Review: Troublemaker by Linda Howard

Troublemaker by Linda Howard
published by Harpercollins Publisher (William Morrow) in May 2016

For Morgan Yancy, an operative and team leader in a paramilitary group, nothing comes before his job. But when he’s ambushed and almost killed, his supervisor is determined to find out who’s after the members of his elite squad—and why. Due to worries that this unknown enemy will strike again, Morgan is sent to a remote location and told to lay low and stay vigilant. But between a tempting housemate he’s determined to protect and a deadly threat waiting in the shadows, keeping under the radar is proving to be his most dangerous mission yet.

The part-time police chief of a small West Virginian mountain town, Isabeau “Bo” Maran finally has her life figured out. She’s got friends, a dog, and a little money in the bank. Then Morgan Yancy shows up on her doorstep. Bo doesn’t need a mysterious man in her life—especially a troublemaker as enticing and secretive as Morgan.

The harder they fight the intense heat between them, the closer Morgan and Bo become, even though she knows he’s hiding from something. But discovering the truth could cost Bo more than she’s willing to give. And when Morgan’s cover is blown, it might just cost her life.

Genre: Contemporary romance, Romantic Suspense
Series: Stand-alone

The Story: Technically, the story of Troublemaker happens as described in the blurb... but let just say the blurb is a tad more dramatic than the story ^_^; Let just say that keeping under the radar wasn't that dangerous a mission and that Morgan was very forthcoming with Bo LOL.

Morgan Yancy is an operative and team leader in a paramilitary group. Shortly after his return for a mission, Morgan is ambushed and almost dies from complication. Having no idea why Morgan was targeted, his supervisor sends him to a small town in West Virginia for recovery and to set a trap... and because it has the added bonus to annoy the crap out of his ex-stepsister, Isabeau "Bo" Maran.

After a house flip gone back which left her with tons of debts, Now the chief of police of Hamrickville - doing only the administrative part of the job, Bo is finally pulling her life back together... and the last thing she needs is a man who needs tending.

What neither expected was the attraction building as Morgan recovered.


My Opinion: As I've mentioned many times, I was hesitant to pick up Troublemaker based on Ms Howard's last few releases, but the good reviews convinced me... Plus, I was curious to see in what shape Ms Howard is doing her comeback :)

 Overall, I thought Troublemaker was a pleasant read. Ironically, I felt the pacing was very similar to The Obsession by Nora Roberts as in the majority of the story was focused on Morgan's recovery and his cohabitation with Bo, their day-to-day lives and routines. Readers really got to witness Morgan and Bo's relationship, from being two strangers to becoming roommates, then friends and eventually lovers. As a reader who doesn't like my H/H falling into bed and love instantly, I really appreciate the slow build-up. In addition, Ms Howard fleshed out the little town with nice characters - nothing too stereotypical (except for the rich offspring jerk) and Troublemaker had a great dog character, Tricks :) Actually, in many scenes, Tricks completely stole the show LOL. No worries though, as awesome as Tricks was, she didn't get her own POV :P

However, I don't think this pacing was as successful for Ms Howard as it is for Ms Roberts, mainly because the story and the author's voice were quite flat, almost monotonous. It's not a feeling I got while reading the book, but after I was done. For example, I'm sitting here writing this review and am realizing I don't really have a grasp on Morgan and Bo's characters. I don't know what made them the persons they are. Readers were told a lot of things - for example: Bo and Morgan's supervisor detesting each other, Bo being in debt, Bo having friends, Morgan being a leader - but we were shown little and nothing was expanded, developed... and at the end of the day, I wonder what I read ^_^;

There was also a lack of passion, feelings in Troublemaker. The romance was also a bit flat, because Morgan and Bo were already living together. There was no courting, no dating... There wasn't much differences between Morgan and Bo being friends and being in love, except for them starting to have sex. While I enjoyed witnessing the growth of their relationship, I needed it more in the romance department.

