What do you think?
Rate this book
Deadly Obsession
The chilling words of a killer: This is just the beginning...
Ten years ago, Lilly Carmichael left town without an explanation, breaking Braden Donnelly's heart. The death of her aunt has brought Lilly home – and face-to-face with memories she thought were long buried. Still getting over a traumatic incident from her work as an NSA agent, Lilly initially dismisses the face at her window as a figment of stress-induced paranoia.
Now the sheriff of Hudson Bay, Braden has spent the past year hunting a sadistic murderer. His investigation is turned upside down when new evidence indicates that Lilly is the killer's next target. Determined to protect the woman he's never stopped loving, Braden must race against the clock to trap a dangerous psychopath – before it's too late...
80,000 words
Ten years ago, Lilly Carmichael left town without an explanation, breaking Braden Donnelly's heart. The death of her aunt has brought Lilly home – and face-to-face with memories she thought were long buried. Still getting over a traumatic incident from her work as an NSA agent, Lilly initially dismisses the face at her window as a figment of stress-induced paranoia.
Now the sheriff of Hudson Bay, Braden has spent the past year hunting a sadistic murderer. His investigation is turned upside down when new evidence indicates that Lilly is the killer's next target. Determined to protect the woman he's never stopped loving, Braden must race against the clock to trap a dangerous psychopath – before it's too late...
80,000 words
225 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 15, 2011
94 people are currently reading
800 people want to read
About the author
Katie Reus
162 books3,240 followersKatie Reus® is the USA Today bestselling author of the Endgame trilogy, the MacArthur Family series and the Deadly Ops series. She fell in love with romance at a young age thanks to books she pilfered from her mom's stash. Years later she loves reading romance almost as much as she loves writing it. However, she didn't always know she wanted to be a writer. After changing majors many times, she finally graduated with a degree in psychology. Not long after that she discovered a new love. Writing. She now spends her days writing paranormal romance and sexy romantic suspense.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
June 19, 2018
-95% suspense/5% romance
-a lot of pushing away
-a lot of pushing away
March 10, 2012
Ten years ago Lilly Carmichael had left Hudson Bay and had broken Braden Donnelly's heart but had now come back home as her aunt had died. Braden was now the town sheriff and had been tracking down a serial killer and it now becomes obvious that both he and Lilly are the connection to the murders and is determined to protect her from this psychotic killer. Lilly was an NSA Analyst and field agent who had been captured and tortured a year ago and was suffering with PTSD.
Thrown back together to try and find the serial killer re-ignited the spark between them but Braden still didn't know why she had to leave town all those years ago and Lilly still doesn't really want to tell him as there was no point dredging up the past.
This was a fast paced with a good balance of romance and suspense and kept us gripped until the end. I don't want to give too much away but I did however guess who must have been the serial killer but just couldn't work out how the author would lay out the finer details. I know that this sounds a little confusing but will become apparent and make sense to the reader as the plot unfolds. I liked both Lilly and Braden although I was a bit cross at Lilly for not telling Braden why she felt she had to leave town. It was a bit unfair to just leave him wondering why and to break his heart but then they were young (18) so understandable.
This is the first Katie Reus book I have read and it won't be the last!
ARC provided by Carina Press via Netgalley
Thrown back together to try and find the serial killer re-ignited the spark between them but Braden still didn't know why she had to leave town all those years ago and Lilly still doesn't really want to tell him as there was no point dredging up the past.
This was a fast paced with a good balance of romance and suspense and kept us gripped until the end. I don't want to give too much away but I did however guess who must have been the serial killer but just couldn't work out how the author would lay out the finer details. I know that this sounds a little confusing but will become apparent and make sense to the reader as the plot unfolds. I liked both Lilly and Braden although I was a bit cross at Lilly for not telling Braden why she felt she had to leave town. It was a bit unfair to just leave him wondering why and to break his heart but then they were young (18) so understandable.
This is the first Katie Reus book I have read and it won't be the last!
ARC provided by Carina Press via Netgalley
June 11, 2013
This is just the beginning....
Okay, I'm not really even sure where to begin with this review. This book was Fan-Freaking-tastic, this I do know!!
Meet Braden
She half snorted."Are you looking for me to stroke your ego?"
"No, but I've got something else you can stroke if you're interested."
He's the sheriff of Hudson Bay. In the last year three murders have gone unsolved, if that's not frustrating enough, a fourth has just been discovered, with a note letting him know that not only is this personal, but the killer is targeting women who have been apart of his life. Knowing that Lilly will be in town soon, he realizes the biggest target of them all will be on her back. With the past they have he wants to avoid her, but protecting her is more important.
This is Lilly
"Braden, my leaving had nothing to do with you. Nothing. I told you that then."
Going back to Hudson Bay is the last thing she wants to do, but there is no avoiding this. Her aunt has passed away and she has to take care of the details. She hasn't been in town ten minutes when already the town is at her door, but when she opens the door it's the one person she wanted to avoid. Braden. She knew she would see him eventually but when he informs her a murderer is on the loose and targeting women in his life she realizes she's going to be seeing a lot more of Braden than she ever expected. To make matters worse, she is dealing with her own demons right now, she can't be sure, but since arriving she's already seen a mask man smiling at her through the window. Things can't get any worse for her...bad thing about it, this is only the beginning.
This story was so different for me. Not only does the story have Braden and Lilly's POV, but the killers as well. Getting into the killers head was....wow. So different. Not only do you get an insight of why he's doing these things, but what he's plotting as well. From the very beginning he had me closing my blinds and double checking that my doors were locked. TOTALLY CREEPY!! He shows up in the very beginning with a knife and a mask on peeking in Lilly's windows even though he didn't wear this kind of mask this is all I could think of...
He was there. Watching her. Even though she couldn't see him, she could feel it straight to her bones. She was being hunted.
There was suspense, secrets to figure out, sexual tension, and twists too. I had so many questions. Who was the killer? Why did Lilly leave Braden all those years ago? Why are Lilly and Braden the targets? When are Braden and Lilly going to get back together?? Omg, I finally had to put it down last night because I was over analyzing everything and driving myself insane. LOL, I will say I had the killer figured out the whole time. I was so proud of myself, I'm not sure how I picked up on it, but I was right, lol. I will warn this is a darker read with some details that may make you a little sqeemish and creeped out, but it had me from the beginning and I loved every minute of it trying to piece all of the pieces together.
Okay, I'm not really even sure where to begin with this review. This book was Fan-Freaking-tastic, this I do know!!
Meet Braden
She half snorted."Are you looking for me to stroke your ego?"
"No, but I've got something else you can stroke if you're interested."
He's the sheriff of Hudson Bay. In the last year three murders have gone unsolved, if that's not frustrating enough, a fourth has just been discovered, with a note letting him know that not only is this personal, but the killer is targeting women who have been apart of his life. Knowing that Lilly will be in town soon, he realizes the biggest target of them all will be on her back. With the past they have he wants to avoid her, but protecting her is more important.
This is Lilly
"Braden, my leaving had nothing to do with you. Nothing. I told you that then."
Going back to Hudson Bay is the last thing she wants to do, but there is no avoiding this. Her aunt has passed away and she has to take care of the details. She hasn't been in town ten minutes when already the town is at her door, but when she opens the door it's the one person she wanted to avoid. Braden. She knew she would see him eventually but when he informs her a murderer is on the loose and targeting women in his life she realizes she's going to be seeing a lot more of Braden than she ever expected. To make matters worse, she is dealing with her own demons right now, she can't be sure, but since arriving she's already seen a mask man smiling at her through the window. Things can't get any worse for her...bad thing about it, this is only the beginning.
This story was so different for me. Not only does the story have Braden and Lilly's POV, but the killers as well. Getting into the killers head was....wow. So different. Not only do you get an insight of why he's doing these things, but what he's plotting as well. From the very beginning he had me closing my blinds and double checking that my doors were locked. TOTALLY CREEPY!! He shows up in the very beginning with a knife and a mask on peeking in Lilly's windows even though he didn't wear this kind of mask this is all I could think of...
He was there. Watching her. Even though she couldn't see him, she could feel it straight to her bones. She was being hunted.
There was suspense, secrets to figure out, sexual tension, and twists too. I had so many questions. Who was the killer? Why did Lilly leave Braden all those years ago? Why are Lilly and Braden the targets? When are Braden and Lilly going to get back together?? Omg, I finally had to put it down last night because I was over analyzing everything and driving myself insane. LOL, I will say I had the killer figured out the whole time. I was so proud of myself, I'm not sure how I picked up on it, but I was right, lol. I will warn this is a darker read with some details that may make you a little sqeemish and creeped out, but it had me from the beginning and I loved every minute of it trying to piece all of the pieces together.
August 22, 2011
Deadly Obsession was my first book by Katie Reus and I really enjoyed it. It had nice characters, a creepy villain and I liked the pace and the voice, it was simple yet engaging the book seemed to flow seamlessly.
Lilly Carmichael comes to town after her aunt died, in what she thinks is a fall but we readers are made aware of at the start is not. There is some sadistic monster gunning for Lilly, wanting her to come back home. Lilly has been through a lot, she's a NSA analyst and also a field agent who was captured a year back and tortured and witnessed the death of her friends, she suffers from PTSD.
Braden is the Sheriff of Hudson Bay and someone seems to be killing the women connected to him so when he hears Lilly's back he goes to see her. Braden and Lilly were high-school sweethearts and they made plans to travel, him to the Marines and more, when one day she just ended it between them saying she had to go, Braden has never understood why alternating between anger and other feelings but knowing something else was the reason.
One of my favorite themes in romance is a well-done reunion book and this is one of those. Very soon things come to light that makes Braden aware that Lilly is the target and no matter what happened between them, or even if she is leaving town, he's not going to let anything happen to her.
I couldn't help but like these two, Lilly regretted leaving him and I was mighty curious to find out why she left and felt Braden wouldn't believe her and when the reason came out it wasn't what I was expecting
The romance between these two was great as well, Braden tries to keep a distance between them even after they kiss but in the end they can't help themselves, the feelings are too strong.
