting of the Community Cares group which was a neighborhood watch committee. They decided to have the town's neighborhood watch group as a whole keep an eye out for strangers in town, especially those who might be asking about Julie. Morgan had Sketch map out the areas where there was a neighborhood watch group to see if the whole town would be covered. He noted a couple of weaker areas and talked to the two leaders of those areas to get the watch expanded. Then Ashley came in telling Morgan that she couldn't find Lana and her office was a wreck. They all were afraid that Lana had been taken. The meeting broke up and some of the guys went to help look for Lana. Her office was trashed and her boat was gone. Julie then got a weak signaled phone call from Lana, giving enough information to tell them she was in the Sahalish Island and needed help. They headed there and found Lana in a hole about 5 feet deep. She couldn't get out and she had sprained her ankle. Morgan and Scott lifted her out and took her back home. Morgan had heard someone leaving the island in a motorboat and found out later that the hole had been dug and camouflaged.
Morgan told Julie that night that he was taking a leave of absence from work until they found out who was after her. Then he kissed her. Julie's phone rang and it was Dane. Julie talked Dane into meeting her at the park by Edmonds Ferry. Morgan and her left to meet Dane. They found Dane and he tried to put up a fight with a knife when he found out that Julie had brought a cop with her but he collapsed. They took him to the hospital and found that he was dehydrated and had an unknown substance in his system. Dane answered some of the questions about what was going on...
Dane, Andy and a few other kids were asked to test some drugs that they were told were to help kids kick their drug habit. Turns out they were just another drug that made kids high. The people who were giving them the drugs wanted the kids to sell the drugs to their friends. Andy said no. They took Andy and told Dane they wouldn't hurt Andy if he sold the drugs for them. Dane then passed out again.
Morgan told Julie that he was going to call Ethan and get the DEA involved. Morgan told Julie that Andy's body had been found and that he was dead. William had identified the body and they were saying he died of a drug overdose.
Julie was filling out the paperwork to dismiss Dane from the hospital and he wasn't in the room when she went back to get him. They found him in the stairwell crying. Henson, the drug guy, had called and told him that he had killed Andy and they were going to kill him next. Morgan put his cell phone in a delivery truck and took Dane back to Port Whisper with them.
Morgan had asked Julie's family to go through her files and give any information in the files that they felt was significant to Sketch. He asked Sketch to put the information in the computer and see if he could find anything linking the kids. They were working on that when Morgan and Julie arrived with Dane. After dinner, she called William to check and see how things were going there. She told William that she had found Dane. William told Julie that Helen didn't think she was ready for the presentation to Dynacorp to retain their funding of the program. He looked like he had been run over by a truck and that their other co-worker, Andrea, was distracted by her mother being sick. Julie said that maybe she could call in during the conference to help out. William then asked if he could talk to Dane. Dane handed Julie back her phone and said that William had to go. Morgan had left and called Julie to tell her he would be home soon.
Julie went into the kitchen and Dane was there. He pulled a knife on Julie and told her to give him her locket. Julie refused and told Dane that he would have to take it from her. She didn't think Dane would hurt her and she was right. He started to cry, dropped the knife and took off. Just then, the deputy showed up and told her that Morgan had been run off the road and was in the hospital. Julie went to see Morgan and he was angry at himself. He felt like he was getting nowhere and had failed to protect Julie. She told him that Dane had tried to steal her locket. He was frustrated and told her that she should go back to Seattle and get help from Ethan. He was giving up. Julie didn't know what to do to help him. She felt that she was losing him again and she didn't want that to happen.
She tried to sleep that night and just tossed and turned. She then received a call from Williams number. It was Henson, He said that he had William and he would trade William's life for her files. She agreed to meet him at Squamish Harbor at 7am. She got ready to meet him and made sure she had her pepper spray. She went downstairs to leave and saw Morgan passed out on the couch, passed out from the drugs that the hospital had given him. She left.
Soon afterwards, Morgan awoke to a noise on the porch. He woke to find Dane bleeding and telling him that he needed to go help Julie that she was in danger because it was a trap. Morgan called his deputy, took Julie's family to Sketch's grandmother's and headed out to find Julie.
