I've read all of LMR's books and I love this the most! Cooper and Julia have become my most loved hero and heroine of LMR's. What and entertaining book! I enjoyed reading this book for all kinds of reasons.
Julia/Sally is such a fun and real character. She's smart, creative, well traveled, has refined tastes in food and culture, and is independent. She has a wry sense of humor about her predicament (city girl forced by circumstance to live in small town USA), and doesn't wallow in her misfortune, but slowly makes the best of it, integrating into the town. Julia is silently freaking out though. She's having nightmares and is in constant fear of her life due to a hit being put out on her for what she's seen. So, she readily accepts Cooper's presence in her life and is shocked that even though he is not her usual type and he doesn't say much, she is really turned on by him.
Cooper, a local rancher, falls hard for Julia. Cooper is the strong silent type. Flawed like most LMR's heroes, he finds it difficult to express himself through words and stays very reticent on the surface. He's bruised emotionally as well. His wife has left him due to his inability to communicate and that hurt him. When he interacts with Julia he's at a constant loss for what to say and fears that she's not really into him. However, he's definitely an alpha male (former SEAL) and still very much a steely warrior, and his need to connect with Julia is so intense that he manages with pure, raw, intense physical energy to let her know how he feels. Um...wow! I totally love the whole cool on the surface, raging heat underneath, thing.
Ever present in the background is the antagonist who is out to kill Julia for the hit money. I quite liked this character too as this person is extremely intelligent, sophisticated, disciplined and coolly and logically goes about finding Julia. Call me sick, but I love the way this person's mind works. Except for the whole being a sociopath part, of course : ). I love that this killer is not your run of the mill whacko, but someone who has a brilliant mind and cultured tastes. A thinking person's whacko!
As per usual in LMR's books, the sex is smokin! However, unlike the Midnight series (all Excellent), Dangerous Lover (more Excellent) and Port of Paradise (good), the plot is way more developed. And contrary to what one might think given the fact that Cooper is practically a mute, there is much more communication between the characters and relationship development in this book than in her others, which I liked.
And I have to add...Lisa Marie Rice has the funniest sense of humor, which comes out in this book. Normally her books are very intense and passionate as is this one as well, but I kept laughing through out the book at Julia's quips and personal musings as a city girl stuck in small town USA. There were so many funny lines. The reference to a certain Arlo Guthrie film that the other characters didn't get made me giggle. And, Shaniko? This stuck out in my mind for some reason. I've been through there a few times and found it funny/odd that Cooper would bring up this tiny obscure town of all the towns that Julia should know near Bend, even though there was a point to that mention. Maybe I enjoy that her books mostly take place in the Pacific NW, which I've explored extensively and love.
All of these extra little details really added to the total enjoyment of reading this book. All around this was an excellent read!
All I can say is that I feel so satisfied after reading LMR's books that when I finish one of her books, I always feel that I should lie back and smoke a ciggy or something. ; )
Would that Lisa Marie Rice would have the time to be a more prolific author. *sigh*
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