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Secrets of Shadow Falls #2
Kill Me Again
I'm not who they say I am.
Trust me.
But can she?
Reclusive novelist Aaron Westhaven, a man she's admired—and more—for years, has accepted Olivia Dupree's invitation to speak at a local fundraiser. But the day he's due to arrive, she gets a call summoning her to the bedside of a John Doe whose sole possession is her business card.
Can this undeniably compelling man—survivor of an execution-style gunshot wound—really be the novelist the lonely Olivia has grown to think of as a near soul mate? If not, he can be in Shadow Falls for only one to kill her.
Olivia, too, has secrets. And discovering the truth about the man in the hospital bed means dredging up her own past—a past she's been hiding from for sixteen years.
Trust me.
But can she?
Reclusive novelist Aaron Westhaven, a man she's admired—and more—for years, has accepted Olivia Dupree's invitation to speak at a local fundraiser. But the day he's due to arrive, she gets a call summoning her to the bedside of a John Doe whose sole possession is her business card.
Can this undeniably compelling man—survivor of an execution-style gunshot wound—really be the novelist the lonely Olivia has grown to think of as a near soul mate? If not, he can be in Shadow Falls for only one to kill her.
Olivia, too, has secrets. And discovering the truth about the man in the hospital bed means dredging up her own past—a past she's been hiding from for sixteen years.
400 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
41 people are currently reading
700 people want to read
About the author
Maggie Shayne
257 books2,572 followersI live in the teeny, tiny town of Taylor, NY, (Alliteration Alert!) though my mailing address is Cincinnatus, my telephone exchange is Truxton and I pay taxes and vote in Cuyler. All of these are at least in the same rural county in the southern hills of New York State; Cortland County. There are more cattle than people here. The nearest “big” cities are Syracuse and Binghamton and they are an hour away, in different directions, and not really all that big by most standards, though they both seem humongous to me. I look out my window to see rolling, green, thickly forested hills, wildflower laden meadows and wide open blue, blue skies. My road is barely paved. The nearest neighboring place is a 700 acre dairy farm.
My house is a big, century old farmhouse. I moved in here after my divorce in 2006. Just a little over a year later, the house, which I had named, SERENITY, burned. It was 99% gutted, and I lost my two dogs, Sally, an 11-year-old great Dane, and Wrinkles, my 14-year-old, blind bulldog. This was the culmination of my Dark Night of the soul, which had seemed to hit me all at once in 2006-2007. My mother died that year, after a 14 month battle with pancreatic cancer. She was only 60. The youngest of my five daughters had left home that same year, and while that’s not a tragedy at all, it felt like one to me. Then came the divorce. And finally there was the fire--it seemed my darkest night wasn’t quite finished with me after all. I had lost almost everything before that point, and as I poked through the wet ashes and soot the next day, I realized that I had now been stripped all the way to the bone.
No better time to start over. (And no, I didn’t come to that realization that day--there were a few days of wallowing in pity first, particularly the day after the fire, when I hit a deer and smashed up my car, which I was practically living in!)
That’s when I started to laugh. Just sat on the side of the road as the deer bounded, uninjured and carefree, out of sight, and laughed. It was just too ridiculous at that point, to do anything else!
And from there, I picked myself up, and brushed myself off, and said, okay, there’s only one way to go from here. Forward. And that’s what I did. There I was at the age of harrurmphemmph, living in my one, mostly undamaged remaining room, with a dorm-sized mini-fridge, a futon, a TV, my cat (nine lives!) and a laptop. And not much else. (Though thank goodness the room that survived the fire, was a room that had its own attached bathroom!)
Since then I have rebuilt my beloved home, which really has become my haven, my “Serenity.” I share it now with my fiancé, Lance, and we have accumulated quite the little family together. “Little” being a relative term. We have a pair of English Mastiffs, Dozer and Daisy, who weigh 203 pounds and 208 pounds respectively, and a little pudgy English Bulldog named Niblet, who is bigger than both of them, inside her mind. We also have the aforementioned cat, Glorificus (“Glory” for short,) who adores her canine pups and keeps them firmly in line. And we've acquired a pair of stray cats as well, a mother and son, Luna (Lulu for short) and Butters aka Buddy. Lulu showed up pregnant during a lunar eclipse, had a litter, and vanished again. We found homes for all the kittens except one. Butters. We got him fixed and kept him. A few months later, Lulu returned, again expecting. This litter was born on the "Monster Moon." Again, all the kittens were spayed and neutered and placed in homes, and this time we got Lulu to the vet in time to spay her before the cycle could repeat.
