Declan's Cross

September 9, 2013
Uneven pacing weakens an otherwise solid mystery in Negger's third Sharpe and Donovan novel (after 2012's Heron's Cove). FBI agents Emma Sharpe and Colin Donovan become concerned when their friend Julianne Maroney travels to the Irish village of Declan's Cross to recover from a difficult breakup. Emma, a nun-turned-art crimes specialist, believes Julianne's visit is connected to a famous, unsolved case of art theft that took place at Declan's Cross a decade earlier. After Julianne's new acquaintance in the village, Lindsey Hargreaves, is found dead, Emma and Colin fear that the thief has returned and turned violent. Amorous troubles accompany the investigation: Emma and Colin struggle with their new romantic relationship; Julianne obsesses over ex-boyfriend Andy Donovan; and Sean Murphy, an Irish policeman, fights to earn Kitty O'Byrne's forgiveness. Lovers of travel will particularly enjoy the detailed forays into Irish culture and geography. Neggers's engaging, straightforward prose mostly makes up for a plot that slows to a standstill for more than 100 pages, divesting both the romantic and investigative storylines of any urgency.

September 15, 2013
When Julianne Maroney accepts an invitation to spend time in the tiny Irish village of Declan's Cross, she has no idea that she's stepping into a decades-old mystery, a criminal conspiracy and the sight lines of a killer. Marine biologist Julianne escapes her small town in Maine to nurse her broken heart and visit an acquaintance in Ireland, but when she arrives, the woman, Lindsey, has disappeared. Coincidentally, Julianne's childhood friend and FBI agent--and brother of the man who broke her heart--Colin Donovan is nearby, taking a long break from his undercover responsibilities with his companion, fellow agent Emma Sharpe. At first annoyed at this perceived intrusion on her privacy, Julianne reconsiders when Lindsey turns up dead and the clues connect her death to a decades-old unsolved art theft. There are suspects aplenty, but there are also a lot of equations that don't add up, and since it's a case that Emma's grandfather worked on, she has some insider information and a bit of intuition that tells her all is not as it seems. There are connections to the States, too, and Colin's family starts to work the clues in the U.S., including Andy, his brother, who is in love with Julianne but is determined that she have every opportunity in her career, which he believes is limited in their tiny hometown. Also on the case is a retired policeman who was a suspect in the original crime and whose life was turned upside down by the event. The investigation takes some odd turns, and while the mystery deepens, the one thing that becomes clear is that Julianne is in danger and some questions must be answered to keep her alive. Neggers' Sharpe & Donovan series has developed a wide following, and her books maintain a potent combination of suspense and romance. Well-plotted, intriguing and set mostly in the lushly described Irish countryside, the novel is smart and satisfying, and the paths of three couples growing even more devoted to each other are deftly woven into the suspenseful storyline, though the jumps back and forth from Maine to Ireland can be jarring. Another impressive romantic thriller from Neggers.

COPYRIGHT(2013) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.