Finally, the suspense was a bit anti-climatic. There was some "action" in the book that happened and had nothing to do with Morgan and his ambush.  All I have to say is the "rich offspring jerk" plot is getting old... and in the case of Troublemaker, I was dumbstruck because it's a bit ridiculous ^_^; As for the book's overall suspense plot, it was disappointing because everything wrapped up in less than 20 pages, when the book is 300+ pages. So really, you can't help but wonder "that's it?" and that's why I found everything so anti-climatic.

My Grade; Initially, right after finishing it, I thought Troublemaker was a B- read. Good book with some flaws and definitively better than the last few books by Ms Howard that I've read (and from what I've heard, the ones I've skipped since Veil of Night too). However, the more I reflect on it, the more flaws and faults I find... and I don't think I should overlook that because this was better than the last releases I've read. Therefore, Troublemaker gets a C+ from me. Despite all my complaints, the book was enjoyable - just not memorable.

Monthly Reads: June 2011

I saw two Monthly Recaps on blogland yesterday, so I figured I'm not that late to the party LOL. June was an extremely, extremely busy month for me. First, there were the summer students in my lab to take care, then the clinic day on which we collected the samples. Ugh. We're still not done processing it. Whatever, LOL. And while RWA was a lot of fun and great time, I did not read a lot during. Well actually, I did not read at all LOL.

Given everything going on, I was still able to read 11 books... which wow, I didn't expect LOL. But hey, I'll take it! Here is the list:


1) Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh: B+
Upcoming Review.


2) Magic Slays by Ilona Andrews: A-

3) Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan: C

Love is the Higher Law is about three teenagers/young adults - Claire, Peter and Jasper - who live in New York City and their reaction to the events of 9/11. I find it really hard to summarize this book, because to some extent, it's quite philosophical and so I won't attempt it. Sorry ^_^;

I picked up this book because it was written by Mr Levithan whose writing I really enjoyed previously. I actually had no idea the book was about 9/11 ^_^; I don't regret picking it up, but I have to admit, this is much deeper than what I usually read and as a result, I didn't enjoy it that much. At times, it was very tedious because it's all about their feelings, but at the same time, they don't know how they feel. For example, Jasper knows how he should feel, but he's a bit numb and wonder if it's really wrong not to feel. Another aspect that didn't really work for me is the whole 9/11 event. It's going to sound a bit unfeeling, but the events on 9/11 didn't affect me as much because I'm not American. The newscasts, the patriotism, the aftermath and then, later on, the war. An event such as this one brings together a country... but not the neighboring country... It's like the Japan tsunami earlier this year. It's horrific and the first few days, it's on the news everywhere, but after that... it becomes a distant memory for those who are not involved, touched. It shouldn't, but it is... and 9/11 is the same for me  :( So I think this is another reason why Love is the Higher did not reach me as much.

What I did like about this book is reading about the aftermath of 9/11 - not in a bloodthirsty way. Just, how the characters felt in the few days after where everything was kind of in limbo. How it was, how the community got together, etc. It must have felt so unrealistic. All in all though, this book was not for me. I'm giving it a C for the feelings it brings up and the writing. However, if you want a story about characters, then not much happens :(


4) Hexed by Kevin Hearne: C+


5) Yours to Keep by Shannon Stacey: B-

6) Unfinished Business by Nora Roberts: C

After 12 years of touring the world, Vanessa finally returns home - but it is under bittersweet circumstances. She has just lost her father, who's been her anchor throughout her career as a concert pianist, and as a result, wants answers from her estranged mother. Why did she let him take her away, why has she not contact Vanessa after she left? However, her mother is not the only person she will confront because to her surprise, Brady Tucker is also back in Hyattown. The rebellious boy who once held her heart when she was 16 has followed in his father's footsteps, becoming a doctor, and he's in Hyattown to stay...

