Lost Innocence

May 14, 2018
In Gallant’s well-wrought second Siren Cove contemporary (after Buried Truth), a firefighter and an artist discover how love can help them heal from past sorrows. Hunky firefighter Teague O’Dell, grieving the death of his wife, has moved from L.A. to Siren Cove, Ore., to get a fresh start with his six-year-old daughter, Keely. Nina Hutton, his beautiful new neighbor, grew up in Siren Cove and makes a living selling her paintings. Neither of them is looking for a relationship: Nina is still aching from the death of her fiancé, and Teague’s first priority is raising Keely. The initial physical attraction between them evolves into mutual respect and desire as Nina’s kindness toward the O’Dells reveals that her beauty is more than skin deep. Romantic tension intensifies when a miscommunication leads Teague to wonder whether Nina is only interested in a fling. A secondary story involving a sinister person who seems to be stalking Nina adds intensity and will keep the reader enthralled until the explosive conclusion. This satisfying installment is sure to draw new readers to the series. Agent: Dawn Dowdle, Blue Ridge Literary.

June 1, 2018
An artist and her neighbor, a widowed father, face an unlikely assailant in a series of increasingly disturbing crimes in a small Oregon town.When new people moved into the Victorian house across the street from hers in a quiet corner of Siren Cove, the last thing Nina Hutton expected was someone who looked like Teague O'Dell--"Gorgeous was the word that sprang to mind." Having moved from Southern California with his daughter, Keely, Teague is starting afresh--and he and Keely immediately become attached to Nina. An artist, Nina spends a lot of her time at home painting or out running on the beach, where she picks up a piece of litter that triggers a series of events that will cause trouble on both sides of the street. Meanwhile, regardless of their fiery chemistry, Teague and Nina are determined not to pursue anything sexual, for Keely's sake. That could all fall apart as they get to know each other better, especially as Nina comes to Teague again and again for help. With the second book in the Siren Cove series, Gallant (Buried Truth, 2018, etc.) has provided a romantic suspense novel that reads like the romance was developed first and the suspense part added later, having little of the tension of a good thriller. It's more of a single-father romance in need of a conflict. The novel's best quality is the relationship between Nina and Teague; each believes in the importance of communication and honesty, and they acknowledge their mistakes, whether they're overreacting to an event or projecting old fears where they don't belong. But the romantic-suspense label is a misnomer, as the presence of a mentally unstable third narrator is not compelling enough to keep readers remotely curious about how the story will play out.A pleasing romantic story with an underwhelming mystery tacked on.

COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.