Rescue Me

by Toni Leland

Seattle socialite Julia Dorsey has it all prestige, money, magnificent Morgan horses, and a powerful, brilliant husband. But Julia's life is a nightmare of domestic violence and terror, and only an act of courage can save her. Will the price be too high?

When mysterious Heck Dillon enters her life, Julia's fears return. Who is he? Can she trust him? As Dillon offers her quiet strength and protection, Julia begins to believe in hope for a new future, thanks to her discovery of an equine rescue in need. But the old life still haunts her and, before she can move forward, she must face her past.

This tale of romantic suspense touches on two serious equine rescue and domestic violence.

Genres: Horses

284 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Toni Leland has been writing for more than 30 years. She is the author of eight equestrian novels and mysteries, a paranormal romance, a paranormal teen novel, and two juvenile chapter books. Her short stories have appeared in Arabella Romance Magazine, True Story, Bylines Writer’s Calendar, From the Heart anthologies, and Horse Tales for the Soul.

Toni has written articles for international gardening site, Dave’s Garden (http://www.davesgarden.com); she writes feature articles for Grit magazine (grit.com), OHIO magazine/Over the Back Fence regional magazines (OHIOmagazine.com), Country Living, and Norwich magazine She also writes a monthly column on gardening for Norwich Magazine and blogs at Toni Leland's Garden Gate, http://tonilelandgardengate.blogspot.com.

Visit Toni at http://tonileland.blogspot.com
End

Reviews

[Tara Chevrestt · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was better than I expected. I was half afraid it would be fluffy or too romancy, but to my great pleasure, it was a serious and suspenseful read that addressed two very important issues while at the same time offering helpful advice and knowledge on both issues: escaping domestic abuse and the abuse and neglect of horses and how you can help.

Julia is married to very rich, but very abusive man. Stephen treats Julia like a possession and not a very prized one at that. He has jealous rages, beats her, verbally abuses her, monitors her every move and then aplogizes for it all, buying her trinkets or jewels just to begin the cycle all over again. Finally, Julia has enough and in the middle of an Oklahoma horse competition, she takes a tote bag full of necessities, hides behind a pair of sunglasses and boards the nearest bus. The bus takes her Illinois where she starts a new identity, a new job, rents an apartment, and looks over her shoulder constantly.

Julia learns fast that the only way to be safe from her past and Stephen is to keep to herself. It's easier to keep people at arm's length than to constantly fabricate lies to tell them. When a handsome and mysterious man comes into her life tho, Julia begans to doubt her choice. Was running away really the answer or should she have stood up to Stephen and did things legal? Does she want to start a new relationship on a pack of lies or allow this sexy former law enforcement officer, Dillon, into her heart and to possibly help her?

While Julia ponders her choices, Stephen is searching for her, Dillon is chasing trucks full of caskets and counterfeit money, and Julia discovers a horse rescue farm. Some of the situations these horses come from are appalling and they need to do just as much healing as Julia does. Maybe they can heal together.

I won this on goodreads firstreads and I loved it.

[Chrystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story but very slow moving. For a mystery I didn't find it much of a page turner.

[Sharon Rosser · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have an animal passion

This is a very good story about spousal abuse, turning your life around, and finding a new path. The author touches on the mounting problem of animal abandonment as well, and opens the readers eyes to the tragic facts surrounding animal abuse.

[Candy · Rating 4 out of 5]

When asked to read and review a book by this author, I was drawn several times to this title because of the description. It's not something you particularly WANT to read about, but it's reality and it's close to my heart. You see, my mother is a survivor of domestic violence and we had a horse growing up. So that's where I'm coming from in this review.

The author does a fabulous job of weaving the plight of a domestic abuse victim with the plight of abused and neglected horses. Being inside of Julia's head is both intriguing and frightening. The story moves quickly as Julia runs away from that life into a life much different. There's a little romance, nothing overtly sexual (no heaving bosoms, thank goodness!), and a lot of heart.

The storyline about the horse rescue broke my heart. I guess I knew it happens. People are mean or get in over their head or the horse gets old and is no longer as "fun" or gets too expensive. I suppose the same is true with all pet rescue groups, but with horses, the sheer size and cost I imagine becomes a larger problem. I really did enjoy following Julia's research and experiences. While I haven't researched it myself, it rings true of what goes on inside of a rescue group - the constant shortage of funds having top billing.

The book itself is well written. The author does a wonderful job of keeping the story going while not revealing all of the information at once. I liked that each main character had a backstory and she was able to reveal bits and pieces of it at a time.

In typical fashion, I didn't really care for the ending. I guess I wanted more out of it. Having said that, if I were the author, I'm not sure I would have changed it. Again, it rang true. Abuse victims sometimes overestimate the power of their abuser and underestimate the power of themselves. I also liked that we were left to use our imagination a bit as far as what path(s) the characters may choose next.

This is a good book for those that are looking for something easy to physically read but want to learn a little something in the process. It kept me up until 2am, so I'd say it gets my recommendation.

[Jan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great story. I loved how the author mainly takes a story about domestic abuse and horse abuse/horse rescue and weaves it together along with a mystery thriller and tossed in a little romance. As a horse owner I highly recommend this for a read. As a none horse owner you can enjoy this book as Toni Leland walks that fine line of satisfying both kinds of readers. The end leaves you walking away with a smile...I thoroughly enjoyed this one and will be reading more by this author. I hope to see even more books by her and will be recommending them to my horse owner friends.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for happy endings and this book, although it deals with some tough subjects, ends happily.
I had no idea of the astounding number of women who are abused by their partners, the statistics are appalling! The heroine of this book, Julia, is an abused woman who finally decides she can't take it anymore and runs away. She leaves behind the loves of her life: her horses and horse shows. But in time she reconnects with horses--abused horses--and finds a whole new direction for her life.
A good story, well told!

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The tension is great and it keeps on mounting. The subject matter is about battered women and abused horses. I loved the characters, the horses, the dogs, and the farms. A must read. I highly recommend it. I'll be checking to see what other books Ms Leland has written. She really good at telling a great story.

[Mia]

loved it

[Genny Moore · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent beach type read. Scenes shifted rapidedly and it was often difficult to tell where one scene left off and another began.

[Rose · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don't bother!

[Carol Hall · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, engaging characters, will read others by this author