Glory is not amused.
She has a story of her own, my old Glory cat, having been with me before the Dark Times descended, she went through it all with me, moved with me, survived the fire, and remains with me still. She's tolerating the newcomers. Barely.
My partner is an artist, a mechanic, a welder and an inventor, and the rumors are true, he is much younger than I
My house is a big, century old farmhouse. I moved in here after my divorce in 2006. Just a little over a year later, the house, which I had named, SERENITY, burned. It was 99% gutted, and I lost my two dogs, Sally, an 11-year-old great Dane, and Wrinkles, my 14-year-old, blind bulldog. This was the culmination of my Dark Night of the soul, which had seemed to hit me all at once in 2006-2007. My mother died that year, after a 14 month battle with pancreatic cancer. She was only 60. The youngest of my five daughters had left home that same year, and while that’s not a tragedy at all, it felt like one to me. Then came the divorce. And finally there was the fire--it seemed my darkest night wasn’t quite finished with me after all. I had lost almost everything before that point, and as I poked through the wet ashes and soot the next day, I realized that I had now been stripped all the way to the bone.
No better time to start over. (And no, I didn’t come to that realization that day--there were a few days of wallowing in pity first, particularly the day after the fire, when I hit a deer and smashed up my car, which I was practically living in!)
That’s when I started to laugh. Just sat on the side of the road as the deer bounded, uninjured and carefree, out of sight, and laughed. It was just too ridiculous at that point, to do anything else!
And from there, I picked myself up, and brushed myself off, and said, okay, there’s only one way to go from here. Forward. And that’s what I did. There I was at the age of harrurmphemmph, living in my one, mostly undamaged remaining room, with a dorm-sized mini-fridge, a futon, a TV, my cat (nine lives!) and a laptop. And not much else. (Though thank goodness the room that survived the fire, was a room that had its own attached bathroom!)
Since then I have rebuilt my beloved home, which really has become my haven, my “Serenity.” I share it now with my fiancé, Lance, and we have accumulated quite the little family together. “Little” being a relative term. We have a pair of English Mastiffs, Dozer and Daisy, who weigh 203 pounds and 208 pounds respectively, and a little pudgy English Bulldog named Niblet, who is bigger than both of them, inside her mind. We also have the aforementioned cat, Glorificus (“Glory” for short,) who adores her canine pups and keeps them firmly in line. And we've acquired a pair of stray cats as well, a mother and son, Luna (Lulu for short) and Butters aka Buddy. Lulu showed up pregnant during a lunar eclipse, had a litter, and vanished again. We found homes for all the kittens except one. Butters. We got him fixed and kept him. A few months later, Lulu returned, again expecting. This litter was born on the "Monster Moon." Again, all the kittens were spayed and neutered and placed in homes, and this time we got Lulu to the vet in time to spay her before the cycle could repeat.
Glory is not amused.
She has a story of her own, my old Glory cat, having been with me before the Dark Times descended, she went through it all with me, moved with me, survived the fire, and remains with me still. She's tolerating the newcomers. Barely.
My partner is an artist, a mechanic, a welder and an inventor, and the rumors are true, he is much younger than I
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
July 21, 2010
4 & a half starts!
This is the sequel to Maggie Shayne’s Killing Me Softly and I am really happy that this trilogy is coming out in the short span of 3 months because it definitely brings down the waiting factor to a minimum and let’s you be as involved with the series as you want to be, without the “who-is-that-guy-again” factor.
Kill Me Again took me once more out of my cozy comfort zone and didn’t even have the “I-see-dead-people” thing to help me sleep at night and pretend I was still reading something with a supernatural element. However, i don’t scoff on it because I have really been trying to enjoy different genres nowadays and this trilogy just keeps getting better in my honest opinion.
We met Olivia in the previous book and that was when we learned about her tragic and mysterious past and even though we never learned a lot about it, it was enough to know that despite being able to hide from it for 16 years, that past was going to bite her in the ass sooner rather than later.