Julie had chosen the place to meet Henson because the police dept. was in sight. At 7 am, the shift change and officers going in and out. Julie noticed a speedboat behind them. Henson told her to leave the files and she would let William go. She left the files and William walked towards her. She told William that she was sorry and he said he was too. He grabbed her locket and pulled it off her. Henson grabbed Julie and started dragging her to the boat. Morgan had a gun and was standing at the end of the dock. Henson told him to drop his gun or he would shoot Julie. Morgan started lowering his gun when a shot rang out. William and grabbed Julie and thrown her into the boat. Julie didn't want to get too far away from help so she sprayed her pepper spray in William's eyes. She tried to spray Henson but he avoided it. She shoved the now blinded William into Henson and jumped into the icy water. He heard another shot and she thought she was going to drown when she was pulled out, by Morgan. She then passed out.
She woke up on the couch at Morgan's place being tended to by her family and Morgan. Julie was told that Dynacorp was behind the entire mystery. They were using William to find kids for testing the drugs. They needed Julie's files so that know one would have record of the kids who were disappearing. They also needed her necklace because the locket contained a sample of the drugs they were giving the kids.
Morgan asked Julie why she went to the dock without him. He was upset that she felt that she had to protect him. She didn't trust him to protect her and he was a cop. He felt that he was a failure and was questioning his abilities because he was just a small town cop and he would never be good enough for her. Her mom came into the room with the phone and Morgan kissed Julie on the forehead and left. The phone call was for Julie with an offer for a job with Horizon Farms.
A week later, Morgan was talking with Sketch and not paying much attention. The community was behind Morgan to take his position back as police chief but Morgan was questioning his life and future. Sketch told Morgan he was being an idiot. Morgan told Sketch that Julie left him because he wasn't good enough for her. He loved her so much he let her go and she loved him so much, she left. This made no sense to Sketch. He told Morgan he needed to get over himself. He had helped Julie and kept her safe, he kept her from drowning and renewed her faith in God. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a note that Julie had left him before she went to the harbor and it said that she loved him with all her heart. Always had. Always will. Morgan called Lana.
Julie wasn't yet ready to go back to work. She decided to take some time off and plan a vacation. She took a couple days and stayed at a cozy bed and breakfast inn. She turned in her resignation to Helen. She called Lana and arranged to take a tour aboard a boat. Turns out that Lana had arranged for her tour guide to be Morgan. He told her that he loved her and always would...
November 28, 2022
Full of twists and turns
Julie runs home after seeing one homeless kid kidnapped and another one has disappeared. Morgan is her high school sweetheart and now the chief of police in her hometown. When he sees her on the ferry, he knows she has a problem. Will either one of them be able to put the past behind to save her and these troubled boys? Trouble is following her and only Morgan can keep her safe, If they both allow it!
The pace is breakneck and the tone is uncertain yet hopeful with an action and character oriented storyline that has a few kisses but no steam. The characters are vivid and engaging. The Christian ideals are woven into the story and don't seem just added in. If that sounds good to you, then try this for yourself! Enjoy!
Julie runs home after seeing one homeless kid kidnapped and another one has disappeared. Morgan is her high school sweetheart and now the chief of police in her hometown. When he sees her on the ferry, he knows she has a problem. Will either one of them be able to put the past behind to save her and these troubled boys? Trouble is following her and only Morgan can keep her safe, If they both allow it!
The pace is breakneck and the tone is uncertain yet hopeful with an action and character oriented storyline that has a few kisses but no steam. The characters are vivid and engaging. The Christian ideals are woven into the story and don't seem just added in. If that sounds good to you, then try this for yourself! Enjoy!
January 6, 2021
Ten years after telling her high school sweetheart goodbye, Julie finds herself returning home after witnessing a kidnapping. Thank goodness that her old boyfriend, Morgan, is now the Police Chief and is willing to do anything yo keep her safe!
January 6, 2018
Enjoyable
January 25, 2022
An easy but suspenseful read. Definitely a cozy mystery with some romance with former flames thrown in.
October 19, 2011
Julie works with troubled teens and when she suddenly witnesses a kidnapping of a young man from her center she finds herself in more danger than she had ever imagined. She knows she’s being following, threatened and harassed and she has no idea where to go to be safe. The local police aren’t doing a good job helping her, so she goes to the one place she feels the most secure…HOME. Yet at home is her ex-boyfriend Morgan who is Port Whispers Chief of Police and he is determined to uncover the mystery behind who is after Julie!! Not only does Julie find safety in her home town but she might find the healing she so desires!!
