Unshaken

Stephanie Miller's life is in danger after she accidentally witnesses a murder. But entrusting her safety to the goodwill of English strangers goes against her restrictive Amish upbringing. Military veteran Hardy Anderson is a protector by instinct, but when his social worker sister places Stephanie in his protective care, he realizes that earning the terrified Amish woman's trust will take a different set of skills. As the murderer's hunt for Stephanie draws dangerously closer, the distance between Hardy and Stephanie's worlds begins to fade away, awakening the pair to their desperate desire for safety, belonging, and each other. Shepard Gray returns with another excellent blend of Amish and English life in a gripping story about confronting hardships in faith and God's enduring presence. Unshaken is set in modern-day southern Kentucky and features breathless suspense and a slow-burn Christian romance. Its compassionate representation of the delicate trust between people who walk with one another through trauma is intensified by the characters' experiences with family trauma, social work, and the foster care system.

The stakes are high for a sheltered Amish woman who witnesses a murder in Shepard Gray's thrilling follow-up to Unforgotten. When 23-year-old Stephanie Miller sees a teenage boy shoot an older man at her local Ohio dollar store, her life is upended. First, she's grazed by the shooter's second bullet, then whisked away by social worker Bev, who believes Stephanie's at risk of gang retaliation and arranges for her to take refuge on Bev's brother Hardy's Kentucky ranch. Stephanie is terrified and feels abandoned by God, but gruff military veteran Hardy works hard to earn her trust. As each opens up about their own tragic backstory, their chemistry builds, and Stephanie starts to envision a life outside the Amish community. But the gang from Ohio hasn't forgotten about her, and when threatening messages show up at the ranch, Hardy fears that even he might not be able to keep her safe. Readers will be drawn in by the propulsive action and stay for awkward yet lovable Stephanie's character arc as she grapples with mounting threats while coming into her own and deciding what she wants for her future. This captivates from first page to last. (June)