The Witness

May 7, 2012
In this powerful romantic suspense (Roberts's 200th novel, after Captivated), readers are introduced to a fascinating young woman trying to atone for a tragic act witnessed long ago. Though Elizabeth Fitch was a model daughterâa prodigy en route to med-school at 16-years-oldâher dictatorial mother's "directives" cause Liz to rebel. After meeting some young members of the Russian mafia during the course of a wild night out, Liz witnesses a horrible murder, and is consequently placed in the Witness Protection Program. Twelve years later, when Liz settles on the outskirts of a sleepy Arkansas town as Abigail Lowery, chief of police Brooks Gleason is determined to find out from whence this reclusive newcomer came, and why. Though Abigail keeps to herself, she has been busily putting her hacking skills to use in plotting the downfall of the Volkov organized crime syndicate, whose ruthlessness changed her life. Unrelentingly kind, Brooks slowly breaks down the wall that Abigail has built around herself, and finds his work quickly ratcheted up from cuffing DUIs to helping Abigail find justice. Featuring one of Roberts's cleverest heroines yet, this intricately dramatic book only confirms that Roberts is a master of the genre.

April 15, 2012
A young woman in hiding from the Russian mob faces a difficult decision when she falls in love with a cop. Abigail, 28, lives alone in the bucolic hamlet of Bickford, Ark., in an isolated house, fortified with firearms, a state-of-the-art alarm system and a vicious dog named Bert. When the town's genial police chief, Brooks, suspects Abigail is packing while shopping for gourmet groceries, his curiosity soon morphs into courtship. Although she finds herself drawn to Brooks and to his welcoming, bohemian family, Abigail dares not reveal that her real name is Liz--which is not the only way in which she appears to be Roberts' answer to The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Gifted with an eidetic memory, an IQ over 200 and an affinity for cool, calculated mayhem, Liz/Abigail is a skilled hacker and a highly paid security consultant. In her spare time she investigates the Russian mob and the crooked federal agents who are responsible for her current predicament; whenever possible, she throws virtual monkey wrenches into the mob's Internet scams. When she witnesses an altercation between Brooks and the wastrel son of a local magnate, she's thrust back into the horror of the last time she witnessed a crime. At 16, rebelling against an unloving, controlling mother, Liz and a girlfriend, Julie, visited a Chicago nightclub run by the Russian Mafia, where Ilya, son of gang kingpin Sergei, and Alexi, a cousin, seduced them with Cosmos. Later, at Alexi's lakeside home, Liz was an unseen witness to a hit on Alexi by Sergei's enforcers, who also killed Julie. Managing to escape, Liz was forced to run again when two dirty FBI agents destroyed her safe house and murdered her guards. A person of interest to both the Feds and the mob, she's been on the lam for 12 years. Before they can marry, Brooks must help Liz come in from the cold. A promising start to a series, provided Roberts can flesh out her derivative heroine.

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April 15, 2012

When she was 16, brilliant Elizabeth Fitch rebelled and ended up witnessing a double murder involving the Russian mafia. Betrayed by insiders and nearly killed while in the witness protection program, she knew she couldn't trust the police; it was time to disappear. Twelve years later, still avoiding the Russian mob and reinvented as Abigail Lowery, Liz has carved out a quiet, reclusive life as a freelance computer programmer and security systems expert in Bickford, a small resort town in the Ozarks. But Abigail has attracted both the attention and interest of police chief Brooks Gleason, and he's not about to give up until he discovers what the intriguing beauty is running from. VERDICT A brilliant, slightly socially awkward heroine meets a puzzle-loving, protective hero in a taut, riveting drama that's guaranteed to keep the adrenaline flowing. Another memorable page-turner from Roberts's consistently remarkable pen. Roberts (The Next Always) lives in Keedysville, MD.

Copyright 2012 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from April 1, 2012
Elizabeth Fitch is tired of living her life by her mother's strict rules. So the minute her mother leaves for a medical conference, Elizabeth is out the door and headed to the mall. One new wardrobe, one new BFF, and two new fake IDs later, Liz finds herself at Chicago's hottest nightclub. But before the night is over, Liz will be a witness to murder, when Alex Gurevich, the nightclub owner, is eliminated by two of his business associates. Twelve years later, Liz, now living as Abigail Lowery, has built a new life for herself as a freelance computer-security programmer in Bickford, Arkansas. Abigail's first and only priority is staying one step ahead of the Russian Mob, who has never stopped trying to get rid of the one living witness to Gurevich's murder. The only problem is that Bickford's new chief of police, Brooks Gleason, simply refuses to let her live in peace, and nothing Abigail says or does seems to convince him that she doesn't need his help. When it comes to flawlessly fusing high-stakes suspense with red-hot romance, Roberts is unrivaled, and her latest addictively readable novel is guaranteed to jangle readers' nerves and keep them enthralled long past bedtime. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: The Witness is romance-legend Roberts' 200th published novel (her first was Irish Thoroughbred, 1981). Fifty-one of her books have held the number-one slot on the New York Times best-seller list, and it's a sure bet The Witness will be number 52.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2012, American Library Association.)