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Blind Side
It was supposed to be a pleasant autumn walk in a quiet canyon with her German shepherd. But when Noletta Fahr stumbles upon a murder scene--the young law student becomes the next victim. Believing his bullet has killed Noletta, the murderer flees. But later he finds out firsthand she has survived. However, his alarm quickly turns to smug complacency when he learns she has been blinded by his actions and can't recognize him. But Noletta's dog, which has now been trained as a guide dog, is another Taffy seems to remember that fateful day--and him. As detective Martin Arkinson investigates the theft of Taffy, his instincts tell him there is more to this routine case than meets the eye. What follows is a fast-paced, page-turning tale of intrigue, deception, betrayal, and romance--and a tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.
328 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2006
11 people are currently reading
478 people want to read
About the author
Clair M. Poulson
55 books296 followersClair M. Poulson was born and raised in Duchesne, Utah. His father was a rancher and farmer, his mother a librarian. Clair has always been an avid reader, having found his love for books as a very young boy.
He has served for forty years in the criminal justice system. Twenty years were spent in law enforcement, ending his police career with eight years as the Duchesne County Sheriff. For the past twenty years Clair has worked as a justice court judge for Duchesne County. Clair is also a veteran of the US Army where he was a military policeman. He has served on various boards and councils during his professional career, including the Justice Court Board of Judges, Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, Utah Judicial Council, Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council, an FBI advisory board and others.
In addition to his criminal justice work, Clair has farmed and ranched all of his life. He has raised many kinds of animals, but his greatest interest is horses.
Clair has served in many capacities in the LDS church, including fulltime missionary (California Mission) bishop, counselor to bishop, young men president, high councilor, stake mission president, scoutmaster, High Priest group leader, etc. He currently serves as a Sunday School teacher.
Clair is married to Ruth, and together, they have five children, all of whom are married: Alan (Vicena) Poulson, Kelly Ann (Wade) Hatch, Amanda (Ben) Semadeni, Wade (Brooke) Poulson, and Mary (Tyler) Hicken. Between them they have twenty-three children. Clair and Ruth met while both were students at Snow College and were married in the Manti temple.
Clair has always loved telling his children, and later his grandchildren, make-up stories. His vast experience in life and his love of literature has always contributed to both his telling stories to children and his writing of adventure and suspense novels.
He has served for forty years in the criminal justice system. Twenty years were spent in law enforcement, ending his police career with eight years as the Duchesne County Sheriff. For the past twenty years Clair has worked as a justice court judge for Duchesne County. Clair is also a veteran of the US Army where he was a military policeman. He has served on various boards and councils during his professional career, including the Justice Court Board of Judges, Utah Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice, Utah Judicial Council, Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council, an FBI advisory board and others.
In addition to his criminal justice work, Clair has farmed and ranched all of his life. He has raised many kinds of animals, but his greatest interest is horses.
Clair has served in many capacities in the LDS church, including fulltime missionary (California Mission) bishop, counselor to bishop, young men president, high councilor, stake mission president, scoutmaster, High Priest group leader, etc. He currently serves as a Sunday School teacher.
Clair is married to Ruth, and together, they have five children, all of whom are married: Alan (Vicena) Poulson, Kelly Ann (Wade) Hatch, Amanda (Ben) Semadeni, Wade (Brooke) Poulson, and Mary (Tyler) Hicken. Between them they have twenty-three children. Clair and Ruth met while both were students at Snow College and were married in the Manti temple.
Clair has always loved telling his children, and later his grandchildren, make-up stories. His vast experience in life and his love of literature has always contributed to both his telling stories to children and his writing of adventure and suspense novels.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews
October 21, 2015
Do you ever find a book you love so much that you read it two or three times in the space of a few months? That's exactly what I did with the book "Blind Side", by Clair M. Poulson. I read it over and over and then I loaned it out to family members so they could read it too. I've already said that Poulson is my favorite author, and "Blind Side" is probably in my top favorite three of his books. It's about an incredible young woman, named Noletta, who takes her dog for a walk and becomes the only eye witness to a murder. She's not very much help identifying the murderer though because he shot her too and took away her sight, but her dog, Taffy, remembers. She goes back to college with her dog, now trained to be her eyes, and tries to live a normal life. Everything seems great until Taffy starts acting weird around one of Noletta's classmates, and then just a few days later he goes missing. Noletta goes on a hunt to find her missing dog and in a terrifying twist of events, finds out what Taffy was trying to warn her of.
