Fiona McCallum has penned six Australian bestsellers, Leap of Faith is her seventh novel and set in the picturesque Adelaide Hills.

All of the books I have read by McCallum have been set in South Australia but this is the first in my neck of the woods. I’m not sure exactly where the farm is but I’m familiar with the surrounding towns and the roads mentioned so it had a very familiar feel to me right from the start.

I am not sure where my headspace is at just of late but it is affecting my reading and my empathy with heroines. I enjoyed the premise of Leap of Faith which has McCallum’s signature writing style and well drawn characters. Her animals are characters in their own right and you can’t help but be drawn to them. My issue was I couldn’t connect to lead character Jessica, I couldn’t get past some of her attitudes and decisions.

In the early pages Jessica has a traumatic accident in the middle of a horse riding event; leaving her hospitalised but thankfully her horse Prince suffers only a few scratches. Jessica’s broken ankle means she is out of action for six weeks with little to occupy her. The extremely capable, physical and independent Jessica is unable to ride, unable to teach and perhaps the most frustrating she is unable to care for her horses or help husband Steve on the farm.

All of this time off her feet gives Jessica way too much time to think, and to question EVERYTHING. A lot of her self evaluation is to be expected and completely natural but it seemed to me that she got a little melodramatic about it all for a while there. Jessica is concerned about the loss of condition in her horses and all of the extra responsibility on her husband looking after them so she rushes into a decision that those around her think she will come to regret. And, to top it all off she tries to isolate herself at home away from the entire horse community, and her town, because she’s not ready to face anyone.