Through Waters Deep By Sarah Sundin

Chaos always seems to find the people who don't want to be in the spotlight.

Like Mary Stirling, who suffers from a perpetual case of stage fright. Or Jim Avery, who'd rather just float with the current of events like he's done for years.

Makes perfect sense that cases of sabotage would find them.

I found it very interesting that the author chose to have both Mary and Jim's fears stem from events that happened when they were children. It is so true that events that happen when we're kids--good or bad, even small events--stick with us more than others.

Even more interesting is the way that this book shows those characters facing their fears . . . and along the way, shows us that our fears can be overcome as well. I love how it shows the characters making the hard choices, which is something a lot of books shy away from.

This is the perfect historical book. Not completely focused on the romance side. Not too slow. The good old-fashioned mystery keeps rolling forward with the romance coming in every now and then, instead of dominating the helm. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy as soon as I can get back to the library!