In This Life by Terri Herman-Poncé (Past Life #1) Crimson Romance (Oct 2012) Ebook, 226 pages Paranormal Romantic Suspense In This Life follows the story of Lottie Morgan. She is suffering from episodes where she completely blacks out and sees visions of memories with a lover she has never had. The fever that she blames these happenings on promptly goes after a week and the hallucinations are still present and unfortunately, are becoming increasingly more real. Lottie is determined to find out why they are happening, even at the cost of…
The Search by Nora Roberts Piatkus (July 2010) Paperback, 490 pages Romantic Suspense Having never read anything by Nora Roberts, The Search took me by surprise as I was expecting a contemporary romance and hadn’t anticipated the gritty extent of the crime plot. It begins with an introduction to Fiona Bristow, our heroine, who is out on a search and rescue mission with one of her Labradors. She has three of the dogs, all of which are trained for S&R, and she is devoted to training her dogs and running…
APRIL’S BOOK CLUB PICK The Legend of the Crystal Lens by Samantha Graves Piatkus Books (May 2009) Paperback, 336 pages Romantic Suspense/Adventure Simon Bonner, tomb raider extraordinaire, has left his house pretty quickly after an old acquaintance dies after giving him the news that Simon’s ex-wife, Celina, has been kidnapped. In return the kidnappers want the crystal lens and a woman named Jillian Talbot in order to find the Archives of Man. Jillian Talbot is a museum curator and as she leaves the museum she is held at gunpoint, terrified she allows…
Crash into Me by Jill Sorenson Bantam (Jan 2009) | Ebook, 464 pages Romantic Suspense Crash into Me immediately hooked me in during the first few pages. Sonny was the type of heroine I love, tough, brave, determined and kick-ass. You see her kick a fellow cocky (male) agent’s butt in the first chapter and can’t help but grin. Our hero is sexy, recluse and surf pro Ben, if a little arrogant, trying to raise his slightly wayward teenage daughter and hiding himself away from the world since his wife’s murder,…
Run Rabbit Run (Sophie Green #5) by Kate Johnson Choc Lit (April 2012) | Paperback, 350 pages Romantic Suspense I’m a big fan of Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum series, and Run Rabbit Run was very much like a British version. Sophie’s car even got blown up! Sophie is a retired MI5 agent, now working in a book store at the airport. But when an MI5 officer is murdered, with Sophie’s gun and her prints all over the crime scene, she knows she’s been framed and goes on the run to clear her…
Veil of Night by Linda Howard Piatkus Books (Aug 2010) | Paperback, 338 Pages Romantic Suspense I’ve read a few Linda Howard books in the past, and found her suspense books to be thrilling. “Veil of Night” was good and the pages certainly turned easily enough but it seemed to lack some of the ‘edge of the seat’ factor. Our heroine is Jaclyn, a wedding planner facing the challenge of managing the bride from hell. So when said bride is found murdered, unfortunately Jaclyn finds herself on the top of the suspects…
Ice by Linda Howard Piatkus Books (Dec 2010 ) | Paperback, 241 pages Romantic suspense Ice by Linda Howard is not your typical suspense novel insomuch as for the most part of the novel the opposition is not a human threat but the threat of nature. An ice storm creates most of the suspense in the novel, which says a lot for the calibre of antagonist created by the author. Set in a quiet ‘nothing-ever-happens-here’ kind of town in Maine, ‘Ice’ starts off with the return of Gabriel McQueen to his hometown….
Fatal Affair (Fatal #1) by Marie Force Carina Press (June 2010) | Ebook, 294 Pages Romantic Suspense I read Everyone Loves A Hero by Marie Force last year and really loved it, so I was really looking forward to picking up Fatal Affair. It’s a different genre, romantic suspense and it’s also the beginning of a new series following Detective Sergeant Sam Holland and Nick Cappuano. Nick, best friend and chief of staff to Senator John O’Connor, walks in on him one morning to find he has been brutally murdered. Sam is…
Relentless (Suspense Series #4) by Kaylea Cross Wild Rose Press (June 2010) | Ebook: 348 Pages Romantic Suspense Relentless is the second book in Kaylea Cross’s suspense series that I have read. Having picked up No Turning Back, book number three in the series, earlier in the year. Each of the books reference the different characters in the other and our two leads for Relentless are Rhys and Nev (Neveah), who were important characters in No Turning Back. But I still think you could pick this up as a stand-alone novel in…
No Turning Back (Suspense Series #3) by Kaylea Cross Wild Rose Press (March 2010) | Ebook, 454 Pages Romantic Suspense This isn’t a sweet or even an easy reading romance. Set in Afghanistan, Kaylea Cross addresses some of the harsher realities of the Iraq war. With the treatment of hostages, torture and barbaric deaths included, to the plight of the people living there and the everyday struggle for survival amidst poverty, terrorist rule and brutality. So this may not appeal to some romance readers, but fans of military romances and stories with…
As Darkness Falls (Dungirri #1) by Bronwyn Parry Piatkus Books (Sept 2008) | Paperback, 360 pages Romantic Suspense Bronwyn Parry’s romantic suspense is unashamedly Australian but does not rely on stereotypes of any sort. The heartbreaking back story of the destruction of Bella’s faith in people – her own people – and the redemption she finds through working on the case of a missing child, make for an engrossing story. At the heart of this story is Bella’s struggle to return to the living after self-imposed seclusion. She resigned from the…
Crazy Wild (Steele Street #3) by Tara Janzen Dell (Jan 2006) | Paperback, 416 pages Romantic Suspense This is the third instalment of Tara Janzen’s humorous and entertaining ‘James Bond’ meets ‘The Fast and the Furious’ romantic suspense series. The books can be read as standalones – more or less – but the series is one big crazy ride and it’s best to start at the beginning. The cast of characters are a bunch of former car thieves and street kids who grew up on the wrong side of the tracks in…
Open Season by Linda Howard Pocket (May 2002) | Paperback, 368 pages Romantic Suspense I did not expect to love this book so much. It has a combination of many elements I generally do not like in a story – such as a supremely conservative small town setting (alcohol isn’t even legal there), and an über-conservative heroine. However Linda Howard surprised me with her brilliant book, Mr Perfect, and so I decided to give Open Season a chance. First off, this book is hilarious. I sat there grinning like an idiot for much…
A Licence To Steal by Samantha Graves Piatkus Books (May 2010) | Paperback, 303 pages Romantic Suspense A Licence To Steal is a romantic suspense, but it also has elements of paranormal. Raven Callahan is a world class thief, but she has a sixth sense, psychometry, and can sense emotions, thoughts and scents from all objects she handles. Raven is a complex character. She’s focused, determined and career driven and who lives only for her work. Her psychic ability has caused her to retreat from the world around her, including her family….
