I love a good legal drama! This book was engaging without being too detail heavy considering the sensitive subject matter, and Mack was a swoon-worthy protagonist.

Assistant District Attorney Mack Wilson is a prosecutor in the sex crime unit, and although this book features a case that is pretty awful, the book is not graphic in any way. For that, I am so thankful as I don't think I would've enjoyed it as much.

The beauty of this book (for me, anyway) was that this book was a novel purely on the procedural aspect of prosecuting cases. We follow Mack as the lead prosecutor, from the very beginning of this one case all the way through to her opening address, introducing evidence, cross-examination of witnesses and experts and then to closing arguments. I loved following this trial, as it was so engaging following all the ins-and-outs of courtroom life.

This book doesn't feature a romance and to be honest, I think this was the right decision by the author. This book had two very interesting storylines intwined, the court case and then Mack's creepy stalker. Although I found the stalker aspect a tad unrealistic and predictable, I was still on the edge of my seat and thought it was a great additional to the procedural plot. It broke the book up so it didn't become stale. Although Anna was a decent side character, I didn't particularly warm to her in the novel.

Steadying the Ark is a fantastic debut - I cannot wait to read more from Rebecca K. Jones in the future.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Bella Books for a copy of this novel. ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

A.D. Mack Wilson’s has been fighting sex crimes cases for a few years and it doesn’t get any easier but the satisfaction of putting behind bars the people who would commit such heinous crimes. When a child turns up in her neighborhood with obvious trauma Mack along with her partner Dave work the case.
The case revolves around a family with lots of pull and friends in the right places. With the added help of fellow A.D. Jess Lafayette and Dr. Anna Lapin has her hands full trying to find the person responsible for the assault and put them behind bars for as long as possible. She feels like she just might have a chance at changing the lives of not just the one child but many others too.
Hard to believe this story came for someone who has never had a book published, it’s that good. Excellent writing that keeps you unable to lay the book down. If this is a sample of Ms Jones skills as an author I look forward to reading her next book because I’m sure there will be others.
Very enjoyable read.
ARC via NetGalley/ Bells Books

I'm impress. I thought this court room drama was riveting and great. It touched on so many topics such as sexual abuse, rape and religion. I thought the book was beautifully written. Well Done!! I recommend 4.5 stars


Thank you NetGalley and Bella Books.

After reading Steadying the Ark by Rebecca K. Jones, I must tell you how impressed I am with this book and the author. This is the debut novel for Ms. Jones, and honestly, I’m having a really hard time finding anything to criticize. The story is practically flawless and very entertaining.

This is a tale of intrigue and mystery with lots of thrills (and chills) woven into the story. Assistant District Attorney Mackenzie (Mack) Wilson works in the Sex Crimes Unit for Tucson, Arizona. Her days are spent prosecuting crimes that range from simple voyeurism to some of the most hateful crimes you can imagine. This book will focus on one of the latter. When a young girl shows up in a convenience store naked, obviously abused, and traumatized, Mack is brought in to help the investigation and hopefully the prosecution of the perpetrator. Little does she realize at the time just how big and important this court case will be. At the same time Mack has to deal with the threat of home invasions happening in her neighborhood that come closer and closer to her door. And then she picks up a stalker. Danger swirls around Mack from every direction.

The prosecution of the abuser of Schyanne (the young girl) is the predominant case in this tale, and we get to live it from the very beginning to its final resolution. To me, this part has the feel of a really great episode of “Law and Order” with a lesbian main character. We get to experience the investigation, the preparation, and the daily events inside the courtroom. All the characters in the novel are well-developed and realistic. I especially connected with Mack. The courtroom scenes are true-to-life and riveting. In fact, I could use the term “riveting” to describe how I feel about this whole novel.

I can’t wait to read more from this author. If you love a courtroom drama filled with excitement, suspense, and thrills, then this is the book for you.

I received an ARC from NetGalley and Bella Books for an honest review.

This read examines some tough subjects. For example religion, sexual abuse, and rape. District Attorney Mack Wilson, argues sex crime cases in the courtroom and what a case the author challenges the reader with. There is an ex-girlfriend, Anna Lapin. Anna is a psychologist and from the read and Mack, a very good one. There is much to appreciate about both of them. Caring and supportive is what first comes to mind. There is also a secondary crime taking place in her neighborhood. She does not spend that much time looking at it because she is busy with the high profile case. I enjoy and learn so much while reading legal stories. Although a tough read subject matter wise, I still enjoyed it.

