Paint the Sunset by Dawn V. Cahill

Paint the Sunset by Dawn V. Cahill
Series: Book 3 in the Golden State Trilogy
Publisher: Spring Mountain Publishing (May 11, 2023)

REVIEW BY PRISCILLA BETTIS

Paint the Sunset is a contemporary Christian novel with a bit of a mystery and a lot of controversial topics. It’s book three in Cahill’s Golden State Trilogy, but it works perfectly well as a standalone.

In the opening scene, Meg, Jon, and their teenaged son, Tanner, are living the life. They’re out in their sailboat off the coast of California near the city of Sausalito, California. All three of them are getting along. Frankly, it didn’t pull me in. Give me, say, a man who’s struggling to survive, in a heated spat with his sibling, or red-faced from just losing his job (or the girl).

However…

I kept reading, and I am SO glad I did! The story quickly turns gritty. Homeless people, addicts, violence, and destruction of property descend on the happy family, and I was flipping pages to see if they’d make it through.

At one point a reporter goes undercover as a homeless man. He observes non-profit workers and citizens who come into the homeless sidewalk camps to help:

My favorites are the church groups who come through preaching Jesus and passing out food, clothes, and booklets. They don’t realize the residents laugh and mock the “churchies” after they leave, then use those pages as toilet paper.
-Dawn V. Cahill, Paint the Sunset

Meg and Jon mature in their understanding of homelessness and opioid addiction and the fentanyl crisis and unwanted pregnancies, and they come to realize that a one-pronged solution is not going to work. Cahill explores Meg and Jon’s new-found insight, giving the reader insight, too.

What I admire about Cahill’s tackling such charged topics is I was expecting authorial intrusion, but I got none. I absolutely couldn’t tell which side of the political aisle Cahill is on. I also couldn’t tell if she is a traditional Christian or a progressive Christian. She lets her characters do the talking, and even then, they present both sides.

There is the happy-family beginning that made me think I wasn’t the right audience for this story, so I took off half a fish. After that, I was sucked into Paint the Sunset and enjoyed it so much that I’ve since read another book in the trilogy, and it’s good, too. (I reckon you’re supposed to read a series in order, but I rarely do.) A big 4.5 fish from me!

composite image of four and a half drawn fish from the British Museum on unsplash

I read Paint the Sunset through Kindle Unlimited.

36 thoughts on “Paint the Sunset by Dawn V. Cahill”

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  1. Homelessness is certainly a very difficult problem, and many people don’t have much compassion for the homeless. I see in our Next-door site people constantly complaining about the homeless, disparaging them and just wanting them disappeared. It sounds like a good book.

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  4. Interesting. From your description the author nailed her character’s points of view without author narrative. I’m impressed. Does sound like tough subjects to write, especially effectively.

    Thank you for another excellent review.

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    1. Aw, thanks for your kind words about my review.🩷 I, too, was impressed with Cahill’s ability to tackle such difficult subjects and still make the book entertaining and not preachy. I’m glad you commented, Marie!

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  5. This sounds interesting. I agree with Staci about author intrusion. I dislike when an author gets too “preachy” or political in a book (even though I might agree with them). Thanks for sharing your thoughts, Priscilla.

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  7. Good review, Priscilla. I don’t mind a happy family tackling a tough subject. I like that you can’t tell political leanings, that’s refreshing.

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    1. Hi Denise! Yes, it is refreshing to have an author’s political leanings be invisible in a story. I think Paint the Sunset is the perfect book to study if someone wants to write about politically charged topics. Thanks for you comment!🩷

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  8. Loved your review, Priscilla. Homeless or the unhoused are problems for many areas across the US. There has not proven to be a single one size fits all solution. May have to take a look at this series.

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      1. So many suffer from illness and/or addiction. Some do not appear to be ready for help or the limitations required to get some help. There is also the argument about whether anyone should be forced to receive help if they seem to be a menace to themselves or the public. Many questions without a single good answer. If course, affordable housing could help many.

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  9. I wouldn’t mind hanging out in a sailboat off the coast of California. Glad the author was able to pull off a balanced story and that it eventually hooked you, Priscilla. Says something that you continued with the series.

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  11. Good review, Priscilla. The slow beginning puts me off, and the quote is sad yet insightful. It sounds like Cahill done a good job in the end since it made you pick up another book of hers. Hopefully the other wasn’t a slow beginning. I wouldn’t mind looking at others if this is so. Thanks.

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    1. Thanks for your kind words about my review, KC-Ink.🩷 It’s only this third book that I thought started slowly. All three books cover difficult, contemporary subjects. Cahill is SO good at working hot-topics into her stories!

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  13. It sounds like a strong read, Priscilla. Based on the cover, I was anticipating a historical novel. I like that the author let her characters tell the story. Recently I’ve ditched a few books because of author political intrusion coming through much too strongly.

    Good review!

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    1. Thanks, Mae.🙂 The cover threw me at first, too. But it makes sense now that I’ve read the book. All three books have covers with posed models and beautiful backdrops. The main character is an artist, so we get to “see” a little of her paintings during the course of the stories.

      Have a super weekend!

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  14. What an interesting review. I love books that present both sides of an issue without getting preachy about one or the other. Issues are complicated and controversial or they wouldn’t be issues, right? I’m glad that once the book took off, it was well worth it. Thanks for your thoughts, Priscilla.

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    1. Hi Diana! What were you doing hiding out in the spam folder? Get out of there!😂 I love books and real-life conversations that present both sides of an issue (without resorting to yelling and name calling). Thanks for your comment.🩷

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    1. Hi Robbie! Yes, it’s an interesting read. It made me think of a lot of things, not just the homeless, but street violence and drug addiction and government efforts (whether they’re helping or hurting). Thanks for your comment.🩷

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