Reviewed by Roberta
TITLE: For By Grace
SERIES: Spirit of Grace #1
AUTHOR: Adrian J. Smith
PUBLISHER: Supposed Crimes, LLC
LENGTH: 257 PAGES
BLURB:
Being a Sheriff’s Deputy is not all about saving lives and arresting criminals, and each day Grace wonders if she’ll make it home.
While kids at the schools Deputy Grace Halling visits see her as the knight in blue-cotton armor, people involved in the cases she is dispatched to have a different opinion. She has every confidence in her ability to do her job and arrest criminals. She easily takes down a knife-wielding woman and a drunken combatant teenager without hesitation. Everyone—victim, suspect, or witness—has a story to tell or to lie about, and Grace is never perturbed by their tales.
That all changes when she looks down the barrel of a gun. She loses confidence in her ability as a deputy, she loses trust in herself and fellow officers, and she struggles to stay afloat as shift after shift passes. Grace cannot find her rhythm of being a deputy again. And when the Police Chaplain unexpectedly barges into her life, her personal and professional lives are flipped upside down. Grace struggles to find her even ground, worrying that the next time she stares a murderer in the face will be the last.
REVIEW:
The blurb intrigued me when I saw it and couldn’t wait to read it. I’m not really sure how I feel about this book. There were so many things that felt off to me, I’m still not sure what really happens.
Grace is an interesting character. She is a cop who loves her job and does it because she wants to help people. Help and protect them. I find that trait very admirable. Grace isn’t out as a lesbian officer. She hasn’t really dated anyone in awhile and that has also helped keep her secret. Grace is all about helping out others. She’s actually really good at that part of her job. She goes into every situation with the intent on helping and figuring out what has happened and how to help.
Amaya is seen thru Grace’s eyes, so from what I can gather about her…she’s a chaplain and she’s got this wonderful sense of self. She’s a steady character who falls for Grace. Amaya seems to have a pretty level head on her shoulders and really likes what she does. Amaya puts up with A LOT, and I do mean A LOT from Grace. However, she sticks through all of Grace’s quirks and still makes herself a part of Grace’s life.
There were so many characters in this story that I can’t pick just one that stands out as someone who really helps Grace as a character. I will say that of all of the secondary characters, Peter is the one that is shown the most. He’s this young man whose mother is an alcoholic and is fast approaching the same way. Grace and Peter have several run ins and yet, Grace seems to only want the very best for him and helps him throughout this story. I also like Harold. Harold is a gentleman that is in housing for people with mental issues. Harold is such a sweet, childlike character and I really enjoyed seeing him whenever he was on the page.
This book had no sex at all. It wasn’t even fade to black, it just never seemed to go there at all. It was interesting because it focused on the growing relationship between Grace and Amaya. That was nice and very sweet, however, maybe it’s just me, I really like to see our characters show their love and affection for each other in a physical way. This book reminds me of how lesbian fiction was years and years ago…either fade to black or implied. This book didn’t even do that.
The author did a great job describing police procedures and it showed throughout the book. There was really good research for that and I felt like Grace truly was a wonderful deputy. I will say that I was very unimpressed with the fact that I can’t seem to really say that this is a romance, it seems to be more of a police procedural with some mystery/suspense and action in it. The romance seemed to be more of an after thought.
I liked the fact that Grace is clumsy and it is a source of discomfort to her and she gets teased about it from her friends and coworkers. I disliked the fact that she seemed to get hurt with some regular frequency. That bothered me a bunch. I’m not saying that it doesn’t happen, however, with every instance where she had to throw down with a suspect…Grace got her butt kicked and that didn’t seem right to me. I’m not really even sure where the hell this book is supposed to take place in. It never seemed to have been brought up.
This book also spoke A LOT about God. I’m not sure how you feel about the subject as religion is such a personal thing, however, it’s not stated in the blurb and I was a bit taken aback by just how much this book seemed to be about God. Just a little FYI for you.
There was something that really irritated me to know end in this book…it was the lack of growth on the Grace’s part. I just felt ambivalent towards her as this story had evolved. I was hoping that by the end of the story that something would happen to make me feel something and I’m still waiting. The story ended on a cliff-hanger…I can only assume that it’s there that Grace experiences a change.
RATING: 
BUY LINKS:
I really liked your review. I too saw all the things you pointed out and was very disappointed in Grace’s character. She just fell so flat and she never seemed to grow or even learn from past mistakes. I liked the concept but the book really fell flat.