Top critical review
3.0 out of 5 starsNot what I was expecting
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2019
Well, the other one I bought first, was not what I was expecting; I had a somewhat better idea about this one. Nora Roberts' strength is character development. She really fleshes her characters, makes them come alive. What bothered me about this one was the number of times she described sex between two of the characters. I don't consider this necessary to a story, and I don't like reading it. Oh, she isn't totally explicit. And she does weave a rather colorful picture, and makes it different each time. It's just not what I want to read. The mystery (or whatever you want to call it) behind the situation isn't really given that much attention. In fact a reader gets well into the book before any hints start to get dropped, although I was able to figure out who the culprit was for most of the crimes. The whole thing with the necessary details only takes a few pages at the end.
The other thing that bothered me about this book is that it is very New Age. Not my cup of tea. I especially found the occasional references to Tarot to be most disconcerting and unpleasant. Also, I am no fan of yoga. The female character is quite interesting otherwise, and it's too bad she was spoiled by these details.
This is much more of a romance novel than any kind of mystery story. I am more interested in police procedurals, detective stories, stuff like that. But if you like a romance done in a way that appeals more to adults than teenagers, you might enjoy this book. But after sampling two of hers, I think I'll pass. I don't have enough time to read her other 200 books anyway.
My rating is just my personal opinion. She is truly a skillful writer, and I did really enjoy her character development in general, but it's just not my cup of tea with the problems duly noted.