Right from the start you are thrown in to the mystery surrounding Julie!! You feel the hairs on your arms stand on end as she is desperately trying to escape her killer. Christmas Haven proves to be another great mystery by Hope White. She takes the reader on this rollercoaster of suspense and I never knew what was going to happen next or how it was all going to play out!
Chief Morgan…what can I say about him?! Gotta love a man in uniform! He is an officer that is dedicated to keeping Julie and her family safe even though he is struggling daily with their past relationship. He can’t seem to understand what is was about him that caused Julie to leave yet it doesn’t get in the way of his job or his faith! He is a strong believer and is always reminded Julie to take a minute to pray over the situation!! I loved Morgan!!
There were a lot of spiritual threads throughout Christmas Haven yet Hope did a superb job of not having it be too preachy!! Both Julie and Morgan are dealing with issues of the past and lack of self-confidence. This book reminded me that when we ask for forgiveness from God for our mistakes we also need to remember to forgive ourselves!! I was also reminded that God has our best in mind 100% of the time and we just need to follow His lead instead of our own!!
This was another great book by Hope White!! She is becoming one of my favorite Christian Suspense authors and I will be looking in to more of her talented writing in the future!!
I received a copy of this book to read and review from the author. My review is not biased by the fact that I was given this book.
Right from the start you are thrown in to the mystery surrounding Julie!! You feel the hairs on your arms stand on end as she is desperately trying to escape her killer. Christmas Haven proves to be another great mystery by Hope White. She takes the reader on this rollercoaster of suspense and I never knew what was going to happen next or how it was all going to play out!
Chief Morgan…what can I say about him?! Gotta love a man in uniform! He is an officer that is dedicated to keeping Julie and her family safe even though he is struggling daily with their past relationship. He can’t seem to understand what is was about him that caused Julie to leave yet it doesn’t get in the way of his job or his faith! He is a strong believer and is always reminded Julie to take a minute to pray over the situation!! I loved Morgan!!
There were a lot of spiritual threads throughout Christmas Haven yet Hope did a superb job of not having it be too preachy!! Both Julie and Morgan are dealing with issues of the past and lack of self-confidence. This book reminded me that when we ask for forgiveness from God for our mistakes we also need to remember to forgive ourselves!! I was also reminded that God has our best in mind 100% of the time and we just need to follow His lead instead of our own!!
This was another great book by Hope White!! She is becoming one of my favorite Christian Suspense authors and I will be looking in to more of her talented writing in the future!!
I received a copy of this book to read and review from the author. My review is not biased by the fact that I was given this book.
December 15, 2013
SUMMARY: Shock is police captain Morgan Wright's first reaction to seeing his former sweetheart, Julie Burns. But concern soon follows. The lovely social worker left Port Whisper behind years ago. Why is she back...and what's got her so scared?Her hometown was the only safe place Julie could turn to after witnessing a kidnapping. She didn't count on trouble following her. And she certainly didn't expect to run into Morgan, or to feel that old love rekindle. Morgan wants to help her, and she wants to let him--but now that danger has intruded on her safe haven, everyone's at risk..
REVIEW: A good mystery with characters who were very well done. Both Morgan and Julie had depth and were fighting a losing battle with self-forgiveness. They had both made mistakes in the past and as the story line developed both grew and changed as they began to forgive themselves. Some good twists and turns and it wasn't til near the end that I figured out who was probably behind all the problems.
FAVORITE QUOTE: "There's stress in being perfect all the time, stress in counseling people when I have no training in psychology. I hope I respond in a helpful way, either by offering advice or just listening. But I never really know.
"How do you decide what to do?"
"I pray for guidance. I know you don't want to hear that, but God is the beacon of light as I navigate my way through life. When all else fails, I add that person to my daily prayer list."
REVIEW: A good mystery with characters who were very well done. Both Morgan and Julie had depth and were fighting a losing battle with self-forgiveness. They had both made mistakes in the past and as the story line developed both grew and changed as they began to forgive themselves. Some good twists and turns and it wasn't til near the end that I figured out who was probably behind all the problems.
