Heartbreak River by Tricia Mills

ISBN-13: 9781595142566
Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
Published: April 2009
256 pgs
Source: Personal Library

As the title indicate, this story centres on the romance between sixteen-year-old Alex and her childhood sweetheart, Sean, with a river setting in a town in Colorado.

Alex lost her father in a rafting accident a year ago and to this day she is still trying to come to terms with her past and still blaming herself for not being with him on that tragic day. She runs the family rafting business mostly on her own while she stay with her grandparents. Her mother, on the other hand is still deeply affected by her husband's death and is coping with the loss in another state.

Alex gets along well with her employees, after all the guys are about her age. One of them, Tommy, is interested in her but but Alex still has feelings for Sean. Thus when her grandfather hires Sean without her knowledge, Alex is taken aback but yet in a way she is hoping that their feelings for each other will be rekindled.

Alex is close with her cousin, Mala, who also helps her with the rafting business. They often share secrets but their personality is so different because Mala loves partying and flirting around with guys. Despite her extrovert personality, Mala actually has feelings for a geeky guy named Daniel who works with them though she always act nonchalantly whenever he is around because she does not think she is his type given his bookish attribute. Sometimes, love caught you at the most unexpected moment, doesn't it?

Alex, on the other hand is clueless when it comes to expressing her love to Sean because she is not sure if he still harbour the same attraction towards her. I have to admit there were times I was frustrated with Alex and wished she could just speak to Sean there and then and tell him her true feelings, but I suppose she is fearful that he might turn her down after the way she had hurt him in the past. Not only love can hit you in an unpredictable moment, but it can be complicated at times too, don't you think?

Anyways, the interactions between Alex and Sean are intense, as the same goes between Mala and Daniel. Without a doubt, there is certainly a level of chemistry between these couples but overall I find the story a little slow and dragging. However, I liked the scene where Alex is dealing her fear of the river and how she managed to overcome it in the end. I would recommend this novel to older teens since there is some sexual content and alcohol consumption.

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Dying Scream by Mary Burton

ISBN-13: 978-1420100280
Publisher: Zebra
Published: December 2009
379 pgs
Source: Joan Schulhafer Publishing & Media Consulting

Adrianna Barrington thinks it was someone's cruel joke when she receives flowers and cards signed in her late husband's name. She has a few reasons for assuming so because she has recently sold the Thornton estate (belonging to her late husband's family) and she knew most of the residents in the neighbourhood are not pleased with her deeds considering the estate has a long line of history. But what most shocked her was when two bodies are found buried on the estate's cemetery and they were believed to have connections to her late husband, and it was then she realized there is certainly a lot more to it than meets the eye.

Homicide detective Gage Hudson has had a relationship with Adrianna many years back. She broke off with him mainly due to his work commitments and that he could not make enough time for her. After her marriage to Craig Thornton, she thought she would be happy since she was pregnant with his child, but unfortunately they met in an automobile accident and it put Craig in a coma. Adrianna lost her baby and her husband died following after. She is a strong woman and has slowly moved on with her life until the pranks started and now the dead bodies. Where could she go? And could she ever escape from the killer's grasp?

When I first picked up the book, I thought there would be a fair balance of suspense and romance (after all the spine read romantic suspense) but unfortunately, it does not seem to turn out that way, at least to me, that is. I have to admit the first few chapters are intense, and I was very eager to learn more about Adrianna's past and hoping to find some clues to the killer's motives. However, I find the story seems to drag a little as the following chapters are focused more on Detective Hudson going to places to track down witnesses and/or interviewing them. Though I can totally understand Detective Hudson's motives of doing so, I find it a little too much and think it would probably work better in a thriller than a romantic suspense. The chemistry between Adrianna and Detective Gage Hudson is not as intense or explosive as I first anticipated, considering they are lovers before. To be fair, I think Dying Scream makes a great suspense novel, but it does not meet my expectations in a romantic suspense genre. Still, I would recommend this book to readers who love a good suspense read.

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Cheryl's Book Nook

J. Kaye's Book Blog

Romance Rookie

The Friendly Book Nook

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Eve of Darkness by S.J. Day

ISBN-13: 9780765360410
Publisher: Doherty, Tom Associates, LLC
Published: April 2009
Marked Series, #1

Evangeline Hollis is an interior designer, but a casual fling with a hunky stranger made her a Mark of Cain - a celestial bounty hunter charged with sending rogue demons and other Infernals back to hell. This she has herself to blame because the mysterious man reminds so much of her long ago crush, Alec Cain. Eve encountered Alec ten years ago and they were very much attracted to each other, but Alec had no intention of having her until now.

However, Eve is no longer the fresh young girl he met decades ago and now that she has become a Mark of Cain, she has to destroy the evil infernals and fight for survival not that she could help it. To complicate matters, she feels herself trapped between siblings Alec and Reed; the latter being the one who had marked her initially.

What I had expected to be an exciting urban fantasy with a kick-butt heroine became a great disappointment to me because I find there is not much actions going on except the beginning of the first few chapters, and also that it emphasize too much on the relationship between Eve and the two brothers who does not see eye to eye with each other. At some point, I wonder if there are too much attention on the trio and wonder if it would read as a romance instead, but then I think the elaboration helps in a way in describing the complicated relationship between them and so forth. There are also some sexual references so I do not recommend this book to young readers.

All in all, I think Eve of Darkness has an interesting concept featuring a team of bounty hunters, Archangels and demons but I did not find myself being hooked to the plot or care for the characters. Eve is an interesting character, but at times I find her contradicting. I also have questions regarding her being a marked one but I suppose there might be some answers explained during the sequels?

Another thing that puzzles me is the genre of this book; I do not know if this is classified as an urban fantasy or a paranormal romance since I found it under the fantasy section but it read like the latter.

Nevertheless, I have the other two installments, Eve of Destruction and Eve of Chaos in my pile but I have no idea when to read them next but please do not let my opinions deter you from reading this book though.

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