Abide With MeSO DARK THE NIGHT
by Margaret Daley

Emma St. James went out to her brother’s cabin one night, after a movie, but when she got there, she discovers two men inside with him. She witnesses her brother’s murder before she can find her cell phone to call for help. She is discovered before she finds her phone, and Emma drops her purse and flees, running through the woods and losing her shoes. Shot when she reaches the highway, Emma staggers and is hit by a car.

Reverend Colin Fitzpatrick is one his way home from a youth retreat when he hits this woman on the road. He fears he’s killed her, but even when she is discovered still alive, he feels guilty. When he visits Emma in the hospital, he’s dismayed to learn that she’s blind. He wonders if hitting her with the car destroyed her vision, but the doctor seems to think that it was triggered by something she’s seen.

Colin feels Emma’s his responsibility since God put her in his path, but the killers are desperate to find her. As the threats on her life increase, it will take divine intervention to keep them both alive.

SO DARK THE NIGHT is Margaret Daley’s newest book, and it’s a page turner. I picked it up late at night because I needed something to do for a few minutes, and I couldn’t put it down. I ended up losing sleep so I could finish the book. Emma is a realistic heroine, and Colin a caring pastor. The faith message is expertly woven in.

The setting is expertly described. I could see the lonely cabin in the woods, and hear the branches and leaves crackling as Emma raced through the forest fearing for her life. Readers will not be disappointed by Margaret Daley’s SO DARK THE NIGHT. Discussion questions are included at the end of the book. $4.99. 249 pages.

Reviewed by Laura V. Hilton