Book review: Legacy by Nora Roberts

Friday, May 28, 2021 Permalink

I was a tad worried Legacy by Nora Roberts would be a bit saga-ish. I love her romantic suspense novels and ADORE her JD Robb series, but the blurb here sounded a bit more Barbara Taylor Bradford circa 1990ish.

Thankfully it wasn’t. We do meet our lead Adrian at various stages of her childhood then on a few occasions during her adult life but it’s less about generations of women or families and their legacies and more about Adrian herself.

It takes a little while to get to the ‘suspense’ part of this book but I liked Adrian and the fact her ambition is balanced with a sense of humanity, so was happy to be along for the ride.

three-half-stars

Book review: Crackenback by Lee Christine

Saturday, January 30, 2021 Permalink

Crackenback by Lee Christine is the second book in the series featuring Sydney Homicide Squad Detective Sergeant Pierce Ryder. It doesn’t matter if you haven’t read its predecessor, Charlotte Pass that introduces Ryder and his partner Detective Flowers, along with Ryder’s love interest Vanessa.

This book is centred around ski lodge manager Eva and her delightful three year old daughter Poppy. I must confess I couldn’t remember if we’d met them in Charlotte Pass, and though reference is made to the events of that book and Vanessa, we learn that Eva is her sister.

four-stars

Book review: Deadman’s Track by Sarah Barrie

Friday, July 17, 2020 Permalink

I read and reviewed Australian author Sarah Barrie’s last book The Devil’s Lair, in which we meet some of the characters here and I enjoy series (such as those by Fleur McDonald and Karen Rose) that centre around a group of characters, focusing on different ones each book while introducing new players… so they’re loosely related. It doesn’t matter if you’ve not read the predecessors but you’re offered a bit of context if you have.

Here we’re focussed on Tess, a hiking guide and Jared, a police detective. When we meet her Tess has suffered a tragic accident and grappling with a controlling wannabe boyfriend. She’s a little fragile so we can see she’s gonna make some bad decisions – namely taking hikers on a trek that she doesn’t think is a good idea.

three-half-stars

Book review: Hideaway by Nora Roberts

Friday, June 5, 2020 Permalink

I really enjoy Nora Roberts’ romantic suspense novels. She generally offers a great balance between the two genres. Her latest, Hideaway, is no different. She also gives us some delightful characters. Some less-delightful as well obviously. And the novel unfolds over a couple of decades so we get to know some of the players well by the end.

This was a little longer than I probably would have liked, but it certainly hooks readers from the opening pages.

three-half-stars

Book review: Charlotte Pass by Lee Christine

Sunday, January 26, 2020 Permalink

Lee Christine has written several romantic suspense novels before venturing into crime fiction (which she does a great job at, I need to add), but because I’m new to Christine’s work and hadn’t heard of the setting of this novel, I kept thinking it was written by Charlotte Pass. So if I’ve slipped below and quoted Pass’s writing, I apologise in advance.

four-stars

Book review: Riverstone Ridge by Mandy Magro

Wednesday, November 13, 2019 Permalink

I’ve not read any of Mandy Magro’s books before though heard of the Far North Queensland-dwelling author who has over a dozen novels to her name.

This appealed as it sounded as if it included some suspense and though I don’t read ‘romance’ I don’t mind romantic suspense. (Or apparently books featuring ‘romantic elements’ which I hadn’t realised was a sub-genre of some sort!)

three-half-stars

Book review: You Don’t Know Me by Sara Foster

Monday, October 28, 2019 Permalink

When ticking the ‘genre’ of this book for this post I added romantic suspense because – though not generally a fan of ‘romance’ as such – I was completely taken with the burgeoning romance that underpinned much of this novel.

The book opens as our two leads, Alice and Noah meet, and I adored their relationship and the way it grew. It felt… well, um romantic. Of course it’s hampered by a backstory of long-kept secrets, guilt and death, so it’s not all rainbows and kittens.

four-stars

Book review: Under Currents by Nora Roberts

Wednesday, July 10, 2019 Permalink

I love Nora Roberts’ romantic suspense novels. They usually offer up a good balance of the two, which is important given my love of thrillers and suspense and antipathy towards romance. (As such.)

Interestingly, though this includes some suspense, it’s kinda short-lived. It grapples with some unpleasant themes (domestic violence and family violence, so trigger alert for some), but the thing I enjoyed most about this book was, in fact, how the romance played out and the relationship between our two lead characters.

four-stars

Book review: The Devil’s Lair by Sarah Barrie

Friday, June 14, 2019 Permalink

This is actually the first book I’ve read by Australian author Sarah Barrie though she’s penned the Hunters Ridge series and I understand this is loosely linked to her 2018 release, Blood Tree River.

I kinda guessed the ‘whodunnit’ part here which is eventually partially handed to us. The why wasn’t as predictable though and sets up the suspense in this book quite nicely.

three-half-stars