This book kept me on the edge of my seat. It is a great suspense read. The characters are well developed and the twists and turns kept coming throughout the entire book. It was hard to put this book down.

What a fascinating and complex book. I thought it looked interesting from the description because of the focus on river-rafting (my family used to go river rafting on the American River a lot when I was a kid). Once I started reading, however, I realized there was much more depth to the story than just a suspense novel. It is written exactly like a river rafting trip. It started slow, just floating along like the beginning of a rafting trip. Then there were a few bumps, light rapids, as we get glimpses into events in Deni’s past. More events occur in the present, and we hit some class III rapids. The story continues to pick up the pace up until the Class VI climax. It was a tightly-woven plot created to mimic the river that is a focal point of the story, and it just enhanced the tension. Even the title has a double meaning relating to the river and the plot. I was very impressed with this book and highly recommend it. A big thank you to NetGalley, Barbour Publishing, Inc., and the author for a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ginny L. Yttrup's Convergence had me sitting on the edge of my chair. It was very suspenseful and keep me guessing until the very end. Great psychological thriller. I would definitely recommend.

3.5 stars
This is quite the suspenseful tale, definitely not what I expect from a Yttrup book, but welcomed all the same. The mystery isn't terribly difficult to figure out, however there are many things that are kept from the reader that keep you from knowing exactly what was going on. I wasn't thrilled by that part, but overall it is a very exciting tale that kept me turning pages when I should have been doing other things in order to get to the end.
Some others have complained about the first person POV, and that usually bothers me but it really didn't in this case. It made the book more tense in my opinion, because we were experiencing things right along with the main characters.
Solid book with a great faith message about trusting God in all circumstances.

4 1/2 ⭐️‘s
“God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love, and self-control.
‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭1:7
Deni is paralyzed by fear. Years ago a stalker almost ended her life. Now her stalker is back, but isn’t he still in jail? Adelia is also paralyzed by fear, but has come to look it in the face no matter what the outcome. With an opening that leaves you breathless, the reader traverses between timelines of these two women eagerly turning pages to find out just what connects them and what the final outcome will be. With a twist that I didn’t see coming, this is Christian suspense at its finest!

CONVERGENCE is one of those books that begin with a bang, drawing the reader into the life of Denilyn Rossi, best- selling author and Professor of Psychology at a California university. She is an insecure woman, paralyzed by fear and constantly looking over her shoulder for perceived threats. Are her “near-misses” accidents or the result of someone’s sick and vengeful plotting? Is she being shadowed by some unknown stalker or is it all her imagination? In her classes she preaches a mantra of strength and confronting your fears to her students but is unable to follow her own advice. She is also a character who could easily be used as a poster child for the unreliable narrator.

Next we meet Adelia, a strong and driven woman who is the antithesis of Denilyn. She is a woman with a plan.
The past and present of these women converge in this tale that pulses with an underlying sense of menace.

This suspense/psychological thriller also has a dash of Christian/religious undertones with lines like the following sprinkled here and there through the narration; “Circumstances aren’t ours to control and it is only faith, belief in what cannot be fully known or understood, that truly saves” or “I arrive with a skeletal plan, certain God would reveal the steps as necessary. Tonight, without a clear plan, I must turn away from doubt. I must choose to trust and follow HIM. It is not my strength nor my own plans that will get me through this. It is His power through me that will prevail”.

Told from two points of view and covering incidents from the past and present, this is a tale that demands the reader pay attention.

Surviving an Assault by a Stalker

Psychology professor Dr. Denilyn Rossi is a survivor. She overcame PTSD after being attacked by a stalker. The man went to prison, but as he is soon to be released, Denilyn feels that she is again being stalked. She tells her students that the past can either haunt you, or give you a reason to move on, but now she has to apply her teaching to herself and find a way to overcome her fears again.

Adelia Sanchez is a less introspective character. She also has a past to overcome, and she takes direct action to do so signing up to take people on raft trips on the Kaweah river where her trauma occurred. The past and present come together on the river with Denilyn and Adelia facing danger and their fears.

This is a psychological thriller that can pull you in and make you feel all the panic experienced by someone being stalked and attacked. Denilyn tells her story in the first person and it is primarily her fears and how she tries to overcome them. Adelia also tells her story in the first person but there is more action. Since both characters tell their stories in the first person, it can be confusing in the early parts of the book. However, as the characters become more distinct, it’s easier to follow.

I enjoyed the book, but was disappointed that it was so easy to figure out what was happening with the stalker. It made me wonder how Denilyn could sometimes be so obtuse. The other thing I disliked about the book was Denilyn’s constant talking about her terror. Some of it was great, but it became too much after awhile.