This story is full of intrigue, suspense, and plot twists that will keep your head spinning and your eyes glued to the page. Be prepared to lose some sleep because you will not want to put this book down. Poulson is an LDS author so all of his books are clean, which makes this the perfect read for all ages. Whenever a friend asks if I have any good books to read, this is usually the one that I lend to them. Go out and get your own copy and then let me know what you think!
This story is full of intrigue, suspense, and plot twists that will keep your head spinning and your eyes glued to the page. Be prepared to lose some sleep because you will not want to put this book down. Poulson is an LDS author so all of his books are clean, which makes this the perfect read for all ages. Whenever a friend asks if I have any good books to read, this is usually the one that I lend to them. Go out and get your own copy and then let me know what you think!
October 2, 2008
Okay. I've only read half of this book, and I love it so much it's frustrating. This author is amazing at writing suspense. He writes in a way that reminds me of a soap opera, always jumping from one scene to the next, just drawing you in more and more, until you want to scream and shake the book hoping that somehow the story will just fall out and reveal everything at once. (I sort of did that, too. The shaking the book thing.) Anyway, there are a few pretty cheesy parts, but the suspense is so wonderful that I don’t care about the little bit of cheese in the least. I can’t wait to finish this book!
A Few Days Later...
Wow. What a let down. It's pretty sad that I loved the book so much in the middle and just really, well, didn't even like it so much at the end. The cheese got a bit out of hand. So many times I just thought, "No one would ever say that!" I love books with a huge twist at the end. Dan Brown does that REALLY WELL. This author builds the suspense too much and then it just fizzles out. I cant believe how disappointed I am.
A Few Days Later...
Wow. What a let down. It's pretty sad that I loved the book so much in the middle and just really, well, didn't even like it so much at the end. The cheese got a bit out of hand. So many times I just thought, "No one would ever say that!" I love books with a huge twist at the end. Dan Brown does that REALLY WELL. This author builds the suspense too much and then it just fizzles out. I cant believe how disappointed I am.
August 23, 2018
Enjoyed it. It was a page turner. I read it in two days. What a twist at the end.
September 9, 2016
I read this book years ago when I was much younger. Recently, I came across the book again and thought that I'd give it a re-read since I remembered loving the book. Sadly, the book did not age well. Looking at the book through the eyes of an adult was disappointing. The main character has the personality of a wet noodle. It seems like her only character traits are her vulnerability and beauty. Every character in this book praised her constantly of her bravery, but the author seems to be of the talk don't show variety, because I saw little evidence to back up that claim.The main male character was flat, but fine until the book started wrapping up. Then he started to get ridiculously cheesy. overall, I kind of hated the book. I'm fairly certain that I sprained my eyes from all the eye rolling I did. If you're looking for a fun, clean crime novel with a bit of romance I'd look for a Betsy Branndon Green novel.
November 28, 2015
Listened to this while on a long road trip, then had to finish the last CD when arrived home to know the conclusion - "who done it?". Though the story was suspenseful, by the last two CD's the dialogue was just getting too unrealistic (does anyone really talk like that?) and the twists and final outcome were rushed, in the end leaving me feeling I'd wasted my time on this. A squeaky clean story, written by an LDS author, with minor references that may be confusing to someone not of the LDS faith. Meh! There are better books available out there.
August 2, 2008
Oh, I struggle with LDS authors! This is a good book--the story is suspenseful, and has lots of twists and turns, but he really shoots it in the foot with sappy, goofy stuff. It's a good story--and I'd be willing to read more of his books, but I'm not dying to get another one. I listened to the first half on CD on a road trip--and it was good for that. I overlooked the ocassional dorkiness when trapped in a car for 9 hours! I did like it, it was OK, I just didn't love it.
October 14, 2011
I always question LDS fiction. This one had a good premise, but about 1/2way through, I almost gave up on it. The on/off love stories were about to send me over the edge. Shortly therafter, things got better again and I liked the ending.
February 28, 2021
(2.5 stars) Noletta Fahr, a young law student, is out one day for a walk with her German shephard in a canyon park outside Salt Lake City. She unwittingly comes across a murder victim lying on the trail, just moments after he has been shot and killed. The murderer, still nearby, shoots Noletta as well in order to protect his identity. What he doesn't realize is that Noletta lives, though the gunshot wound to her head has caused permanent blindness. The killer eventually discovers that Noletta has lived, though because of her blindness, she is unable to identify him. Her dog, however, seems to remember, which results in the theft of her dog, leaving Noletta without the support she desperately needs, as well as many questions and the fear that someone may still be out there to get her.