Lately, I've really been in the mood for la Nora's writing and though I've been re-reading a lot of her books. I came across Perfect Harmony which is a compilation containing Unfinished Business and Local Hero and so bought it, because I have not read either story. While reading Unfinished Business, I couldn't help but think that it was the ancestor of Carnal Innocence as both heroines are world-famous concert musicians and have difficult relationship with their parents. Anyway, Unfinished Business was a typical Nora Roberts short romance: it has good writing, good dynamics between the characters and the storyline is solid. However, as a whole, the book is not memorable. The vibe Vanessa gives off is very standoffish, especially towards her mother. I can understand her resentment at her mother; however, at the same time, I thought that it went both ways. Why didn't Vanessa reach out to her mother? She wasn't a kid of a toddler when her father took her away. She could have come back way earlier, if she really wanted. Also, it was obvious that Vanessa's father was not innocent in the conflict. Redeeming factor of this book in my eyes were the hero and his father. Love the friendship between Vanessa and Brady's father, very nice... and I thought Brady was a good man. Conclusion? A nice book to read, but not one that will leave a long-lasting impression.

7) Local Hero by Nora Roberts: C-

Local Hero is about a single mother, Heather Wallace, moving in a new apartment building with her son, Radley. Radley quickly befriends their neighbor, Mitch Dempsey, who turns out to be the author of the popular comics "Commander Zark" and Rad's idol. Very quickly, Mitch is falling for the son and the mother.. but Heather's been burn in love before and is not ready to commit. After all, she can take care of her son all on her own.

Very short synopsis, but it pretty  much sums all the storyline. What I liked the most about Local Hero was the hero, Mitch. I liked his nonchalant attitude, the way he befriended Radley. It was really clear he enjoyed Radley's company and let the boy knows. On the outside, he looks irresponsible, but looks can be deceptive :) As opposed to Mitch, I didn't like Heather as much. She definitively was a great, loving mother... but as a woman. I don't know, a bit too suspicious of other people's motives, a bit too standoffish as well. Also, I thought Mitch fell in love with Heather a little too fast. I can understand his friendship to Radley, but his attraction to Heather? Still, I liked that the story was focused on the relationship and that Radley was a part of it :) So once again, solid but a bit bland.

8) The Ghost and the Goth by Stacey Kade: C+

Will Killian is a necromancer who's working very hard at hiding what he is from the ghosts as well as the living and hoping that by the end of high school, he'll be free to leave town and start life afresh instead of being institutionalized. However, that's before one of the popular girl, Alona Dare, is run by a bus and becomes a ghost. Suddenly, he has all the ghosts in the neighborhood asking him to help them out, has to teach Alona how to be a ghost and guide her to the light. At the same time, something fishy is going on and Will kept being stalked by a dark cloud...

Okay, it says a lot that I don't really remember what went on in this book when it comes to the action/mystery part of it. Sigh. However, I do remember liking Will. It's hard to be a necromancer, especially when the power seems to be hereditary, and after his father has committed suicide because he couldn't do it anymore. Will's plan is to finish high school and just go away, some city big enough that the ghost density will be less and where his moves and conversations won't be under the scrutiny of a psychiatrist. It's a good plan, but a little lonely. I also liked that Will was a good son, that he cared about his mother's feeling. In contrast, I didn't really like Alona... Seems to be a theme this month ^_^; I know Ms Kade intentionally wrote Alona's character the way she did, but really. I felt Alona was spoiled and superficial. All she cared was being the in the popular clique and the people's perception of her. Of course, as you read the book, you realize that Alona has more depth and that her family is not picture perfect... However, it's really hard for me to overcome my first impression of Alona :(  And because I didn't like Alona all that much, it definitively affected my enjoyment of the book. Also, I have to admit, I'm not sure where this relationship between Will and Alona is going... I mean, yes, when Will touches Alona, she's solid because he's a necromancer... but can that really turn into a romance?

So not really sure I'll be picking up the next book, although it's been getting good reviews. I did like Ms Kade's writing, her voice. It was engaging and The Ghost and The Goth was a quick read. If she would write something else, I would definitively pick it up :)


9) More than a Mistress by Mary Balogh: B+
Upcoming Review.

10) Veil of Night by Linda Howard: D

Jaclyn Wilde is one of the best wedding planners there is and she's worked with a lot of brides... but none as demanding and unreasonable as Cassie Edwards. When Bridezilla slaps her, Jaclyn is just happy to walk away... but even dead, Cassie is causing Jaclyn problem when Jaclyn becomes a murder suspect. Also, the situation is dicey because the lead investigator turns out to be Detective Eric Wilder, whom Jaclyn just had an one-night stand with the night before...

