Clair PoulsonCritiques

Good story with plenty of plot twists.

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.½

I did not think that this was good writing. The plot was good, but the writing made it hard to read. The dialogue was poor and I had a hard time understanding some of the choices the characters made. why didn't more guys get upset when a girl was hit by one of them on camping trip? Why would Bria call Zach for help? Makes no sense. Had no idea why the characters who ended up together ended up together. No character development there.

Boring dialog and weak, annoying female characters...at least during the first 100 pages. No idea after that since I was so irritated I had to abandon it.

I SO LOVE A GOOD MYSTERY/SUSPENSE BOOK!
AND THIS ONE DELIVERS!

Major Corbin Daniels has put behind him his life in the military along with the devastating loss of his fiance.

He is happy with his single life in Moab, Utah where he flies his helicopter and has a private investigator business.

Then one fateful flight changes it all as one of his passengers notices a body out in the desert.

Corbin feel obligated to land and see what has happened.

Little does he realize the tangled web of lies and deceit he will find himself in as he discovers the body is the opponent of the local sheriff, Lisette Statton.

Lisette is a great sheriff and knows she won the election fair and square. She is smart and attractive and completely competent.

Corbin is more than happy to turn this over to the police...

That is until he gets a client looking for the cause of her father's death.

Yes, Corbin and Lisette are now working on the same case...

Well, it never hurts to have a second pair of eyes and hands...

People will be kidnapped...
Bullets will fly...
More bodies will be found...

And admist it all love will bloom...but between whom?

Twist and turns will keep you guessing who did it and why and who is really behind it all.

GREAT. GREAT. STORY!
DON'T MISS OUT ON THIS ONE!

Not one of his better ones. I did find it a bit disturbing at how easily an innocent person can be caught up in events beyond their control.

Private Investigator, Rocky Revada, takes on a missing horse case which ends up to be a deadly one...the most deadly he had ever encountered.

A fast-paced story which includes not only a lot of action but also a little romance. Former acquaintances, Glen and Sharise Grisley, interrupts Rocky's much needed vacation wish urgent pleas to save their ranch from ruination by finding their stolen horses. After much debate he gave into the delicate pleadings of a beautiful woman he once cared for. Soon he discovered it wasn't simply theft but murder as well...a murder which led to other threats- including his own possible demise .

The plot is slightly stretched out, yet through Clair Poulson's talents, the reader's interest is always kept alive. The characters seem real and the background scenes are clear. It is especially entertaining for Christians and others who do not approve of bad language and sexual situations. Totally "clean"!

The title is okay but not totally fitting to the "meat" of the tale. The book cover fits the title well and is eye-catching but not totally.

The voice of Jason Tatom was effective in reading the book on CD. His narrative talent in made it sound more real.

My Review of this Book on CD offers a Four Stars rating.

A very young woman felt she was finally safe - fleeing with a handsome man from the frightening, abusive situation she endured with her cruel father and brother. They were married in Las Vegas and she was now protectively pregnant with their child. While traveling on a highway in Utah, one snowy night, something dark rushed onto the highway and stopped. Unable to stop the vehicle in time, it skidded into the object then all went black. When she awoke, she was alone with strange people in a hospital and her husband was never seen. She was in severe pain and was rushed to the labor room where twin boys were delivered by C-Section...Twin boys she would never see, never hold.

When seven years old, Rafe witnessed his adoptive mother get murdered at a robbery of their local bank. Although for years following he suffered frequent nightmares, he lived a productive life on a ranch and riding in rodeos where he gained fame.

Greg was a dynamic basketball player in High School, and gained much public attention. Lyndsay had a crush on him but their lifestyles were very different. She one day noticed in a newspaper Greg's picture on a wild horse...Greg would never ride horses or wear cowboy attire! Shockingly, he lived nowhere near Greg...yet, they looked identical!

The story continues with a huge amount of action and twists! The adventures never cease. I listened to the book on CD where David Walker did an excellent job in reading and creative effective voices.

The Title is perfect and the book cover reflects the title well. It also creates reader interest.

The development of the characters were done very effectively and they seemed very real. The background scenes and action were also created well and described clearly. This was indeed well-written, smoothly flowing from one scene to the next. This was a very cleanly written, Christian fiction.

My review of this book rates it with a strong Five Stars rating.

Noletta Fahr was enjoying a nice autumn day with a hike in the mountains. She had only began her hike with her adopted dog, Taffy, when she heard a gun shot then froze when she happened upon a man lying on the ground with red flowing out of his chest. Just beyond him, through the branches and with the bright, blinding sunset behind him, stood a man. As light glinted off the object in his hand, a shot was fired and struck Noletta in the head and all went black...It remained black. Although Noletta miraculously lived, the bullet severed the optical nerves and she would remain blind for the rest of her life.

Taffy, had become a trained guide dog. Having suffered abuse as a pup, the dog always growled at men. Embarrassing as it was, Noletta had not been able to break Taffy of that habit. Could she be able to identify the killer? This was apparently a concern because a year and a half later, Taffy was stolen and Noletta was now alone in her dark existence. Detective Martin Atkinson was assigned to the case.

New situations arose and a few twists to the plot occurred which led the reader to question his/her conclusions. The reader's attention was captured in continuously occurring events.

The character development was varied and well developed. The accompanying scenes were described in an easily pictured manner.

With a clever title and an eye-catching book cover, this novel appeals to fans of mystery/suspense stories.

This was slightly dragged out and predictable but had enough action and intriguing situations to hold the reader's interest.

This review was done on an audio Book read by David Walker who did a very good job of reading in the various voices in a most pleasant manner.

