Unplanned by Alana Terry

This is a good introduction to a new series from Terry. Kennedy is a university student when her pastor from years ago invites her to help in a newly established pregnancy care center. She agrees to cover the phone for a weekend. She receives a troubling call from a thirteen year old pregnant girl. The girl hangs up before Kennedy can adequately engage her. But it is God's plan that the lives of two would become entwined in a potentially deadly situation.

This is a novel that takes us into the personal story of a young teen who is in a dangerous situation and in need of help. It was interesting to see Kennedy deal with the disturbing call from the girl. And then the story quickly moved to a suspenseful situation where the lives of Kennedy and the teen are in danger.

Kennedy does quite a bit of thinking during the suspenseful scenes in the novel. That seemed a little out of place to me. Also, Kennedy is put in a very suspenseful situation. It seemed a little odd that she was included in this suspense as it actually dealt with the pregnant teen. It almost seemed like Kennedy was there at the design of the author, not as an essential aspect of the plot.

I also felt the support characters could have used some additional work. Kennedy's roommate was an odd character and her reactions were puzzling. I felt sort of the same with Kennedy's lab partner. And the youth pastor at the church kind of gave me the creeps.

In addition to the pregnant theme of the novel is the issue of cross cultural experiences. Kennedy had spent the previous ten years with her parents in China. It was very interesting to read of her reactions to church and worship in the U.S. compared to the house churches in China.

I recommend this novel to those who like a suspense filled novels that deal with hard issues, such as young teen pregnancy. Readers should be aware that there are some bloody scenes in the novel.

As of this writing, this novel is a free Kindle download you can get here.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

Alana Terry is a pastor's wife, homeschooling mom and Christian suspense author. Her novels have won awards from Women of Faith, Book Club Network, Grace Awards, Readers' Favorite, and more. She and her family live in rural Alaska.

Firstfruits Publishing, 288 pages.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book through The Book Club Network. My comments are an independent and honest review.