Okay, since this is a Linda Howard book, it's been reviewed a lot on blogland and unfortunately, I won't be adding anything new. I didn't really have any problems with the H/H, they were okay and actually kind of well developed. However, I just didn't feel any connection to them. What bothers me a lot though is the fact that Jaclyn didn't understand that Eric was doing his job. She was so angry at him and it seemed to me since she did nothing wrong, she didn't have to worry about being questioned. He had to cover all his bases and okay, was a bit rude... but the guy was doing his job and later, explained himself. What more does she want? But I think what bothered me the most though is that she gave him the boot after their night together. Talk about mixed signals.

Another reason why Veil of Night is getting such a low grade is that there was no depth to the story. The case was pretty straightforward - no twist, no turn, and the H/H actually didn't spend that much time together or with other characters... so it was a lot of monologues and very little action. That's not a typical Linda Howard book for me. All and all, Veil of Night just didn't work that well for me.


11) The Ideal Wife by Mary Balogh: B+
Upcoming Review.


Books bought: + a gazillion
Books read: -11
TBR pile: + (a gazillion - 11)


Okay, sorry, my mini-reviews this month suck ^_^; I think I need to write more reviews, get back into a rhythm. Unfortunately, it won't be happening tonight ^_^; Still, I think my writing reflects my impressions of the books so that's what matters :)

Also, I'm cheating here, because I'm not sure I want to know how many books I added to the TBR pile this month, LOL. I mean, do you count books that you got for free? Because technically, I'm counting the books I bought, right? Plus, some books I've already read... so they shouldn't count, right? Also, I came back in July, so do the books count for June or July? Yes, yes, I'm splitting hair here LOL. I know that before I left for NYC, I bought 5 books and that in the month of June, I read 11 books :) Good enough :) By the way, I'm really happy I made it into the double-digits in June. I didn't think so, the reading felt so slow last month... so all is good :)

So that's it for June! Very soon, I'll be working on July LOL. In the meantime, I should be able to squeeze out a few reviews, so stay tuned! :) By the way, any books in the past few months you'd like me to review?

Review: Burn by Linda Howard

I'm still sick, but getting much better. The fever is gone and now, all I have is a stuffy nose and sore throat. The stuffy nose is annoying me. I hate having a stuffy nose, cos well it's stuffy ^_^; The skin around gets irritated and you can't breathe normally. Ugh.

Of course, being sick hasn't stopped me from buying books LOL :) Went to the bookstore and got a couple of interesting ones... such as Drawn in Blood by Andrea Kane, Wicked All Day by Liz Carlyle, Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen, etc. But guess what showed up in-store today? Frostbitten by Kelley Armstrong. Now, I have to find a bookstore that'll put it in the shelves soon... or snoop around to look at carts and boxes. I'm hoping On the Edge by Ilona Andrews will show up soon too.

LOL, I'll let you know if there is any booking adventure :P


Burn by Linda Howard
published by Ballantine Books in July 2009

Money changes everything.

Money certainly changes Jenner Redwine's life when she wins a lottery jackpot. But it also costs her plenty: Her father rips her off and disappears, her fortune-hunting boyfriend soon becomes her ex, and friends-turned-freeloaders give her the cold shoulder when she stops paying for everything.

Flush with new money, Jenner can't imagine ever finding a place in the world of the wealthy. Seven years later, though, she's rubbing elbows with the rich, despite the fact she still feels like a party crasher. Luckily she finds an ally-and a guide to the rarefied realm of privilege-in shy, kind-hearted heiress Sydney Hazlett, who quickly becomes Jenner's confidante and surrogate sister.

When Sydney invites Jenner on a charity cruise aboard a luxury liner, Jenner reluctantly agrees. But while she's expecting-and dreading-two weeks of masquerade balls, art auctions, and preening glitterati, what she gets is more like a Hitchcock movie than a Love Boat episode. Taken hostage by a menacing stranger, Jenner must cooperate in a mysterious cloak-and-dagger scheme-or else. With nowhere to run, and with Sydney's life as well as her own at risk, Jenner is drawn into a game of dizzying intrigue and harrowing danger. But as her panic gives way to exhilaration, and fear of her captor turns to fascination, Jenner rediscovers feelings she hasn't had in years-and realizes she's found a life worth living. If she survives.

