Chelsea Adams has visions. But they have no place in a courtroom. As a juror for a murder trial, Chelsea must rely only on the evidence. And this circumstantial evidence is strong--Darren Welk killed his wife. Or did he?

The trial is a nightmare for Chelsea. The other jurors belittle her Christian faith. As testimony unfolds, truth and secrets blur. Chelsea's visiting niece stumbles into peril surrounding the case, and Chelsea cannot protect her. God sends visions--frightening, vivid. But what do they mean? Even as Chelsea finds out, what can she do? She is helpless, and danger is closing in . . .

Chelsea Adams has visions. But they have no place in a courtroom. As a juror for a murder trial, Chelsea must rely only on the evidence. And this circumstantial evidence is strong---Darren Welk killed his wife. Or did he? The trial is a nightmare for Chelsea. The other jurors belittle her Christian faith. As testimony unfolds, truth and secrets blur. Chelsea's visiting niece stumbles into peril surrounding the case, and Chelsea cannot protect her. God sends visions---frightening, vivid. But what do they mean? Even as Chelsea finds out, what can she do? She is helpless, and danger is closing in. . . . Masterfully crafted, Dread Champion is a novel in which appearances can deceive and the unknown can transform the meaning of known facts. One man's guilt or innocence is just a single link in a chain of hidden evil . . . and God uses the unlikeliest of people to accomplish his purposes.

Brandilyn Collins, known for her trademark Seatbelt Suspense, is the bestselling author of Violet Dawn, Coral Moon, Crimson Eve, Eyes of Elisha, and other novels. She and her family live in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Visit her website at www.brandilyncollins.com and her blog at www.forensicsandfaith.blogspot.com

Fans of Collins's Eyes of Elisha will cheer the return of psychic Chelsea Adams, although this time out, she's not the one in danger. A juror on a sensational murder trial, Chelsea has promised the judge and attorneys to be guided only by the evidence and not by her supernatural visions. The circumstantial evidence strongly suggests that Darren Walk killed his wife in the dark waters off a California beach, but Chelsea senses that there may be other possibilities. When Chelsea becomes the holdout during deliberations, her fellow jurors belittle her faith. "But the Lord is with me like a dread champion; therefore my persecutors will stumble and not prevail." These words, taken from Jeremiah 20:11, support her against their anger and assuage the horrific visions she's having of her niece, whose attraction to Walk's son puts her in the crosshairs of a ruthless killer. A riveting mystery and courtroom drama will engage the attention of readers who hope to see more of Chelsea's visions. Recommended for most collections. Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

The quality of Collins's writing slips in this evangelical Christian thriller follow-up to Eyes of Elisha, but she still spins an interesting tale with plenty of suspense. Californian Chelsea Adams has the supernatural gift of visions that show her events others are unable to perceive. She's dismayed to be selected as a juror at the murder trial of Darren Welk, whose wife, Shawna, has disappeared. Chelsea's visiting niece Kerra Fraye attends the trial and strikes up a romance with a man whose innocence is increasingly under scrutiny. Chelsea and Kerra's lives are about to intersect with that of 20-year-old Rogelio Sanchez, the birth father of a baby girl whom he signed away for adoption-a decision he now regrets. The story is compelling, but the prose is not up to Collins's usual standards. She overdetails physical movements ("air puffed from Erika's offended mouth"); characters repeatedly blink and their throats, stomachs, guts and mouths do peculiar things ("Rogelio's stomach gelled"). There are odd, lengthy descriptions ("The jury pulled at his eyes, but he focused on the judge as she positioned her computer keyboard just so and generally settled herself like a hen over eggs"). Collins inserts plenty of intrigue and false trails, although the novel's ending fails to take into account one character who is notable by her omission. Evangelical Christian readers will applaud the character of Chelsea as an example of how God uses ordinary people in extraordinary ways to accomplish his objectives, but Collins fans may be wondering why her strong writing skills are not showcased here. (Oct.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.

Recommended. -- Romantic Times

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Author: Brandilyn Collins
Submitted: September 09, 2002

    Tell us a little about yourself.  I write both suspense and women's fiction for Zondervan (Christian subsidiary of Harper/Collins). My current women's fiction trio is the Bradleyville Series--Cast A Road Before Me, Color the Sidewalk for Me and (released Mar. 2003) Capture the Wind for Me. I enjoy the very different kinds of writing required in these two genres. I have also written GETTING INTO CHARACTER: SEVEN SECRETS NOVELIST CAN LEARN FROM ACTORS, published by John Wiley & Sons in the general market. christianbook.com has done an interview with me, which you can access through the fiction home page. Also, you can read excerpts from all my books at my Web site: www.brandilyncollins.com

    What was your motivation behind this project?  DREAD CHAMPION is a follow-up story to the bestselling EYES OF ELISHA, featuring the protagonist Chelsea Adams--a Christian woman with the spiritual gift of visions. Whereas EYES OF ELISHA is a story of imminent danger to the protagonist, in DREAD CHAMPION the danger is aimed at someone Chelsea loves. I think of DREAD CHAMPION as more of a true who-dun-it. Who killed Shawna Welk? DREAD CHAMPION is a mind-bender, a psychological enigma in which truth and secrets blur. It's easy enough to figure out the truth behind the murder--well, that is until you read one or two chapters further, and discover yet another possibility that forces you to rethink the crime--again.

    What do you hope folks will gain from this project?  The title DREAD CHAMPION is taken from Jeremiah 20:11 (American Standard Version)--"The Lord is with me like a Dread Champion." Through this multi-layered story, I wanted to depict God as that Dread Champion--the awesome warrior who fights on behalf of His followers even when they can see no way out of a horrific crisis. To do this, I placed Chelsea Adams on a jury--the ultimate situation in which her visions cannot be used--no matter the terrifying truths that she comes to know.

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