Search and Rescue

By Gail Anderson-Dargatz

When a young woman goes missing on a nature trail, small-town journalist Claire Abbott is first on the scene, as usual. The clues to the woman’s whereabouts are misleading, but Claire has a sixth sense, what the fire chief calls a “radar for crime.” Trusting her intuition, Claire insists that the search and rescue team look elsewhere for clues to the woman’s disappearance. When they fail to follow up on her lead, she pursues it on her own, embarking on a snowy chase up a mountainside that puts herself and others in danger. She’s more than just a journalist chasing a story. Claire is determined to do the right thing at any cost.earch and Rescue is the first novel in a series of mysteries featuring journalist and sleuth Claire Abbott.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Orca Book Publishers
• Release date: Sep 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781459805781

Gail Anderson-Dargatz

GAIL ANDERSON-DARGATZ’s first novel, The Cure for Death by Lightning, was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize and won the UK’s Betty Trask Award, the BC Book Prize for Fiction and the Vancity Book Prize. Her second novel, A Recipe for Bees, was nominated for the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award and was a finalist for the Scotiabank Giller Prize. The Spawning Grounds was nominated for the Sunburst Award and the Ontario Library Association Evergreen Award and short-listed for the Canadian Authors Association Award for Fiction. Her thriller, The Almost Wife, hit the Canadian bestseller lists in 2021. She taught for nearly a decade in the MFA program in creative writing at the University of British Columbia and now mentors writers online. Gail Anderson-Dargatz lives in the Shuswap region of British Columbia.  

Book preview

SEARCH

AND

RESCUE

SEARCH

AND

RESCUE

Gail Anderson-Dargatz

Copyright © 2014 Gail Anderson-Dargatz

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced

or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,

including photocopying, recording or by any information storage

and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without permission

in writing from the publisher.

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Anderson-Dargatz, Gail, 1963–, author

Search and rescue / Gail Anderson-Dargatz.

(Rapid Reads)

Issued in print and electronic formats.

ISBN 978-1-4598-0576-7 (pbk.).--ISBN 978-1-4598-0577-4 (pdf ).--

ISBN 978-1-4598-0578-1 (epub)

I. Title. II. Series: Rapid reads

PS8551.N3574S43 2014      C813'.54      C2014-901571-2

C2014-01572-0

First published in the United States, 2014

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014935366

Summary: In this work of crime fiction, Claire Abbott, a small-town

reporter, uses her sixth sense to find a missing girl. (RL 3.0)

Orca Book Publishers gratefully acknowledges the support for

its publishing programs provided by the following agencies:

the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund and the

Canada Council for the Arts, and the Province of British Columbia

through the BC Arts Council and the Book Publishing Tax Credit.

Cover design by Jenn Playford

Cover photography by Corbis

www.orcabook.com

17  16  15  14  •  4  3  2  1

For Mitch, who remembers me when…

CONTENTS

ONE

TWO

THREE

FOUR

FIVE

SIX

SEVEN

EIGHT

NINE

TEN

ELEVEN

TWELVE

ONE

Ifelt that familiar ache in my stomach as I drove to my date. I knew something was wrong. More than that, I knew I had to head down Pine Road.

The restaurant where my date Trevor waited for me was in the other direction, on Lakeshore. Still, I followed my instincts and turned right. Like it or not, my mother had taught me to take that gut feeling seriously. I was glad I did. When I drove into that quiet suburb, I saw a car burning. The hood was up, and flames burst from the engine.

A young guy stood several yards away, staring at the fire, scratching his head. His eyes were red, like he was about to cry. That beater on fire was likely his first car.

I pulled over and opened my car door. You okay? I called across the road.

I guess, he said. My car is trashed though.

I got out of my Honda Civic, embarrassed that I showed too much leg. I was dressed for my date, not work. My red skirt was short, cut well above my knees. My high heels made my legs seem even longer.

The kid paused to take me in as I stood. Then he recognized me. Hey, you’re that reporter. You took pictures of my soccer team at the high school this fall.

That’s me, I said. I hunt down stories for our weekly newspaper, the Black Lake Times. Today was supposed to be my day off, but here was news.

Shit, the guy said. Just my luck. Bad enough this happens. Now everybody will know about it.

He was right. A photo of this car on fire would make the front page.

I grabbed my camera and notepad. Then I slipped on my coat as I walked toward the burning car. We were well into November, and the evening air was cold.

The kid didn’t wear a jacket, just jeans and a T-shirt. He shivered. I held out my hand to shake his. I’m Claire Abbott.

I know, he said. He wouldn’t take my hand. I see your name in the paper all the time.

