About the Book

Book: The End Begins (Rerelease)

Author: Sara Davison

Genre: Dystopian Romantic Suspense

Release Date: July 15, 2024

Which of them is the prisoner and which one is free?

Bookstore owner Meryn O’Reilly and Army Captain Jesse Christensen are on opposite sides of a battle. After a series of terrorist attacks in 2053, martial law has been declared in Canada and the military has taken over. When a radical Christian group claims responsibility, Jesse and his platoon are sent to Meryn’s city to keep an eye on the Christians and ensure they are not stepping outside the confines of the law.

Fiery and quick-tempered, Meryn chafes under the curfew and other restrictions to her freedom. Jesse is equally amused, intrigued, and terrified by her spirit, knowing she could end up in prison if she shows defiance to the wrong soldier, namely Lieutenant Gallagher.

Jesse watches out for Meryn when possible, although she wants nothing to do with him. His worst fears are realized when she commits a crime he cannot protect her from. Now they both face an uncertain future and the very real threat of losing everything, including their lives.

With time running out, Jesse works feverishly to convince the authorities to show leniency—and to convince Meryn that love can overcome any barrier that lies between them.

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About the Author

Sara Davison is the author of The Night Guardians, The Rose Tattoo, two sparrows for a penny, and In the Shadows series, as well as the standalone, The Watcher. A finalist for more than a dozen national writing awards, including the Christy Award, Davison is a Cascade, Word, and two-time Carol Award winner for romantic suspense. She lives in Ontario with her husband, Michael. Like every good Canadian, she loves coffee, hockey, poutine, and apologizing for no particular reason.

Author Interview with Sara

Q: What inspired you to write this story?

Sara: When I was a kid, there was a big obsession with end-times books and movies. I still remember some of the graphic images of movies they showed in church, so I never thought I’d end up writing a series with an end-times feel to it. Then our pastor did a study on Revelation that changed my way of thinking. That planted the seeds for The Day Draws Near Series, which do not have the terrifying, doomsday feel of those movies. Instead, these stories offer the sure and certain hope that, yes, things might get more difficult for believers in an increasingly hostile society, but whatever we might go through as a result of our faith, God will be with us. He will strengthen and protect us and give us the courage to persevere until the end. Plus there’s romance, humour, banter, and chosen family!

Q: What surprised you while researching/writing this novel?

Sara: I’m not sure I was surprised in the writing, but what has surprised me is what has happened since. This series originally released in 2015 and 2016. Since then, a lot of what I included in the books has taken place, including a global pandemic. I’m not claiming these stories are prophetic, only that what I included in the storylines was based not only on research but on serious consideration of where the current trajectory our society is on will logically take us.

Q: Do you have a favorite quote from this book?

Sara: One of my favourites is: We may feel as though we are being beaten and tossed around by the overpowering wind and waves right now. If we keep our eyes on that distant light, though, on the promise that we are not alone and that, whatever happens, the one who created the wind and the waves will bring us home to that safe harbor, the storm has no real power over us.

Q: What do you hope readers take away from this story?

Sara: My hope and prayer for this book, as with all my stories, is that readers take away hope and the empowering reminder that they are never alone, that God sees them and is with them and will never abandon or forsake them.

Q: If the book was made into a movie, who should play the main characters?

Sara: Hmm. Good question. I have a lot of author friends who use actors and actors to represent their lead characters for them as they write, including one who keeps a picture of each on her screen the whole time she is working on a book. I don’t usually do that, so normally this question would be hard for me to answer. However, I was watching a Hallmark movie a while ago and Ryan Paevey was in it. As soon as I saw him, I thought that’s Jesse! He looked exactly like I pictured Jesse in my head, so of course Ryan would have to play him in the movie. And I have always thought of my female lead, Meryn O’Reilly, as a young Connie Sellecca. Not sure who would play her now though, maybe Aisling Bea. They do look a bit alike and they’re both Irish, so that could work.

Q:Would you share something about yourself that most readers wouldn’t know?

Sara: Let’s see. My biggest claim to fame is that I have now met two of the Osmond brothers (you’d have to be my age to appreciate the hugeness of that). Well, met might be a bit of a strong word. A few years ago I was walking along a sidewalk in downtown Toronto and someone bumped into my shoulder as he passed by. I recognized him immediately as Donny Osmond (who was in the city doing Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat). He kept on going, clearly not as impacted by our “meeting” as I was, but it was a thrilling moment for me. Earlier this year I was in Branson, Missouri, and my husband and I went to Jay Osmond’s show. We did meet him and his wife in person after, so that much is true, at least.

Q: What is your favorite season and why?

Sara: One hundred percent, it’s fall. While I enjoy the slower pace of summer, I’m not a fan of the heat, and it can get very hot and humid in Southern Ontario. I like snow for Christmas but after that I’m about done with it, so winters can be very long. Spring is nice but rainy, so there is nothing like the cool, crisp air of autumn with the smell of woodsmoke and leaves in the air. I’m totally with my fellow Canadian Anne of Green Gables when she says, “I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers.”

Q: Where can readers find out more about you and your book?

Sara: My website is the best place to read more about The End Begins and my other romantic suspense novels and to subscribe to my short, monthly newsletter with reflections on faith, life, and writing (www.saradavison.org). All my books are available for purchase at (https://www.amazon.com/stores/Sara-Davison/author/B00JI21YKG). I’d also love if it anyone wanted to follow me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/authorsaradavison/) or Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/davisonsara/).

More from Sara

Most, if not all, great fiction begins with the question, “What if?” This is likely truer for The Day Draws Near Series (formerly The Seven Trilogy) than for any of my other stories.

The seeds for this series were planted as I worked my way through a study on Revelation at our church. Each of those seeds represented a what if question.

What if the Bible was outlawed and taken away from believers? What if restrictions such as a curfew or being forced to wear an identity bracelet were placed on Christians? What if the consequences for not following those restrictions became serious, even deadly? What if publicly declaring that you were a follower of Jesus Christ made it harder to buy or sell items? What if the churches were closed and believers forced to meet underground? What if teaching your children from the Bible meant you risked having them taken away from you? What if all this happened in Canada and the US in the very near future?

And the big question the entire series asks is: What if we are not ready?

Those seeds grew into the characters and storylines that make up the dystopian romantic suspense books The End Begins, The Darkness Deepens, and The Morning Star Rises.

The Day Draws Near Series is a revised and updated-with-new-content version of The Seven Trilogy, originally released in 2015 and 2016. While I don’t for a moment claim these books are prophetic, between their original release and now, many of the things that happen in the series, including a global pandemic, have since come to pass.

My hope and prayer for each book in this series is that readers will be left with a deeper awareness that time is short and that we are living in a society increasingly hostile to Christianity and in a world of darkness that hates the light. However that hostility and hatred plays out, life will become more difficult for Christians in the future, as the Bible clearly claims.

However, the tone of the book and what I pray readers will take with them is one of peace and hope. The most powerful message these stories convey is that there is no need to be afraid. God’s ultimate plan of redemption and reconciliation is playing out in front of our eyes. Nothing can thwart that plan. Nothing can happen that God does not allow.

Above all, every believer can know with absolute certainty that, whatever happens in the future, we will never face it alone. God will be with us, watching over us and giving us the strength and the courage to endure to the end.