Olivia Dupree is mild-mannered English Professor, though that is not who she was even close to being over 15 years ago. She was born Sarah Quinlan, but due to a violent boyfriend and tragic circumstances she took over the identity of her murdered roommate all those years ago.
Cut to the present and we find Olivia waiting excitedly for the arrival of her idol, recluse fiction author Aaron Westhaven, who has surprisingly agreed to give a talk in her University’s fundraiser the following weekend. A call about an assassination attempt and an amnesiac John Doe turns her life upside down faster than she thought possible.
Our hero starts the novel not knowing who he is. He wakes up in the hospital after surviving a shot to the head with a woman telling him she thinks he is a recluse author named Aaron.
That doesn’t strike him as familiar, but he can’t really refute it until he starts dreaming about what he believes is his life and realizes that it would be much simpler if he was this Author, because if what he is remembering is true, falling for the woman on the run with him would be too wrong to even contemplate.
I loved this book and Maggie did a superb job in keeping us in the dark about the hero’s real identity and job until the very end and that journey was definitely the wildest of rides.
Olivia is a great heroine, a woman hiding from her past, but strong nonetheless. She stuck up for what she believed and fought to get out of an awful situation. She is smart and because of her past experiences she doesn’t trust easily or at all, well, not unless we are talking about the cutest and biggest dog ever, Freddy.
“Aaron” and Olivia are perfect for each other and work so well together. Their romance was really enjoyable to read about and even though he was reluctant to give himself because of who was believing he was and she couldn’t really trust him, they were able to fall in love and fight for each other.
Kill Me Again is a non-stop thrill ride that I could barely put down for a second. Great characters, an extremely lovable sidekick and a lot of adventure made for an awesome read. I recommend it to any Mystery / Thriller lover out there!
This is the sequel to Maggie Shayne’s Killing Me Softly and I am really happy that this trilogy is coming out in the short span of 3 months because it definitely brings down the waiting factor to a minimum and let’s you be as involved with the series as you want to be, without the “who-is-that-guy-again” factor.
Kill Me Again took me once more out of my cozy comfort zone and didn’t even have the “I-see-dead-people” thing to help me sleep at night and pretend I was still reading something with a supernatural element. However, i don’t scoff on it because I have really been trying to enjoy different genres nowadays and this trilogy just keeps getting better in my honest opinion.
We met Olivia in the previous book and that was when we learned about her tragic and mysterious past and even though we never learned a lot about it, it was enough to know that despite being able to hide from it for 16 years, that past was going to bite her in the ass sooner rather than later.
Olivia Dupree is mild-mannered English Professor, though that is not who she was even close to being over 15 years ago. She was born Sarah Quinlan, but due to a violent boyfriend and tragic circumstances she took over the identity of her murdered roommate all those years ago.
Cut to the present and we find Olivia waiting excitedly for the arrival of her idol, recluse fiction author Aaron Westhaven, who has surprisingly agreed to give a talk in her University’s fundraiser the following weekend. A call about an assassination attempt and an amnesiac John Doe turns her life upside down faster than she thought possible.
Our hero starts the novel not knowing who he is. He wakes up in the hospital after surviving a shot to the head with a woman telling him she thinks he is a recluse author named Aaron.
That doesn’t strike him as familiar, but he can’t really refute it until he starts dreaming about what he believes is his life and realizes that it would be much simpler if he was this Author, because if what he is remembering is true, falling for the woman on the run with him would be too wrong to even contemplate.
I loved this book and Maggie did a superb job in keeping us in the dark about the hero’s real identity and job until the very end and that journey was definitely the wildest of rides.
Olivia is a great heroine, a woman hiding from her past, but strong nonetheless. She stuck up for what she believed and fought to get out of an awful situation. She is smart and because of her past experiences she doesn’t trust easily or at all, well, not unless we are talking about the cutest and biggest dog ever, Freddy.
“Aaron” and Olivia are perfect for each other and work so well together. Their romance was really enjoyable to read about and even though he was reluctant to give himself because of who was believing he was and she couldn’t really trust him, they were able to fall in love and fight for each other.
Kill Me Again is a non-stop thrill ride that I could barely put down for a second. Great characters, an extremely lovable sidekick and a lot of adventure made for an awesome read. I recommend it to any Mystery / Thriller lover out there!
