Ripple Effect

by Kathleen King

Ten years ago, seven college friends stood in judgment of their peer, and their plan for revenge went horribly wrong. They vowed to keep the secret…and the guilt of it…between them. This decision has affected all of them, but most of all Lexi Cooper. As the latest note is slid under her door one evening, she crumples to the floor, both afraid for what will happen and resigned to it, because she knows whatever it is, she deserves it.

Intense passion wars with the need for revenge, combining to create a story that has both the fiery heat of passion and the stone cold chill of revenge in Kathleen King’s latest novel, Ripple Effect.

Lexi Cooper has been living a lonely but comfortable life as an ambitious architect. She hopes that finally making partner will somehow get her to the point of feeling worthy of moving on; past the dark place that has held her captive for so long.

She meets Jack Hunter, another architect at her firm and everything changes. From the second they meet, the pull they feel toward each other is raw and primitive. Both seem equally motivated to fight these urges. He’s her superior and will be assisting in the partner selection process. He’s dangerous and dark and everything Lexi has run away from and he threatens the tight grip she has on her emotions.

Through it all, someone is watching Lexi…leaving ominous notes in intimate places, following her through her daily activities, entering her home, watching her sleep…he is obsessed, and only a powerful act of revenge, an eye for an eye, will allow him to move on.

Will Lexi Cooper find the person stalking her in time to save not only herself, but her family and friends? She must find the strength to face him and her inner demons, if she is to have any hope of finding redemption and hope for the future.

238 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 19, 2014

Reviews

[Pamela · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Oops! It seems I forgot to complete my review for this novel (my apologies) so here goes.

Let me first just say that yes, when I just finished the novel I really didn’t like the ending. I actually said I hated it, but I’ll get to that in a bit. “Ripple Effect” is a story that I found quite intriguing and suspenseful. Ten years earlier, a group of college girls lured one of their friends, Jenna, up the snow covered mountain as a joke; the end result was Jenna getting lost up there and ultimately freezing to death. “Ripple Effect” is a story full of drama, suspense, and romance that flowed well from beginning to end. The two protagonists at the heart of the story is Jack and Lexi, two likeable characters. It’s quite obvious from the start that Jack has something to do with Lexi’s past, which after ten years has finally caught up to her. At times it seemed that Lexi couldn’t make up her mind whether she could trust Jack or not. On a side note, I found it odd that Lexi really didn’t spend any time wondering why Jack kept showing up at her home when she clearly never called him over. Considering she’s being stalked and has been receiving threatening notes, having Jack show up at her home at random times, even finding him lounging in her home when she came in from an outing, should’ve had bells going off in her head. The one thing that just didn’t make sense is why Lexi never once thought that the person who was stalking her could’ve been one or both of Jenna’s brothers. I mean Lexi was close to her, and as a close friend she would’ve known that Jenna had two brothers. Considering she never went to the girl’s family to pay her respects, why not think that they could be behind it? Maybe I’m reaching but still. While the sexual escapades between Jack and Lexi were hot, I felt they lacked any real connection. Probably because it’s hard to believe that Jack cares for Lexi, especially since he and his brother, Richard, are behind all that’s happened to Lexi. Jack starts to care for Lexi but how is that possible when they still continue with the threatening letters, the stalking, even attacking Lexi’s sister? If he cared about her, and it’s obvious he does since he’s fighting his feelings for her, he would never have let things get too far. At the end when all is revealed and Jack rescues her, she declares her love for him. After everything that happened, her dog being poisoned, her sister being attacked and ending up in the hospital, not to mention scaring Lexi with the notes and break-ins, we’re to believe that she still loves him? Sorry, but totally unrealistic to me. She doesn’t even think twice about Jack’s involvement. I can’t believe any woman would be that forgiving. I sure as hell wouldn’t. At least make him work hard in gaining her love and trust. Now, about the ending. Considering that two months have now passed, whatever hate I had for it has since passed. But that doesn’t mean I was satisfied with the ending because I wasn’t. Why you ask? Because I was left with the feeling that Jack and Lexi’s story hadn’t come to a complete end, which means waiting for the next installment. However, if I’m wrong and it has indeed ended, I wish there was more of a HEA between the two. Hey, to each her own. When all is said and done, “Ripple Effect” is still an engaging and worthwhile read. I look forward to reading future works by this author.