have been translated into twenty-two languages. In addition to being an author, Redfearn is an architect specializing in residential and commercial design. She lives in Laguna Beach, where she and her husband own three restaurants: Lumberyard, Slice Pizza & Beer, and Yard Bar. Her books have won numerous awards including Best New Fiction Book, Platinum Quill, and Goodreads Choice Awards Finalist.
Redfearn applied the Page 69 Test to Moment in Time and reported the following:
From page 69:Visit Suzanne Redfearn's website, Facebook page, and Twitter perch.It’s later than Chloe hoped. Nearly nine. She wanted to be at the impound lot when it opened at eight to get the van, but exhaustion got the better of her, and she slept through her alarm. She pulls her bowl of cooked brussels sprouts from the fridge and sautés them in a pan with a couple of eggs, her head fuzzy from lack of sleep and food.It always surprises me how this test never fails. Always on page 69, there’s some morsel incredibly revelatory to the crux of the story. The last paragraph on this page is what the journey is about, finding a way past tragedy.
Ruby lies at her feet, looking as done in as Chloe feels. The clinical term is the letdown effect. During acute stress, the body releases hormones and adrenaline, which protect you against pain and fatigue, but once the pressure is lifted, those same chemicals drop, your dopamine levels get knocked down, and your system crashes. And that’s exactly how Chloe feels, like she’s crashed into a wall and been shattered into a million pieces.
She still can’t believe she was arrested. Her! For “contempt of cop”! Not that she doesn’t have enormous contempt for Gretzky. She does. But not to any criminal extent. She flips the eggs with too much force, and a brussels sprout flies from the pan. Ruby watches it land, pushes to her feet, and goes over to examine it. She sniffs the morsel, then returns to flop again at Chloe’s feet, obviously hungry but not able to eat.
“It’s okay,” Chloe says and reaches down to pet her. “We’re good. Sadness doesn’t last forever.” It’s something a shrink told her a long time ago. At the time, Chloe didn’t believe her. At the time, she didn’t believe anything anyone who was trying to help told her. But it turned out she was right. Impossible as it seems, even the worst grief eventually dulls, and life replaces it. Small moments of brightness that were impossible at first breaking through, little nothings that seem insignificant, until one day, you’re sitting there, going about your business, and you realize you almost have to work to remember your sorrow. Though her sister and brother are never far from her thoughts, she thinks of them less often these days and rarely with sadness.
Coffee with a Canine: Suzanne Redfearn and Cooper.
The Page 69 Test: Hush Little Baby.
The Page 69 Test: No Ordinary Life.
The Page 69 Test: In an Instant.
Q&A with Suzanne Redfearn.
The Page 69 Test: Hadley & Grace.
Writers Read: Suzanne Redfearn.
--Marshal Zeringue
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