Genre: romantic suspense
Series: none

The Story: Jenner Redwine has never felt like she belongs. Then, the unexpected happens and the 23 years old meat packer wins the lottery... Sever years later, a socialite in Palm Spring, Jenner still doesn't feel like she belongs. She probably would leave and discover the world if it wasn't for her best friend, Sydney Hazlett.

Sydney and Jenner are scheduled to participate to a charity cruise and are given the stateroom next to the host, Frank Larkin. He is actually suspected of treason and has planned a meeting with the North Koreans during the cruise in order to exchange information. Cael Taylor is hired by the US government to do some surveillance and find out as much information he can. He and his team embark on the cruise, but they need Jenner's cooperation... which will not come easy.

My Opinion: So, I admit to be pleasantly surprised with Burn. The last new Howard I've read is Cover of Night which was really disappointing... I haven't read the last two releases, because... well I don't know, just didn't feel like it. Burn though intrigued me, especially the winning the lottery plot. Still, I was a little wary and that's why I borrowed the book at the library. Now, I'm thinking I'm going to buy the paperback when it'll be released... :)

So the blurb of the book was made to be quite intriguing... What attracted me to this book was the winning the lottery plot, but at the same time, I was quite worried about the H/H having a case of Stockholm Syndrome ^_^; It can pass in historical, but in contemporary romances, it's harder to make it work in my opinion ^_^; Okay, so what I was worried the most about was whether Cael was really a bad guy or a good guy in disguise... He turned out to be the latter, yay! The great thing is that was disclosed early in the book and readers weren't left to guess. I'm also very glad that the subject of Stolckholm Syndrome was addressed by the H/H.

What did I like about Burn? I quite enjoyed Jenner's character. She was strong, tough, level-head and prickly. On many levels, she reminded me of Sweeney of Now You See Her. She's also very clever and I liked the fact that she was able to figure out things. She was afraid, but didn't panic... she approached things calmly and once she was sure Sydney and her were safe, she started pushing the buttons LOL :) Cael was also an interesting character, but a little bit too unidimensional. He fit the profile of a military, alpha male, but I'd have liked to know a bit more about his background and past. I love their interactions, how both of them were attracted to each other and fighting it. Their dialogues were also very funny... I loved seeing Cael frustrated and annoyed, but still couldn't help liking Jenner :) There's something about a man being exasperated by a woman, but still loving her that I like... I guess I just find it cute LOL :)

I actually quite like the plot; I thought it was interesting and clever. Some parts could have been stronger, but overall it was good. There are some parts Ms Howard did good also not to please the reader... For example, I wished Cael would have told Jenner he was a good guy or has stopped handcuffing her earlier, trust her earlier... but that's my wish. Realistically, it wasn't in Cael's character and seriously, it would not be believable if such a man trust so easily. So that was well done by the author, although I still wished the part would have been shorter LOL :)

There's a lot of parts where I find myself wanting Ms Howard to expand: the secondary characters (there was a whole slew of them!), Cael's past, Jenner's past (for the part where Jenner wins the lottery to be longer, her arrival at Palm Spring), etc. It would have been nice and I think would have made the book a little more complete. Still, Burn was enjoyable, more than I expected. Looking forward to her next release now, though I'll still be a little cautious before getting it :)

My Grade: B.

Re-Read: Open Season by Linda Howard

Before I start my review... did I tell you I got some good news last week?

First, last Wednesday, I won a bookshelf and a 25$ gift certificate - which was great! Thank you very much to Anna and Cindy!! LOL, I was sooo happy and hyped up that day... But the cherry on the sundae? I got an e-mail from my supervisor telling me he was coming back till September 6! Woohoo, this means an additional week of freedom :D Hehehe... Yes, life is good. Strangely enough, I got all these news on August 26... which made it my 1st year anniversary at the lab. Hmmm...