A very well written book.
ARC received through Netgalley
Lilly Carmichael comes to town after her aunt died, in what she thinks is a fall but we readers are made aware of at the start is not. There is some sadistic monster gunning for Lilly, wanting her to come back home. Lilly has been through a lot, she's a NSA analyst and also a field agent who was captured a year back and tortured and witnessed the death of her friends, she suffers from PTSD.
Braden is the Sheriff of Hudson Bay and someone seems to be killing the women connected to him so when he hears Lilly's back he goes to see her. Braden and Lilly were high-school sweethearts and they made plans to travel, him to the Marines and more, when one day she just ended it between them saying she had to go, Braden has never understood why alternating between anger and other feelings but knowing something else was the reason.
One of my favorite themes in romance is a well-done reunion book and this is one of those. Very soon things come to light that makes Braden aware that Lilly is the target and no matter what happened between them, or even if she is leaving town, he's not going to let anything happen to her.
I couldn't help but like these two, Lilly regretted leaving him and I was mighty curious to find out why she left and felt Braden wouldn't believe her and when the reason came out it wasn't what I was expecting
The romance between these two was great as well, Braden tries to keep a distance between them even after they kiss but in the end they can't help themselves, the feelings are too strong.
A very well written book.
ARC received through Netgalley
September 3, 2011
I love reading romantic suspense stories that have a really creepy villain. In this book, we definitely get that. We get his point of view, and he is a very bad dude. He kills, tortures, and gets sexually turned on by all that he does. But when you have a villain this nasty, the hero and heroine have to act accordingly, and this is where the majority of my problems with Deadly Obsession come into play.
Lily Carmichael comes back to her hometown ten years after she left due to the death of her aunt. As the reader, you know the villain killed the aunt, and set up her death as an accident, just to lure Lily back home. Lily was an analyst for the NSA, but a few years later, was recruited as an undercover agent. We also learn she is quite accomplished:
****
“I have a Master’s in criminology, which you might already know. I have experience in prisoner handling, tactical evasive driving. I’ve been on numerous domestic and international anti-terrorism operations working with various joint task-forces involving the FBI, CIA, and the DEA. Uh, I’m also trained in reconnaissance and surveillance, foreign weapons and communications, and I have current DOD top secret clearance. There’s more, but that’s the basics.”
*****
Okay, so Lily is not some innocent, naïve civilian. Based on her description, she knows her stuff. A year ago, she was on assignment in Africa when things went wrong. Held and tortured in a prison cell for some time before being rescued, she is still recovering from this traumatic event. She is in therapy, and dealing with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Braden is the sheriff of Hudson Bay and has been hunting a killer for the past year. The killer has left several victims and now after a woman from a different town, who Braden briefly dated turns up murdered with the same calling card, he realizes all the victims have some sort of relationship to him. Now that Lily is back in town, he must warn her (since they were high school sweethearts) that she could be in danger herself. Braden has never found out why Lily left him so abruptly in their young adult days, and tensions are high between them. But he must keep her safe.
From here the story goes downhill. Quick. Lily sees a masked man at her kitchen window on two different occasions. One time he is even waving a knife around. But, she knows she is suffering from PTSD and she thinks it must be a hallucination. We go through one of those situations where she almost tells Braden about the man at the window, but then decides it must be her PTSD and he would think her crazy. There is man targeting women that have a connection to Braden, and with all of her training, she doesn’t think this is something she should mention? Really? Her other excuse is that none of the other victims called in any stalker threats, so this masked man can’t be real because the other victims would have reported him looking in their kitchen windows. Huh?
It takes getting locked in a coffin by this masked man (he is real! gasp!) for her to admit that she has seen him before.
And then this villain starts killing – like every day. Woman are dropping like flies. The FBI can’t come because they have bigger cases. Huh? Even a woman from Lily’s life back at NSA gets murdered. And yet, Lily is still stunned when she finally realizes her aunt was murdered. Really? If she really had that kind of an education, training, and professional experience, her actions in this book just don’t support that. I also felt the lust that builds up between Braden and Lily didn’t feel appropriate. With ALL the murders, and the absolute gruesome nature of the murders, how can they even feel heat between them? Lily is just dense. Like after someone breaks into her aunts house (this is after several murders)
****
She hated the fact that someone had just broken into her aunt’s house with seemingly no motive but she really hated that she’d created this chasm between her and Braden. The ache between her legs wasn’t going away any time soon and neither was the growing ache in her heart.
****
Hello! Someone breaks into your aunt’s house – where you are staying. Where your aunt was murdered – and there is no motive? And all you can’t think about is “the chasm” with Braden. Makes no sense.
The villain did surprise me. I liked how he turned out to be. But it was a little too late to save the story for me.
Rating: D
Lily Carmichael comes back to her hometown ten years after she left due to the death of her aunt. As the reader, you know the villain killed the aunt, and set up her death as an accident, just to lure Lily back home. Lily was an analyst for the NSA, but a few years later, was recruited as an undercover agent. We also learn she is quite accomplished:
****
“I have a Master’s in criminology, which you might already know. I have experience in prisoner handling, tactical evasive driving. I’ve been on numerous domestic and international anti-terrorism operations working with various joint task-forces involving the FBI, CIA, and the DEA. Uh, I’m also trained in reconnaissance and surveillance, foreign weapons and communications, and I have current DOD top secret clearance. There’s more, but that’s the basics.”
*****
Okay, so Lily is not some innocent, naïve civilian. Based on her description, she knows her stuff. A year ago, she was on assignment in Africa when things went wrong. Held and tortured in a prison cell for some time before being rescued, she is still recovering from this traumatic event. She is in therapy, and dealing with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Braden is the sheriff of Hudson Bay and has been hunting a killer for the past year. The killer has left several victims and now after a woman from a different town, who Braden briefly dated turns up murdered with the same calling card, he realizes all the victims have some sort of relationship to him. Now that Lily is back in town, he must warn her (since they were high school sweethearts) that she could be in danger herself. Braden has never found out why Lily left him so abruptly in their young adult days, and tensions are high between them. But he must keep her safe.
From here the story goes downhill. Quick. Lily sees a masked man at her kitchen window on two different occasions. One time he is even waving a knife around. But, she knows she is suffering from PTSD and she thinks it must be a hallucination. We go through one of those situations where she almost tells Braden about the man at the window, but then decides it must be her PTSD and he would think her crazy. There is man targeting women that have a connection to Braden, and with all of her training, she doesn’t think this is something she should mention? Really? Her other excuse is that none of the other victims called in any stalker threats, so this masked man can’t be real because the other victims would have reported him looking in their kitchen windows. Huh?
It takes getting locked in a coffin by this masked man (he is real! gasp!) for her to admit that she has seen him before.
And then this villain starts killing – like every day. Woman are dropping like flies. The FBI can’t come because they have bigger cases. Huh? Even a woman from Lily’s life back at NSA gets murdered. And yet, Lily is still stunned when she finally realizes her aunt was murdered. Really? If she really had that kind of an education, training, and professional experience, her actions in this book just don’t support that. I also felt the lust that builds up between Braden and Lily didn’t feel appropriate. With ALL the murders, and the absolute gruesome nature of the murders, how can they even feel heat between them? Lily is just dense. Like after someone breaks into her aunts house (this is after several murders)
****
She hated the fact that someone had just broken into her aunt’s house with seemingly no motive but she really hated that she’d created this chasm between her and Braden. The ache between her legs wasn’t going away any time soon and neither was the growing ache in her heart.
****
Hello! Someone breaks into your aunt’s house – where you are staying. Where your aunt was murdered – and there is no motive? And all you can’t think about is “the chasm” with Braden. Makes no sense.
The villain did surprise me. I liked how he turned out to be. But it was a little too late to save the story for me.
Rating: D
August 15, 2011
I made the mistake of starting this book late last night. I could not put it down and stayed up half the night reading it...so good!!! Full review to come!
Full review reposted from my Smitten with Reading blog...
My Review:
This book had everything that I love in a good romantic suspense... a really evil bad guy, a great couple with lots of sexual tension, well-plotted suspense with a few twists and surprises, and a wonderful HEA.
Lilly & Braden were high school sweethearts, but she broke off their romance suddenly and unexpectedly 10 years ago. Braden never understood why and has never had the chance to see her and find out why it happened. It's obvious from the very beginning that there was more to their breakup than Lilly ever admitted to and 10 years later both these two still have really strong feelings for each other.
There's a lot going on here. A year ago, Lilly was undercover and her team was captured, tortured, and most of them murdered in Africa. She is still dealing with the PTSD from that so when she sees someone stalking her, she thinks that it's just an effect of PTSD hallucinations. It turns out that there's a serial killer on the loose killing women in Braden's life and the killer definitely has Lilly in his sites.
As sheriff, Braden has no choice, but to move in and spend all his time with Lilly so that he can protect her. It's a well-used story arc, but that's because it's so effective. I love it...you know all those unresolved issues are going to come to a head when two people are forced to spend time together 24/7.
They may have been kids the last time that they saw each other, but that chemical spark is still there for both Braden & Lilly. Even more importantly, their friendship is still an easy natural thing once they get past their hurt feelings and awkwardness. These are two people that just "fit" together. I really liked the fact that Lilly has had such a traumatic last year. I think that it gave her character a vulnerability that was believable so that she could lean on Braden maybe a bit more than she would have normally. That closeness was needed to help make the sparks fly between these two.
The suspense was really good. I had an idea of who the bad guy might be just from an inference made early in the book, but he is so incredibly evil and creepy...it makes for a great suspense line with lots of twists.
Overall, I just really enjoyed reading this book. It captured my attention and wouldn't let me go until I finished the book (which just happened to be WAY later than my normal bedtime.) An absolutely fabulous read.
Full review reposted from my Smitten with Reading blog...
