Ever since recently discovering how well done Lisa Jackson's mystery/thriller/suspense novels are, as soon as I saw this advance reader copy of "You'll find Out" available by request on Netgalley, I was so eager to get to read it, that I didn't fully read the description, so when I started reading it, I was quite surprised to find out that this wasn't what I was expecting. Instead, this is a compilation of two of her earlier novels, The Shadow of Time and Gypsy Wind, which are both second chance at love romances with a bit of mystery thrown in, so I'd classify them as romantic suspense novels, both of which I'd give 2 stars.
The Shadow of Time features recently widowed Mara, and her adorable, outspoken daughter. She, married her late husband when she was pregnant by the man she loved, Shane, whose death overseas she'd been mourning for the past 4 years. Mara is about to get the surprise of her life when Shane shows up at her door, and as soon as he learns that Mara's daughter is also his daughter, he wants her, however, Mara first wants an explanation of where he's been for the past 4 years, and why, if he was alive, he didn't come back to her--warning: you've got a very long wait before you find out the reason. To say that I disliked Shane from his first appearance to his last in this novel is putting it mildly. I found him to be selfish, pigheaded, manipulative, short-tempered, and overbearing. I find it very hard to enjoy a novel when I dislike the supposed hero, who was no hero in my eyes.
The second novel, Gypsy Wind, also brought up issues for me. I love horses, and Gypsy Wind is the name of the titular horse in this novel. She's a thoroughbred race horse, sister to her owner's previous thoroughbred and Triple Crown winner, Sentimental Lady, who had to be put down after being secretly drugged, falling, and shattering one of her legs beyond repair. Becca, Gypsy Wind's owner also had a surprise coming because coming back into her life is her previous lover, multi-millionaire, Brig Chambers, who waffles back and forth about whether or not Gypsy Wind, a filly, should try to run against the colts, the same situation that cost Sentimental Lady her life. I found Brig Chambers to be just as emotionally manipulative as Shane is the previous novel. The mystery here is who drugged Sentimental Lady 6 years earlier? It was no mystery to this reader, who nailed the "who" in whodunit immediately. Combining that with my belief that horseracing is a cruel way to treat any animal, saying that I was not a fan of this story is putting it mildly.
If you're a fan of romantic suspense novels, you may enjoy this duet more than I did, but if you're looking to be deeply involved in one of Ms. Jackson's excellent thrillers, I advise against reading this one.
As stated, I read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions stated here are my own.