Before the Dawn | Devoted Hope

ABOUT THE BOOK

Book: Before the Dawn
Author: Erica Vetsch

Genre: Christian Historical Romance

Release Date: February 10, 2026

A determined wife and a blind mining engineer—separated by fear, connected by love, and tested by darkness that threatens to tear them apart.

David Mackenzie was the most capable mining engineer in Colorado until a cave-in left him blind and filled with guilt over the deaths of his workers. Now he fears he’ll never be worthy of love or respect again. When his fiancée returns from nursing her sick aunt, he must find the courage to break their engagement before she wastes her life caring for a broken man.

Karen refuses to give up on the man she loves, but David has built a wall between them that grows higher with each passing day. When he tries to call off their engagement, she forces him into marriage through an unconventional lawsuit. Now she must find a way to break through his bitter shell and prove that her love hasn’t changed—before his fears and pride drive them apart forever and she loses not only the man she loves but also her chance at the family she’s always longed for.

When David’s cousin reveals a deadly secret about the cave-in, Karen and David find themselves trapped underground, forced to work together to survive. In the darkness, they must confront the fears that threaten to destroy them both. But even if they survive, can they find their way back to the love they once shared?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Best-selling, award-winning author of The Debutante’s Code, first in the Thorndike & Swann Regency Mystery Series, Erica Vetsch loves Jesus, history, romance, and sports. When she’s not writing fiction, she’s planning her next trip to a history museum.

MORE FROM ERICA

My story, Before the Dawn, is set in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. As a girl born and raised in Central Kansas, the first time I visited mountains, I was in awe…and also a little worried. Having grown up in a land where you can watch your dog run away for three straight days, not being able to see very far when in between mountains was a bit claustrophobic.

My children, growing up in SE Minnesota, had a similar experience. We were able to take the kids to Colorado several years ago, which is where I first became interested the history of Colorado Mining.

We took the kids to Idaho Springs, where we toured a mine and ore processing facility from the 1880’s. The Argo Mine was fascinating. When I ask my kids about what they remember, it’s always the panning for gold. My daughter reminded me that I was the first in the family to find any gold in my pan, a few little bright flakes, upon which many an adventurer has wagered his life.

The kids also got to sift through a box of sand and dirt to find colorful stones. As my son was enamored with agates and polished rocks at the time, this was the highlight for him.

When I wrote Before the Dawn, I tried to make the setting a character. The story is so tied to the setting, that if I changed where the story took place, it wouldn’t be the same story at all.

I hope, as you read Before the Dawn, you are drawn into the mountains, that you can feel a bit of the same sense of awe that I felt the first time this prairie girl saw the Rockies.

DEVOTED TO HOPE'S REVIEW OF BEFORE THE DAWN

Two kinds of darkness shape this story. One is physical; rock and ruin sealing off the light. The other follows David home and settles into his thoughts; guilt tightening its grip, shame pressing inward, pride resisting mercy, and the suspicion that blindness has stripped him of usefulness.

A man who once led crews underground now measures each step across his own living room. A man who once protected others carries the weight of believing he failed them. Blindness confronts what he believes about God, about suffering, about whether purpose remains when strength is gone.

Karen stands steady in that shadow, clear-eyed and resolute. Her lawsuit unsettles people, yet it rises from conviction. She contends for restoration and fights for the man grief has tried to bury.

Faith here carries consequence. These characters pray because they know God reigns and hears. Confession follows because pride fractured what repentance must mend, and kneeling becomes necessary once self-reliance proves hollow.

When Karen prays, “How can a marriage based upon a scheming plot ever be happy? … I am broken, Lord,” she brings her shattered heart before God as it is.

When David pleads, “I need Your forgiveness, and I need Your strength …” that prayer reveals reliance born of surrender. Pride erodes while humility takes root, and dependence upon his Savior deepens.

The darkness underground mirrors what unfolds within them: two people learning to move without sight, trusting the Lord as certainty recedes. Spiritual vision forms as pride loosens and obedience takes shape.

The restoration does not come easily, and that makes it meaningful.

Faith is priceless. Repentance restores. Prayer aligns. A husband and wife bow before the Lord together and guard the covenant He sealed.

If you treasure stories where a husband and wife humble themselves before the Lord and fight for their covenant, you’ll enjoy this.

I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher and Celebrate Lit Publicity Group. I am not required to write a positive review nor paid to do so. This is my honest and unbiased review. My thoughts and opinions expressed in this book review are my own. My review focuses on the writing and the story’s content, ensuring transparency and reliability.