My Review:
This book had everything that I love in a good romantic suspense... a really evil bad guy, a great couple with lots of sexual tension, well-plotted suspense with a few twists and surprises, and a wonderful HEA.
Lilly & Braden were high school sweethearts, but she broke off their romance suddenly and unexpectedly 10 years ago. Braden never understood why and has never had the chance to see her and find out why it happened. It's obvious from the very beginning that there was more to their breakup than Lilly ever admitted to and 10 years later both these two still have really strong feelings for each other.
There's a lot going on here. A year ago, Lilly was undercover and her team was captured, tortured, and most of them murdered in Africa. She is still dealing with the PTSD from that so when she sees someone stalking her, she thinks that it's just an effect of PTSD hallucinations. It turns out that there's a serial killer on the loose killing women in Braden's life and the killer definitely has Lilly in his sites.
As sheriff, Braden has no choice, but to move in and spend all his time with Lilly so that he can protect her. It's a well-used story arc, but that's because it's so effective. I love it...you know all those unresolved issues are going to come to a head when two people are forced to spend time together 24/7.
They may have been kids the last time that they saw each other, but that chemical spark is still there for both Braden & Lilly. Even more importantly, their friendship is still an easy natural thing once they get past their hurt feelings and awkwardness. These are two people that just "fit" together. I really liked the fact that Lilly has had such a traumatic last year. I think that it gave her character a vulnerability that was believable so that she could lean on Braden maybe a bit more than she would have normally. That closeness was needed to help make the sparks fly between these two.
The suspense was really good. I had an idea of who the bad guy might be just from an inference made early in the book, but he is so incredibly evil and creepy...it makes for a great suspense line with lots of twists.
Overall, I just really enjoyed reading this book. It captured my attention and wouldn't let me go until I finished the book (which just happened to be WAY later than my normal bedtime.) An absolutely fabulous read.
August 9, 2011
This is my very favorite Katie Reus book, hands down. The villain is so evil and scary, and the chemistry between the hero and heroine sizzles. I love how she portrays her heroes, alpha yet protective and loving.
I hope she has plans to write more romantic suspense books in the future along with her shifter paranormals!
I hope she has plans to write more romantic suspense books in the future along with her shifter paranormals!
October 16, 2011
Too Many Ills and Imps
Lilly Carmichael left Hudson Bay shortly after high school graduation ten years ago. Her leaving was a persistent source of pain and confusion to Braden Donnelly. He just couldn't understand what had gone so wrong with her, or why she'd run and never once been back. He had loved her. He'd thought she loved him. They had been planning a future together just days before her abrupt departure. Even ten years later, he still hadn't come to terms with losing her.
But ten years is a long time. Lilly is an NSA agent who is just a year beyond an overseas undercover assignment that put her life in serious danger and ended with her brutal torture at the hands of terrorists. She bears the physical and emotional scars of a nightmare most couldn't comprehend. Braden is still a hometown boy, but he's sheriff of Hudson Bay now, and he's spent the last year dealing with more than just small town crime. He's had the brutal slayings of several women to deal with, the most recent victim erasing all doubt that somehow, for some reason, a vicious serial killer was targeting women with whom Braden had a personal connection.
Then Lilly's aunt dies and Lilly returns to Hudson Bay for the first time in a decade.
Braden knew seeing Lilly again would be difficult, but he hadn't come close to comprehending the full scope of the effect her return would have on him, his life, or the case he was working. Not long after she's back in town it becomes tragically clear that Braden was wrong. He isn't the primary focus of a serial killer's sick games. Lilly is. And the killer is obviously tired of waiting for his intended target to come to him...so he's taking the game to her.
Over Braden's dead body if necessary.
~*~
I struggled hard with this romantic suspense by Reus. My initial impression of Deadly Obsession wasn't bad. It started out as a fairly standard read for the genre. I liked the premise, and the killer's initial introduction was suitably horrifying. Then the story started to dig in and expand and I started tripping over some pretty big ills and imps.
Ills and imps - the illogicals, the implausibles, and the improbables that make maintaining a willing suspension of disbelief impossible for me as a reader. Too many ills and imps and the whole book could be ruined for me. Unfortunately, in this book, there were far too many ills and imps, and they seemed even worse when taken in concert with a veritable Molotov cocktail of awful actions and decisions that surrounded Lilly's behavior leading up to and including the final conflict and big reveal.
I started to get nervous very early into the book, when Lilly too-quickly chalked up the masked man she saw at her window as a PTSD-induced hallucination. The first time she sees him she's unaware of the murders that have been going on, so I wrote that one off, but after she finds out that not only is there a killer on the loose, but he's targeting women who are connected to Braden, I could no longer forgive her failure to mention it. The justification she used as a reason to keep quiet was a combination of misplaced pride and illogical assumption that really rubbed me wrong. None of the other brutally raped and slaughtered women reported being stalked beforehand, so of course she was just seeing things.
I'm no NSA undercover agent with a degree in criminology, but even I know that a killer's stalking rituals can change when he's escalating, as can his MO, or if one victim has a different significance to him than others. There are a myriad of factors. Disregarding every single one of them doesn't lend credibility to the characters' actions, intellect, or competence. And both Braden's and Lilly's propensity to assume facts based on illogical supposition throughout the whole book didn't help the matter.
And the problems had just begun. Lilly was included in the active investigation and was shown critical evidence long before readers had been made aware that she was in any way qualified or had any background in criminology and after it had been made very clear that everyone thought she was nothing more than an NSA analyst.
I have no idea what an NSA agent is trained to do, neither what someone in that position would be qualified to handle on domestic soil nor what her experience would need to be to become an undercover agent, so the way Braden included her in the investigation seemed wildly inappropriate and unlawful. Having crime scene technicians who know her as nothing more than an NSA analyst ask for her input as a fresh pair of eyes at both an autopsy and a crime scene struck me as so implausible that the investigative aspects of the story seemed ridiculous.
The relationship plot threads weren't able to help the limping serial killer plot threads, either. The characters were two dimensional at best, their development centering around the current events and a past angst that was cloaked in secrecy for far too long for my tastes. And considering that past was ten years prior to the events of the story, the constant mentions of it throughout the book were repetitive and very overwritten, limiting other important character development. I have no idea what Lilly and Braden are like as individuals beyond the trauma of their current situation. Not addressing that in any way limits their relationship to physical lust and the emotional immaturity of the teenagers they were when they were last together. I didn't find that appealing.
What's ironic is that despite every one of the ills, imps, and other assorted issues with story content, not all of which I've mentioned here out of concern for the length of this review, I still wasn't totally unhappy with the story. Like I mentioned, I liked the concept of the plot and the bad guy was a really, really bad guy - which is the sort of villain I favor. I also thought his identity was both a very nice surprise (uh...relative to the plot, not that he was in any way nice as a character) and very well conceived and executed in the book.
What killed it for me completely, though, were Lilly's actions leading up to the final conflict and big reveal. She showed off a level of stupidity that made B-movie slasher victims look like card-carrying members of Mensa. Word to the wise, do not slip away from police, letting no one know where you are, to go off on your own in the dead of night to hunt a serial killer who wants nothing more than to make you his next mutilated and violated corpse. And if you're galactically stupid enough to do that, absolutely do not take a rifle with you, then leave it leaning against a tree, fully loaded, while you go on without it. This may come as a shock, but as it turns out, that tends to end badly.
There just wasn't anything that could save this book for me after that. It's a shame, though, because I have no complaints with Reus' writing mechanics nor her ability to conceive of vicious psychopaths and portray them with elegant cruelty. Unfortunately, the things that tripped up Deadly Obsession for me were the building blocks of the story, the story elements and threads that connected them, not the manner in which that story was told.
Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Carina Press via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
Lilly Carmichael left Hudson Bay shortly after high school graduation ten years ago. Her leaving was a persistent source of pain and confusion to Braden Donnelly. He just couldn't understand what had gone so wrong with her, or why she'd run and never once been back. He had loved her. He'd thought she loved him. They had been planning a future together just days before her abrupt departure. Even ten years later, he still hadn't come to terms with losing her.
But ten years is a long time. Lilly is an NSA agent who is just a year beyond an overseas undercover assignment that put her life in serious danger and ended with her brutal torture at the hands of terrorists. She bears the physical and emotional scars of a nightmare most couldn't comprehend. Braden is still a hometown boy, but he's sheriff of Hudson Bay now, and he's spent the last year dealing with more than just small town crime. He's had the brutal slayings of several women to deal with, the most recent victim erasing all doubt that somehow, for some reason, a vicious serial killer was targeting women with whom Braden had a personal connection.
Then Lilly's aunt dies and Lilly returns to Hudson Bay for the first time in a decade.
Braden knew seeing Lilly again would be difficult, but he hadn't come close to comprehending the full scope of the effect her return would have on him, his life, or the case he was working. Not long after she's back in town it becomes tragically clear that Braden was wrong. He isn't the primary focus of a serial killer's sick games. Lilly is. And the killer is obviously tired of waiting for his intended target to come to him...so he's taking the game to her.
Over Braden's dead body if necessary.
~*~
I struggled hard with this romantic suspense by Reus. My initial impression of Deadly Obsession wasn't bad. It started out as a fairly standard read for the genre. I liked the premise, and the killer's initial introduction was suitably horrifying. Then the story started to dig in and expand and I started tripping over some pretty big ills and imps.
Ills and imps - the illogicals, the implausibles, and the improbables that make maintaining a willing suspension of disbelief impossible for me as a reader. Too many ills and imps and the whole book could be ruined for me. Unfortunately, in this book, there were far too many ills and imps, and they seemed even worse when taken in concert with a veritable Molotov cocktail of awful actions and decisions that surrounded Lilly's behavior leading up to and including the final conflict and big reveal.