June 17, 2010
Another great book by Maggie Shayne, I loved it. In book one you read about Olivia having a bad past. In this one it catches up with her and you get to read what happened between her and her ex. Its not a good past to read about, I found really emotional and had to keep reading to find out the whole story.
Olivia is a huge fan of a reclusive author Aaron Westhaven and he has been invited to speak at the university. Olivia was waiting for Aaron to come when she noticed he was really late. The next thing she knows, she gets a call from the hospital for her to come there. When she gets there she finds out that she has to identify a man with amnesia that holds a card with her name and address. Now keep in mind this author Olivia has never seen before, no pictures or anything, so she really doesn’t truly know if this is him or not.
Aaron finds himself shot and in a hospital with amnesia. A woman comes in named Olivia she says that she thinks she knows him. So he goes with what she says until he can find out the truth. They want him to stay in the hospital for the night. But Aaron gets antsy and he over heard that Olivia left her car, so he makes it out of the hospital and gets in her car and hit’s the GPS for her home. When he gets there he finds Olivia being attacked by a man, so he fights him off. Both Olivia and Aaron notices how he handled himself in the fight and he shows no signs of being a real author. So who is he?
This is a excellent action pack read, one I will never forget. All the twists and turns that Aaron and Olivia goes through before finding out how he really is and the help Aaron gives Olivia to face her fears with her ex and help her over come him and put him back behind bars. I was in awe with the whole book. I really loved how the author wrote in Olivia’s dog Freddie, he is a 200 pound mastiff. You’ll have to read how he saves their lives and brings excitement in the whole book. This one has a little more romance then the first, still not a whole lot, but again I never missed it there is so much going on.
Olivia is a huge fan of a reclusive author Aaron Westhaven and he has been invited to speak at the university. Olivia was waiting for Aaron to come when she noticed he was really late. The next thing she knows, she gets a call from the hospital for her to come there. When she gets there she finds out that she has to identify a man with amnesia that holds a card with her name and address. Now keep in mind this author Olivia has never seen before, no pictures or anything, so she really doesn’t truly know if this is him or not.
Aaron finds himself shot and in a hospital with amnesia. A woman comes in named Olivia she says that she thinks she knows him. So he goes with what she says until he can find out the truth. They want him to stay in the hospital for the night. But Aaron gets antsy and he over heard that Olivia left her car, so he makes it out of the hospital and gets in her car and hit’s the GPS for her home. When he gets there he finds Olivia being attacked by a man, so he fights him off. Both Olivia and Aaron notices how he handled himself in the fight and he shows no signs of being a real author. So who is he?
This is a excellent action pack read, one I will never forget. All the twists and turns that Aaron and Olivia goes through before finding out how he really is and the help Aaron gives Olivia to face her fears with her ex and help her over come him and put him back behind bars. I was in awe with the whole book. I really loved how the author wrote in Olivia’s dog Freddie, he is a 200 pound mastiff. You’ll have to read how he saves their lives and brings excitement in the whole book. This one has a little more romance then the first, still not a whole lot, but again I never missed it there is so much going on.
May 8, 2019
I enjoyed this romantic suspense with lots of plot twists and fast paced exciting action. I found the story intriguing as both main characters personalities and past was revealed. Quiet professor Olivia is called to the hospital to identify a John Doe patient who has amnesia and she suspects he is the reclusive novelist Aaron.
August 16, 2013
For years English professor Olivia Dupree has had a virtual crush on reclusive author Aaron Westhaven. She loves everything he's ever written and has built him up in her mind to be the perfect man with all the right thoughts and feelings. She's ecstatic when her repeated letters to him are finally answered and he agrees to be the featured speaker at a private event. However Olivia starts to panic when he is late to arrive. Therefore when she gets a frantic call from the hospital regarding an unidentified man who had been shot, has amnesia and was found with her business card in his pocket, she automatically assumes it's Aaron. Obviously someone is trying to kill him, so Aaron signs himself out of the hospital and heads to Olivia's and arrives just in time to save her from an attack. Olivia's past has finally caught up with her and she and Aaron take off to hide while trying to figure out who is trying to kill them.
This is a roller coaster ride of excitement with many twists and turns that pit Aaron and Olivia against various foes (and each other). I enjoyed their journey and their discovery of themselves and each other. I thought this was much better than the first book in the series and I'm looking forward to reading Dr. Carrie's story and finding out the truth about Sam.
