He Wants Me Dead

Reviews

Engaging Novel About Teaching, Courage, and Love

Five Star Review - By B. J. Robinson:

He wants me Dead by Marion K. Bullock is a great eBook released June 15, 2011, by Desert Breeze Publishing, Inc. about special education students laced with romance and suspense. If you've ever taught Special Education, you'll enjoy this story about James who says his well-educated brother is trying to kill him and wants him dead. The teacher and her class are isolated on the third floor of a burning school when James proves he's no coward, and he cares about others. Joanna Sharpe is a teacher who has tried her best to persuade her principal that the resource room shouldn't be on the third floor, but she's new to the school and no one listens to her. No one listens to James either. Will Joanna find romance with the father of one of her students or the brother who is supposed to want James dead? Will James prove he's smarter than anyone could have guessed and become a hero, or will he merely remain a pawn in his brother's hands and end up dead? Can Joanna make a difference despite the challenging problems that face her at the high school, or will the person who's playing cat and mouse with her set a trap she can't escape? She's followed when she walks and even when she drives for dinner to an invitation from another teacher. Joanna sets out thinking she can handle the problems she'll face, but it isn't long before they surmount, and she realizes she can't do it all alone. I highly recommend this novel and give it five stars. I look forward to reading more books by this engaging author.

Review by Jaye Leyel

The Romance Sudio

Rating 4 hearts

Joanna Sharpe is a brand new teacher in special education in the Jackson City High School. She's convinced she can make positive changes, but some of the students present major problems. One of them, James, is convinced his brother is trying to kill him, but no one believes him. Joanna doesn't either, initially, but gradually comes to believe it just might be true. Another student, Elizabeth, is terrified because of something Joanna said, and her father, Rob Thomas, angrily confronts Joanna. Added to these problems is Joanna's former boyfriend and fiancé, Nick, who refuses to give her up and even travels to Texas from Oklahoma to try to get her back. Threatening emails and attempts on Joanna's life add to her problems. Joanna finds she really likes Rob, but will he allow her to work or would he be like Nick, wanting      her to answer only to him. The danger heats up to an exciting conclusion where the answers to James' problem and Joanna's heart become clear.

     I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The characters are varied and interesting, especially the students. The author has created diversity in the students in Joanna's classroom, bringing their problems, differences, and even their similarities into sharp focus. As Joanna comes to care for these teenagers, so does the reader. The author creates a very visual setting, whether it is Joanna's home, the school and its surroundings, or even that of the villain in the story. The author portrayed the students' problems expertly and their actions and responses realistically. Joanna's fears, both because of the threats against her and due to her ex-fiancé's persistence, are deep-seated and described very well. The reader feels her pain and her fear as she deals with both. The growing romance between Joanna and Rob is a beautiful thing to read about, and I especially liked the housekeeper. The daughter, Elizabeth, shows a realistic and common view of a teenager toward a parent remarrying. While I thought the book started just a trifle slow, I soon got into it and absolutely could not put it down. I loved this book and would like to read others by this author.

    

Staff, Colorado City Record:

Joanna Sharpe begins her teaching career believing she can move mountains by herself. But some of her emotionally and mentally challenged students stymie her. So does Rob Thomas, father of one of her students. How should she handle his interest? And what about James, a student who insists his brother is trying to kill him? Is he really in danger? Who can she turn to for help? Also, who is trying to kill her or at least frighten her to death? As she tries to teach her students to confront their problems and fears, she comes face to face with her own. And in the climax, when all their lives are at stake, a lot of heroes emerge.