This book started out promising, and the overall plot was a relatively good one. But the writing....ugh. The dialogue was just unrealistic. Very predictable, trite, and cliched. And just cheesy at times. I was constantly eye-rolling, and this got progressively worse as the book progressed. This may have been accentuated by the fact that I was reading on audio. The reader was overly dramatic, making the poor dialogue even worse. I honestly don't get some of the rave reviews for this book. Do these people not actually read any well-written fiction? So....decent story; poor writing. I highly doubt that I'd read anything else by this author. (Clair M. Poulson is a male author, by the way. I was previously under the assumption that this was a female writer, not that it matters either way.)
Side note: I didn't realize this was classified as LDS fiction. I didn't even know there was such a thing. However, I figured it out as there were references in the story about going to church, roles in the church, etc. That in itself did not bother me at all; however, it didn't really seem to "flow" with the book, and seemed as though the references were thrown in randomly.
This book started out promising, and the overall plot was a relatively good one. But the writing....ugh. The dialogue was just unrealistic. Very predictable, trite, and cliched. And just cheesy at times. I was constantly eye-rolling, and this got progressively worse as the book progressed. This may have been accentuated by the fact that I was reading on audio. The reader was overly dramatic, making the poor dialogue even worse. I honestly don't get some of the rave reviews for this book. Do these people not actually read any well-written fiction? So....decent story; poor writing. I highly doubt that I'd read anything else by this author. (Clair M. Poulson is a male author, by the way. I was previously under the assumption that this was a female writer, not that it matters either way.)
Side note: I didn't realize this was classified as LDS fiction. I didn't even know there was such a thing. However, I figured it out as there were references in the story about going to church, roles in the church, etc. That in itself did not bother me at all; however, it didn't really seem to "flow" with the book, and seemed as though the references were thrown in randomly.
March 26, 2019
Noletta, a college student out taking pictures with her new dog, stumbles upon a murder scene. She spots the killer but gets shot. Two doctors find her and her dog and get her to a hospital where she recovers. Now blind, she and her dog, Taffy, live their life while the killer roams free. After some time, the detectives gave up on the girl’s case but one night, Taffy disappears mysteriously. A detective takes up the case once more to find Noletta’s dog and, hopefully, the killer.
The common idea debated among the reviews was the love triangle occurring within this suspense-filled novel. It was repeated that the relationship crisis the main character was unnecessary to the plot. I myself do agree that the cheesy love triangle was a little too much with the much bigger and concerning issue of Noletta’s dog missing and the murder prowling about. Some other people have also questioned the mannerisms of Taffy, Noletta’s dog, and while I do agree with the fact that the dog acted a bit unrealistically, it was needed overall to move the fictional story along.
I liked the book, even though there was some mushy moments in the relationship between the main character and the men around her. At the end, her courage was stunning but she didn’t seem very strong or that deep of a character. The suspense and the mystery was beautiful including the twist at the end and the burst of action. It was a good read that I suggest to others although I enjoy more action-filled content.
The common idea debated among the reviews was the love triangle occurring within this suspense-filled novel. It was repeated that the relationship crisis the main character was unnecessary to the plot. I myself do agree that the cheesy love triangle was a little too much with the much bigger and concerning issue of Noletta’s dog missing and the murder prowling about. Some other people have also questioned the mannerisms of Taffy, Noletta’s dog, and while I do agree with the fact that the dog acted a bit unrealistically, it was needed overall to move the fictional story along.
I liked the book, even though there was some mushy moments in the relationship between the main character and the men around her. At the end, her courage was stunning but she didn’t seem very strong or that deep of a character. The suspense and the mystery was beautiful including the twist at the end and the burst of action. It was a good read that I suggest to others although I enjoy more action-filled content.
June 30, 2022
3.5 rounded up. I think I might’ve read it before but I guess it’s been long enough that things were surprises again 🙂. This is one of the author’s better books, a good whodunnit. The two cousin suitors were definitely creepy, especially Creed - so manipulative, whiny, immature, possessive and scary even before their dark sides were revealed. The declaration of love between the detective and Noletta seemed premature though it appears from the final chapter they did take things slower to get engaged. Was expecting more about her law school at the end. Despite those things I did enjoy the book
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 12, 2023
good overall
Had some unexpected twists and turns…some of the scenarios were a little cheesy and I didn’t love when details were intentionally withheld from the reader even though every important character in the book knew already. I get it was to add suspense, but I found it a little annoying
Had some unexpected twists and turns…some of the scenarios were a little cheesy and I didn’t love when details were intentionally withheld from the reader even though every important character in the book knew already. I get it was to add suspense, but I found it a little annoying
October 1, 2021
This had twists that I wasn't too surprised about. In fact I found the plot line to be fairly unsurprising compared to others books of his I've read. That said, I always appreciate a book that has clean content and is entertaining, and this book fit that bill for me.
