Wildwood Creek by Lisa Wingate

This novel is a good combination of contemporary suspense and historical background.

Allie wants to follow in her father's theatrical footsteps. She manages to land a job with a media company creating a historical docudrama about a town in central Texas and the events that occurred there in the 1860s. All of the people in the town suddenly disappeared and no one has managed to solve the mystery of what happened. The town is rebuilt on location using historical documents. Allie and others portraying the town's occupants dress and live as they did a century and a half ago. Allie senses something evil is brewing and before the summer project is over, she finds herself in deadly danger.

Interspersed with the contemporary story is that of Bonnie Rose. She and her younger sister are the only survivors from an Indian attack on her family - an attack for which she feels responsible. We follow her as she makes her way to Wildwood to be a school teacher. It is not long, however, before she realizes there is something evil happening. People of the town are disappearing and she fears she may be next.

It was interesting to alternately read the parallel stories of young women traveling to the same town a century and a half apart. I do enjoy learning about a topic when I read fiction and in this case, it was all that is involved in creating one of those historical reenactments that might be seen on the History Channel. It was also interesting to read of the hardships pioneer settlers encountered. The novel could have been a little shorter, with a tighter contemporary story, but all in all, a very enjoyable novel.

You can read a chapter of the book at Lisa's website.

Go to Lisa's Pinterest page to see photos of clothing and reenactments.

You can also find her on YouTube.

Lisa Wingate is a popular inspirational speaker, magazine columnist, and national best-selling author of several books. She is a Christy Award finalist, a seven time Carol Award nominee, and the winner of the 2011 and 2012 Carol Award. Lisa and her family live in central Texas. To learn more about Lisa and her books, visit www.lisawingate.com.

Bethany House Publishers, 384 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.