COLLIDING FORCES

Author: Constance O'Day-Flannery ISBN: 0765351021 10/2005 PARANORMAL Publisher: TOR

Deborah Stark is a newscaster with ambition to spare and a take-no-prisoners attitude when it comes to love. Her latest whirlwind affair with the darkly sexy Marcus ends with D. never expecting to see him again. Then her mother dies right before Thanksgiving and Marcus shows up on the doorstep of D.’s childhood home in New Jersey--and the ice around her heart cracks a little. But for D., work comes first. She’s deep into a story about corruption throughout the highest levels of the company that owns her Philadelphia television station, and not even the hint of true love can distract her. Marcus has secrets--about the mysterious Foundation he works for, about his ability to shape-shift--secrets D. isn’t ready to hear. But when D. realizes that Marcus is too aware of what she’s investigating to be an innocent bystander, she knows she must accept his truths. For only with Marcus’s help will D. survive long enough to expose corruption . . . and claim love.

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

I liked the prequel to COLLIDING FORCES, SHIFTING LOVE, for its open your mind message(s), freshness, and unique way of finding love. I sure wish COLLIDING FORCES was on that same spiritual path. But, instead of giving the reader something to ponder about society, it preaches. Instead of being fresh, it's cynical and stale. Instead of delighting in the uniqueness of the storyline, I felt like I was enduring a lesson in psychiatry.

The hero, Marcus, is the preacher/teacher that is just too darn soft. I love what he does, I just hate how he does it. He is a bit too much into diagnosing the heroine, D., instead of seducing her, though she is not his current assignment. The subject matter he tries to enlighten D. about interests me, but I soon find my mind wandering from the monotony of it. It makes him a friend, which he says he is, not a sexy lover, which I want him to be, so the romance is hard to get into. No, it doesn't have to always be about sex, but the heroine is modern and way into him while he is standoff-ish. Never met a man like that!

Mostly, this book gives you a look at the world from a totally new perspective, which is always a good thing. It makes you appreciate the things you have and realize that you can do better and change your world. A story like that can never be bad. But, if you are looking for a more romantic read, look elsewhere.

Shannon Johnson