I started to get nervous very early into the book, when Lilly too-quickly chalked up the masked man she saw at her window as a PTSD-induced hallucination. The first time she sees him she's unaware of the murders that have been going on, so I wrote that one off, but after she finds out that not only is there a killer on the loose, but he's targeting women who are connected to Braden, I could no longer forgive her failure to mention it. The justification she used as a reason to keep quiet was a combination of misplaced pride and illogical assumption that really rubbed me wrong. None of the other brutally raped and slaughtered women reported being stalked beforehand, so of course she was just seeing things.
I'm no NSA undercover agent with a degree in criminology, but even I know that a killer's stalking rituals can change when he's escalating, as can his MO, or if one victim has a different significance to him than others. There are a myriad of factors. Disregarding every single one of them doesn't lend credibility to the characters' actions, intellect, or competence. And both Braden's and Lilly's propensity to assume facts based on illogical supposition throughout the whole book didn't help the matter.
And the problems had just begun. Lilly was included in the active investigation and was shown critical evidence long before readers had been made aware that she was in any way qualified or had any background in criminology and after it had been made very clear that everyone thought she was nothing more than an NSA analyst.
I have no idea what an NSA agent is trained to do, neither what someone in that position would be qualified to handle on domestic soil nor what her experience would need to be to become an undercover agent, so the way Braden included her in the investigation seemed wildly inappropriate and unlawful. Having crime scene technicians who know her as nothing more than an NSA analyst ask for her input as a fresh pair of eyes at both an autopsy and a crime scene struck me as so implausible that the investigative aspects of the story seemed ridiculous.
The relationship plot threads weren't able to help the limping serial killer plot threads, either. The characters were two dimensional at best, their development centering around the current events and a past angst that was cloaked in secrecy for far too long for my tastes. And considering that past was ten years prior to the events of the story, the constant mentions of it throughout the book were repetitive and very overwritten, limiting other important character development. I have no idea what Lilly and Braden are like as individuals beyond the trauma of their current situation. Not addressing that in any way limits their relationship to physical lust and the emotional immaturity of the teenagers they were when they were last together. I didn't find that appealing.
What's ironic is that despite every one of the ills, imps, and other assorted issues with story content, not all of which I've mentioned here out of concern for the length of this review, I still wasn't totally unhappy with the story. Like I mentioned, I liked the concept of the plot and the bad guy was a really, really bad guy - which is the sort of villain I favor. I also thought his identity was both a very nice surprise (uh...relative to the plot, not that he was in any way nice as a character) and very well conceived and executed in the book.
What killed it for me completely, though, were Lilly's actions leading up to the final conflict and big reveal. She showed off a level of stupidity that made B-movie slasher victims look like card-carrying members of Mensa. Word to the wise, do not slip away from police, letting no one know where you are, to go off on your own in the dead of night to hunt a serial killer who wants nothing more than to make you his next mutilated and violated corpse. And if you're galactically stupid enough to do that, absolutely do not take a rifle with you, then leave it leaning against a tree, fully loaded, while you go on without it. This may come as a shock, but as it turns out, that tends to end badly.
There just wasn't anything that could save this book for me after that. It's a shame, though, because I have no complaints with Reus' writing mechanics nor her ability to conceive of vicious psychopaths and portray them with elegant cruelty. Unfortunately, the things that tripped up Deadly Obsession for me were the building blocks of the story, the story elements and threads that connected them, not the manner in which that story was told.
Disclosure: An ARC of this book was provided to me by Carina Press via NetGalley. This rating, review, and all included thoughts and comments are my own.
~*~*~*~
Reviewed for One Good Book Deserves Another.
August 12, 2011
Deadly Obsession by Katie Reus is my first taste of her work and I think I am going to end up becoming an instant fan if what she can deliver with the rest of her stories is as good as this one turned out to be. Deadly Obsession is a romantic suspense that is a trifle bit dark with some vivid images of violence that makes this book exceptional in terms of the realistic edge the story delivers.
Deadly Obsession is set in the small town of Hudson Bay where a vicious and sadistic serial killer has been targeting victims too close to comfort to the town's sheriff Braden Donnelly. Braden's entire family apart from his grandmother had all been killed in a plane crash three years back the time around which he had quit the Marines and returned home, tired of seeing the face of death each and every day. Braden has a feeling that the killer is trying to send a message across to him though he has no idea who in his town would hold that much of a grudge against him.
Lilly Carmichael left her hometown ten years back and never looked back. An undercover agent for NSA, Lilly suffers from PTSD after a horrific incident in Africa that still plagues her with vivid nightmares. Lilly had left behind her Aunt Debra and her first boyfriend Braden who had been her first everything when she had left town. Though relations between her and her aunt who had brought her up since she was five years old had remained solid, Braden and Lilly had parted on bad terms and Lilly knows that Braden had been as much heartbroken as she had been when she left him behind. Guarding the secret of the actual reason why she had fled town seems to be the only way she can keep the now much more mature and lethal version of Braden whose intense stare still betrays the need he feels for her.
Braden feels suckerpunched by the intense want that courses through him as he sees Lilly for the first time in ten years. All his relationships since then had never even come close to making him feel even half as much of what he feels for Lilly though Braden would rather die than admit the fact to the woman who has continued to haunt his dreams even from afar.
It is Aunt Debra's death that brings Lilly back home, a death that was staged by the killer who has every intention of wreaking havoc on Lilly and Braden's emotions and lives, a fact he drives home by the sheer number of murders that he commits within such a short span of time. With the clock ticking towards an end that Braden would not have Lilly end up as the victim, both Lilly and Braden remain unaware until towards the very end just how personal and how close to home the threat against them emerges from.
Deadly Obsession turned out to be a fantastic read that held my undivided attention from page 1. There was never a dull moment nor a minute when I wished the story would continue on a different track and speed than with the one it was proceeding. Braden is such a sexy, compelling and intense hero that one cannot help but be drawn towards him even from the very first encounter. Hiding in his heart a wealth of pain because of all the loved ones he had lost, Braden is not at all ready to make himself vulnerable yet again to the only woman who still manages to make his heart beat faster by her mere presence. Its his protective nature without needless coddling and his take-charge attitude when it comes to the matters of the heart that lodged him permanently in my heart as I practically devoured this book.
Lilly was a heroine I reserved my judgement on until the very last minute, until the story brought to light exactly why she had left the way she did ten years back. Even before that, I couldn't help but admire her courage and need to dig deeper to find out who was targeting innocent women in her hometown in the killer's quest to make Lilly and Braden squirm in utter helplessness as the body count continues to grow.
All the side characters in the novel brought that something extra into the story that always makes a book that much more pleasing to lose oneself in and worthy of a mention is the quirky character of Hailey Banks, the county coroner. If Katie Reus were ever to continue this as a series, I would dearly love to see her story come out.
Dark and edgy with the bite of red hot passion sizzling through the pages, Deadly Obsession is a romantic suspense that delivers on all counts.
Memorable Quotes
His masculine scent and strong embrace definitely hadn’t changed. He murmured soothing words against her hair and she let herself relax. When his familiar male scent washed over her with startling intensity, she cursed her traitorous body. Her nipples tightened against her bra when he stroked a soft hand down her spine. With one gentle touch her dormant libido flared to life.
When he dipped his head toward her breasts, she arched her back, giving him better access. In measured movements, he licked and laved one breast while palming the other. His calloused palm over her sensitive skin sent erotic vibrations to all her nerve endings.
This was a side to him she’d never seen. His whole body shook with need and the dark look in his eyes was startling. Not that she was afraid he’d hurt her. He just looked…hungry.
Rating=4.5/5
Original Review posted on MBR's Realm of Romance
Deadly Obsession is set in the small town of Hudson Bay where a vicious and sadistic serial killer has been targeting victims too close to comfort to the town's sheriff Braden Donnelly. Braden's entire family apart from his grandmother had all been killed in a plane crash three years back the time around which he had quit the Marines and returned home, tired of seeing the face of death each and every day. Braden has a feeling that the killer is trying to send a message across to him though he has no idea who in his town would hold that much of a grudge against him.
Lilly Carmichael left her hometown ten years back and never looked back. An undercover agent for NSA, Lilly suffers from PTSD after a horrific incident in Africa that still plagues her with vivid nightmares. Lilly had left behind her Aunt Debra and her first boyfriend Braden who had been her first everything when she had left town. Though relations between her and her aunt who had brought her up since she was five years old had remained solid, Braden and Lilly had parted on bad terms and Lilly knows that Braden had been as much heartbroken as she had been when she left him behind. Guarding the secret of the actual reason why she had fled town seems to be the only way she can keep the now much more mature and lethal version of Braden whose intense stare still betrays the need he feels for her.
Braden feels suckerpunched by the intense want that courses through him as he sees Lilly for the first time in ten years. All his relationships since then had never even come close to making him feel even half as much of what he feels for Lilly though Braden would rather die than admit the fact to the woman who has continued to haunt his dreams even from afar.
It is Aunt Debra's death that brings Lilly back home, a death that was staged by the killer who has every intention of wreaking havoc on Lilly and Braden's emotions and lives, a fact he drives home by the sheer number of murders that he commits within such a short span of time. With the clock ticking towards an end that Braden would not have Lilly end up as the victim, both Lilly and Braden remain unaware until towards the very end just how personal and how close to home the threat against them emerges from.
Deadly Obsession turned out to be a fantastic read that held my undivided attention from page 1. There was never a dull moment nor a minute when I wished the story would continue on a different track and speed than with the one it was proceeding. Braden is such a sexy, compelling and intense hero that one cannot help but be drawn towards him even from the very first encounter. Hiding in his heart a wealth of pain because of all the loved ones he had lost, Braden is not at all ready to make himself vulnerable yet again to the only woman who still manages to make his heart beat faster by her mere presence. Its his protective nature without needless coddling and his take-charge attitude when it comes to the matters of the heart that lodged him permanently in my heart as I practically devoured this book.
Lilly was a heroine I reserved my judgement on until the very last minute, until the story brought to light exactly why she had left the way she did ten years back. Even before that, I couldn't help but admire her courage and need to dig deeper to find out who was targeting innocent women in her hometown in the killer's quest to make Lilly and Braden squirm in utter helplessness as the body count continues to grow.
