BENEATH BONE LAKE

Author: Colleen Thompson ISBN: 9780843962437 6/2009 SUSPENSE Publisher: DORCHESTER

Ruby Monroe knows she’s way out of her depth the minute she lays eyes on Sam McCoy. She’s been warned to steer clear of this neighbor, the sexy bad boy with a criminal past. But with her four-year-old daughter missing, her home incinerated and her own life threatened by a tattooed gunman, where else can she turn? Drowning in the flood of emotion unleashed by their mind-blowing encounters, Ruby is horrified to learn an unidentified body has been dredged up, the local sheriff is somehow involved, and Sam hasn’t told her all he knows. Has she put her trust in the wrong man and jeopardized her very survival by uncovering the secrets…BENEATH BONE LAKE

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

BENEATH BONE LAKE is a tangled mess. I can hardly keep up with all the coincidental threads and mysteries. It is like the movie Traffic, where so many different lives come crashing together that no one is left unaffected. It is far-fetched, confusing, and honestly, impossible. But I like it!

Okay, so the plot is out-of-this-world for a romantic suspense read, but it is no less gripping and wild. The main characters are not all that fascinating either, but their supporting cast make them look better. And while I will admit that some of the connections are downright hilarious, they do not distract me from the interplay of emotions, betrayals, and good-old human nature.

In a way, I guess this is a back-handed complimentary review, but I do not mean it to be. I am pointing out the obvious, but also looking deeper to find the gem in the sand.

Shannon Johnson