FAVORITE QUOTE: "There's stress in being perfect all the time, stress in counseling people when I have no training in psychology. I hope I respond in a helpful way, either by offering advice or just listening. But I never really know.
"How do you decide what to do?"
"I pray for guidance. I know you don't want to hear that, but God is the beacon of light as I navigate my way through life. When all else fails, I add that person to my daily prayer list."
October 31, 2015
This is the second book in the Port Whispers story. This book follows Chief Morgan Wright, whom we briefly met in the first book. Morgan sees someone in trouble on the ferry, and learns that it's the woman he left him ten years ago. Now she's back, and she's hiding her real reason for being there.
Morgan is pretty protective and bossy (agressive) when it comes to protecting Julie Burns. Julie tries to obey him whenever possible, but she's not going to stand by and let somebody hurt the man that she is still (NOT) in love with. Both have reasons why they don't want to start up the relationship they once had, even though everyone else sees what's really going on.
The story is great! I could hardly put this book down - wanting to know who done it. Though I figured out who from way early in the book (there's just a pattern to these things), and I figured out the what pretty quickly; I still enjoyed reading the book.
Morgan is pretty protective and bossy (agressive) when it comes to protecting Julie Burns. Julie tries to obey him whenever possible, but she's not going to stand by and let somebody hurt the man that she is still (NOT) in love with. Both have reasons why they don't want to start up the relationship they once had, even though everyone else sees what's really going on.
The story is great! I could hardly put this book down - wanting to know who done it. Though I figured out who from way early in the book (there's just a pattern to these things), and I figured out the what pretty quickly; I still enjoyed reading the book.
March 28, 2012
I had a hard time understanding the past of this story. She's in love with the guy, but wants to save teenagers, so has to leave forever? I don't get it. Couldn't she have had both? I can see why Morgan had a hard time understanding it, because I certainly did! Then you get more backstory to find that it's because of a senseless death when they were teenagers. Oh-kay. I can understand wanting to help others, but most towns have teenagers, so maybe go off to school and come back to be a counselor? Either way, I'm glad she was able to help the teenagers she did, because mad craziness going on there! I wasn't expecting to find out what the "bad guys" were doing, so that was a welcome surprise.
December 1, 2011
Pretty good read, then again, most the novels from the Love Inspired Series are good reads. Like I once did, Julie works with troubled teens, and like myself, she wants to save them all. She enjoys he work living in Seattle - that is until she witnessed a kidnapping and starts getting threatening calls from a mysterious caller. She decides to flee to her hometown in hopes that she can escape the danger, unfortunately, the threats, the calls and a mysterious stalker follow her there too.
December 28, 2011
Good book. Julie came back to town to escape from whoever was after her. She didn't expect to see Morgan again. He immediately went into protector status, and began trying to find out who was after her. I liked Morgan and the way he tried to take care of Julie and get her to see that she didn't need to feel guilty about the death of her friend. The suspense in this book was good, but not as intense as in others I have read.
November 23, 2015
Actually a 3.5 out of 5 stars. I really enjoyed the fast pace and the story line. Morgan Wright was a strong male lead with a few insecurities that he was still trying to overcome. Julie Burns was a social worker that was in severe burnout.
Julie is in danger because she has seen a couple of her teen chargers abducted off the streets. She is running for her life. She runs HOME and into the arms of her friend and only love--Morgan Wright, the Chief of Police.
Julie is in danger because she has seen a couple of her teen chargers abducted off the streets. She is running for her life. She runs HOME and into the arms of her friend and only love--Morgan Wright, the Chief of Police.
July 7, 2016
I'm loving this trend of reuniting couples, and Morgan and Julie's relationship is an excellent example of misunderstanding being overcome. Plus, I was tickled to see Sketch again. You know a minor character is good when you remember him for over two years.
September 9, 2014
treacle--beware of sugar shock
December 22, 2011
A very different and interesting suspense romance. Well worth reading.
June 30, 2016
Inspirational Suspense and Romance. It was OK just not fantastic.
December 22, 2014
This was a cute little mystery story. It had likable characters and an interesting plot. The story was a fun read for the season.
April 7, 2015
4.5 stars
December 23, 2016
My first cozy mystery!?!
April 30, 2013
Inspirational romance. Quick read. Some of it was not believable.
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November 5, 2014Morgan Wright, Julie Burns
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