All the side characters in the novel brought that something extra into the story that always makes a book that much more pleasing to lose oneself in and worthy of a mention is the quirky character of Hailey Banks, the county coroner. If Katie Reus were ever to continue this as a series, I would dearly love to see her story come out.
Dark and edgy with the bite of red hot passion sizzling through the pages, Deadly Obsession is a romantic suspense that delivers on all counts.
Memorable Quotes
His masculine scent and strong embrace definitely hadn’t changed. He murmured soothing words against her hair and she let herself relax. When his familiar male scent washed over her with startling intensity, she cursed her traitorous body. Her nipples tightened against her bra when he stroked a soft hand down her spine. With one gentle touch her dormant libido flared to life.
When he dipped his head toward her breasts, she arched her back, giving him better access. In measured movements, he licked and laved one breast while palming the other. His calloused palm over her sensitive skin sent erotic vibrations to all her nerve endings.
This was a side to him she’d never seen. His whole body shook with need and the dark look in his eyes was startling. Not that she was afraid he’d hurt her. He just looked…hungry.
Rating=4.5/5
Original Review posted on MBR's Realm of Romance
September 4, 2016
2.5 stars, good but could be so much better.
I was expecting a classic twist that I love plus some drama but in the end, the heroine's way too much in my opinion. I don't really like her reckless behavior and her negativity. I also feel like the Hero didn't really match my standards.
The basic plot is good, great even. But the execution is a wee bit sloppy. Look forward to read more books from Katie Reus though because I quite enjoy her writing. ;)
I was expecting a classic twist that I love plus some drama but in the end, the heroine's way too much in my opinion. I don't really like her reckless behavior and her negativity. I also feel like the Hero didn't really match my standards.
The basic plot is good, great even. But the execution is a wee bit sloppy. Look forward to read more books from Katie Reus though because I quite enjoy her writing. ;)
March 5, 2015
*3.5 stars*
August 2, 2011
http://obsessionwithbooks.blogspot.com
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Deadly Obsession was kindly provided to me by Netgalley for Carina Press.
Lilly Carmichael, an NSA agent is recovering from a traumatic incident incurred through her job as an analyst which left her with devastating injuries and PTSD. After receiving news of her aunt’s death she takes a few weeks leave and returns to the place she was raised, Hudson Bay to finalize the preparations for the funeral/wake.
Lilly begins to question her sanity when she sees a masked man through the window, thinking she is hallucinating she brushes it off until she finds out a serial killer could possibly be targeting the local women.
Sheriff Braden Donnelly was left heartbroken when Lilly left him as a teen with no more than a kiss on the cheek and a wave good-bye. A former marine, now the town Sheriff he is investigating the murders around town that seem to have a direct connection to Lilly as well as himself.
Braden’s first instincts are to protect Lilly, they have spent a decade apart but there is no doubting the attraction and chemistry they both share; I was quite eager to learn the truth behind Lilly’s leaving all those years prior.
The women being murdered have in some way or form been linked to Braden but the killer’s anger is more focused on Lilly. They combine their resources and work together to investigate the murders – Lilly’s aunts included.
The suspense of the story was well written and Reus does an amazing job of describing the setting and events in this book - at times it was quite detailed, the villain was evil to the core and the way he terrorized the women for his own cheap thrills was certainly disturbing. There are a number of graphic scenes that had me cringing so if you have a weakness when it comes to at times gruesome details you’ll most likely need to skim. The title of the book is perfect for this storyline.
I really liked the main characters, their history and their reunion was really sweet and you could tell they were truly meant to be together; the chemistry between them was sexy and when they hit the sheets – hot! I just wish there was more of an epilogue, their HEA seemed quite abrupt.
One minor thing I found to be repetitive was the number of times Braden appeared to be on the phone or answering his phone, it seemed to happen quite often (enough for me to really notice it). Other than this I really liked this novel.
Deadly Obsession is a gripping thriller with an evenly paced, enjoyable plot and sensual romance. Katie Reus is an auto-buy for me these days after reading and enjoying a number of her other novels. I like her writing style, characters and the suspense and mystery she creates with each of her well-written stories.
Rating: 3.5/5 stars
Deadly Obsession was kindly provided to me by Netgalley for Carina Press.
Lilly Carmichael, an NSA agent is recovering from a traumatic incident incurred through her job as an analyst which left her with devastating injuries and PTSD. After receiving news of her aunt’s death she takes a few weeks leave and returns to the place she was raised, Hudson Bay to finalize the preparations for the funeral/wake.
Lilly begins to question her sanity when she sees a masked man through the window, thinking she is hallucinating she brushes it off until she finds out a serial killer could possibly be targeting the local women.
Sheriff Braden Donnelly was left heartbroken when Lilly left him as a teen with no more than a kiss on the cheek and a wave good-bye. A former marine, now the town Sheriff he is investigating the murders around town that seem to have a direct connection to Lilly as well as himself.
Braden’s first instincts are to protect Lilly, they have spent a decade apart but there is no doubting the attraction and chemistry they both share; I was quite eager to learn the truth behind Lilly’s leaving all those years prior.
The women being murdered have in some way or form been linked to Braden but the killer’s anger is more focused on Lilly. They combine their resources and work together to investigate the murders – Lilly’s aunts included.
The suspense of the story was well written and Reus does an amazing job of describing the setting and events in this book - at times it was quite detailed, the villain was evil to the core and the way he terrorized the women for his own cheap thrills was certainly disturbing. There are a number of graphic scenes that had me cringing so if you have a weakness when it comes to at times gruesome details you’ll most likely need to skim. The title of the book is perfect for this storyline.
I really liked the main characters, their history and their reunion was really sweet and you could tell they were truly meant to be together; the chemistry between them was sexy and when they hit the sheets – hot! I just wish there was more of an epilogue, their HEA seemed quite abrupt.
One minor thing I found to be repetitive was the number of times Braden appeared to be on the phone or answering his phone, it seemed to happen quite often (enough for me to really notice it). Other than this I really liked this novel.
Deadly Obsession is a gripping thriller with an evenly paced, enjoyable plot and sensual romance. Katie Reus is an auto-buy for me these days after reading and enjoying a number of her other novels. I like her writing style, characters and the suspense and mystery she creates with each of her well-written stories.
August 24, 2011
I really enjoyed this romantic suspense. It was a quick, easy and engaging read.
Lilly Carmichael returns to Hudson Bay after ten years for her aunt’s funeral, suffering from PTSD she thinks that she is imagining things when she sees a masked man outside her window. Little does she know that it is a serial killer that has been stalking her for years. Turning to the only man she knows can protect her, ex-boyfriend and Sherriff Braden Donnelly, they must find out who the killer is before he strikes again. But when past feelings ignite for her high school love Lilly must face her past demons as well as the present ones. Can Lilly and Braden stop the killer in time or will he finally get what he has been after for over a decade, Lilly; and will their second chance at a relationship be able to survive the answers they find?
Gritty and realistic, the quick moving plot of Deadly Obsession follows the couple uncovering clues and connections to each murder. A few hints were dropped early on concerning the villain so his identity wasn’t too much of a surprise for me but Katie Reuss created a very creepy and life-like character with flashes into his mindset every now and then that were intense and chilling. Her writing style set up the anticipation into the workings of him and what he will do next wonderfully, adding a few twists and surprises that will keep you turning the pages for more.
Lily and Braden made a great couple with lots of history. Their romance was dark and sexy (and Braden was plain delicious) with plenty of tension that built up to an exciting climax. Their coming together again was uncertain and they were each untrusting at first, not willing to have their hearts broken again which made it believable to read, it wasn’t easy. The murder and suspense was the main plot of the story but the romance added a nice under current and a beautiful ending. I would definitely be interested in reading more from this new-to-me author.
Great Quote:
"Are you looking for me to stroke your ego?"
"No, but I've got something else you can stroke if you're interested."
I lmao on that one!
http://readingbetweenthewinesbookclub...
Lilly Carmichael returns to Hudson Bay after ten years for her aunt’s funeral, suffering from PTSD she thinks that she is imagining things when she sees a masked man outside her window. Little does she know that it is a serial killer that has been stalking her for years. Turning to the only man she knows can protect her, ex-boyfriend and Sherriff Braden Donnelly, they must find out who the killer is before he strikes again. But when past feelings ignite for her high school love Lilly must face her past demons as well as the present ones. Can Lilly and Braden stop the killer in time or will he finally get what he has been after for over a decade, Lilly; and will their second chance at a relationship be able to survive the answers they find?
Gritty and realistic, the quick moving plot of Deadly Obsession follows the couple uncovering clues and connections to each murder. A few hints were dropped early on concerning the villain so his identity wasn’t too much of a surprise for me but Katie Reuss created a very creepy and life-like character with flashes into his mindset every now and then that were intense and chilling. Her writing style set up the anticipation into the workings of him and what he will do next wonderfully, adding a few twists and surprises that will keep you turning the pages for more.
Lily and Braden made a great couple with lots of history. Their romance was dark and sexy (and Braden was plain delicious) with plenty of tension that built up to an exciting climax. Their coming together again was uncertain and they were each untrusting at first, not willing to have their hearts broken again which made it believable to read, it wasn’t easy. The murder and suspense was the main plot of the story but the romance added a nice under current and a beautiful ending. I would definitely be interested in reading more from this new-to-me author.
Great Quote:
"Are you looking for me to stroke your ego?"
"No, but I've got something else you can stroke if you're interested."
I lmao on that one!
http://readingbetweenthewinesbookclub...
September 3, 2011
3Stars or C+ rating.
Quick Review
This was a well crafted Suspense book. The villain is uber creepy and psychotic. Karen Rose fans will appreciate this novel.
There isn't a lot of romance per say, so I wouldn't classify this as romantic suspense, but the sexual tension and second chance love were quite well done.
Lilly left the love of her life at eighteen after something happens to her. She left abruptly and cut all ties with Braden. It tore her up to do it.
Braden has never gotten over Lilly, in the past ten years she is a constant in his mind. Now he is the Sheriff of the town they grew up in, after serving time in the Marines.
Lilly is an NSA Agent suffering from PTSD after being kidnapped and tortured by terrorists. She is on leave, and back in the town she grew up in, in order to bury her Aunt.
Woman are dying. They are dying brutally and Sheriff Donnelly is being taunted. He knows all of the women. Then Lilly comes back to town, and all hell breaks loose. With a crazy killer on their tail, watching their every move, they must find and stop him before it's too late and he finishes what he started ten years ago.
It was a very real story, that gave me the heeby-jeebies and a few nightmares of masked men and knives. Beware! LoL
Quick Review
This was a well crafted Suspense book. The villain is uber creepy and psychotic. Karen Rose fans will appreciate this novel.
There isn't a lot of romance per say, so I wouldn't classify this as romantic suspense, but the sexual tension and second chance love were quite well done.
Lilly left the love of her life at eighteen after something happens to her. She left abruptly and cut all ties with Braden. It tore her up to do it.
Braden has never gotten over Lilly, in the past ten years she is a constant in his mind. Now he is the Sheriff of the town they grew up in, after serving time in the Marines.
Lilly is an NSA Agent suffering from PTSD after being kidnapped and tortured by terrorists. She is on leave, and back in the town she grew up in, in order to bury her Aunt.
Woman are dying. They are dying brutally and Sheriff Donnelly is being taunted. He knows all of the women. Then Lilly comes back to town, and all hell breaks loose. With a crazy killer on their tail, watching their every move, they must find and stop him before it's too late and he finishes what he started ten years ago.
It was a very real story, that gave me the heeby-jeebies and a few nightmares of masked men and knives. Beware! LoL
September 25, 2018
3.5 stars
Really good but it definitely focuses on the rape, torture and abuse of women way more than suspense or romance. Almost glorifies it with specific graphic details of abuse of numerous women that went on for years. Very sad. This may give me nightmares as if I read Stephen King. So much violence. Wish I never read the thoughts in the villain's sick, perverted mind.
Katie Reus is talented and for those that can handle darkness, it is a good read.
Really good but it definitely focuses on the rape, torture and abuse of women way more than suspense or romance. Almost glorifies it with specific graphic details of abuse of numerous women that went on for years. Very sad. This may give me nightmares as if I read Stephen King. So much violence. Wish I never read the thoughts in the villain's sick, perverted mind.
Katie Reus is talented and for those that can handle darkness, it is a good read.
July 16, 2013
The book as a whole was okay but I think it kind of threw you into the relationship and other aspects of the plot and expected you to go with it rather than taking the time to actually flesh out the characters and the like.
July 29, 2018
Get ready for a roller coaster ride, and edge of your seat story .
The main characters are Lilly Carmichael and Branden Donnelly. These two were sweethearts in HS until she abruptly left him heartbroken and with no explanation.
Now, 10 years later, Lilly is back in town to take care of her aunt’s funeral. She is an NSA agent who was held prisoner, still suffers from PTSD and on her first day home, sees a masked man through her kitchen window. Brandon is the sheriff and when he sees her again, he realizes he’s still mad at her ,but feelings are also still alive.
While women are being murdered , they join forces to find the killer. A killer that evidently wants Lilly dead.
Lots of twists and turns, secrets are revealed and the unlikely person , is the murderer.
A story that is fast paced with an engaging plot, and complex characters. As well as a strong female.
And finally, will Will Lilly and Branden get their second chance?
You can never go wrong with a story by this talented author.
I wish to add that the narrator of this audiobook, Eliza Foss, does a great job with the voices.
The main characters are Lilly Carmichael and Branden Donnelly. These two were sweethearts in HS until she abruptly left him heartbroken and with no explanation.
Now, 10 years later, Lilly is back in town to take care of her aunt’s funeral. She is an NSA agent who was held prisoner, still suffers from PTSD and on her first day home, sees a masked man through her kitchen window. Brandon is the sheriff and when he sees her again, he realizes he’s still mad at her ,but feelings are also still alive.
While women are being murdered , they join forces to find the killer. A killer that evidently wants Lilly dead.
Lots of twists and turns, secrets are revealed and the unlikely person , is the murderer.
A story that is fast paced with an engaging plot, and complex characters. As well as a strong female.
And finally, will Will Lilly and Branden get their second chance?
You can never go wrong with a story by this talented author.
I wish to add that the narrator of this audiobook, Eliza Foss, does a great job with the voices.
March 14, 2017
Posted on What I'm Reading
A couple weeks ago I had a chance to listen to Deadly Obsession by Katie Reus. Okay this has been sitting my audible collection for sometime, and I'm finally getting to it. I wanted a little suspense in my life. Oh man, the bad guy is super creepy and a freak. I honestly didn't know who the dude was till the end. However, he was one messed up kind of dude who had an obsession for Lily Carmichael.
Now Lily is suffering from PTSD, and is trying to cover her issues. By the way this got on my nerves and the reason she left the area. How she handled the situation was pretty messed up when she broke up with Braden Donnelly. She should have told him and let him believe her or been dick. We don't know what he would have done, because she never gave him a chance.
Basically, she comes home for her aunt's funeral, and a bunch of things start to happen that put her life in danger. Of course this draws Lily and Braden together. They try to figure out what the heck is going, and at the same time solve a problem that has been bugging Braden.
Lily kind of bugged me, because she had this need to prove that she can do it on her own attitude. I get that she wanted to prove that she was strong, but it drove me nuts. I like Braden, because he had a good head on his shoulders. Plus, he didn't want to get hurt by Lily again, after all he did get burned.
Okay, the story was super creepy. The narrator, Eliza Foss, does an amazing job with this story. There were times I was glad I was listening to the story during the day. She was able to capture each of the characters voice. The villain's voice still creeps me out. She would be someone I would be willing to listen read another suspense story.
Overall, I liked Deadly Obsession. I had to listen to the story, and I wanted to know who the killer was. However, this is an older Katie Reus book, and it might not have the same feel as her newer books. I still enjoyed the story, and would be willing to listen to it again.
Copy provided by author.
A couple weeks ago I had a chance to listen to Deadly Obsession by Katie Reus. Okay this has been sitting my audible collection for sometime, and I'm finally getting to it. I wanted a little suspense in my life. Oh man, the bad guy is super creepy and a freak. I honestly didn't know who the dude was till the end. However, he was one messed up kind of dude who had an obsession for Lily Carmichael.
Now Lily is suffering from PTSD, and is trying to cover her issues. By the way this got on my nerves and the reason she left the area. How she handled the situation was pretty messed up when she broke up with Braden Donnelly. She should have told him and let him believe her or been dick. We don't know what he would have done, because she never gave him a chance.
Basically, she comes home for her aunt's funeral, and a bunch of things start to happen that put her life in danger. Of course this draws Lily and Braden together. They try to figure out what the heck is going, and at the same time solve a problem that has been bugging Braden.
Lily kind of bugged me, because she had this need to prove that she can do it on her own attitude. I get that she wanted to prove that she was strong, but it drove me nuts. I like Braden, because he had a good head on his shoulders. Plus, he didn't want to get hurt by Lily again, after all he did get burned.
Okay, the story was super creepy. The narrator, Eliza Foss, does an amazing job with this story. There were times I was glad I was listening to the story during the day. She was able to capture each of the characters voice. The villain's voice still creeps me out. She would be someone I would be willing to listen read another suspense story.
Overall, I liked Deadly Obsession. I had to listen to the story, and I wanted to know who the killer was. However, this is an older Katie Reus book, and it might not have the same feel as her newer books. I still enjoyed the story, and would be willing to listen to it again.
Copy provided by author.
September 1, 2025
Not why you think
Braden and Lilly. I was expecting something major as the secret, but not that! High school sweethearts but they went separate ways, the why is not clear until the end. Danger is surrounding both of them and is the push that got them back together. The town is full of characters and I loved the other officers, the ME, and Braden’s grandma. Also, Lilly’s boss seemed pretty interesting as well. The scenes and town are vivid and well developed. I fell into the story and stayed immerse until the twist of an end. A great read and I hope we see more of this world!
Braden and Lilly. I was expecting something major as the secret, but not that! High school sweethearts but they went separate ways, the why is not clear until the end. Danger is surrounding both of them and is the push that got them back together. The town is full of characters and I loved the other officers, the ME, and Braden’s grandma. Also, Lilly’s boss seemed pretty interesting as well. The scenes and town are vivid and well developed. I fell into the story and stayed immerse until the twist of an end. A great read and I hope we see more of this world!
June 1, 2018
Plot: 3.5/5
Characterisation: 3/5
Prose: 3.5/5
How much I enjoyed it: 3/5
Characterisation: 3/5
Prose: 3.5/5
How much I enjoyed it: 3/5
September 18, 2019
Lots of suspense as there always is in one of Ms. Reus novels. I liked the characters and the plot. Happy reading/listening!
Want to read
June 18, 2025Purchased in epub format from Barnes and Noble for my Nook.
June 22, 2025
5 Stars
Grips you right from the first page and doesn't let let up. Powerful read. I really enjoyed this romantic mystery and highly recommend it.
Grips you right from the first page and doesn't let let up. Powerful read. I really enjoyed this romantic mystery and highly recommend it.
October 29, 2011
Please view full review at Reader's Edyn: http://bit.ly/upp1md
Review:
So the book excerpt? That is the first chapter people! Can anyone say Holy! Crap! On! A! Cracker! I was blown away by the intensity of the story right off the first page, like WOAH! So here’s the million dollar question. Ready? Are you sure? Okay then. How is it that a book can have me so completely twisted in both a good way and a bad way? Get ready cause I fear I will end up sounding crazy and contradicting myself all over the place! Ultimately I was so enthralled and frustrated at the same time!
So Lilly and Braden used to date many moons ago. Apparently they were very much in love and just about as nauseating as a “perfect couple” can get. But Lilly bolts straight out of college and Braden is left reeling from being left alone so suddenly and unexpectedly. It is now ten years later and Lilly has come back to town to deal with arrangement necessary following her Aunt’s death. Simultaneously, Braden is dealing with a string of murders that seem to have only one correlation: him. Not good considering he’s the Sheriff of the town and all. Beyond the stench of death that is following Braden is the undeniable attraction between him and Lilly. Desire may have cooled over the last ten years, but has no problem boiling oven in any time flat once the two connect again.
Lilly has been pretty active in her time away from her hometown. Working undercover for a government agency, having a background in criminology, even suffering from PTSD after enduring a horrific event. Not surprising that Lilly becomes somewhat of an asset to Braden during the multiple homicide investigations.
I do have a few issues with the story though. First, Lilly’s credentials seem a bit over the top. I could buy into a lot of it, but not to the extent that she is knowledgeable in. Also, I do not know what all of the abbreviations stand for. Second, she’s a moron for not trusting Braden and bringing her issues to him in the first place. I’m talking the reason she left town people. Well, come to think of it, she doesn’t exactly tell him everything when she gets home either. Not like I can give you the details. But dang, remaining tight-lipped over something the love of your life could have helped you with? Just seems like a bit of an overreaction to pick up and leave. Also, when the killer is revealed: a) He gets off a bit to easily for all of the horrors that he inflicted and b) Braden doesn’t seem to react to the…errrr…conclusion of the murders normally. Like it doesn’t really affect him. Seems odd.
Basically I wanted to hit my head against the wall. I enjoyed the story so much, but the questions I had were nagging at me the whole time. I understand that a lot of events had to play out the way that they did for the story to work. And I did not foresee the identity of the murderer until the reveal which is a huge plus for me. But again, more questions such as his “survival”, which I can’t discuss without ruining the story for everyone. Those of you that are sticklers for certain types of detail will likely grumble about a few things as I did through the read. However *whispers* “Here comes the contradiction” – I was still enthralled with this story and very much enjoyed it. *head desk* I know. I sound like a crazy now.
I will try to make it easy – I’ll plant my booty on the fence. Exciting and suspenseful yet thoroughly frustrating. So I shall do this … I am adding another of Katie’s books to my “to-read” list. I need to read more of her work so that I can form a coherent opinion and clear this paradox within my mind. I shall return with another Katie Reus review. In the meantime, should any of you read this book, or another of hers, please post your thoughts. I’d love to her them!
(Kindle copy won on blog contest hosted by Cynthia Eden/Katie Reus)
Review:
So the book excerpt? That is the first chapter people! Can anyone say Holy! Crap! On! A! Cracker! I was blown away by the intensity of the story right off the first page, like WOAH! So here’s the million dollar question. Ready? Are you sure? Okay then. How is it that a book can have me so completely twisted in both a good way and a bad way? Get ready cause I fear I will end up sounding crazy and contradicting myself all over the place! Ultimately I was so enthralled and frustrated at the same time!
So Lilly and Braden used to date many moons ago. Apparently they were very much in love and just about as nauseating as a “perfect couple” can get. But Lilly bolts straight out of college and Braden is left reeling from being left alone so suddenly and unexpectedly. It is now ten years later and Lilly has come back to town to deal with arrangement necessary following her Aunt’s death. Simultaneously, Braden is dealing with a string of murders that seem to have only one correlation: him. Not good considering he’s the Sheriff of the town and all. Beyond the stench of death that is following Braden is the undeniable attraction between him and Lilly. Desire may have cooled over the last ten years, but has no problem boiling oven in any time flat once the two connect again.
Lilly has been pretty active in her time away from her hometown. Working undercover for a government agency, having a background in criminology, even suffering from PTSD after enduring a horrific event. Not surprising that Lilly becomes somewhat of an asset to Braden during the multiple homicide investigations.
I do have a few issues with the story though. First, Lilly’s credentials seem a bit over the top. I could buy into a lot of it, but not to the extent that she is knowledgeable in. Also, I do not know what all of the abbreviations stand for. Second, she’s a moron for not trusting Braden and bringing her issues to him in the first place. I’m talking the reason she left town people. Well, come to think of it, she doesn’t exactly tell him everything when she gets home either. Not like I can give you the details. But dang, remaining tight-lipped over something the love of your life could have helped you with? Just seems like a bit of an overreaction to pick up and leave. Also, when the killer is revealed: a) He gets off a bit to easily for all of the horrors that he inflicted and b) Braden doesn’t seem to react to the…errrr…conclusion of the murders normally. Like it doesn’t really affect him. Seems odd.
Basically I wanted to hit my head against the wall. I enjoyed the story so much, but the questions I had were nagging at me the whole time. I understand that a lot of events had to play out the way that they did for the story to work. And I did not foresee the identity of the murderer until the reveal which is a huge plus for me. But again, more questions such as his “survival”, which I can’t discuss without ruining the story for everyone. Those of you that are sticklers for certain types of detail will likely grumble about a few things as I did through the read. However *whispers* “Here comes the contradiction” – I was still enthralled with this story and very much enjoyed it. *head desk* I know. I sound like a crazy now.
I will try to make it easy – I’ll plant my booty on the fence. Exciting and suspenseful yet thoroughly frustrating. So I shall do this … I am adding another of Katie’s books to my “to-read” list. I need to read more of her work so that I can form a coherent opinion and clear this paradox within my mind. I shall return with another Katie Reus review. In the meantime, should any of you read this book, or another of hers, please post your thoughts. I’d love to her them!
(Kindle copy won on blog contest hosted by Cynthia Eden/Katie Reus)
August 22, 2011
Review originally posted here:
http://thebookpushers.com/2011/08/17/...
Publisher: Carina Press
Publish Date: Out Now!
How I got this book: Net Galley
This was my first suspense read by Reus, and I was both impressed and a little let down by the overall story.
Lily is an undercover field agent for the NSA, and after the death of her aunt has returned to her hometown. She is still recovering from being abducted and being held hostage by terrorists in Africa, Lily is dealing with PTSD as well as the loss of her aunt, and the return to her hometown, filled with both wonderful and difficult memories.
Braden is the local sheriff and dealing with a string of murders that keep getting more violent and sadistic. When Lily struts back into town, Braden falls back under her spell, and quickly realizes that she might be the link between the killings. With a killer on their tail, Braden and Lily must solve the mystery quickly before more women are brutalized.
First off, the mystery and suspense and villain in this book are TREMENDOUS! I was constantly kept guessing even after clues and hints were dropped. It was a mind twister of the highest degree, and I love when an author can do that to me! The serial killer was also creepy to the highest power. He rivaled against Cynthia Eden’s serial killer from Deadly Fear for the creepiest villain I’ve ever read. He was brutal and sadistic and awful, and while I was creeped out, I also wasn’t disgusted by the author’s descriptions. It was very well done!!
However, for me the book fell flat when it came to the hero and the heroine, and their relationship. Lily went through a recent traumatic event, and I was a little disappointed that previous experience didn’t have a larger affect on her. Yes, she was suffering from PTSD, but at the same time it didn’t seem to bother her as much as I would have expected. Also, Lily is supposedly a trained NSA field agent, yet she does things and says things that contradict the training and background that I imagine a field agent would have to go through. She leaves a LOADED gun leaning against a tree outside the cabin of the serial killer she is hunting!! O_o I’m not a trained anything and even I was totally dumbfounded by that.
Braden was better in that he acted like a sheriff. However his dealings with Lily seemed unrealistic to me. The woman left him, gave him no reason, and disappeared for ten years. Yet the moment she walks back into town he is tripping over himself to get to her, to be with her. Despite the anger he admits to having, he never seems to deal with it. It was odd and unrealistic to me.
Their relationship was also weird. Lily and Braden were high school sweethearts, they dated during school, and then Lily left promptly afterward. However, some of their conversations seemed to imply there was more history between them as adults. The tone and banter between them implied a deeper level between them than what I can imagine a high school couple would actually have.
All in all this story was all over the map for me. The great aspects of it were phenomenal, knocking it out of the park with mystery and suspense and a crazed killer that kept the story moving and interesting. But the parts that didn’t work for me failed miserably, making the book at times unbelievable.
I give Deadly Obsession a C-
http://thebookpushers.com/2011/08/17/...
Publisher: Carina Press
Publish Date: Out Now!
How I got this book: Net Galley
This was my first suspense read by Reus, and I was both impressed and a little let down by the overall story.
Lily is an undercover field agent for the NSA, and after the death of her aunt has returned to her hometown. She is still recovering from being abducted and being held hostage by terrorists in Africa, Lily is dealing with PTSD as well as the loss of her aunt, and the return to her hometown, filled with both wonderful and difficult memories.
Braden is the local sheriff and dealing with a string of murders that keep getting more violent and sadistic. When Lily struts back into town, Braden falls back under her spell, and quickly realizes that she might be the link between the killings. With a killer on their tail, Braden and Lily must solve the mystery quickly before more women are brutalized.
First off, the mystery and suspense and villain in this book are TREMENDOUS! I was constantly kept guessing even after clues and hints were dropped. It was a mind twister of the highest degree, and I love when an author can do that to me! The serial killer was also creepy to the highest power. He rivaled against Cynthia Eden’s serial killer from Deadly Fear for the creepiest villain I’ve ever read. He was brutal and sadistic and awful, and while I was creeped out, I also wasn’t disgusted by the author’s descriptions. It was very well done!!
However, for me the book fell flat when it came to the hero and the heroine, and their relationship. Lily went through a recent traumatic event, and I was a little disappointed that previous experience didn’t have a larger affect on her. Yes, she was suffering from PTSD, but at the same time it didn’t seem to bother her as much as I would have expected. Also, Lily is supposedly a trained NSA field agent, yet she does things and says things that contradict the training and background that I imagine a field agent would have to go through. She leaves a LOADED gun leaning against a tree outside the cabin of the serial killer she is hunting!! O_o I’m not a trained anything and even I was totally dumbfounded by that.
