Hadley & Grace by Suzanne Redfearn
Trade paperback, $14.95, 347 pages (Free on Kindle Unlimited)
Author Suzanne Redfearn combined two things she loves- the movie
Thelma & Louise and a biography called
Have a Home Run Day! (about
Skipper Carrillo, whose spirit and love of baseball inspired her fictional character of 8 year-old Skipper) in her new novel,
Hadley & Grace.
Grace is a young mom to a baby whose husband Jimmy is away in the military. She is upset to discover that Jimmy's gambling problem has returned, and he cleared out their small bank account. The one thing that may save her is that she closed a big deal for her boss, Frank, who owns parking garages and lots.
Frank promised her a big bonus if she could close the deal, but when she does, he refuses to pay her what she is owed. He knows that Grace has had a hard upbringing and has done time in jail, so he takes advantage of her situation.
Frank's wife Hadley has been hiding the abuse she has been taking from Frank from her 14 year-old daughter Mattie, and eight year-old nephew Skipper, until the day Frank loses his temper in front of the children. Hadley decides that she must leave Frank, but she must be secretive about it.
Hadley and Grace each end up at Frank's office one night, both intending to steal cash that Frank has hidden in his safe. Grace only wants what she is owed, but when they discover both each other and the huge amount of cash Frank has in his safe, the situation changes.
Hadley badly sprains her ankle, and Grace ends up driving her back to her hotel. The women now realize that Frank must be into something seriously illegal to have that much cash on hand and he will want it back.
When Grace takes Hadley to the hospital to take care of her foot, they find FBI agents are looking for them. Reluctantly they team up with three children on the run from both Frank and the FBI agents.
Hadley & Grace is a story of the friendship that develops between two very different women who grow to depend on each other. Being on the run adds a thrilling, tense dimension to the plot, which is very cinematic and I could see as a Lifetime movie. If you are a fan of the NBC series, Good Girls, you'll enjoy this book, where as Hadley says, "one decision leads to the next and then the next, a continual stumbling forward over each past mistake until you find yourself someplace entirely different from where you started or from where you intended to go."
I liked the character development, and the character of Skipper, the young boy who is on the spectrum, is my favorite. He relates everything to baseball, and his beloved Los Angeles Dodgers. Even Frank has one redeeming quality- he is kind to Skipper.
There were a few things I found a little farfetched- the relationship that develops between the FBI agent and Hadley, and when the group goes to a crowded country western restaurant while on the run from the FBI. That was an odd choice, although now that we have all been cooped up almost a year during this pandemic we may be able to better understand that decision.
Overall, Hadley & Grace is a good novel to wile away an afternoon, with interesting characters put into a dangerous situation. There is a shock towards the end, and the epilogue is terrific, a satisfying ending to their story.
Thanks to TLC Tours for putting me on Suzanne Redfearn's tour. The rest of her stops are here:
Suzanne Redfearn’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS:
Monday, February 1st: @suzysbookshelf
Monday, February 1st: Book Reviews and More by Kathy – excerpt
Tuesday, February 2nd: @savbeebooks
Wednesday, February 3rd: @somekindofalibrary
Wednesday, February 3rd: Bookchickdi
Thursday, February 4th: @readswithrosie
Thursday, February 4th: The OC Book Girl and @theocbookgirl
Thursday, February 4th: @the_boozy_baking_bibliophile
Friday, February 5th: Well Read Traveler and @wellreadtraveler
Monday, February 8th: Not in Jersey and @notinjersey
Tuesday, February 9th: She Just Loves Books and @shejustlovesbooks
Wednesday, February 10th: @sarahandherbookshelves
Wednesday, February 10th: @stacy40pages
Thursday, February 11th: Books Cooks Looks – excerpt
Friday, February 12th: @lyon.brit.andthebookshelf
Saturday, February 13th: @bookapotamus
Monday, February 15th: @one.chapteratatime
Monday, February 15th: Blunt Scissors Book Reviews and @bluntscissorsbookreviews
Tuesday, February 16th: Books & Bindings
Tuesday, February 16th: @lovelyplacebooks
Wednesday, February 17th: @girlsinbooks
Friday, February 19th: Girl Who Reads
Monday, February 22nd: Nurse Bookie – excerpt
Monday, February 22nd: @nurse_bookie
Tuesday, February 23rd: @welovebigbooksandwecannotlie
Wednesday, February 24th: @thebookclubmom
Thursday, February 25th: What is That Book About
