Unveiling the Past: A Novel

Unveiling the Past by Kim Vogel Sawyer has Detective Meghan DeFord-Eagle with the Arkansas Cold Case Investigations Department working on a case that hits a little close to home. Sheila Menke’s father, Anson never arrived home from work back in 2002, and then was found guilty of embezzling funds from the bank where he worked. Sheila took care of her sick mother while raising her two brothers. Her mother did not want to find out the truth while she was alive, but, since she has passed away, Sheila wants answers. Meghan was raised by a single mother and never knew the identity of her father until recently. She wants to find her birth father in the hopes of learning more about herself. Meghan feels she cannot start a family with her husband, Sean until then. Can Meghan get the resolution she needs while helping Sheila? Unveiling the Past is a story of forgiveness, redemption and second chances. I like that we get to see three generations of Meghan’s family. I liked Meghan’s mother, Diane who teaches Honors English in Las Vegas and lives with her mother, Hazel. I just loved Hazel and enjoyed the humor she added to the story. Sean Eagle is Meghan’s husband and a detective with the Arkansas Cold Case Investigations Department as well. They have been married three years and Sean is ready to start a family. The thought of having a child fills Meghan with fear. The couple has a few issues they must deal with which will test their marriage. I thought Unveiling the Past contained good writing and it moved along at a nice pace. I did, though, have trouble with the switching point-of-view. It took me a while to get into the story with the POV going between Diane, Meghan, Sean, and Kevin. Christian elements were nicely incorporated into the story, but I did feel it was a little heavy handed (felt preachy at times). Forgiveness and having a relationship with God were two of the prevalent themes. I like how Unveiling the Past ended. I did wonder, though, if there was a previous book featuring these characters. There is mention of a previous case involving Meghan and Sean when they searched for Hazel’s sister. Unveiling the Past is an uplifting story about acquiring forgiveness, a missing father, family, new beginnings and forging new paths.