There is a Christian element in the book that is not preachy, but a real part of the story. I thought that was the best part of the book. If you enjoy thrillers with a Christian underpinning, you’ll enjoy this book.

I received this book from Barbour Publishing for this review.

I’ve read a lot of suspense books, and I have to say that this is one of my favorites so far. The author, Ginny L Yttrup , added a lot of details about the characters that brought them to life on the pages of this story. I enjoyed getting to know the main character, Denilyn, and couldn’t help but feel empathy for her because of all she was going through. I also felt that the author did a very realistic job of describing Denilyn’s emotional state since she never knew where or when she would see the person who was stalking.

Denilyn’s position as a psychologist was a very good choice of a career for her. It added depth above and beyond what I typically find in a novel of this kind since she was in a position of understanding why she felt the way she did and how she should be coping better than the typical lay person could.

The tale is told through two viewpoints: Dennilyn’s and Adelia’s. While I knew Adelia had some reason to be in the book, it wasn’t immediately apparent why , and it did seem as she might be up to no good. (Maybe she was. Maybe she wasn’t. I won’t tell!) It also goes from the present to events in the past, which is a tactic used in many books of this nature, and I find it very effective.

Overall, this is a solid Christian fiction book, and I feel it is worth every bit of the 5 star rating I gave it.

This is my first book by Ginny Yttrup. I received and early addition from NetGalley to review and the opinions are my own.

The story was very suspenseful and will keep you turning the pages. Lots of twists. Interesting characters that you'll try to figure out.

This is a psychological suspense novel. In the end, I really enjoyed the story and plot twists regarding bullying and fear. I did have problems with some of the time shifts and alliteration throughout the book. I believe the author has fallen into the “girl” books that are all the rage now with their plot twists and time shifts that they all seem to feature. While sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t and you end up confused. But like I said, in the end I was glad to have read it. Just read it already!

"God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control" 2nd Timothy 1:7

"The past is either a shadow that haunts us or a force that propels us."

"It is only faith, belief in what cannot be fully known or understood, that truly saves."

Convergence, a suspense/thriller novel from Ginny L. Yttrup, is a highly enjoyable read that will at some moments keep you on the edge of your seat while other moments have you scratching your head, unsure of where this book will converge to its final conclusion. Yttrup, a first time author for me, provides many thought-provoking pieces of prose that she weaves into this psychological thriller. Denilyn is a likable character, scars and flaws included, that the reader should be rooting for all of the way. There are confusing shifts in timeline and characters that do take some time getting used to and Yttrup does do a great job of merging these together. There were times I was blown away, times I had to keep reading to see what happened next, which is what you look for in these types of suspense books. I loved all the many references to faith, facing your fear through the help of God, and trusting in God to get you through tough situations. Yttrup provides some red herrings and many, many situations where she only gives you a small amount of information to work with to keep you intrigued, though possibly confused.

The book loses a star from my rating for three reasons. One, I had a feeling for a lot of the book of one of the major plot points and I was proved right (yay me, but ultimately that can be a slight letdown). And also, I found some of the big reveals that were meant to be mind-blowing to be a bit of a letdown as well. I won't spoil these for anybody, but if you've read the book, then I think you know what I am talking about. And lastly, I felt like the ending rushed by faster than the Kaweah River

But all in all, this is a solid suspense book with a lot to like about it. I would definitely recommend it because I did find it both unique and compelling and the writing was really good. I saw in the acknowledgments that she thanked Brandilyn Collins and I can see that fans of hers would like this book.

*I received this book free from Netgalley and publisher Barbour in exchange for an honest review.

I liked this book, but didn't LOVE it. But I liked it enough to want to keep reading and as I did , I was propelled to find out what was going to happen. The story is about a psychology professor who is overwhelmed by fear and anxiety after her experience with a stalker.

What I didn't like was that the book seems to jump around all over the place between different time periods and characters. The plot was a bit drawn out and could of been tightened up a bit.

Overall, it was a good read that I would recommend to my Christian friends . Solid effort for this author as this is her first suspense novel, but not her first novel.

I had a little bit of trouble getting into this book, but enjoyed it once it got going. There are the usual twists we look for in this type of book, and things that keep you guessing. Sometimes it’s difficult to like Deni, but you want her to be able to face her fears and then recover. The theme of letting go and letting God was welcome because that’s how many people are able to survive and move on from trauma. The way the author goes back and forth in timelines gives us insight we need to be able to understand Deni. I believe that this will be a great book for many readers! I received an ARC of this book from the author, publisher and NetGalley in return for an honest review, which this has been

Very suspenseful story that will keep you turning the pages. Lots of twists. Interesting characters that you'll try to figure out.