Braden was better in that he acted like a sheriff. However his dealings with Lily seemed unrealistic to me. The woman left him, gave him no reason, and disappeared for ten years. Yet the moment she walks back into town he is tripping over himself to get to her, to be with her. Despite the anger he admits to having, he never seems to deal with it. It was odd and unrealistic to me.
Their relationship was also weird. Lily and Braden were high school sweethearts, they dated during school, and then Lily left promptly afterward. However, some of their conversations seemed to imply there was more history between them as adults. The tone and banter between them implied a deeper level between them than what I can imagine a high school couple would actually have.
All in all this story was all over the map for me. The great aspects of it were phenomenal, knocking it out of the park with mystery and suspense and a crazed killer that kept the story moving and interesting. But the parts that didn’t work for me failed miserably, making the book at times unbelievable.
I give Deadly Obsession a C-
October 3, 2014
This is a tough one, I really like Katie Reus Erotic romances and thought I would try her Romantic Suspense. The book started off interesting, it is rare to get a part of the narrative from the bad guy's POV. And he is one evil guy, his thoughts are not for the squeamish.
The story centers on the reunited lovers Lily and Braden. I wanted to like them, I really did, but things just did not turn out that way.
Lily is suffering from PTSD and a really bad case of too-stupid-to-live. She routinely puts herself into unsafe situations knowing there is a stalker out there after her. She was dead set on making the bad guy's job easier. I kept thinking she must suck at her job as a NSA agent.
Braden started off on my good side, but too many comments about women not being as strong as men put him in the negative. He also has this bad habit of not believing anything Lily tells him until somebody else confirms things. Way to be supportive.
The steam is more tension than action smexy scenes. There is one hot bedroom scene with an open door, but by then I was over both characters.
The story was really intriguing, but the major plot twist was obvious. I was it coming pretty much from the first mention and was not the least bit surprised to be right. But I read a lot of mysteries and watch tons of crime dramas, maybe it won't be as obvious to others. It was well paced and had plenty of action to keep the flow of the story.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Eliza Foss, who does a lovely job. She has interesting and distinct voices that stayed consistent throughout the read. She has a very steady pace that helps move the story along. She added just the right amount of energy into the read to make the action real. She definitely does a great job with the text and made me keep listening, even with all the holes in the plot.
Overall, I was disappointed that this book did not match my enthusiasm for other books by Ms Reus. Too much of the story was predictable and the characters did not act according to the threat. I would have expected much more diligence in watching for attacks. I like to figure things out when I am reading a mystery, but I like my lead characters to at least be with me in the process. They were all way too slow on the uptake. I am still wiling to try another of this author's Romantic Suspense books, just not right away.
The story centers on the reunited lovers Lily and Braden. I wanted to like them, I really did, but things just did not turn out that way.
Lily is suffering from PTSD and a really bad case of too-stupid-to-live. She routinely puts herself into unsafe situations knowing there is a stalker out there after her. She was dead set on making the bad guy's job easier. I kept thinking she must suck at her job as a NSA agent.
Braden started off on my good side, but too many comments about women not being as strong as men put him in the negative. He also has this bad habit of not believing anything Lily tells him until somebody else confirms things. Way to be supportive.
The steam is more tension than action smexy scenes. There is one hot bedroom scene with an open door, but by then I was over both characters.
The story was really intriguing, but the major plot twist was obvious. I was it coming pretty much from the first mention and was not the least bit surprised to be right. But I read a lot of mysteries and watch tons of crime dramas, maybe it won't be as obvious to others. It was well paced and had plenty of action to keep the flow of the story.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Eliza Foss, who does a lovely job. She has interesting and distinct voices that stayed consistent throughout the read. She has a very steady pace that helps move the story along. She added just the right amount of energy into the read to make the action real. She definitely does a great job with the text and made me keep listening, even with all the holes in the plot.
Overall, I was disappointed that this book did not match my enthusiasm for other books by Ms Reus. Too much of the story was predictable and the characters did not act according to the threat. I would have expected much more diligence in watching for attacks. I like to figure things out when I am reading a mystery, but I like my lead characters to at least be with me in the process. They were all way too slow on the uptake. I am still wiling to try another of this author's Romantic Suspense books, just not right away.
August 22, 2011
I found Deadly Obsessions to be a well written romantic supsense story. I enjoyed the storyline and liked the characters. The book was suspenseful and kept me guessing. This is the first book I have read by Katie Reus, but I am eagerly anticipating more by her after reading this one.
Lily Carmichael returns to her hometown after her aunt's death to handle the funeral and other arrangements. She left the town and a serious boyfriend behind ten years earlier and has spent the last few years as an NSA analyst, and later, an agent. Braden Donnelly is the man that Lily left behind. He is now sheriff of their hometown and has never understood why Lily left without explanation and broke his heart. Just as Lily comes home, it appears that a serial killer is selecting victims with a connection to Braden. It soon becomes clear that the killer has targeted Lily as a victim, and Braden and Lily work together to find out the identity of the killer while the feelings between them resurface and grow.
This was a very good story with great characters and plenty of action. I found it hard to put this book down. I received this book as an ARC through Netgalley.
Lily Carmichael returns to her hometown after her aunt's death to handle the funeral and other arrangements. She left the town and a serious boyfriend behind ten years earlier and has spent the last few years as an NSA analyst, and later, an agent. Braden Donnelly is the man that Lily left behind. He is now sheriff of their hometown and has never understood why Lily left without explanation and broke his heart. Just as Lily comes home, it appears that a serial killer is selecting victims with a connection to Braden. It soon becomes clear that the killer has targeted Lily as a victim, and Braden and Lily work together to find out the identity of the killer while the feelings between them resurface and grow.
This was a very good story with great characters and plenty of action. I found it hard to put this book down. I received this book as an ARC through Netgalley.
August 12, 2024
Starting Over!!!
Lilly Carmichael a NSA agent and Braden Donnelly the sheriff of Hudson Bay were high school sweethearts then one day without warning she ups and leaves town, the latter heartbroken......now she's back in Hudson Bay to attend her aunt's funereal but she had some secrets that she held close to her heart in order to protect the people she cared about.
For Braden seeing Lilly after so many years was like time never passed, she pulled at his heartstrings and vice versa.....Braden informed Lilly abut a "serial" killer being on the loose and that he's targeting everyone close to Braden....The latter figured out that the killer had an obsession with Lilly.....the question is will Braden be able to keep the woman he still love safe?
Lilly was placed under police protection and Braden was the one to see to it that nothing happened to his love, they grew closer and together they slayed the dragon...The hero and the heroine's emotions were off the charts and the guilt they felt was understandable, loved how they decided to take that leap of faith regarding their relationship.
Lilly Carmichael a NSA agent and Braden Donnelly the sheriff of Hudson Bay were high school sweethearts then one day without warning she ups and leaves town, the latter heartbroken......now she's back in Hudson Bay to attend her aunt's funereal but she had some secrets that she held close to her heart in order to protect the people she cared about.
For Braden seeing Lilly after so many years was like time never passed, she pulled at his heartstrings and vice versa.....Braden informed Lilly abut a "serial" killer being on the loose and that he's targeting everyone close to Braden....The latter figured out that the killer had an obsession with Lilly.....the question is will Braden be able to keep the woman he still love safe?
Lilly was placed under police protection and Braden was the one to see to it that nothing happened to his love, they grew closer and together they slayed the dragon...The hero and the heroine's emotions were off the charts and the guilt they felt was understandable, loved how they decided to take that leap of faith regarding their relationship.
August 12, 2011
Lilly Carmichael is forced home after ten years after the death of the aunt that had raised her. But was her aunts death a accident or was it part of a string of murders happening in her small hometown? Sheriff Braden Donnelly is not only dealing with the recent murders in his quiet little town but now Lilly has come back. Braden hasn't seen Lilly since the day she walked away from him ten years ago, but with the string of murders where everyone is tied to Braden somehow, he can't let Lilly out of his sight for she might be next. Will these two be able to keep their hands off each other while trying to find a seriel killer before he strikes again?
Deadly Obsession was an exciting read with nicely drawn out characters. Unfortunately it was a bit lacking in the trill factor. I liked the story, I really did. The author gave us a great storyline with characters that had a past which drew us into the suspense. But it wasn't a page turner where I needed to know what happened next and couldn't put it down. Worth the read but won't be making it onto my keeper shelf.
Deadly Obsession was an exciting read with nicely drawn out characters. Unfortunately it was a bit lacking in the trill factor. I liked the story, I really did. The author gave us a great storyline with characters that had a past which drew us into the suspense. But it wasn't a page turner where I needed to know what happened next and couldn't put it down. Worth the read but won't be making it onto my keeper shelf.
March 16, 2015
Creepy villain
I will start by saying that I never would have guessed who the villain turned out to be. Personally, I like that in a story. The attraction and tension between Lilly and Braden was intense. It was obvious the couple loved each other and had for a while, but there were a lot of secrets and resentments between them. Despite these issues, Braden does not hesitate to jump to Lilly's defense once he realizes she may be the target of a serial killer he has been tracking. Lilly never lets him take over, but does allow him to help her protect herself. Unfortunately, nothing can protect her from the shock when she discovers who is really after her and what he has planned. I enjoyed the story and especially the beyond creepy killer.
I will start by saying that I never would have guessed who the villain turned out to be. Personally, I like that in a story. The attraction and tension between Lilly and Braden was intense. It was obvious the couple loved each other and had for a while, but there were a lot of secrets and resentments between them. Despite these issues, Braden does not hesitate to jump to Lilly's defense once he realizes she may be the target of a serial killer he has been tracking. Lilly never lets him take over, but does allow him to help her protect herself. Unfortunately, nothing can protect her from the shock when she discovers who is really after her and what he has planned. I enjoyed the story and especially the beyond creepy killer.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews