The Uncommitted
Margaret M. Goss, 2015
Henschelhaus Publishing
358 pp.
ISBN-13: 9781595984289
Summary
Josephine Reilly is a typical young mother, striving to do what is best for her family in the suburbs of St. Paul, Minnesota. Declan, her ambitious and talented husband, has a thriving career as a corporate lawyer. On the surface, life could not appear more perfect.
Yet, Josie has an unrealized gift, one that has haunted her since the drowning death of a childhood friend. Josie is a messenger, as was her mother and grandmother before her, carrying messages from the dead to the living through dreams, visions and telepathy.
For years, Josie suppresses her gift but when mother dies, she is unable to ignore it any longer. Upon exploring her ability, she finds she’s underestimated the dangers in channeling the dead when those she loves become targets of an invisible evil. Her sanity comes into question and she’s at risk of losing everything she holds dear. Then fate places Dr. Andrew Chase in Josie’s path, a healer of supernatural capabilities. Only he hasn’t come to prevent her fall . . .
The Uncommitted is a compelling tale of the spiritual struggle within us and of the realities beyond our physical sight. (From the publisher.)
Author Bio
• Birth—November 12, 1967
• Where—Oswego, New York, USA
• Education—B.S., Arizona State University; M.A., University of Wisconsin
• Awards—(see below)
• Currently—lives in Madison, Wisconsin
Margaret M. Goss is an award-winning author, hockey mom and registered nurse. She resides in Madison, Wisconsin, with her husband, three children and border collie mix, a rescue named Hobey. She was raised in an artistic home. Her mother was a painter and art teacher and her father was an English and journalism teacher. When she isn't writing, she is driving her kids to/from school, to/from hockey practice, games and everywhere in between. (From the author.)
Awards
2017 - Finalist, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, Horror Category
2016 - Winner, Midwest Independent Publishers Association, Cover Design
2015 - Shortlist, BookViral (UK)
Visit the author's website.
Follow Margaret on Facebook.
Book Reviews
Spiritual struggle, The Uncommitted is an engrossing debut novel. Catholicism plays a central role in the debut novel from Madison author Margaret Goss, but readers need not share her beliefs in order to relate to The Uncommitted — a surprisingly dark tale of spiritual struggle. Published by Three Towers Press in Milwaukee, this story set in St. Paul, Minn., contains references to such Madison institutions as UW Children’s Hospital (now American Family Children’s Hospital) and Culver’s, and revolves around Josephine Reilly, a 35-year- old mother of three who can communicate with the dead via dreams, visions and telepathy. While experimenting with what she initially considers a "gift," she unlocks an invisible evil that threatens her family and drives her to the brink of self-destruction. (Read more)
Michael Popke - The Isthamus (Madison, WI)
Solidly crafted and suspensefully written, The Uncommitted is the latest release from Margaret M. Goss and it proves something of a juggernaut when stacked up against other releases in the genre. Ingenious in its plotting, colourful in its characters, taut in its narrative, Goss ably creates an atmosphere thick with dread and ambiguity as Josephine Reilly comes to explore the full extent of her gifts. Yes, there are cliches to be found, but Goss adds more than enough extraordinarily refreshing fillers to keep it original and she knows just when to linger in the detail to maximise the suspense. It brings powerful images to mind, but with a degree of restraint that veers away from overkill and leaves the reader wanting more. Reasons enough to start reading and yet where Goss really excels in bringing her fiction to life is in creating a perpetual state of quiet apprehension that reflects Josephine’s prevailing spiritual struggle. A refreshing debut in this ever popular genre, The Uncommitted bodes well for future releases from Goss and is certainly deserving of a place on your bookshelf. It receives a strong BookViral recommendation.
Book Viral (UK)
This story has all the makings of the next Da Vinci Code but, I think even better.… [A] wonderful love story, mystery, and mystical adventure, all rolled up into one fast-moving and brilliantly told story.
Nick Chiarkas - Wisconsin State Public Defender Emeritus, author of"Weepers"
Discussion Questions
1. Why does Josie inherit the psychic gift but her siblings do not?
2. What was Josie’s motivation to begin channeling the dead?
3. What is the significance by the Glory of the Snow?
4. Why does Josie give up on the Institute?
4. Is The Uncommitted consistent with traditional Christian beliefs? Where does the novel deviate?
6. Why is it important for Josie’s children to be able to face the altar at Mass on Palm Sunday?
7. Why does Andrew feel compelled to help Josie? What is his purpose beyond being "her savior"?
(Questions courtesy of the author.)