Romantic Suspense is one of my go-to genres. I love reading a good mystery and getting lost in the chase and the high tension. I know that Ginny L. Yttrup has written for Love Inspired Suspense, so I figured this would be a safe bet when it comes to reading a suspense novel. The suspense is definitely there, but it is a lot of psychological warfare in Delia's head. She has been attacked seven years ago, and the readers are lead to believe it is happening again. The stalker in the shadow issue was handled well and hiked up the tension like I expected. But . . . the two points of view from Adelia and Delia were a little confusing to follow, especially when Delia had two different time frames- 2010 and 2017. Both of the sections were written in first person and Yttrup does include the time and person's name before each switch, but sometimes I had a hard time figuring out the difference. As for the identity of the bad guy, I had a huge suspicion early on who the bad guy was because of the way he came across in the novel, and Yttrup kept throwing more clues toward him to prove me right. Overall, the concept was pretty interesting and definitely something had hadn't seen before, and the tension was realistic and had me lurking around the corner behind Delia, knowing something was about to happen. But the point of view shifts really threw me for a loop and had me doubting if I really understood the novel. I think fans of Elizabeth Goddard and Dee Henderson might enjoy the novel.

I received a complimentary copy of Convergence by Ginny L. Yttrup from Barbour Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

What an exhilarating ride through the pages of this suspenseful read! Loved all the twists and turns and revelations along the way. Denilynn came alive on the pages of this read and I felt so much empathy for her. Loved her relationships with everyone, especially Jay, but Keith...for some reason that didn’t ring true to me. I have to admit that early on I suspected Ryan, right after the incident of his having moved his office, made stronger with the addition of the information about Willow. Still other suspects vied for attention but my focus remained on Ryan.
Many thanks to Ginny Yttrup, Barbour Publishing, and NetGalley for affording me the opportunity to read an. ARC of this one!

What an incredible psychological thriller this book was. The book starts out with a young student and her very close friends hanging out together at the Three River Village at the River Kaweah. However, one of the students, Adelia, is missing. The case is closed and she is never found on the River. Each of students were interested in various subjects, but the primary subject was psychology. As an adult, Denilyn Rossi, becomes a psychologist, and wrote a book on bullying. Due to stalking by a former student, Deni is forced to abandon her psychologist career. And her husband left her, because he couldn’t deal with her anxiety. She eventually starts a new career of teaching psychology at the Pacific Covenant University. Deni is still fighting with anxiety and is seeing a therapist, due to the past trauma of being attacked. The attacker was convicted and sent to prison awaiting parole. So who would be sending her packages then. There were only four people who would know anything about the items that were in the packages. Deni constantly feels like someone is watching her, but she can’t seem to see whoever it is. Who is doing this to her and why? Is it possible that the wrong person is in prison? Will they ever find out what happened to Adelia? What a great psychological thriller this book is. The plot was thought out in great detail and kept the reader in constant pursuit of the truth. The writers style was one that reverted back to the previous years of the protagonist’s youth, and then came full circle to the current day. This kept the reader up on what had transpired in the past and led into present day happenings. The character development was right on point, and the reader felt as if they were right in the middle of what was happening in the story. This plot kept me guessing through the entire book, and the mystery and intrigue was there until the final climax. There is so much within this book that is great, too much to mention, so read it. I enjoyed this book very much and am looking forward to the authors next book.

Eight years ago, Deni's life was changed dramatically due to an attack by a stalker. Deni lost her confidence, her husband, and changed her profession. Now, working as a department chair, at a college, Deni feels like she is being watched again. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher through Netgallery. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. The books twists were interesting, but it wasn't for me a satisfying read. I did suspect early on who her stalker was. The book bounces back and forth from events ten years ago, her original stalking, and current events. For me, the story was missing some cohesiveness. I did like Deni and how she grew in her faith and herself during the story. The twists still kept me reading and I did like how previous events tied in with current ones. The book was okay but it could have been more.

I was not able to finish this book. I lost interest early on. The characters did not seem real or ‘rootable’.

Unfortunately, I found this book disappointing. Our family does a lot of whitewater rafting so I was intrigued by the cover. But the book seemed confusing as it flitted between different time periods, and in order to create suspense, it felt like the author ended up leaving too much out so it was hard to lock onto the characters and what was happening.