I believe this is Rebecca k.jones debut novel and it is an impressive first book.
Steadying the ark focus’s on Mack Wilson's life, at work and her personal life. Mack is an assistant district attorney for the crimes cases. THIS IS A HARD READ. But, it's not graphic. Two stories are being told in the book, Macks courtroom case which is centred around young girls being sexually abused. And Mack's home life, whereas from the blurb you'll read that some serious disturbing incidents take place in and out of her home.

All in all, even tho I found some chapters hard to read, (let's face it, nobody likes to hear the words child sexual abuse, rape etc ) the book has a strong storyline. It's gripping and worth the read.

I've given Steadying the Ark a 4/5

I would have liked a bit more romance but other than that a fairly captivating story. The investigation and trial of the child molester was good. Different plot but thought the stalker was fairly obvious. Don't know why they were never even considered!

Honestly, I don't know what to think about this book. As far as I know, this is a debut but I feel like I am missing a book that gives me the background information about Mack and Anna's relationship as well as any non-relationship-related background information about the characters.

This book follows Mack's work as an ADA in Tucson and while it grabbed my attention in the first few chapters I grew bored with it very quickly as well. The author goes into a lot of detail and a lot of explaining about the judicial system in Tucson, Arizona. Aside from these frequent mentions, the previous relationship between Anna and Mack is something that keeps coming back. We get told by either one of the characters or just as part of the story that they didn't work as a couple, why exactly? I don't know. Now they are best friends? Sorta? At least that is what Mack says. I do believe Mack's colleague Jess is more of a best friend, but as mentioned before we don't really know enough about these characters and their relationships.

Listed as a mystery/ thriller I would have expected a little more of that. The main storyline, the case that the book opens with and has Mack and Jess in the courthouse for months is rather clear and again has a lot of telling about the judicial system and some other things relating to this case. The side storyline involving Mack is something I figured out rather quickly as well and didn't bring any tension either. The best way for me to describe this book is bland and a lot of telling. It almost felt like reading a scholastic book about being an ADA in Tucson.

I'm sure there are people out there who enjoy a story like this, it just isn't me. Please read other reviews as well to form an opinion about this book.

I'd popped this title on my "to-be-read" list recently so was happy to see if appear on NetGalley for review. Not a true "whodunnit" as we know who the main villain is, but a good courtroom procedural that takes you through the ups and downs of a criminal trial. This is the first novel by Rebecca K Jones, and it doesn't necessarily have the consistent flow of a novel, but the story was engaging. If you enjoy novels about lawyers, then this is a good choice. I'm hoping that there will be other stories with Mack Wilson because I'd like to how the character develops.

Thanks to Bella Books for access to a digital ARC on NetGalley.

Mackenzie Wilson, a Tucson, AZ assistant district attorney with the sex crimes unit, is living her best life. She’s very successful at prosecuting abusers of every ilk, she has close friends, including her ex, Anna, a successful psychologist. Late one night, Mack is called to a Circle K because a nude child has wandered into the store but won’t speak to anyone and screams whenever a man enters the store. Mack recognizes the possibility of child abuse but can’t do much until she knows more about the child. When it becomes evident that child has been abused by her father, a highly placed member of a local Mormon group with friends in high places, the case gets more difficult. Mack and her colleagues persist, and the father is arrested, and the case goes to trial.

While most LesFic is romance centered, there is no romance in Jones’ debut novel. Simply put, this is a novel about a trial. If potential readers are looking for a romance amongst women in the legal field, look elsewhere. This book is single minded in that it goes to great detail about the trial and what the attorneys do to get ready for the trial. There is an almost insignificant stalker issue that seems to have been added to diffuse the tension. However, for someone as savvy as Mack is supposed to be, she handles the stalker issue poorly.

With the emphasis solely on the trial, the author gave the reader a detailed look at the working of an ADA and Arizona laws regarding trial work. The reader will learn more than she ever wanted or needed to know about how trials go in Arizona. The author will undoubtedly lose readers because while the details may be interesting to her, her readers may be less interested in the minutiae.

The ending was less than satisfying and was rushed because once the trial was over and the stalker issued resolved, the author had no choice but to end the book. There were loose ends that should have been tied up but weren’t, perhaps because this is intended to be a series.

While the author spent a lot of the book explaining what Mack and her colleagues do for a living, she failed to develop any of the characters in any depth. Readers will not know Mack any better on the last page than she did on the first page.

If you’re looking for a LesFic romance set in the legal world, look elsewhere. If you’re interested in the inner workings of a district attorney’s office in Arizona, then this is the book for you.

My thanks to Bella Books and NetGalley for an eARC.