July 8, 2022
I liked this book. Didn’t love but I sincerely appreciated the cleanliness of this book language and all. I almost guessed the end. Gave it a little twist was good. I don’t know if I like enough to own…. But I enjoyed to read it.
August 24, 2017
Fast paced plot in which there is many fascinating twists, which keep the reader guessing.
February 9, 2018
I love all Clair’s books they are clean and intriguing!
December 19, 2018
Not the worst book I've read but rather predictable and repetitive.
February 18, 2019
Exciting!
September 18, 2020
I liked the book ok. It just kept dragging on for me.
October 3, 2021
I read this for a book club, but not the type of book I’d normally pick for myself. It was ok, but a bit predictable.
June 1, 2022
Two jealous cousins, Two different tragedies and a lone detective looking for a stolen seeing eye dog. This has quite the twists and turns.
July 24, 2022
Overall a good story that was a nice read. Sometimes the characters annoyed me (hello red flags) but I enjoyed how it came together and kept the mystery alive without being too much
September 1, 2023
What a surprise ending! Didn't see that coming!
April 10, 2024
Great story!
Emotional if you love dogs!
BUT, the TURNS!!!! Oh my goodness! I thought I had figured out his story lines. MAN WAS I WRONG!
Such a crazy story line.
Emotional if you love dogs!
BUT, the TURNS!!!! Oh my goodness! I thought I had figured out his story lines. MAN WAS I WRONG!
Such a crazy story line.
November 9, 2024
I really enjoyed this book. Didn’t want to put it down.
September 1, 2017
Well. That was an intense.
I was like so lost on who the bad guy was the whole time maybe I'm just a clueless reader, or maybe Poulson is just very clued in how to defy reader expectation. Regardless, this was good.
In a classic wrong-place-wrong-time scenario, a young law student is blinded by a gunshot that was intended to kill. After overcoming insurmountable odds (because she's BOSS), she continues her life as a promising law student with the help of her guide dog, Taffy. Stuff goes DOWNTOWN, though, and she ends up in the huge confusing mess of a nightmare. Luckily, the detective on her case takes her seriously, and the little girl who lives next door proves to be there to watch Nicolle's back, both literally and figuratively.
The romance was a bit wishy-washy, but kind of in a good way. It felt more realistic. At the same time though, I kinda just wanted the people I was shipping to go ahead and get together... idk. I guess it depends on reader's preference
I was like so lost on who the bad guy was the whole time maybe I'm just a clueless reader, or maybe Poulson is just very clued in how to defy reader expectation. Regardless, this was good.
In a classic wrong-place-wrong-time scenario, a young law student is blinded by a gunshot that was intended to kill. After overcoming insurmountable odds (because she's BOSS), she continues her life as a promising law student with the help of her guide dog, Taffy. Stuff goes DOWNTOWN, though, and she ends up in the huge confusing mess of a nightmare. Luckily, the detective on her case takes her seriously, and the little girl who lives next door proves to be there to watch Nicolle's back, both literally and figuratively.
The romance was a bit wishy-washy, but kind of in a good way. It felt more realistic. At the same time though, I kinda just wanted the people I was shipping to go ahead and get together... idk. I guess it depends on reader's preference
May 24, 2012
Synopsis:
Noletta Fahr and her dog went for a walk one morning; Noletta wanted to take a couple pictures so she could paint them. Taffy, her dog, got very far ahead of her. When she found Taffy, she also found a dead man lying on the trail. She turned to see Taffy growling at a man mostly hidden in the shadows. Noletta was shot in the back of her head when she turned to run, and Taffy sent the man running by biting him in the leg.
Noletta and Taffy were found and taken care of. Noletta lived, but with severe damage which caused her to become blind. Taffy becomes her seeing-eye dog. Then one day, Noletta awoke and could not find Taffy anywhere. She was no where in the house and there is no way she could have gotten outside. Someone stole her. But who? The rest of the book is Noletta and the kind detective, Martin Atkinson, search for her dog and the person that shot her that fateful day.
Review:
I really liked the book. I was on edge the whole time. It has a really cute love story to it, and it is super fun. I would recommend it to anyone who really likes a good mystery, with a little romance; but I would mostly recommend it to the girls. It is awesome. I loved it!
