Just an Ordinary Girl

by Shannon Heuston

Leah has always believed she was special.

Born on a lonely windswept prairie to a band of survivors clinging to life on an isolated ranch after the end of the world, all she’d ever known was a grim existence beneath the iron fist of the prophet Yeoman. Leah does not question when he declares her the chosen one, the new Eve, destined to bring forth a new superior race of mankind.

But Leah has a secret. She harbors a secret, blasphemous desire to be an ordinary girl, like in the stories of the past the survivors tell, to go to school and have friends and fun times.

Then one day a strange and wonderful apparition materializes in the sky. Suddenly the ordinary life she is seeking is not out of reach. Claiming it, however, comes at a terrible price. Does Leah have the courage to be just an ordinary girl?

Librarian's note: See alternate cover edition of ASIN B073MNMDDX here.

Genres: Fiction

244 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 1, 2017

About the author

Shannon was born in Boston, MA but grew up in Somers, New York. She attended the State University of New York College at Potsdam, graduating with a BA in English Writing and Sociology. She mainly uses these locations as the settings of her novels, although UNDER GOD'S BIG SKY is set in Montana.

Shannon knew she wanted to be a writer at a very young age. By the age of six she was writing and illustrating stories in her spiral notebooks (to the glee of her older sister and her friends).

At the age of eight she enjoyed a brief interlude of local notoriety when she won the Best Fairytale of the Year at Primrose Elementary for THE POISON TULIP, which she had written and illustrated herself. The story was published in THE NORTH COUNTY NEWS and for a short period of time she enjoyed a taste of fame.

Shannon has wanted to be an author all her life and the ability to publish and share her novels has been the culmination of a lifelong dream.

Reviews

[Dale Lehman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Based on the cover blurb, I half expected this book to be a post-apocalyptic SF/fantasy tale. It turned out to be something rather different. Raised in near-isolation on a ranch in the middle of nowhere, Montana under the harsh leadership of the man they know only as the Yeoman of God, Leah has been told all her life that the world beyond was destroyed and that she is destined to bear its new Savior. But when an apparition from beyond the ranch intrudes, everything she has ever believed begins to unravel. Not knowing what she will find, fearful of calling down God's wrath upon her, she abandons the only family she has ever known. The truth she discovers could liberate her, or destroy her.

Shannon Heuston tells a good tale, and clearly knows something of the psychology of fear, control, and betrayal. The plot, while not complex, keeps one reading. Even when Leah seems to find a "happy place" menace lurks beneath the surface. The inevitable final confrontation between Leah and Yeoman ends on a satisfying note, and although one might not agree with the young woman's resulting religious conclusions, they make sense given who she is and what she endures. Heuston musters a wonderful turn of phrase from time to time, too. For a first novel by an indie writer, this is an enjoyable read, although it could benefit from a bit of tightening. I would hazard that Heuston has strong potential to surprise and delight readers in future works.

[Joshua Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shannon Heuston details young Leah’s thrilling escape in Just an Ordinary Girl. When the world ended in God’s apocalyptic fire, Yeoman brought the righteous survivors to live in Agape. But young Leah begins to suspect that Agape isn’t all it appears to be, and that maybe the world didn’t end at all. Heuston’s writing is exciting and the emotions are real, making Just an Ordinary Girl perfect for anyone looking for a good thrilling read!

[Rayne Dowell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heuston cleverly draws you into the main character's unquestioned-until-now truths and slowly eroding perceptions of the world and people around her. An interesting journey through the eyes of a young person, how and why they see the world the way they do, and the beautiful truths earned through trial and error.

[Bob · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an odd book. It read like non-fiction. We've become so used to real stories of cults, child abduction, etc. that one more book in this vein seems like it should be true, but it's fiction. This one about a girl who is raised in what remains of a cult living in the middle of nowhere with no sign of civilization anywhere around them. They have been told that mankind, except for them, has been annihilated by God's judgement and they alone are keepers of the truth. But when the girl reaches a certain age, she begins questioning, and ends up running away. She finds herself in a whole big world occupied by people she was told didn't exist. This sounds better than it actually worked in the book. But i give the book lots of points for originality.

[Chloe Fergeson · Rating 2 out of 5]

“Just an ordinary girl” took me an unusually long time to get through. I thought this was going to be more of an “end of the world” story, but it turned out to be much bigger than that.

The beginning took me the longest to get through. It was when the helicopter showed up that changed my perspective and the pacing of this book.

I was intrigued by the messages left in the last chapter. It’s an interesting thought to dwell upon.

I wouldn’t say that I would never recommend this book to anyone. However, I think the enjoyment of reading this fits a very specific type of person.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

An easy read

Leah was born and raised at a ranch called Agape with no modern amenities or even indoor plumbing. It was all she ever knew. Leah discovers everything she had been told her whole life is a lie and runs away. She finds herself thrust into the world where everything is new and scary. Leah is torn between her old life and her new as she struggles to find herself and resolves what she believes about God. Is he the punishing God she grew up knowing, the caring God she's been introduced to since leaving Agape or something different altogether?

[Stephanie Durden · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just couldn't behind the main character

There are moments in this novel that drew me in, but they were few and far between. Too much of the story turned out to be agonizingly predictable. Leah moves from one religious/abusive situation into another one. I disliked the book for that reason.

That being said I fully intend to check out more from the author. I feel like we met in the wrong story and I want to see what else she has going on.

[Jenn Gerber · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book! I feel like it was an interesting setting, and then the slow build of suspicion and discovery on Leah's part. The story-telling was good! Characters were good. I liked all of that. I was a little disappointed in the ending. While it's maybe more true to life, it felt a little unresolved with Leah and her history, her mother, Jacob.
Otherwise I liked it!