Stranger in the Night

Haven #3

by Catherine Palmer

In the dead of night, there's a knock on the door at Haven, an inner-city youth center in St. Louis. A refugee family—scared, tired and hungry—seeks shelter. Fresh back from Afghanistan, former marine sergeant Joshua Duff takes on the mission. He recruits aid worker Liz Wallace, but she has questions for Joshua. Such as why a Texan with an oil magnate for a father is working at Haven. Or why a man who fears nothing—including the gang violence threatening the center—seems scared of opening his heart to her. Joshua will call upon his training and his faith to protect Liz and Haven. Yet the most dangerous threat lurks closer than they realize.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Christian, Romance, Fiction, Suspense

390 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Catherine Palmer lives in Atlanta with her husband, Tim, where they serve as missionaries in a refugee community. They have two grown sons. Cathy is a graduate of Southwest Baptist University and holds a master's degree in English from Baylor University. Her first book was published in 1988. Since then she has published over 50 novels, many of them national best sellers. Catherine has won numerous awards for her writing, including the Christy Award, the highest honor in Christian fiction. In 2004, she was given the Career Achievement Award for Inspirational Romance by "Romantic Times" magazine. More than 2 million copies of Catherine's novels are currently in print. The Author's Work With her compelling characters and strong message of Christian faith, Catherine is known for writing fiction that "touches the hearts and souls of readers." Her many collections include A Town Called Hope, Treasures of the Heart, Finders Keepers, English Ivy, and the Miss Pickworth series. Catherine also recently coauthored the Four Seasons fiction series with Gary Chapman, the "New York Times" best-selling author of "The Five Love Languages."

Reviews

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fabulous suspense read set among refugee work in St. Louis. There's a serious threat against Haven from a new gang leader who seems to have some very suspicious international connections. The culprit didn't surprise me too much but who they were revealed to be was indeed shocking! I truly enjoyed the romance also.

Note: because of the subject matter/ discussion of war crimes such as rape and massacre, and on-page violent PTSD, animal harm, and street fighting, this is best suited to adult readers.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book goes back to the same youth center in Thread of Deceit, but with different central characters. In the previous book, Sam and Ana were the main focus of the book, but in this one former Marine Joshua is the main focus, along with Liz, his romantic interest. This book wasn't as much a suspense novel as the other, but focused a lot on gang and drug activity. I enjoyed the book a lot, and liked it even better than the book it follows. Great read.

[Crissy · Rating 3 out of 5]

After starting the book I realized it was book 3 but I didn't seem to be missing much and looks as if the other books just focused on other couples so I may have missed some back story but it doesn't take away from this story.
I didn't really get pulled into this story the way I liked. But I needed to know what was up and who was causing the issue. Love story aspect wasn't really there.

[Tamara Tilley · Rating 3 out of 5]

STRANGER IN THE NIGHT tracks the work of Liz Wallace as she helps place refugees in St. Louis, and Joshua Duff, an ex-marine as he works with his friends at Haven, an inner-city youth center. There attraction for each other is immediate, though neither is willing to admit it.
Things heat up at Haven, and Liz and Joshua work together to find what it is that’s started rival gangs to center on Haven. The more Liz and Joshua work together, the more they push each other way. Their goals are different, but the same. They want to help others, even if that means they can’t be together.
STRANGER IN THE NIGHT had a unique setting and a unique storyline, but the constant back and forth as Joshua and Liz struggle with their feelings gets irritating over time. I love the pull and tug of a good romance, but I feel in STRANGER IN THE NIGHT it is abused and does an injustice to the story and frustrates the reader, at least this reader. But even with this negative, the positive is that the story does keep you involved until the very end.

[Lorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced page-turner about Joshua Duff, returned marine Sgt. from 2 terms in Afghanistan, who must unexpectedly use his tracker and anti-terrorist skills to search out and neutralize rival gangs in a dangerous section of St. Louis. Closely allied is Liz Wallace, a young social worker devoted to relocating African refugees in the same area of St. Louis.
All characters live, speak and act as decent Christians would in such situations, facing hard trials, grave risks, and potential joys, seeking to do the will of God in their lives. Not sweetness and light, but well researched reality with an uplifting under-theme. Very enlightening about areas of life and service most of us never suspected.
Catherine Palmer is a Christy Award winning author.

[Rita · Rating 1 out of 5]

The 'romance' between the two main characters was cheesy and unrealistic. Maybe I'm just not much for romance books? The story dragged on and on. I only finished it because there was an element of mystery and I wanted to figure it out.

[Melmo2610 · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really tried to finish this book but it just did not draw me in. Reading this book felt too much like a chore and I have too many other books on my to read list to waste my time.

[Readenqueen17 · Rating 4 out of 5]

good book