Candice Sue Patterson: When the Waters Came

By Kelly Bridgewater

An act of greed or an act of God?

Introducing a new series of 6 exciting novels featuring historic American disasters that transformed landscapes and multiple lives. Whether by nature or by man, these disasters changed history and were a day to be remembered.

Pastor Montgomery Childs has tended his flock in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, for two years. While his pews are full every Sunday, he most desires to see a reckoning between God and the kings of industry who recreate on Lake Conemaugh. The pleasure grounds, flowing alcohol, and business dealings of the South Fork Fishing and Hunting Club taunts Monty as he works to heal the wounds inflicted from his own privileged childhood among Pittsburgh society. Like Noah, Monty prays against the evil surrounding him, but he never expects God to send a flood.

It takes five days for the Red Cross to respond to the Johnstown flood disaster, but when it does, Annamae Worthington is ready to help. Apprenticing under Clara Barton has prepared her for the job, but nothing can prepare her for the death and destruction that awaits. As if the survivors haven’t suffered enough, typhoid fever ravages the town, resurfacing suppressed emotions regarding her father’s death.

Narrowly surviving the flood and the horrifying things he’s witnessed, Monty’s faith is floundering. Then a Red Cross nurse puts him to work helping with the typhoid fever victims arriving at the hospital tents every hour. Monty and Annamae work together distributing disinfectants and supplies, housing orphans, and serving those left behind. Slowly, his faith resurfaces. A kinship forms between them neither can ignore. But when an investigation into the collapsed dam points to the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club, secrets emerge that may tear them apart.

 

My Thoughts:

When the Waters Came by Candice Sue Patterson showed one of America’s horrors stories of how a small American town was destroyed either by man’s negligence or an act of nature. Patterson’s story does start with the flood occurring, but then the rest of the story focuses on the clean up of the town. Of course, the story features a romance between the minister and the Red Cross nurse from Washington D. C. As the town builds back into some form of normalcy, the characters; journey for love mirrors the town’s transformation. As a lover of suspense novels, I could not wait to see the error mentioned on human’s behalf to come to justice. The story kept propelling in that direction, and it kept me glued to see what would come of this ending. On the other hand, the setting is detailed enough that I kept watching the town come back to life. It was nice to see the remaining town people come together to work on rebuilding their personal and town lives. Overall, When the Waters Came by Candice Sue Patterson showed a horrible part of American’s history, but also showed the determination of the American people to bring this town back to its humble standing.

I received a complimentary copy of When the Waters Came by Candice Sue Patterson from Barbour Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating:   4 out of 5 stars

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