Oh and I'm a huge pet person so for me Freddy totally stole the show. I just loved everything about him. He is definitely my kind of dog - a 200 pound Old English mastiff - huge and lovable! Just what I want when I eventually have a house with a fenced yard. I can't wait.
This is a roller coaster ride of excitement with many twists and turns that pit Aaron and Olivia against various foes (and each other). I enjoyed their journey and their discovery of themselves and each other. I thought this was much better than the first book in the series and I'm looking forward to reading Dr. Carrie's story and finding out the truth about Sam.
Oh and I'm a huge pet person so for me Freddy totally stole the show. I just loved everything about him. He is definitely my kind of dog - a 200 pound Old English mastiff - huge and lovable! Just what I want when I eventually have a house with a fenced yard. I can't wait.
September 8, 2014
★★★★½ (This is a review of the audiobook.) I really enjoyed Rachel Butera's narration of this intriguing book. She does a great job on the voices for the different characters, and they are not what I would have imagined. However, they bring a different kind of book to my imagination. She makes the heroine sound just a tiny bit like the actress Meg Tilly, but just a tiny bit. And it works. She puts inflection on sentences in a way I wouldn't have... and that works, too!
Love the plot twists in this one, too, even though I saw some of them coming. A very enjoyable listen.
Love the plot twists in this one, too, even though I saw some of them coming. A very enjoyable listen.
August 15, 2010
After enjoying the first book in this trilogy, I expected to like this one as well, but unfortunately it fell rather flat for me. Nothing about it really worked...except for the dog. I liked the dog.
Series Note:
Second book in the "Secrets of Shadow Falls" trilogy, of which the first book is connected to Shayne's "Mordecai Young" trilogy.
Summary:
Olivia Dupree has settled into life in Shadow Falls, VT, over the years, but she has some deep, dark secrets she doesn't want anyone to find out. If they were to come to light, she could find herself dead. But with things that have gone on recently, her past might already be catching up to her.
She finds herself "guardian" of a handsome, mysterious man with total amnesia. Olivia believes he's her favorite author, who she invited to speak at a fundraiser. But "Aaron" isn't so sure that's who he is. Whoever he is, someone wants him dead or he wouldn't have ended up in a ditch with a gunshot wound. But was he shot because of who HE is, or because of who OLIVIA really is? In the process of searching for answers, the two are drawn close together.
Review:
After I got a little ways into this book, I just kinda sighed and thought, bummer, another amnesia story. There's just something about amnesia romances that doesn't usually work for me. And this was no exception. For me, the fact that "Aaron" had no idea who he was for 95% of the story totally ruined the romance.
It's just really hard to get into the characters and the romance when one of them has full amnesia. "Aaron" was a completely blank slate and what little we learned about him didn't put him in a favorable light. I didn't feel the connection between him and Olivia at all. It's hard to get to know the character when you literally don't know anything about it. So that whole aspect of the book was a real turn-off for me.
Other than that, the book was really slow moving. Olivia and "Aaron" go from place to place, not really doing anything, not really finding out anything to help them. It's just a lot of mundane filler and not enough action. The suspense needed to be much more intense and active to hook me into the story. It did pick up during the last chunk of the book and I finished that part a lot quicker than the first 2/3rds.
Really, my favorite part of the book was Olivia's dog. That was one rockin' dog.
I hope the final book in this trilogy is better than this one.
Series Note:
Second book in the "Secrets of Shadow Falls" trilogy, of which the first book is connected to Shayne's "Mordecai Young" trilogy.
Summary:
Olivia Dupree has settled into life in Shadow Falls, VT, over the years, but she has some deep, dark secrets she doesn't want anyone to find out. If they were to come to light, she could find herself dead. But with things that have gone on recently, her past might already be catching up to her.
She finds herself "guardian" of a handsome, mysterious man with total amnesia. Olivia believes he's her favorite author, who she invited to speak at a fundraiser. But "Aaron" isn't so sure that's who he is. Whoever he is, someone wants him dead or he wouldn't have ended up in a ditch with a gunshot wound. But was he shot because of who HE is, or because of who OLIVIA really is? In the process of searching for answers, the two are drawn close together.
