DOWNFALL BY TERRI BLACKSTOCK

DOWNFALL by TERRI BLACKSTOCK is the third and final book in the INTERVENTION series.  The novel can be read on its own, but I feel you will get more out of it if you read all three books in sequence.  
I reviewed VICIOUS CYCLE, the second book in the series, in June 2011.  The theme of the danger of drug addiction, the importance of family values, the tremendous pull that drugs have on young people who are struggling with family situations and with feelings of insecurity - especially the desire to belong and be popular - is carried through in this book.  We see that deliverance from addiction is a daily thing, and that it is very easy for an addict to be pulled back into using again.  We see Emily using the Word of God by quoting scriptures that she learnt when undergoing rehab to help her stay clean and close to the Lord.
Barbara Covington has moved her family to Atlanta for two reasons, the first being to remove Emily from the temptation of living in the same city as her former druggie friends, and the second to be near Kent Harlan, the detective who has helped them so much and with whom she has fallen in love.  There has been such a lot of media coverage of Emily's addiction, her disappearance from home, her stint in jail where she was falsely accused of murder, and her bravery in trying to help her friend who was in trouble, and all this seems to have followed them there as well.  Lance was happy at school in Jeff city and had lots of friends and was looked upon as a hero for his bravery.   He is not happy at his new school, where he is seen as a dork. He is still recovering from being shot, and looks a bit weak, and no-one wants to believe his stories.  The only friend he has at achool is April, but she has an unhealthy interest in Tyson, a drug dealer and a really bad influence.  Lance spends time with the two of them as he is trying to protect April from Tyson.  He ends up saving her life and becoming a real hero and suddenly very popular!
When Emily's car is blown up and things seem to go from bad to worse in her life, her mother is afraid that her daughter is using again.  She is very suspicious of her, especially when she stays out late with her friends.  Emily knows that her addiction has cost her family tremendous pain, and this upsets her terribly.  She is working hard at college and at making something of her life, but when she is suspected of Cassandra Carter's murder, she realizes that her past makes people ready to blame her, even though she is not guilty.  
On Saturdays Emily works at Haven House, a place for recovering addicts, and when Devon Lawrence, the wife of Bo Lawrence, a former inmate of Haven House ends up murdered in her home, Emily gets involved in a real web of intrigue that is nearly the end of her and her family.  She is set up by a psychopathic killer who calls himself the Avenger, and whose main aim is to destroy her and her family.  The devil is using him to try and bring about Emily's downfall.
The book is exciting and the drug theme is very relevant in the day and age that we live in.  Once again we see the Lord coming through for the Covington family.  We see the love that Barbara has for her children and also the love that  Kent has for her and her children.  He looks upon Emily and Lance as his own.  We see how he calms Barbara down when she gets hysterical with fear for them.  The emotions of a mother who has gone through so much with an addict in the family are very well portrayed, as are those of Lance, the brother who has been through a lot of pain because of his sister's past behaviour, and also those of Emily who is trying so hard to live her life to the glory of God and is afraid that she will never be able to get away from her past.  We see how the family have grown in their trust in God.  I feel the whole series is well worth reading and there is a strong Christian message.  There is hope for those who put their trust in the Lord, in spite of their past history, and He truly can change lives.