An appealing leading man is essential to any great love story—and Candace Calvert revels in creating memorable yet authentic heroes in her Grace Medical series.
“A great hero is very human, and that means flawed,” the author says. “I like it if he’s made mistakes in his past, regrets them, but still needs to learn how to stop that from happening again. I like a tug-and-pull of stubborn pride versus an inner vulnerability. I tend to paint heroes with enough confidence in their masculinity to make a fool of themselves once in a while, especially when smitten.”
In Rescue Team (Tyndale House), search-and-rescue team specialist Wes Tanner finds himself at odds with nurse and acting ER director Kate Callison. Candace has imbued Wes with heroic qualities, including courage, loyalty, a self-deprecating sense of humor, and strong faith.
“Wes is the kind of man who takes time for tea with an Alzheimer’s victim and her beloved plastic doll,” the author says. “I find that very heroic. It doesn’t hurt, either, that he has gorgeous blue eyes and looks mighty fine on a horse!”
Candace won’t tell which real life experiences from her former days as an ER nurse make it into her novels but will say this: “A fair number of my characters are composites of people I’ve worked with. The ER provides great fodder for quirky minor characters.”
A line from “Amazing Grace” is the epigraph for Rescue Team—“I once was lost but now am found”—and that is the heart of this story, says Candace. “Despite mistakes, regrets, and painful tragedy, we are never really lost—God’s beautiful grace and promise of hope is our lifeline.”
This article originally appeared in the May/June 2013 issue of FamilyFiction digital magazine. Subscribe for free today!