So yes, last week, let say I was extremely happy at the news... Then, it was as if being soo hyper on Wednesday had sapped all my energy for Thursday and Friday. Felt a little down and lethargic... Of course, that didn't stop from a mini book adventure on Friday afternoon :) I had to rush here and there in order to avoid the traffic jam on the way home, but it paid off :) My most exciting new release was Must Love Hellhounds among others as well as 126$ worth of manga ^_^; Perhaps I'll do a post later about it... Now, let's get down to business :)

For this month's re-read, I chose Open Season by Linda Howard... mainly because I've noticed that many have re-read this book for the challenge. A few years back, I glommed on Ms Howard and highly enjoyed most of her backlist. Now, I'm stuck waiting for new releases... although I'm a few books behind. Anyway, I do re-read Ms Howard from time to time, but usually it will be Shades of Twilight, Now I See You, After the Night... or even Sarah's Child. I can't remember the last time I read Open Season (probably when I bought it) and as a result, thought this would be a nice re-read...


Open Season by Linda Howard
published by Simon & Schuster in July 2001

For Daisy Minor, it's open season on men. The small-town librarian is tired of being a good girl, living with her widowed mother and spinster aunt. She wants to experience life and love, to have some fun, to meet a man. Before she starts her personal manhunt, she sets out to reinvent, or at least redecorate, herself. She seeks out a new look to match her new attitude, moves into her own place, and sets out in search of all the fun and adventure she's been missing. Soon she's dancing her nights away, flirting with men, and thoroughly enjoying her new free-spirited lifestyle. Then, late one night, she sees something that no one was supposed to see and finds herself in deadly danger. Suddenly, a killer declares it's Open Season on Daisy Minor, and Daisy's one hope, for life and love, is to find the perfect man to save her life -- and share it.

Genre: romantic suspense
Series: none

The Story: I think most people are familiar with the storyline, but let's give it another go :)

Daisy Minor wakes up on her 34th birthday and realizes how boring her life is. Without knowing, she has become the stereotypical small-town librarian: boring, mousy and spinster, with no prospect to change the situation. Daisy realizes that she wants a husband and children and to achieve her dream, she needs a major change in her life. With the help of family and friends, Daisy moves out and gets a make-over: clothes, make-up and hairstyle... She's all ready to hit the night scene and meet the man of her life, but everywhere she goes, everywhere she turns, she keeps bumping into Jack Russo, Chief of Police, who's definitively not her type and all wrong for her... or perhaps not.

Jack finds it extremely fun to quibble with the librarian. After witnessing her transformation, he knows she's in a market for a man - all the signs are there, and he's first to volunteer... and their relationship becomes even more intense when Daisy witnesses a murder... and some people wants to get rid of her.

My Opinion: I have to say, another reason why I like this Re-Read Challenge is that I get to review older books that I didn't... but I digress. Open Season is a classic Linda Howard in my opinion - the characters, relationship and suspense are all strong with top notch writing and there's always a few laughs. That condom scene? It's just priceless!! LOL, get me every single time. It definitively never gets old LMAO.

I really loved Jack in Open Season. He fits Ms Howard alpha male heroes, but who cares? LOL. A bit of a jerk, a lot determined, he's strong, confident and someone you can trust. He definitively goes after what he wants, but at the same time, there's a caring side to him... almost sweet :P As for Daisy, I liked her... but at the same time, I have to admit, she annoyed me a little. It was hard to believe she was 34 years old - she could really be naive sometimes which I guess is part of her charm... That was kind of okay, but what annoyed me was how quick she was to judge Jack and deduct points. I don't know, it just rubbed me the wrong way... Sigh. However, once Daisy and Jack got together, it was great. Also, I really liked how Daisy reacted when she realized she witnessed a murder. She was calm and collected, didn't panic and listened to Jack's order without arguing with him.

There was a great cast of secondary characters. I loved Daisy's family as well as Todd and Howard. They provided some laughs, but at the same time, it wasn't ridiculous or cliche. Each played their roles perfectly. I have to admit, I'd like for Todd to have his own book or story. I want to know what happens to him :) Even the villains were quite well fleshed without stealing the spotlight.

