What do you think?
Flashback
To be forced to live the constant nightmare of being telepathic was to Dana Haslow, unbearable to the point of driving her to long for death as a merciful release. Then David Raymond arrived and at last she found someone who not only sympathised but also understood only to discover there is a greater emotional pain - to offer love and have it thrown back in her face!
188 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1984
About the author
Amanda Carpenter
37 books43 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Amanda Carpenter (aka Thea Harrison) resides in northern California. She wrote her first book, a romance, when she was nineteen and had sixteen romances published under the name Amanda Carpenter.
She took a break from writing to collect a couple of graduate degrees and a grown child. Her graduate degrees are in Philanthropic Studies and Library Information Science, but her first love has always been writing fiction. She's back with her paranormal Elder Races series under the pseudonym Thea Harrison.
Amanda Carpenter (aka Thea Harrison) resides in northern California. She wrote her first book, a romance, when she was nineteen and had sixteen romances published under the name Amanda Carpenter.
She took a break from writing to collect a couple of graduate degrees and a grown child. Her graduate degrees are in Philanthropic Studies and Library Information Science, but her first love has always been writing fiction. She's back with her paranormal Elder Races series under the pseudonym Thea Harrison.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
February 19, 2011
Question: How badly did I get sucked into reading this?
-I hate paranormal books. They're pretty unbelievable in a bad way.
-I don't particularly go for emotional, angsty cry-fests
-I'm not an American and as such have no connection with the Vietnam war (and I'm not a fan of war books/movies - they're just too depressing)
Yet, I still read this book and not just read it, but enjoyed it. Amanda Carpenter has been one author who changes the tone of her book after every book. I've read all sorts of themes from her and mostly they've all been different and better than what the authors in those themes have produced.
The ending is not HEA. The hero's vulnerable and I felt sorry for the h's mother.
If you like emotional M&Bs - this one is for you....!
-I hate paranormal books. They're pretty unbelievable in a bad way.
-I don't particularly go for emotional, angsty cry-fests
-I'm not an American and as such have no connection with the Vietnam war (and I'm not a fan of war books/movies - they're just too depressing)
Yet, I still read this book and not just read it, but enjoyed it. Amanda Carpenter has been one author who changes the tone of her book after every book. I've read all sorts of themes from her and mostly they've all been different and better than what the authors in those themes have produced.
The ending is not HEA. The hero's vulnerable and I felt sorry for the h's mother.
If you like emotional M&Bs - this one is for you....!
July 19, 2015
Peculiar, intense, and not very romantic.
March 1, 2016
Read in a single evening. First off, make no mistake this book was first published in 1984 and republished in Samhain's Retro line. It is not the same as a current-day Thea Harrison book. But neither is it AT ALL like a regular Harlequin of its day. I love the way the author took the usual romance format and twisted it like a pretzel.
Dana is a telepath. Her new neighbour is a Vietnam vet with PTSD. Dana starts to experience his intense flashbacks--and its driving her to the brink of insanity. Very intense.
Quibble: The three main characters names all start with the same letter, Dana, David and Denise.
Dana is a telepath. Her new neighbour is a Vietnam vet with PTSD. Dana starts to experience his intense flashbacks--and its driving her to the brink of insanity. Very intense.
Quibble: The three main characters names all start with the same letter, Dana, David and Denise.
May 17, 2025
Mannered, but highly unusual 1984 Harlequin. Super intense, with a very nice ending.
3.5 stars
3.5 stars
Read
November 26, 2016Right, so Harlequin books back in the day were NOTHING like they are today haha!
This book was intense to say the least. From the hauntingly accurate description of PTSD which I don't think was an honest diagnosis yet in the 80's and most likely a taboo topic when it was originally written to the touch on esoteric and challenging of perception, acceptance and understanding.
A lot has changed since the 80's and writing some alone makes that glaringly apparent. It is not your average YA or Harlequin novel and yet it is wholly captivating and it will completely capture your attention.
