#Jayne Ann Krentz & Her #Secret Sisters–A Review
Jayne Ann Krentz–JAK–is an auto-buy for me. I was hesitant to pick this book up in December, when it came out, for two reasons. 1) I had a major deadline looming and I was worried I’d miss it if I stayed up all night reading the book. 2) I somehow got the impression this was a different type of story than the ones JAK usually writes. I didn’t want to be disappointed, so I took my time to get to this.
Imagine my surprise…not to be surprised. This is a true, awesome, JAK romantic suspense from start to finish. I thought the balance of romance to suspense was spot-on, and the characters intrigued me. I thoroughly loved Jack, the hero. Both multi-layered and enigmatic, he really drew me. Madeline, the main heroine, also had depths that made her both likable and someone to root for.
The romance between the secondary characters worked well. Abe and Daphne didn’t feel thrown in but rather an organic part of the story. JAK also fully fleshed out the villain/s, which made me like the story all the more. And the mystery had a few twists I’d wondered about but didn’t predict from the beginning. The plot made sense, added mystery upon mystery, and really worked.
More than anything though, I think JAK’s writing was tighter in this book than in her previous contemporaries. Not to say they aren’t also great, but I really enjoyed her use of language in this book. For example, this pointed description of the hero:
Just two short, imperative raps. It had to be Jack, she thought. His tough, brusque, no-nonsense style came through in even the smallest actions. There were few wasted motions. It as as if at some point in his life a fierce desert wind had scoured away any veneer of polite polish that he might have once possessed, leaving only the hard rock behind.
Really tight. I love it, and it gives me a great sense of just who Jack is. A hard man made that way through some tough life experiences.
And then this description of Cooper Island:
The fading light of the rain-stricken day transformed the dark, cold water in hammered steel. The cloud cover hung low over the island. She knew there were plenty of sunny days on Cooper Island, but it seemed to her that it was always like this when she and Egan were in residence–an unrelenting shade of gray.
The hint of the relationship from the character speaking here pours out in such a tiny detail. The story is filled with wonderfully descriptive lines that really convey the sense of what Cooper Island and its residents feel like. Secret Sisters is a darker mystery with hints of light and love frothing at the surface. I truly loved this book. The mystery, the characters, the pacing and the romance fit together perfectly and made for a most entertaining read. Be sure to get your copy.
I can’t wait until JAK releases her next historical, ‘Til Death Do Us Part (as Amanda Quick), and futuristic romance, Illusion Town (as Jayne Castle).
Happy reading!