The story was great. I really enjoyed the relationship between Daisy and Jack. It was fun to see them quibbled and when Jack went after Daisy, mmm. I'd like to be sweep off my feet someday as well LOL. The suspense was good and believable and weaved in the storyline very well. It did take a while before the action picked up, but that was okay. I really enjoyed it, it was clever and there were a few interesting twists.

Overall, this is still a great read, very enjoyable. While reading it, I realized that it's been quite a while since I last read this one, more than I thought. It was great fun to re-visit a classic Linda Howard and I should do it more often :)

My Grade: A-. I never reviewed this book before and it's a been a long time since I first read it... I can't exactly remember what I thought at that time, but I don't think it could be very different from this time :)

July TBR challeng no 1

So already few weeks since the first post ^_^; oups. But there'll be more reviews, I swear! So, an interesting blog that I found was AngieW blog with the TBR challenge. I did sign up for the June one, but got lazy ^^; So to make it up, I'll do 2 for July (or perhaps more). I also like the format of the review... So here we go:

Title: Cover of Night

Author: Linda Howard

Year published: June 2006

Why did you get this book? I got this book because I liked her previous books such as Now You See Her, After the Night, Dream Man and the John Medina's books.

Do you like the cover? Hmmm... not really. I mean, it's much better than regency covers (no offense to anyone) and it's her new "look" cover. I mean, the last few books all had similar cover, but I didn't like any of them. Worse, this year's cover is glazed and so texture is not even fun to touch :P

Did you enjoy the book? Hmmm... it was okay, not the best. I'll probably go re-read other books of her instead of re-reading this one tho.

Was the author new to you and would you read something by this author again? Linda Howard was not new to me, I think I started reading her books last summer. For sure, I'll read her next book, but probably going to wait in paperback instead of buying the hardcover

Are you keeping it or passing it on? It's a hardcover, so I'll keep it :P I would probably have kept the paperback too tho, just because I like to have all the books of a particular author.

Anything else? I've read a lot of comments and reviews after finishing the book and majority of ppl agrees that this wasn't LH greatest book. It's still quite good and superior to some other reads, but because it doesn't reach the high standard that LH has set with her previous books. Cover of Night joins Dying to Please and Cry no More - other LH books that I didn't like.


For those who are interested, this is what I've written at the In Death Forum about the book:

***Warning: There are spoilers in this review. Read at your own risk!***

I don't think that Linda Howard has lost her touch, but this book is another disappointment. Last year's book, Killing Time, wasn't great, but at least, it focused on the main characters. If I have to choose one between those two books, it would be without a doubt Killing Time ^_^;

So what happened? One, the storyline was a bit hard to believe... I know that there are many, many small towns in USA and that, they get it probably worst around mountains - as in they are isolated and perhaps, have really bad cell phone connection, but having a bunch of "hired guns" coming into that little town and do what they did, well.... it's hard to believe and get into it. Basically, those "hired guns" took over the little town: blew the bridge, cut electricity and phone lines and shoot at random ppl. So, it's hard to believe, but I don't read fiction because i want it to be realistic... I could have accepted if the motives were good, but they weren't. Even now, I have difficulties to understand why those "hired guns" went through all that trouble.

Then, the author spent way too much time writing about the villains POV and it killed the book. She should have give some developments to the main characters relationship or to the secondary characters. We need some insight of the villain, yes, but not that much. All the author achieved was to make me skip those parts.

The main characters relationship was okay, but... she went to "still mourning her husband" to "I should be nicer to the shy handyman" to "why am I having those thoughts about the handyman" to "yes, I'll marry you." Too fast, no smooth transitions. In addition, the ending was kind of bleh. The way the "hired guns" are dealt with, Jeffrey Layton and everything. It's like, the main characters had nothing to do with resolving the problem at hand.

anyway, it wasn't bad writing. the setting of the book was actually great. I think the downfall was the planning - what to write, what to focus on, what to develop. that's where she missed the turn this time. In Killing Time, the story was a bit bland, but okay. In this book, the ideas were good and suspens could have been awesome, but she didn't focus where she should have.