John. A. Heldt, Author of the 'Northwest Passage Series' and 'American Journey Series,' brings us a unique Sci-Fi Romance novel in 'The Mine.'

Set in Montana USA, and later Seattle USA, Joel is your average twenty-two-year-old college student, about to graduate with high prospects. Whilst exploring an abandoned mine on a hiking trip with buddy Adam, Joel finds himself transported back in time, to the 1940s. At first, he is anxious to return home, but when he meets twenty-one-year-old Grace, a stunning and intelligent blonde, he may just have a change of heart.

'The Mine' is told from a third-person perspective, split between main characters Joel and Grace. Both characters are equally fascinating; Joel with his sharp wit and carefree attitude, and Grace with and her complex life history, and the way in which she lights up around Joel from the start.

Joel meets many wonderful new friends, who help him to develop a lot over the course of the book. He at first only seems faintly connected to his own emotions, but as each of these newcomers finds a place in his heart and mind, we find him delving deeper into himself. I felt as though I was experiencing Joel's every emotion alongside him and was frequently on the edge of my seat.

Forbidden love and cocky humor are key in this tale. There was a good amount of foreshadowing, which made it in some ways a predictable read. Don't let that deter you. Every moment counted in this novel. We see Joel make some impossible decisions; decisions that made me question every one I have ever made in my life. I asked myself, 'Would I be willing to make these same decisions, given the choices presented to Joel?' I found myself without any answers as I wondered which path Joel would take.

The Author's style of writing makes for fluid reading, and also paints subtle pictures of every scene. A read well worth your time and a great accomplishment. ( )

What happens when two college boys, one of them a geology major, traveling through Montana stumble upon an abandoned gold mine?

That’s the subject of The Mine by John Heldt. One of the boys, Joel, is adventurous and explores the mine. As a result of a misadventure that occurs inside the mine, he spends months living in Seattle, Washington, in 1941…the months leading up to the attack on Pearl Harbor. During those months, he lives a completely different, and partially because of his knowledge and experience from 2000, successful, life falling deeply in love with Grace. Those months are magical for Joel. Although he is constantly torn with the knowledge he is living a lie, he sees no way out…and his love for Grace is an all- consuming fire. In the end, he must decide to stay with Grace in 1941 and accept the fact he may have to fight in World War II…or return to 2000 abandoning Grace to her fate. Which will he choose? The end has an astounding twist most readers will not see coming!

This is John Heldt’s first novel. In a recent author interview, John stated that novelist Maureen Driscoll advised him to inject romance into adventure novels. That formula certainly worked with The Mine. It contains a healthy dose of romance, and romantic drama, between Grace and Joel; and between Grace’s friends, particularly Tom and Ginny. This novel has all of the character qualities and intrigue that makes Mr. Heldt’s novels joys to read.

The novel would appeal to a broad variety of reader’s interests; romance, adventure, science fiction and many others ( )

Meet Joel- your average college student venturing out with his best friend Adam. The duo has decided to take a road trip to “clear their heads” 3 weeks before college graduation, by hiking and biking at Yellowstone. Fueling up at the Canary diner, Joel and Adam discuss the return trip home. Broadcasting over the news is a “significant planetary conjunction” where for 24 hours six planets will fall in alignment with the sun.

The two set off by highway for the way home only to be derailed by stopped traffic. Being the advantageous guys that they are, Joel decides to take a detour up to a mine, hoping to wait out the traffic with a side of adventure. Adam, none too thrilled, appeases to Joel’s free spirit nature, only with a promise of adventure in 30 minutes or less.

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https://quitterstrip.wordpress.com/2016/12/04/if-youre-going-to-blow-your-payche...
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I can't remember where I stumbled on this novel by John Heldt. All I do remember is I found it for free and downloaded it to my kindle where it remained untouched for months, until now.

This was a decent time travel story. Elements of the story were what you'd expect to see played out in many time travel books before it. If you know how sporting events are going to play out, wouldn't you place bets in your favor, too? I didn't care much for the way the author would rephrase a description, almost like nicknames, for each character. One description is fine. No need to compare them to a celebrity or an authority figure to get your point across. It was okay the first couple of times but became a distraction for me later on.

That being said, there were several well-phrased statements that made me take notice. When he gets his wording right, he gets it right and those sentences were a delight to read. The overall story was pleasant. For those who like a clean read, I would put this as a mild book. There are a few instances where one or two characters use profanity, but the number of instances in the book is about less than 15. There are references to sex, but nothing is described on the page. One shouldn't be made to feel uncomfortable reading this book.

What I would have liked to see more of is Joel's frustration about not being able to leave 1941. He accepts his fate too quickly. Yes, the author needs the protagonist to get himself from Helena to Seattle, but he could have struggled with his predicament while on route or even once he was with the Carters in Seattle. It was as if he stopped thinking of his previous life altogether, with only an occasional thought now and then. What about his family? His girlfriend? His friend Adam?

I also would have like there to be more of a hurdle that Joel and Grace had to overcome. Their spats were minimal and everyone was always quick to forgive. I felt like nothing was pushed as far as it could have. Everyone was accepting of this new guy with no ID rolling into town, gave him everything he needed, girls fell for him and Joel had it made in 1941. Let's make someone grill him a bit more and not want to be friends with him because he has secrets. Make someone try to sway the others that he isn't trustworthy. I found it difficult to believe that in 1941, when jobs were difficult to come by, that Joel stumbled across an overly welcoming group of people. If I found myself in 1941, I hope I end up with the Carters as well.

Ultimately, it was a good read. I did find myself hoping for the best for Joel and Grace and the looming attack of Pearl Harbor was a nice touch. If someone is looking for a book to read and they stumble across this one, as I had, I suggest they give it a try and see what they think. It could be the time travel book they were looking for. ( )

In the beginning are two teenage boys out for a good time. I enjoyed the interaction and enjoyed where the story was going. The main character goes back in time, and that's when the book lost me.

I've been "taught" that good historical fiction - the definition of a book being historical fiction - is that the storyline wouldn't make sense if it was dumped into any other time or place. I don't believe this book fits the bill (not that the book is labeled as historical fiction, because it's not; but it does take place in the 1940's which means the book is striving for at least some historical fiction elements).

Joel, as most characters in time travel books do, doesn't need much more than five minutes to adapt to the fact that he's living in the past. Pet peeve #1! If I was thrust into a different time period I'd be freaking out for more than five minutes, and Joel doesn't freak at all. Reading other reviews would lead me to believe that this was well written historical fiction, but I didn't particular feel like Joel was walking down a 1940's world - there were too many references to too many things that weren't historical accurate, for one thing.

Then all of a sudden the book starts talking about another character with no reference to what time frame Grace is in, leaving me confused and pissed off and not really wanting to read another page. You eventually figure it out, but the author could have inserted a heading or started a new chapter or something to make you aware of what was going on. pet peeve #2

I continue to stumble upon reading the book and of course everything magically falls into place, just way too conveniently... pet peeve #3.

The action continues, though at a much slower pace then I would prefer and without spoiling anything, the book of course ends.

The book was written well enough, well edited, the premise was ideal, but all in all it wasn't my cup of tea.


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I received a review copy free the author but was not paid for my review. ( )