Just Before Sunrise
By: Carla Neggers
Narrated by: Cassandra Livingston
Length: 9 hrs and 33 mins
Release date: 05-01-15
Publisher: Audible Studios
Genre: Contemporary Romantic Suspense
My Rating: 4.0 of 5.0 Overall; Story 3.75; Narration 4.0.
Publisher's Summary
Carla Neggers' sizzling novels are loved for their deliciously funny dialogue, electrifying suspense, and heart-stopping romance. Here, the New York Times bestselling author presents a fast-paced, scintillating tale of love, art, and danger....
Annie Payne realizes her dream when she moves to San Francisco and opens an art gallery. But when she accepts a secret commission to bid for a painting going on the auction block, she finds herself thrown into a haunting swirl of events linked to a five-year-old unsolved murder. Who is this secret client?
Marina owner Garvin MacCrae was determined to have the portrait of his late wife, and knows of only one person who would want it enough to outbid him. Could the intriguing art dealer who represented the auction winner hold the key to the mystery of his wife's death? Working together to untangle a murderer's clues, Garvin and Annie strike so many sparks off each other that they could start another San Francisco fire - a four-alarmer fueled by an explosive mix of suspicion, attraction, and love.
©1997 Carla Neggers (P)2015 Audible, Inc.
Review:
I saw that the handful of Neggers' titles I picked up in 2021 on Audible Plus were going to be unavailable after 2/18 so I decided to listen to at least one. I enjoyed this and it reminded me of the author's style of romantic suspense. I hadn't read this author for years and was glad to be drawn right into listening to the story.
Annie, with her unruly rottweiler, Otto, has moved across the states from Maine to San Francisco where she is pursing her dream to have her own art gallery. An eccentric woman who visits Annie’s newly opened gallery turns out to be an undiscovered painter named Sarah. Sarah
engages Annie to bid for a particular painting at a local art auction. Annie is surprised when she gets into a bidding war with a handsome man in the rear of the room. She also experiences a negative response from the other participants and learns after winning the bid that the woman in the painting was the wife of the man who was bidding against her. That is only the tip of the story and Annie soon finds herself embroiled in a family scandal involving a five-year-old, unsolved double murder.
Gavin wanted the portrait of his late wife and suspects there is only one other person who would press the bidding. Has the artist herself, who disappeared after the murders of her father and niece, returned to town? And if so, why now? But Gavin isn’t the only person trying to get to Sarah through Annie. Another, more sinister man is pressuring Annie with intimidation. At least Otto is near by to intimidate back.
Attraction is drawing Annie and Gavin together, but Annie finds herself trying to juggle the emotional traumas of the family members while protecting her new friend, Sarah, and protecting her own heart from a man whose motives are in question. Intrigue surrounds them with the knowledge that a killer is still on the loose and he may have unfinished business.
The suspense in this plot leans more heavily on mystery than physical threats although those do build late in the story. The whole story was lighter, rather than intense. The characters are well developed, and the romance moves quickly which (based on my recollection) is predictable in Negger’s writing style in the 1990s. The art element is not my forte, but I found it interesting. I appreciated that the romance has some umph without being sleazy or unnecessarily graphic. I recommend this to readers who enjoy what I identify as an older style of romantic suspense.
Audio Notes: Cassandra Livingston does a fine job with the narration. I liked her clear, distinct voices and the emotions she provided the characters. The narration added to my enjoyment of the story.
Source: 6/10/2021 Free from Audible Plus Catalog. This qualifies for 2022TBR, 2022Audiobook, 2022Alphabet goals.
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