Review:
After I got a little ways into this book, I just kinda sighed and thought, bummer, another amnesia story. There's just something about amnesia romances that doesn't usually work for me. And this was no exception. For me, the fact that "Aaron" had no idea who he was for 95% of the story totally ruined the romance.
It's just really hard to get into the characters and the romance when one of them has full amnesia. "Aaron" was a completely blank slate and what little we learned about him didn't put him in a favorable light. I didn't feel the connection between him and Olivia at all. It's hard to get to know the character when you literally don't know anything about it. So that whole aspect of the book was a real turn-off for me.
Other than that, the book was really slow moving. Olivia and "Aaron" go from place to place, not really doing anything, not really finding out anything to help them. It's just a lot of mundane filler and not enough action. The suspense needed to be much more intense and active to hook me into the story. It did pick up during the last chunk of the book and I finished that part a lot quicker than the first 2/3rds.
Really, my favorite part of the book was Olivia's dog. That was one rockin' dog.
I hope the final book in this trilogy is better than this one.
September 15, 2012
A lot of good points to the story, but the dog was the character who made the book shine for me. I loved him for his own awesomeness and also how he really became an important part of the love between Olivia and Aaron. The amnesia aspect of the story was a little better than usual too - the puzzle of who and what Aaron is was nice and complicated and surprising. He and Olivia were not perfect, which was nice and I liked they would call each other on it, for example when he pointed out how bossy she could be. But their attaction and affection for each was clear too. One minor quibble - Aaron had been shot in the head, and got hit at least 2 more times after that and never seemed to exhibit much more than a slight headache once was out of the hospital. Really, wince a little ok Aaron?
February 26, 2024
This is the second time I have read this book. It has been quite some time though, so I did not remember how it turned out, and how the plot would twist. Both of the main characters were very likeable. The plot had enough twists to keep me guessing. The ending felt like it wrapped up pretty quickly, but other than that, a very enjoyable read.
October 24, 2021
MY RATING
5 stars--WOW
4 stars--would read again
3 stars--was good
2 stars--didn't enjoy
1 star--didn't finish
Should I read books before this one: no
Cliffhanger: no
SUMMARY
Olivia is excited to meet Aaron Westland, her favorite author. He's agreed to be the guest speaker at the English department summer fundraiser, but he had all sorts of rules for privacy because he's such a hermit.
Sam Overton is driving his mom's boyfriend's SUV with Kyle, who's already licensed. They pull over because Sam has second thoughts, and find a body.
He's late. Olivia's kicking herself for trusting someone, especially a man, when she gets a call from Dr Carrie Overton at the hospital. A man with her business card, plus handwritten home phone and address on the back, has been brought in. She goes to the hospital, meets up with Officer Bryan. Carrie takes them to the man while Olivia explains her connection. The man's been shot, execution style, but the steel plate in his head saved his life, as did the 2 boys finding him. He has amnesia. Olivia looks at the business card, it's the one she sent to Aaron. He's handsome.
He expects his memory to come back when he hears his name. Nope. She's gorgeous. Are we lovers? No. Just friends then. No. She shares what she knows. He recognizes the fingerprint dust on the business card, knows having an officer in the hall (even plain clothes) will attract attention, and that this place isn't defensible. He wants to leave. Olivia tells him his Armani suit is ruined. She tells him his books helped her through difficult times, that he's special. That sends him into a memory of laser sighting and sniping a man.
Carrie asks Olivia to keep her boyfriend's SUV in her garage so her son isn't tempted again. Olivia gets junk food for Aaron before she heads home for the night. She tells Aaron about Harvey Trudeau, the main character in all his stories, because she believes Harvey's personality will give them the best shot at learning Aaron's personality. Harvey is, in essence, a Regency lady. "Harvey's got his flaws. He doesn't trust people easily, and they usually prove him right. But he misses out on a lot of good relationships. His logic is that it's better to be alone than to risk being hurt and disappointed by trusting someone not worth trusting. I understand that about him." Aaron asks what if he's nothing like that.
She takes the SUV home, leaves her crossover at the hospital. She gets inside, no Freddy (her mastiff). She goes outside, he comes running eating a huge piece of meat. In bed, she thinks about Aaron. She hasn't had any romantic relationships since she fled Tommy 16 years ago. She hears an intruder.
