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Nora Roberts Collection 3: Homeport, The Reef, and River's End
Homeport - read by Erika Leigh, directed by Sandra Burr
Dr. Miranda Jones welcomed the distraction offered by a summons to Italy to verify the authenticity of a Renaissance bronze of a Medici courtesan known as "The Dark Lady." However, instead of cementing Miranda's reputation as a leading authority in her field, the bronze nearly destroys it when her professional judgment is called into question and the bronze is declared a hoax. Desperate to restore her credibility and prove "The Dark Lady" is really a previously unknown work of Michelangelo, Miranda turns to Ryan Boldari, a seductive - and supposedly reformed - art thief.
The Reef - read by Sandra Burr, directed by Bill Weideman
The Reef is the story of Tate Beaumont, a beautiful young student of marine archeology - and of Matthew Lassiter, a sea-scarred young man who shares her dream of finding Anguelique's Curse, the jeweled amulet surrounded by legend and said to be long lost at the bottom of the sea. Forced into a reluctant partnership with Matthew and his uncle, Tate soon learns that her arrogant but attractive fellow diver holds as many secrets as the sea itself.
River's End, read by Sandra Burr, directed by Laural Merlington
Olivia's parents had been one of Hollywood's glittering golden couples . . . until the night the monster came. The monster who destroyed their beautiful home and took her mother away from her forever. The monster with the face of her father . . . Now a young woman, Olivia finds her memory of that night has faded. Her mother's grieving family spared no effort to keep Olivia safe from the publicity, taking her to grow up in the beautiful natural splendor of the Pacific Northwest. But, despite the terror and the years that have passed, a part of her still yearns to recall those horrifying events, to know the truth about her childhood. With the help of a young writer named Noah Brady, she could have the chance.
Dr. Miranda Jones welcomed the distraction offered by a summons to Italy to verify the authenticity of a Renaissance bronze of a Medici courtesan known as "The Dark Lady." However, instead of cementing Miranda's reputation as a leading authority in her field, the bronze nearly destroys it when her professional judgment is called into question and the bronze is declared a hoax. Desperate to restore her credibility and prove "The Dark Lady" is really a previously unknown work of Michelangelo, Miranda turns to Ryan Boldari, a seductive - and supposedly reformed - art thief.
The Reef - read by Sandra Burr, directed by Bill Weideman
The Reef is the story of Tate Beaumont, a beautiful young student of marine archeology - and of Matthew Lassiter, a sea-scarred young man who shares her dream of finding Anguelique's Curse, the jeweled amulet surrounded by legend and said to be long lost at the bottom of the sea. Forced into a reluctant partnership with Matthew and his uncle, Tate soon learns that her arrogant but attractive fellow diver holds as many secrets as the sea itself.
River's End, read by Sandra Burr, directed by Laural Merlington
Olivia's parents had been one of Hollywood's glittering golden couples . . . until the night the monster came. The monster who destroyed their beautiful home and took her mother away from her forever. The monster with the face of her father . . . Now a young woman, Olivia finds her memory of that night has faded. Her mother's grieving family spared no effort to keep Olivia safe from the publicity, taking her to grow up in the beautiful natural splendor of the Pacific Northwest. But, despite the terror and the years that have passed, a part of her still yearns to recall those horrifying events, to know the truth about her childhood. With the help of a young writer named Noah Brady, she could have the chance.
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First published January 1, 1999
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About the author
Nora Roberts
1,220 books60.1k followersNora Roberts is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than 200 novels, including Hideaway, Under Currents, Come Sundown, The Awakening, Legacy, and coming in November 2021 -- The Becoming -- the second book in The Dragon Heart Legacy. She is also the author of the futuristic suspense In Death series written under the pen name J.D. Robb. There are more than 500 million copies of her books in print.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 30, 2014
Never disappointed by anything she writes. Once again amazing.
February 14, 2015
Homeport - 2/5 - Yikes. Bad story. To start with the characters. For having a doctorate, the heroine, Miranda really is TSTL. But I guess common sense is no indicator of academic intelligence. And to make matters worse, she's a doormat, constantly trying to please people, forgiving people when she shouldn't (Ryan) and letting people tell her what to do. Ryan, our hero, the noble art thief (how does that figure?), is an ass. He has no ethical dilemma about being a thief - it's right because he's good at it. Self-centered much? He's bossy, arrogant and I'm not sure this guy is actually capable of romantic love. So the romance here was a bust. The suspense was a little more interesting, but I expect a decent romance out of the story so I can't rate it highly.
The Reef - 3/5 - An average Nora Roberts suspense novel that is somewhat forgettable. What is most definitely not forgettable is the setting, because it is so unique to her novels. This takes place on the ocean - these guys are oceanic treasure hunters searching for an amulet. So the characters are on boats, they're diving - it's really quite refreshing how different it is. What is forgettable though is the plot and the romance. It's divided into 3 parts - the past, where we see Tate and Matthew meet and begin to fall in love (she's 19, he's in his 20's) but things don't end very well in the past, the present where they meet up again and rekindle their romance and the future... I don't typically like that sort of thing...she did it in Blue Smoke and I didn't like it their either. I want to focus on the present and if an author must give information about the past, I prefer a quick prologue or something. Just a preference. The suspense and other things are enjoyable but also really quite forgettable. So it's a solid 3.
River's End - 3/5 - This just does not read like a typical Nora Roberts romance. It's set up so that it follows Olivia through her childhood and interactions with Noah and his family. So we see everything that happens to her (when she was 4, 12 and 18) and Noah's connection to her. This takes up 50% of the book. The "romance" such as it is follows afterwards. After 6 years of separation (during their last meeting, Noah broke Olivia's heart) they end up working together. For the 2nd half of the book, it feels like Noah is the main character and Olivia is less important. The primary focus of the entire story is less about the romance and more about character development and the mystery of who really killed Olivia's mother. Noah was great. Olivia...boy is she stubborn! She has a lot of emotional baggage from her childhood trauma and from when Noah broke her heart and he's really working hard to make the romance work. At one points he calls her a frickin' combat zone and then wonders aloud whether it's really worth it or not. At that point I was like, "Yeah! Go find someone worth your wonderful self Noah!" So it was okay, but this was not the kind of book I typically enjoy from Nora Roberts. On a side note - the mystery definitely remained a mystery for most of the book...
The Reef - 3/5 - An average Nora Roberts suspense novel that is somewhat forgettable. What is most definitely not forgettable is the setting, because it is so unique to her novels. This takes place on the ocean - these guys are oceanic treasure hunters searching for an amulet. So the characters are on boats, they're diving - it's really quite refreshing how different it is. What is forgettable though is the plot and the romance. It's divided into 3 parts - the past, where we see Tate and Matthew meet and begin to fall in love (she's 19, he's in his 20's) but things don't end very well in the past, the present where they meet up again and rekindle their romance and the future... I don't typically like that sort of thing...she did it in Blue Smoke and I didn't like it their either. I want to focus on the present and if an author must give information about the past, I prefer a quick prologue or something. Just a preference. The suspense and other things are enjoyable but also really quite forgettable. So it's a solid 3.
River's End - 3/5 - This just does not read like a typical Nora Roberts romance. It's set up so that it follows Olivia through her childhood and interactions with Noah and his family. So we see everything that happens to her (when she was 4, 12 and 18) and Noah's connection to her. This takes up 50% of the book. The "romance" such as it is follows afterwards. After 6 years of separation (during their last meeting, Noah broke Olivia's heart) they end up working together. For the 2nd half of the book, it feels like Noah is the main character and Olivia is less important. The primary focus of the entire story is less about the romance and more about character development and the mystery of who really killed Olivia's mother. Noah was great. Olivia...boy is she stubborn! She has a lot of emotional baggage from her childhood trauma and from when Noah broke her heart and he's really working hard to make the romance work. At one points he calls her a frickin' combat zone and then wonders aloud whether it's really worth it or not. At that point I was like, "Yeah! Go find someone worth your wonderful self Noah!" So it was okay, but this was not the kind of book I typically enjoy from Nora Roberts. On a side note - the mystery definitely remained a mystery for most of the book...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 26, 2024
The Reef is about deep sea diving in search of lost galleons and myths of cursed jewellery. Great insight into the work involved and the story of a young girl who falls in love with a salvage hunter to be cruelly rejected. Eight years later she becomes an eminent archaeologist and with her parents once again seek the support of her ex lover salvaging expert, to find the amulet called Angelique’s Curse while evading a rich and powerful evil man set on stealing this amulet for himself, murdering anyone in his way.
May 12, 2021
If you like mysteries and seeing the bad guys get it in the end, these stories are for you. Interesting how Nora Roberts research and knows the story line she wants to write about and her knowledge of the research and how she puts it all together. Amazing!
July 3, 2020
The reef- they best book ever!!!! My fave. Best read on the beach.
February 28, 2021
De reef is the best book, than River's end, Homeport wasn't as good.
March 24, 2023
Only read Homeport at this point. Definitely read/listen to the other two.
April 18, 2024
Did not enjoy Homeport particularly, Rivers End was very good but dragged a little, and The Reef was good. Enjoyable light easy reads, also good for the beach.
January 4, 2025
Another great trilogy. I had to wait on these three to be published. These are page turners.
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March 23, 2014good
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews