Could it be true? Her ex-husband, injured in a car crash, is suffering from amnesia and needs her care. Owen was terrible to Hannah Colton, but his lack of memory of the bad old days has turned him into a kinder, gentler man. One who makes her feel things she never felt before. What Hannah doesn’t know is that her charming ex is Owen’s twin, Archer. He's posing as his brother to investigate the real Owen’s murder. His lies are putting Hannah in unimaginable danger…because she and “Owen” are falling for each other…again.
From Harlequin Romantic Suspense: Danger. Passion. Drama.
Feel the excitement in these uplifting romances, part of The Coltons of Owl Creek series:
Book 1: Colton Threat Unleashed by Tara Taylor Quinn Book 2: Colton's Dangerous Cover by Lisa Childs Book 3: Colton's Secret Stalker by Kimberly Van Meter Book 4: Colton Mountain Search by Karen Whiddon Book 5: Guarding Colton's Secrets by Addison Fox Book 6: A Colton Kidnapping by Justine Davis Book 7: Colton's Blizzard Hideout by Deborah Fletcher Mello Book 8: Hunting Colton's Witness by Anna J. Stewart Book 9: Targeted with a Colton by Beth Cornelison Book 10: Colton's Secret Past by Kacy Cross Book 11: Colton Undercover by Jennifer D. Bokal Book 12: Colton's K-9 Rescue by Colleen Thompson
I write romance novels starring swoon-worthy heroes that you can share with your daughter, the ladies at church and your grandmother without fear because my books never contain bad language, violence or adult content. I live in Texas where I’ve seen bobcats and beavers near my house, but sadly not one cowboy. I’m raising two mini-ninjas alongside the love of my life who cooks while I write, which is my definition of a true hero.
Come for the romance, stay for the happily ever after. My books will make you laugh, cry and swoon–cross my heart.
Quick Thoughts: This is like Lorraine Heath’s Gorilla Twins, but not as successfully deployed. To be fair, Lorraine is a master so that’s not a dig. But we wait the whole book for the MMC (Archer Mackenzie) to reveal to the FMC (Hannah Colton) that he isn’t Owen Mackenzie, her deadbeat—and now truly dead—ex-husband.
It’s a lot of lying about a very major thing that I’m not sure was effectively resolved. The reveal should have likely happened earlier and could have been an effective way to add additional tension as trust was reestablished.
As it was, the ending felt super rushed while the middle sagged a bit. The secondary story line of what Owen did and why he was murdered was also undercooked.
Still, I ripped through it in one sitting (or one sleepless bout of insomnia) and the writing quality on a technical level was quite good. Even if the pacing was a bit uneven and I was let down by the lack of big secondary story action or physical intimacy here, I’ll read another book by Kacy Cross. ______ Harlequin Romantic Suspense (Nov 2024) Series: The Coltons of Owl Creek #10
LEO: he’s a forensic scientist for the Las Vegas PD on a leave of absence, police corruption is discussed
Setting: Fictional Small Town, Idaho
BIPOC Characters: not the main characters
Steam/Spice Level: PG - super slow burn, not spicy at all, fade to black, closed door, only kissing on page and light internal thoughts of attraction and acknowledgment they slept together
POV: third person, past tense, dual POV, no antagonist POV
The hero was in a car accident when someone tampered with his brakes. The hospital mistakenly thinks he is his twin brother, whose ID was in the car and whose murder he is investigating. The hero feigns amnesia, and the hospital contacts the hero's brother's ex-wife (the heroine). The brother had abandoned his wife and daughter. There is more romance than suspense in the book, as the heroine decides to care for the hero as he recovers, and introduces him to his "daughter" (i.e., niece).
The author writes well, and the book may be enjoyable for those who can get beyond the book's premise. I could not, which is why I have rated it as three stars rather than four. In every other way, the hero is painted as a nice guy who adores his daughter/niece. And there are immediate sparks between the hero and heroine -- they are definitely a good match for each other. But. The hero's portrayal as nice and swoon-worthy did not match his actions. He was unreasonably suspicious of the heroine, knowingly brought potential danger to her doorstep, and unconscionably delayed telling the heroine the truth. The author tried to provide appropriate motivations for those actions, but I did not buy it. I would not trust, respect, or easily forgive the hero; his judgment was lacking. I found myself yelling at the hero and thinking the heroine deserved better.
(P.S.) I only read the book ONCE, but I'm new to GoodReads and I don't know for the fix the error.
WOW! WOW! WOW! What an exciting suspense filled drama!
Hannah Colton thought she’d seen the last of her ex-husband when he walked away shortly after the birth of their daughter. Then, several years later, she gets a call from a nearby hospital informing her that Owen Mackenzie had been in a terrible accident. The charming man in the hospital bed looks like Owen but acts nothing like the horribly self-centered man that left her. With a severe case of amnesia this man has no idea who he is or who she is.
Archer ‘Mac’ Mackenzie is faking amnesia and posing as his twin brother in the hopes of identifying Owen’s killer. Yet, it seems that millions of dollars of stollen money, a local cult, and a mob boss are all somehow entwined and putting Hannah and her young daughter’s lives at risk. But Mac doesn’t plan to let anything happen to the two females that have taken up important real estate in his heart.
I was gifted a copy of COLTON’S SECRET PAST by the author and freely offer this review.
An interesting premise and a good mystery. Overall, it was a fun and enjoyable read, not overly stressful or violent, surprisingly PG for a harlequin novel. My only complaint was that it read as if I had picked up the book mid-series. There were so many other characters with brief references to their back stories, and other stories set into motion for other characters, and issues left unresolved - I guess for the next book. If I would have known it was part of a series, I would have tried to track down the other books first.