Audio Book Review: Did You Miss Me? By Karen Rose

I really liked this strong, intense thriller with a warm romance.
Did You Miss Me [Audiobook, Unabridged]
Karen Rose (Author),
Marguerite Gavin (Reader)

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.; Unabridged edition (February 5, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1470842572
• ISBN-13: 978-1470842574

LENGTH: 20 hrs and 46 mins

Genre: Romantic Suspense
My Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Book Description
Publication Date: February 5, 2013
New York Times bestselling author Karen Rose is back with her fourteenth pulse-pounding thriller.
Best be nimble, best be quick, I'm right here and you're my pick . . .
The last thing Ford Elkhart remembers is walking his girlfriend back to her car. Now he's lying tied and gagged on a cold, dark floor, with only one chance to escape before he ends up like the bones surrounding him.
Assistant State's Attorney Daphne Montgomery is devastated by her son's disappearance and is immediately convinced that his kidnapping is connected to the white supremacist she's just had jailed for murder. FBI Special Agent Joseph Carter isn't so sure -- especially when he learns that Ford's girlfriend is also missing. Is Ford's abduction payback for Daphne's courtroom victory, or is he a pawn in an even more dangerous game?

Review:
State Attorney Daphne Montgomery is involved in an intense trial bringing a young, white supremacist to justice. At completion of the trial other family members attack. That is scare enough but what really has Daphne trembling is the kidnapping of her teenage son, Ford. At first it is thought that the supremacist group is involved, but the listener learns more about the killer’s motives while bit by bit the clues reveal his personal vendetta against Daphne. She will have to acknowledge a horrifying kidnapping from her own childhood and uncover a terrible betrayal before she is released from this nightmare.

This is a story that pulled me in quickly with a murder and kidnappings. It leads the reader through Ford’s struggle to escape and survive, and then along a dark, chilling race by Daphne and investigators to save other innocent girls.  Woven within the danger is a strong love story. FBI Special Agent, Joseph Carter, fights his own memories as he fights to protect Daphne from a killer and from the pain of losing her son.

There was some unnecessary repetition and some drawn out sections that slowed the pacing a time or two. I was not pleased that Daphne, a strong career professional, became a whining mess when her son was kidnapped. But those issues didn’t stop my enjoyment of the twisting mystery and dark suspense. I also enjoyed the interaction with characters from earlier stories and I was impressed that Ms. Rose incorporated a battle with cancer as part of Daphne's history.

I have only read a couple of Ms. Rose’s works but I really appreciate her ability to develop a good, twisting mystery and twine in a believable and warm romance. ( I hope Clay gets a story for himself.) I recommend this book and this author to readers who love a good romantic suspense and those who love a solid, dark thriller.

Audio Notes: The narrator for this is Marguerite Gavin who is familiar to me from another series I really like. Although I recognized her voice when I first started listening, I was quickly caught up in the story after that first recognition. Ms. Gavin does a good job of distinguishing characters by their voices and conveying their many emotions. She even managed the ugly whininess of Daphne - a character flaw I attribute to the author as it was repeated several times. The truly creepy rendition of “I’m baa-aack. Did you miss me?” adds to the suspense. There were a couple of bad editing breaks that were just a shame and momentarily startled me but for the most part the audio added to the story for me. This would no doubt be a good suspense read but it was wonderful to listen to.

I received this Audio download for review from Blackstone Audio, Inc. through Audiobook Jukebox.

This story is set in West Virgina for my 2013 Where Are You Reading Challenge.

Audiobook Review: No One Left to Tell by Karen Rose

This is romantic suspense just as I like it: sharp characters, tricky, twisty mystery and sensual romance that faces obstacles.  Karen Rose needs to be on my list of authors to collect for romantic suspense!

No One Left to Tell
by Karen Rose
read by Marguerite Gavin

• Listening Length: 18 hours and 49 minutes
• Program Type: Audiobook
• Version: Unabridged
• Publisher: Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Also available in other formats at Amazon, Barnes and Nobles and other distributors.

Genre: Romantic Suspense
My Rating: 4.75 of 5.0

Book Description

Publication Date: June 5, 2012

The addictive Karen Rose serves up her most relentless thriller yet.

A woman is dead and her fiancé is serving a life sentence for a murder he didn't commit. Now PI Paige Holden holds the only piece of evidence that could see him freed, and she cannot take it to the police. With the help of disarming state attorney Grayson Smith, Paige is determined to avenge the murdered woman and set an innocent man free. But Paige has only scratched the surface of a cover-up far deadlier than she could ever imagine. A string of mysterious deaths of women with a shared past sets Paige on the trail of a ruthless killer. The problem is, the killer's on her trail too.

Review:
Paige Holden brought herself back from a physical attack a year earlier.  She is strong and feisty and not about to let anything or anyone hold her down. As a fledgling PI, Paige has barely begun investigating accusations of the wrongful incarceration of a man when the man’s wife crashes a car in front of her.  The woman passes a thumb drive of information and tells Paige that police were chasing her just before the sniper’s final bullet whizzes past Paige’s head.  That gets this book off to a running start that doesn’t slow down until the end.

Paige is afraid to take the information to the police but knows that holding it can be trouble.  That happened to her boss, Clay, who has had his own run ins with local cops.  Paige decides to take the information to the state attorney who prosecuted the innocent man. Although she isn’t positive she can trust Grayson Smith, she takes the plunge after he rescues her from an attacker.

It is quickly clear that someone is trying to stop Paige and Grayson from investigating the case any further. The framed man in prison is only the tip of the iceberg as Paige and Grayson discover a trail of dead bodies.  Paige and Grayson begin to see a pattern as they connect deaths over many years to a charity program sponsored by a wealthy and influential family. Which of the family members might be desperate enough to protect the family by killing witnesses until there is ‘no one left to tell’? And which law officials are part of the corruption?

This is fast paced action, full of blackmail, corruption and murders, not to mention attacks and near-misses for the heroine and hero. The clues build on each other creating a twisting mystery pointing at several suspects. When the perpetrators are revealed the confessions seem almost too easy but they work and all the details are neatly and satisfactorily wrapped up.

I liked both Paige and Grayson as strong and wounded characters.  Paige had her past to hide but Grayson has his own secrets keeping him at arms length. Their attraction pulls them together forcing them to face their personal demons. The family members and friends add good character background.

I realized early on that I recognized the narrator from other audio books. At first I wasn’t sure if I liked her voice for all of the characters but I soon appreciated her ability to express the emotions of the scenes whether fear, reluctance, anger or passion.  Further along I felt that the narration enhanced the excitement and intensity of this great suspense read.  This was a longer listen but I didn't find it dragging or boring in any spots. I like how chapters and sections are identified by place and time.

If you enjoy solid romantic suspense I don't think you can go wrong with this book or this author.

I received this from Blackstone Audio through Audiobook Jukebox. Thank you for a great listen!

This book takes place in Baltimore, Maryland for my Where Are You Reading Challenge. I will also include it with my Audio Challenge List.

Review of I Can See You by Karen Rose, Audio CD

Title: I Can See You Audio CD

Author: Karen Rose
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; 1 edition (July 15, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0-446-53834-5
ISBN-13: 978-0-446-53834-3
Buy Link

Rating: 5.0 / You GOTTA Read

Reviewed by: MarthaE

Blurb: Eve Wilson was the victim of the villain in Don’t Tell, an assault which resulted in disfiguring injury. After the incident, Eve retreated into the virtual realm, seeking refuge from the public eye. Now, with the help of a surgeon, her face is mostly restored and she has returned to the real world. Now a graduate student, her goal is to research the use of the virtual world as therapy to improve self-esteem. But when a string of suspicious suicides connected to her Internet activities leads homicide detective Noah Webster to her door, Eve is forced back into an intoxicating world of Web sites, alternate identities, and secret passions. A world where her experience and expertise are key … and where she becomes a player in a deadly game, trapped in the fight of her life.

Review: This is a gripping suspense and wonderfully sensual romance between two injured but determined souls.

Eve is a very strong, brave young woman – a survivor fighting her way back to life in the “real” world. She has finally come out of hiding where she has been recovering from her own physical and mental injuries. Just as she is making progress and pursing her graduate studies she becomes aware of murders that link back to the virtual study she is in charge of.
 Noah has his own past demons that he is struggling with. At first he tries to resist the pull he feels towards Eve but finally he decides that she is worth risking the possible pain involved with a new intimate relationship. But can he convince Eve to really step out and live a full live instead of a half, safe existence?

Meanwhile, Eve is trying to follow virtual clues for the killer and providing the only leads the special Detective “Hat force” have. That puts her at the point of danger! If Noah wants to have any relationship with Eve he is going to have to keep her alive first!

Although I suspected who the killer was, there were several suspects and two avenues of threats going on that kept the suspense high throughout this book. It was a bit long but I would be concerned that clues, or tension or the nuances of the struggling relationship between Eve and Noah might be lost in an abridged version. The narrator did an excellent job with the various voices and personalities that were portrayed.

This had all the elements I look for in a really top notch romantic suspense – lots of mystery wound in with tortured characters and sensual conflict! I have not read this author before but based on this book I will look forward to reading more of her books!