Finding Rachel Davenport

by Michael Harling

Rachel Davenport—former child prodigy, world-class gymnast and Miss Teen England—has retired from public life and lives anonymously in a small town, working as a clerk for a travel agency.

By night, however, Rachel is a self-styled crime-fighter, seeking to right the wrongs inflicted on people who cannot help themselves.

But when her first mission goes horribly awry she finds herself pursued, not merely by the media, but by the police and an assortment of criminals who want her silenced. To preserve her anonymity, as well as her life,

Rachel must prove to the police that she is one of the good guys and keep one step ahead of the bad guys, all while avoiding nosey neighbours, holding onto her job and juggling two would-be suitors.

Finding Rachel Davenport is a fun read, with a quirky plot and an explosive ending.

244 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 15, 2012

About the author

Michael Harling was born and raised in rural Columbia County in Upstate, New York. He worked for New York State as an Identification Specialist and computer project manger before moving to West Sussex in 2002.

Since moving to Britain, he has written several humor books about his experiences as an expat.

Blog

Reviews

[Cheryl Andreasen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read!

Very meticulously plotted, with a story that moves along at a steady pace. There’s no need for intellectually-interesting themes in a novel like this, but it has one — the noisy and painful ways in which identity and privacy bang against each other.

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. It was easy to read, had interesting characters, and a good plot with a few surprises and twists, and in short it was everything you want from a quick read.

[Sara Palacios · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of FINDING RACHEL DAVENPORT by Michael Harling in exchange for an honest review.

Finding Rachel Davenport by Michael Harling follows Rachel – former child prodigy, world class gymnast and Miss Teen England – who has retired from her very public life and lives in a small town where no one knows who she really is. During the day she works as a clerk for a travel agency but by night, she is a crime fighter. But, when one secret mission goes astray, Rachel finds herself being pursued by the media, the police, and criminals. She wants to move past all of this and go back to living anonymously, but first she must prove to the cops that she is a good guy. But, will she be able to save herself?

This book is a true delight. Quick paced, quirky, witty and heartwarming, this book is definitely a great read. Michael does an amazing job at getting gritty within the first few pages and he definitely reels the reader in from the get go (which I appreciated). I loved the characters and I really, really enjoyed the storyline. Overall, a great read with a lot of heart and some laughs sprinkled in between.

[Felicity Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked this up expecting a gritty crime thriller? Then there's every chance you'll be disappointed. However, picked this up wanting a quirky, tongue-in-cheek read and you are in for a treat.

Of course there is nothing original about female superheroes. Indeed Rachel Davenport also goes by the name of Nadia Penric in homage of Diana Prince alias Wonder Woman. However in Rachel/Nadia we have a unique and very modern creation. A one time beauty queen and three times winner of Mastermind who, 'not that smart, just knows a lot of stuff', she fancies herself as a something of a vigilante out to solve crime in what is quite frankly an implausible and yet fun story.

My only criticism being that once again here we have a novel in which 'Americanisms' start to creep in. And OK whilst it could be argued that such Americanised expressions now form part of the English vocabulary I'm afraid it just doesn't sit well with me and in this instance made the character of the otherwise very English Rachel seem less authentic.

Copyright: Petty Witter @ Pen and Paper

[Bcoghill Coghill · Rating 3 out of 5]

A true life superhero , sort of. Having spent a significant portion of my life buried face down in comic books I feel that I know my superheroes as does the author. I am ready to place Ms. Davenport in that class with Diana Prince, Bruce Wayne and Peter Parker. A great read - I think that I will now read another Red Panda book!

[Suzanne Hazelton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm not a big fiction reader - but I really enjoyed this book. Part thriller, part comedy. Gotta love a man writing as a woman - for some unexpected laughs!

I thought stylistically a bit like Carl Hiaasen ....? What did you think?

I can see the film rights being snapped up for this book - be part of the early wave and read the book before it is turned into a film.

[Patty Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book. Very different then your ordinary reading. Super Hero references. A lot of ties to the rich and famous life and the pressures in society. True meaning to the curve balls that life throws you.

[Lara Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. I couldn't put it down in the end.

[Ndale · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had a really hard time getting into this book. It would have been better if the explanation of who the character was and it was hard for me to really like the style of writing in the first person.

[Laura Mcinerney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good fun. Easy reading. Something a little bit different.

[Sharon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Took some doing to get through this book but I hate to abandon a story unless it's terrible, which this one wasn't. Overall it was a good story but just not my kind of story.