HOME BEFORE MIDNIGHT

Author: Virginia Kantra ISBN: 0425211088 8/2006 SUSPENSE Publisher: BERKLEY SENSATION

Years ago, Bailey Wells left behind her small-town North Carolina roots for the high life in New York City, working as a personal assistant to bestselling true crime author Paul Ellis. Now, Ellis and his wife are moving to rustic Stokesville, North Carolina, and Bailey follows them—right back home. When Ellis’s wife is murdered in their new house, Bailey attracts the attention of tough police detective Steve Burke, who cannot share his growing feelings for her as long as she is a murder suspect. But Bailey soon discovers that the violence is far from over. And that to bury a secret from the past, someone is willing to kill again...

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

I don't know what kind of trend this is, but lately the romantic suspense books, while decent enough reads plot wise, stink on the characters. Either the hero or heroine are described as unattractive people, either in the physical sense and/or mental sense, and sometimes in both. Then, almost like an attack of the "maybe I went too far with this one," the author tries to redeem their characters near the end of the book. Unsuccessfully, that is.

HOME BEFORE MIDNIGHT is no different than what I mentioned above. The heroine has the common sense of a gnat, yet she is supposed to be really brainy. She is also beyond unattractive in manner and physical description. Yet, towards the end of the tale, a magical glow surrounds her while jumping on a trampoline and transforms her skinny, narrow self into some luminous woman.

Huh?

Anyway, besides the awkwardness of the characters, the plot is okay and the writing, though stunted at times, is decent. This one isn't hard to read, it's just not a must read.

Shannon Johnson