A beautiful and haunting story of grief, guilt, anger, anxiety and helplessness.
This book was intense to say the least. From the hauntingly accurate description of PTSD which I don't think was an honest diagnosis yet in the 80's and most likely a taboo topic when it was originally written to the touch on esoteric and challenging of perception, acceptance and understanding.
A lot has changed since the 80's and writing some alone makes that glaringly apparent. It is not your average YA or Harlequin novel and yet it is wholly captivating and it will completely capture your attention.
A beautiful and haunting story of grief, guilt, anger, anxiety and helplessness.
November 14, 2025
This is not your usual Harlequin!
I can’t remember where that phrase came from. An advert I think. This is what was in my mind the whole time I was reading this.
Also the 80s Harleys were obviously way less conformational than current day books.
For that there is an extra star.
The romance is barely there and it left a bittersweet taste.
I can’t remember where that phrase came from. An advert I think. This is what was in my mind the whole time I was reading this.
Also the 80s Harleys were obviously way less conformational than current day books.
For that there is an extra star.
The romance is barely there and it left a bittersweet taste.
June 22, 2017
Unique
Very emotional story of a young woman who is afraid of the world because of who she is and a damaged man who deliberately needs help.
Very emotional story of a young woman who is afraid of the world because of who she is and a damaged man who deliberately needs help.
February 29, 2024
This was... really intense. A troubled heroine with psychic powers and a tortured hero with PTSD make a volatile combination, and all I could think about as I was reading was that they both needed long stints in therapy and lessons on self-care before they could even think of a lasting relationship together. I felt so sorry for the mother and the fact that she felt so powerless to do anything while the heroine was suffering. I was fearful of how the story would end, and though the couple did get their HEA, it was bittersweet.
3 stars, plus 1 star for the intensity.
3 stars, plus 1 star for the intensity.
December 6, 2016
It was the 1980's.
We wore our hair big and our shoulders well padded. We liked our romances full of drama and angst. And we were still dealing with the effects of Vietnam. PTSD only became an official diagnosis at the start of the decade and people in 1984, when Flashback was published, still debated if it was "real". Young men went to fight expecting it to be as they had heard from their fathers and uncles about WWII, only to find a dirty, traumatic war full of horror.
Flashback gives us the story of a veteran still dealing with the aftermath who meets an empath h who can't shut him out, in a true to the times setting.
We wore our hair big and our shoulders well padded. We liked our romances full of drama and angst. And we were still dealing with the effects of Vietnam. PTSD only became an official diagnosis at the start of the decade and people in 1984, when Flashback was published, still debated if it was "real". Young men went to fight expecting it to be as they had heard from their fathers and uncles about WWII, only to find a dirty, traumatic war full of horror.
Flashback gives us the story of a veteran still dealing with the aftermath who meets an empath h who can't shut him out, in a true to the times setting.
October 16, 2021
I wanted to like it. I love her other books about Pia and Dragos and the others in her paranormal romance series. Sadly this book was filled with so much angst and swift mood changes, it kind of gave me emotional whiplash. I spent the whole book just waiting for it to have some upbeat moments and instead it was constantly edgy and the main characters yelling. I really never felt like it was romantic at all.
October 27, 2013
Read my review on RomanceJunkies.com by clicking on the link below:
http://romancejunkiesreviews.com/artm...
I rated it a 3.5 for that site but had to round to a 4 for goodreads - would have preferred if I didn't have to round up.
http://romancejunkiesreviews.com/artm...
I rated it a 3.5 for that site but had to round to a 4 for goodreads - would have preferred if I didn't have to round up.
October 27, 2013
I wanted to read this book when I found out it was Thea Harrison. I paid good money for a bad book. I forced myself to finish it.
July 20, 2014
Super-awesome. Never read anything like it before. I think.
September 20, 2015
Novella. Author also known as Thea Harrison.
Set soon after Vietnam war ended.
Set soon after Vietnam war ended.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews