When You Call My Name by Sharon Sala
published by Harlequin (Silhouette) in January 1996
Whenever you need me...Genre: category romance, contemporary romance, psychics
She had given him the most precious gift of all -- the gift of life. But something more than a mere blood transfusion linked Wyatt Hatfield to the stranger who had saved him. Something that allowed her to call out to him for help in the stillness of the night -- without ever speaking a word....
And now it was his turn to give. For the connection that linked Wyatt to Glory Dixon was the only hope he had of saving her from danger. And he had to try -- because without ever trying, Glory had become more precious to him than his own life.
Series: none
The Story: Hmmm, where to start? Actually, the story is quite simple. Glory Dixon has "the sight" and have been sheltered from the normal world by her father and her brother throughout her life. One night, she wakes them up during a blizzard because she needs to be at the hospital... and that is how Wyatt Hatfield survived his injuries from a car accident. Without the blood from a stranger, he would have died.
Fast-forward a year and Wyatt is hearing a voice in his head, asking for help. Thinking that perhaps the voice is due to some brain damage caused by the car accident, Wyatt returns to the little town... where he discovers the voice actually belongs to Glory. He also finds out that Glory's father and brother have been murdered and that Glory is in danger as she was the target... and that someone won't stop till Glory is forever silent.
My Opinion: I first discovered Ms Sala with Out of the Dark, which was an impulse buy, and became an instant fan. Out of the Dark was such an emotional, gripping read - my heart ached throughout it and I cried so much you cannot imagine. Since then, I've been trying to get my hands on every books with the name of Sharon Sala or Dinah McCall on it... So it's only natural (at least for me) that I got When You Call My Name when it was re-released a few years ago in an omnibus along with Rider on Fire. I remember thinking it was a cute story, but seriously, it didn't leave a deep impression in my mind, because I forgot that I've read it ^_^;
A few weeks ago, I read My Fiercest Heart by Sharon Sala. I was waiting for my sister and I've managed to finish the novella at the bookstore. I really enjoyed it, but because the story was half a category romance book in length, I didn't buy it. Instead, I went to look online if I couldn't buy an e-version of it... and I came across When You Call My Name. The blurb sounded so interesting that I was really tempted! Lucky for me I don't buy ebooks as fast as I buy print books LOL, because I realized that I actually already owned and read When You Call My Name!! Since I couldn't remember anything of it though, I decided to re-read it.
While re-reading the book, details of the story came back to me. Overall, I thought that the premises had potential. I really liked the idea of two people being able to telepathically communicate after the exchange of blood and the blurb really drew my attention. However, it misled me a little bit. For some reasons, I thought the story would be more about Wyatt looking for the voice, finding Glory. Still, I was okay once I realized it wasn't... I was still engaged by the premises... In the end though, I was disappointed by When You Call My Name. I can't exactly pinpoint what it is about the book that didn't work for me. I can try to guess... one of the reasons that pops up in my mind right away is that it simply didn't measure up to some other of Ms Sala's books. It didn't have the impact, the poignancy that other works of hers have. Emotionally, it really didn't reach me and this is what Ms Sala is good at.
Also, I felt like the book was a bit superficial. Lots of things happened, some related to the murder and some not, but it never went deep inside the characters or the storyline. It's like one thing happened after another to keep the story going, keep the story rolling to the conclusion so Ms Sala didn't have to develop the romance or the characters. Perhaps it's because this was a category romance... I don't know. I thought Ms Sala had some really interesting elements such as Glory being a psychic and all; however, she didn't exploit those elements. Plus, the driving force of the plot, the reason for the murder was a bit far-fetched. Yes, I can understand it... but you still had to suspend disbelief a little.
It's really unfortunate because I liked the characters. Wyatt and Glory were so different and complement each other. The whole romance was very sweet and it was nice to see the two fall for each other. Still, at the end, I don't feel like I really knew or understood Wyatt and Glory :(
My Grade: C-. It pains me to give such a grade,but this was definitively not Ms Sala's best.