I clicked my pen and got ready to jot down his name. And you are?

You can get my name from the cops.

I shrugged off his rude behavior. People often snubbed me. A person in an accident didn’t want his photo in the paper. I understood, but this was my job. I had to fill the newspaper every week. In a town as small as Black Lake, that was tough.

I aimed my camera and took a shot of the guy’s burning car. Have you phoned for a fire truck?

Reviews for Search and Rescue

[19anne44 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is my second review of a book in the Rapid Reads Series whose key features, according to the web page, are short high interest novels with compelling characters, ideal for ESL and literacy programmes. Gail Anderson-Dargatz is a Canadian author well known for her books "The Cure for Death by Lightning" and "A Recipe for Bees".Claire who is the protagonist in "Search and Rescue" has a sixth sense for trouble which she tries to ignore because of other people's reactions but when Amber is missing and snow is forecast she knows she has to follow her instincts to save her. Since no one officially involved in the search will listen to her she and her mother, who shares the same sixth sense, set off on a wild ride up a snowy mountain in order to find Amber before it is too late.Search and Rescue is a gripping quick read which would appeal to reluctant readers and is a good addition to the Rapid Reads Series.

[kellyreeder · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is an Early Librarything Review. This was the first time I have read a (Rapid Reads) book, and I was pleasantly surprised at how the story flowed to the satisfying ending. I think that it will definately appeal to the reluctant female reader. I would of like to see more character development with the main character, Claire Abbott. Overall, this was a fun and easy read, that would be great for the beach.

[robynelee · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This novella is called a Rapid Read from the publisher because it is short, but also hard to put down. This is a mystery with an engaging main character who is a reporter with a bit more than intuition. It has great potential as a series, or as a longer novel if the author is so inclined. A few mild uses of language are present, but it could still be appropriate for younger teens as well as adults. The shorter length might appeal to some of my students who are reluctant readers. The suspense and small dose of the supernatural ( visions) would also attract readers.I received an ARC from Raven Books/ an Orca Book Publisher through LibraryThing,com in exchange for an honest renew.

[neverwithoutabook · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A simple storyline involving a mystery and designed for those who find reading difficult. A quick read from the Rapid Reads program. Not bad.

[loosha_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Rapid Reads are meant to be well-written engaging stories, and I suppose they are, although the compactness leads to the sacrifice of rich language and subtlety of thought. I doubt such books would fufill the task of encouraging the reluctant to become habitual readers, but they may be useful for ESL readers or for those who have trouble with concentration. Otherwise, if one is short for time, reach for a short story instead.[Search and Rescue] contains interesting characters and an exciting plot. It would make a great TV show. I'm sure it fills a need in the reading world, and I am going to try it out with some of my older ladies who still have stacks of romance novels unread next to their beds, ladies who used to be readers but now just pretend.I am a fan of this author's previous books, especially [Turtle Valley].

[gypsysmom_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is really a novella, only 100 pages long, and the content is geared towards people with limited literacy skills so I finished it in an afternoon. I’ve read some of this writer’s other books but rather a long time ago so I don’t remember much about them. I don’t remember if they had a supernatural or magical touch but this one does.I am not fond of the prevalent notion in tv series and some books of having detectives use visions to find the murderer or kidnapper or other criminal. To me, a true detective uses his/her brains to unravel a mystery. So, I was not impressed by this book in which journalist Claire Abbott has visions that help her find a missing girl. I have to say, though, that the chase up the logging road in falling snow was very well written. I’ve driven on some of those roads in BC and it takes guts to drive them in daylight and good weather conditions. Claire Abbott is plucky.If you are willing to accept a reporter with visions then you will probably enjoy this book. And there should be more because the back says this is the first novel in a series of mysteries.I have read a few of these Rapid Reads books published by Orca Book Publishers that are geared toward readers who are just learning to read English. I think it is a terrific idea to get new readers hooked on reading and this book will probably appeal to many.

[librarycin · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Claire is a reporter who inherited a “gift” from her mother. She has hunches and sees visions of people in distress who need help. Teenager Amber has gone missing, and though Claire can see where she is, the head of the search and rescue team doesn't believe her, so she takes it upon herself to go find Amber...I received an Advanced Reader's Copy to review. It's a “Rapid Reads” book, so it's not long. I'd say it's about novella length at 102 pages. I really enjoyed it, though. There was lots happening to keep me interested. It's not complex; I'm sure that's because it's so short, so if this is or is going to be a series (“A Claire Abbott Mystery” says the cover), I'd love to have these books a little longer to be able to flesh out more. However, I still really enjoyed it.