I feel like I'm missing something, like there was/is another book to explain things in regard to Mack Wilson and Anna, specially when they kept mentioning that they tired and did not work !. furthermore, there was no chemistry between them and honestly as per the description I thought they were not speaking to each other until the stalking started however that was not the case, Anna felt very cold and not even BFF level to me I felt like she a friend who sometimes you go to dinner with, you dont need to tell them all your deep secrets or even be personal with them, I felt like Jess is more of a BFF, she was worm and had more emotions toward Mack than Anna.


the legal part was super fun, and I liked it a lot you won't feel bored or like the book is too dark even tho it's handling a very sensitive subject

Highly recommended but dont read it if you're looking for romance because there's nothing in the story of such

Steadying the Ark from Rebecca K. Jones is an impressive debut novel. It follows the work of Assistant District Attorney Mack (Mackenzie) Wilson as she prosecutes the patriarch of a highly respected and connected Mormon family for sexually assaulting his three young daughters. Even though the subject matter is very dark it does not go into disturbing details and leans heavily towards the procedural aspect of prosecuting sex offenders.

Mack is a very engaging protagonist with her heart and head in the right place while working on her trial. She is written as singularly focused and driven while building the case which rings very true to me.

The writing is engaging, so much so that I was hooked from the very first sentence of the prologue. There is a ‘true to character’ issue with the secondary plot line which niggled at me as it approached its climax. In my mind Mack would be more aware of dangers than how she reacted to them. The knowledge from her work and experience would have factored into her reactions. This is a very minor quibble from me and I did immensely enjoyed this novel.

I must mention the book cover art is what drew me to this novel. It is stunning. As well the title, once it is explained deep into the story, is a thought provoking religious conundrum of faith. And it is the perfect fit for the novel.

I wholeheartedly recommend this new author be added to your to be read lists.

I received an advance review copy from Bella Books through NetGalley. I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I received an ARC copy of this book from the Publisher via Netgalley and voluntarily leaving my review.

Mack is an ADA who argues mostly about sex crimes. As she working on case involving a abuse teen she disturbed by things happening in her neighborhood and to top it off she has a stalker. I enjoy this read I like how she and co-worker and friend Jess work the case how they involved in every expect to make sure everything go their way. This was more of intriguing suspense then a romance because although Mack and Dr. Anna have a past romantic relationship they are more best friends then anything romantic. I can’t wait for next book with this author.

I got this ARC yesterday and because it comes out next week I moved it to the top of my read pile. This is a smart and riveting story of a few months in the life of a busy prosecutor. Mack Wilson is an Assistant District Attorney in Tucson, AZ. The primary focus revolves around the discovery of a malnourished and sexually abused teen. It shows the ADA being involved from the police finding the girl all the way through the trial. A smaller case also goes to trial of a first offense for a voyeur charged with taking a photo up a skirt of an unsuspecting woman. The last situation is an ongoing stalking of Mack.

I love legal stories. They are a guilty pleasure of mine. The author, Rebecca K. Jones, is a lawyer in Arizona and she makes the cases easy to follow and believable. I learned new things such as in Arizona jurors can ask their own questions of witnesses and defense attorneys have to share their discovery and potential witness lists. The characters are very likable. Mack is a typical overworked by devoted ADA. Jess, another ADA, is a friend and she co-chairs on Mack’s big trial. Dr. Anna Lapin is a psychologist who consults and testifies for the prosecution. Mack and Anna were involved five years earlier but the relationship now is as best friends.

This book is mislabeled (on NetGalley) as a romance. There is no romance in this book! This is a story about a prosecutor that happens to be a lesbian. There is no instant attraction with a hastily thrown in intimate scene like you would find in a Carsen Taite novel. I would call this a legal thriller. The blurb makes it sound like Mack turning to her ex is a big thing when in reality they have an ongoing friendship.

The Defendant in the main case is an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints otherwise know as Mormons. Full disclosure, I am Utah born and raised member of that faith. Mack realizes the defendants actions do not reflect the teachings of mainstream Mormonism. The author does a good job explaining his rationality and how it ties into historical Mormon doctrine. I like how the title ties in with a scripture story. She does make some factual errors regarding Mormon numbers, books and ecclesiastical titles. Because I’m reading an ARC, I am able to give feedback to the publisher but wont know if anything can or will be changed for the final book publication. The errors do not impact the flow of the story or make any difference in how the case plays out. It is noticeable only by someone who is familiar with the Mormon faith.

Overall I enjoyed Jones debut novel as a legal story. I will remember Mack and her legal work in the trials. The thriller/mystery part was less interesting only because I felt it was predictable. It was a little menacing but I never felt my tension level rise. Thank you to NetGalley and Bella Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.