My review of this book offers a strong Four Stars rating.½

Donte Noble is living a nightmare, wandering from town to town, hiding in plain sight,until somehow he can clear his name. His own fiance' believed him guilty of a serious crime an d only one person still believed in him...but can that one person stay safe and somehow help him? When all hoe and prayers seemed in vain, he unexpectedly came into contact with one other person who believed his story and was determined to help - Clive Granger. What Clive thought would be a little insight for the police to investigate in the correct directions, ended up futile. He was determined to see justice done at all costs.

Although this had some interesting twists and was written well, it was very predictable and a little cheesy but still a good story.

The title fit ell and the book cover was done well. The character development was very real and the scenes depicted well.

I was somewhat undecided on the rating but concluded, though my review of this book, it earned a weak Four Stars rating.

Dallas was ecstatic when he was hired directly out of Grad School by the El Paso Chronicle as a journalist. He didn't much care for one of his co-workers but Heather was a good journalist and had been very helpful and pleasant. His boss was a great Chief Editor until something went terribly wrong. Dallas had nobody to turn to that he trusted except for Heather and the man who persuaded him years ago to become a journalist - Mike.

This is a fast-paced mystery/suspense story of deceit, blackmail, criminal activity, discovery, trust, integrity, friendship, self-preservation.

The Title did not seem like a good "fit" and the book cover was passable, but the story itself was action=packed and never dragged. It was wonderfully "clean" !

The Characters were very real and easily visualized. The background scenes were descriptive enough they were portrayed to the reader .

My review of this book offers a strong Four Stars rating.

Keene Tempest was, regrettably, temporarily leaving his dreams behind to accept his position assigned him by his family at the unexpected death of his mother. He was the youngest, smallest, and had been the most devoted to his mother. It wasn't because he was always bullied by his older siblings that he was putting all things he was working for aside in Los Angeles to run the family hotel in Hardy, Montana, but because of love for his mother and his honor. He was going to take leave of his education and reserve position as a police officer to make sure the hotel is managed and secure efficiently, then he would hire someone to continue running the hotel. He, then, would return to Los Angeles to finish his degree and return to being a police detective. He had worked hard for this and he was not going to let this setback keep him from obtaining his dreams.

What he anticipated would be a dull, quiet country town, quickly became a rapidly increasing crime-ridden place...crimes directly affecting him and his family!

The author opens with an action packed prologue and never allows the adventures and suspense to slow down. From scene to scene, there are added complications. Even near the last page, the reader questions, "Who did it?".

The Title is slightly too vague to credit it as being a good "fit" for the story. It is definitely a play on words but a "play" many readers would not understand. However, the cover page is well done in emphasizing the title. The penmanship of the writer is excellent. Poulson's writing skills captivates his reader's continual attention. Through local scenes to interstate synergy, the various situations "flow" smoothly together absent of any confusion.

My review of this book offers a strong Four and a Half Stars rating.½

although a good read this suffers from the need to put across a moral view. Luckely this is one that I agree with, drink driving, but it seems to affect the quality of the story as there can be no twists that takes away from the overall message. The other fault I can find is that once again the Love is at the teen level as we all know that adults are parents and have no feelings that are not straightforward and predicatable.

Dallas Dixon is fired from his job as a newspaper journalist, and he thinks Elliot who wants the girl on the staff he dated, is behind it. However, when the editor is murdered and Riley is a prime suspect, his life just keeps going from bad to worse. Can anyone have this much bad luck? All of it is connected to the murder in some way, but can Riley prove his innocence? He has the help of the girl, Heather Scott, some friends, his lawyer, Lincoln Graves, and his estranged father, Mason Huggins. His flashbacks to Iraq disturb him at night, but his daytime nightmare is just as bad. I guessed the murderer right away, but the hint is pretty subtle, so you may not. The eyes of a snake lead the girlfriend to the correct source of the murder. Interesting that this is used, and also that the author is branching out to locations outside of Utah. You will be glued to this book as much as most of Clair's other books, so don't start until you have time to finish it or it will drive you crazy!!

When a policeman arrives at the scene of a bad accident, he has no idea that it will be his family that will be torn from him. So he becomes a detective to avoid the trauma of car accidents. Then wolves from Yellowstone Park start drifting onto Montana ranches, resulting in deaths of livestock, but there are deaths that are not made by wolves as well. Who is behind it all? The issues of both the ranchers and wildlife preservationists come to the fore in this book.

This is another "Can't put it down" thriller from Clair Poulson. If you love horses and the suspense of the chase, this book will truly keep you enthralled. The romance is subtle but secure in the story. All the characters come together as each story is told independently, but entwined, mostly at the end.
Kaitlyn Glenn is pursued by her step-brother and two criminals one is hired by the other one who is obsessed with her (Jace) and they are helped by a man who is jealous of her skills in the rodeo for the sake of his daughter who idolizes her. A young man who only exchanges a glance with her, helps her, thus putting two lives in danger. A woman trucker, Celia, also helps her and is accosted by the two criminals.With the help of two young girls, Kaitlyn is rescued to find her true love at the end.

A troubled boy who was convicted of murder returns to his hometown of Pineview after escaping prison to exact revenge.
Erika Leighton is on vacation and goes into Pineview for supplies, but she is in the wrong place at the wrong time. The harrowing experience of the kidnapped and the police will keep you gripping your seat to the very last page. Clair Poulson is a local John Grisham in his home of Utah, and he knows what he is talking about from personal experience.

I really enjoyed the storyline and the suspense that Poulson provided. I really like Rusty!