Noletta Fahr and her dog went for a walk one morning; Noletta wanted to take a couple pictures so she could paint them. Taffy, her dog, got very far ahead of her. When she found Taffy, she also found a dead man lying on the trail. She turned to see Taffy growling at a man mostly hidden in the shadows. Noletta was shot in the back of her head when she turned to run, and Taffy sent the man running by biting him in the leg.
Noletta and Taffy were found and taken care of. Noletta lived, but with severe damage which caused her to become blind. Taffy becomes her seeing-eye dog. Then one day, Noletta awoke and could not find Taffy anywhere. She was no where in the house and there is no way she could have gotten outside. Someone stole her. But who? The rest of the book is Noletta and the kind detective, Martin Atkinson, search for her dog and the person that shot her that fateful day.
Review:
I really liked the book. I was on edge the whole time. It has a really cute love story to it, and it is super fun. I would recommend it to anyone who really likes a good mystery, with a little romance; but I would mostly recommend it to the girls. It is awesome. I loved it!
October 31, 2008
The book was about Noletta (what kind of name is that?) a law school student. She is a victim of a random shooting, after stumbling upon a crime scene. After being shot in the head and left to die, she recovers, but is stricken blind.
About 2 years later the book continues with Noletta back in law school and living with her guide dog Taffy. (She had Taffy at the time of the shooting. Taffy attacked the shooter, but was not injured herself. Taffy had been Noletta's pet, but was later trained to be her guide dog.) The person that shot Noletta knows she is still alive and tries to find out what she remembers and then kill her.
The book was more interesting than I thought it would be. The writing style is very simple, which bothered me at times. I would find the characters saying things that didn't seem like conversation normal people would have, like I thought they used names too frequently during dialog, instead of either pronouns or not saying the name at all.
About 2 years later the book continues with Noletta back in law school and living with her guide dog Taffy. (She had Taffy at the time of the shooting. Taffy attacked the shooter, but was not injured herself. Taffy had been Noletta's pet, but was later trained to be her guide dog.) The person that shot Noletta knows she is still alive and tries to find out what she remembers and then kill her.
The book was more interesting than I thought it would be. The writing style is very simple, which bothered me at times. I would find the characters saying things that didn't seem like conversation normal people would have, like I thought they used names too frequently during dialog, instead of either pronouns or not saying the name at all.
August 12, 2020
My friend recommended that I should read this book and I am glad that I did! This book had me hooked from the very beginning! Noletta was going up the canyon to take pictures with her dog when she ended up in the middle of a murder scene. Noletta ended up being shot in the head and because of a miracle, she lived but lost her eye sight. Detective Martin Atkinson has been investigating her case and has not given up- even when it seems impossible to solve.
I thought that it was written very well; Clair M. Poulson has a way with words!! One moment I was supper happy, and the next moment without warning, I was very anxious. I also loved the characters in this book (especially Martin and Harmony). This is probably the best book I have ever read! I even found a new favorite author. :)
I would suggest this book to anyone who loves an LDS suspense.
I thought that it was written very well; Clair M. Poulson has a way with words!! One moment I was supper happy, and the next moment without warning, I was very anxious. I also loved the characters in this book (especially Martin and Harmony). This is probably the best book I have ever read! I even found a new favorite author. :)
I would suggest this book to anyone who loves an LDS suspense.
March 25, 2008
This was a super quick read, as I started and finished it in about 4 hours of an insomnia-ridden night. It had an interesting plot, but I was able to guess who the bad guy was just half way through the book. It is everything that I would expect an LDS novel to be, in that in the beginning of the book, the story revolved around a murder and the girl who survived walking onto the scene . . . but by the end of the book, the main story had evolved into a really cheesy love story, while the whole murder part of the story kinda took a back seat. It was interesting, and good for a quick read, but I won't be reading it again!
May 16, 2016
While Noletta and her dog Taffy are walking in the mountain she sees a man who has been murdered, the murderer pulls his trigger and shoots Noletta as well and thinks she is dead she doesn't die but does end up blind. Noletta learns to adjust to her new life and her dog Taffy is trained to be a helper to her. When Taffy goes missing Detective Martin Arkinson is called in to investigate. This book is another fast paced, great suspense, it has mystery and intrigue, the author has a way of making you guess till the very end who did what and even when you think you know, he twists the plot again and leaves you hanging till the last page. This book is a great read and a clean read.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 99 reviews