Aaron can't sleep. He drifted off, once, saw himself standing over another dead body holding the smoking gun. He decides to trust his instincts. He steals Olivia's car key and some other patient's clothes. He heads to her house.
Where is Freddy? The landline is dead. She gets out of bed, looks out the bedroom door, sees Freddy is dead. Then the door hits her. The gunman asks Sarah where the disks are. She tries to go to Freddy, he throws her on the bed. Aaron beats him up, disarms the gun faster than she gets her cell. The intruder runs, she goes to Freddy, who's breathing. The steak! Aaron gets ice for her face, says she can't stay here because the intruder will return until he gets the disks. Why are you helping me? Until I know what's going on with my killer, might as well help you with yours. She wants to call Bryan, Aaron talks her out of it. He thinks their attacks are related. She knows they're not because only 2 people know she's Sarah. She wants to grab Freddy, her bug-out bag, and run. He convinces her to stay together. She's further convinced he's OK when Freddy puts a paw on Aaron's knee. She asks how he learned to fight and handle the gun. He doesn't know, maybe research?
Aaron knows he's not the writer: he's not sensitive or lonely and wouldn't have named a character Harvey Trudeau. He knows he's here to see her. He knows he's killed. He's staying with her until he figures out the rest. He also knows he's attracted to her, but a relationship isn't smart.
Olivia packs. Aaron shows her the vet tranquilizer he found. Nope, he doesn't know how he knows all about it. She worries about trusting him, but knows she can't stay. She leaves Bryan a note to delay him a few days.
EVALUATION
I was expecting some paranormal, based on the first book. There is none. However, we get an incredible story with a fabulous mascot.
The pacing of Aaron's slow memory return mixed with escaping whoever's after them is finely balanced, keeping intrigue hopping with downtime for romance to build. We get comedy, too, at the motel with adjoining rooms when Aaron gets pouty and sarcastic. Well done.
The story ends well. We don't know Aaron's plans for the future or how he wraps up his past….
RECOMMENDATION
All adults who like romance and suspense
FAVORITE QUOTES
[keep your gun on him] Oh, believe me, I am. He twitches and I'm going to dot his third eye for him.
POSSIBLE TRIGGERS (SPOILERS)
Sex: multiple scenes
Language: 23 f***, 76 Lord's name in vain, 23 s***
Violence: attempted murder, hostages, beatings, intruder, gunfights, drugs
5 stars--WOW
4 stars--would read again
3 stars--was good
2 stars--didn't enjoy
1 star--didn't finish
Should I read books before this one: no
Cliffhanger: no
SUMMARY
Olivia is excited to meet Aaron Westland, her favorite author. He's agreed to be the guest speaker at the English department summer fundraiser, but he had all sorts of rules for privacy because he's such a hermit.
Sam Overton is driving his mom's boyfriend's SUV with Kyle, who's already licensed. They pull over because Sam has second thoughts, and find a body.
He's late. Olivia's kicking herself for trusting someone, especially a man, when she gets a call from Dr Carrie Overton at the hospital. A man with her business card, plus handwritten home phone and address on the back, has been brought in. She goes to the hospital, meets up with Officer Bryan. Carrie takes them to the man while Olivia explains her connection. The man's been shot, execution style, but the steel plate in his head saved his life, as did the 2 boys finding him. He has amnesia. Olivia looks at the business card, it's the one she sent to Aaron. He's handsome.
He expects his memory to come back when he hears his name. Nope. She's gorgeous. Are we lovers? No. Just friends then. No. She shares what she knows. He recognizes the fingerprint dust on the business card, knows having an officer in the hall (even plain clothes) will attract attention, and that this place isn't defensible. He wants to leave. Olivia tells him his Armani suit is ruined. She tells him his books helped her through difficult times, that he's special. That sends him into a memory of laser sighting and sniping a man.
Carrie asks Olivia to keep her boyfriend's SUV in her garage so her son isn't tempted again. Olivia gets junk food for Aaron before she heads home for the night. She tells Aaron about Harvey Trudeau, the main character in all his stories, because she believes Harvey's personality will give them the best shot at learning Aaron's personality. Harvey is, in essence, a Regency lady. "Harvey's got his flaws. He doesn't trust people easily, and they usually prove him right. But he misses out on a lot of good relationships. His logic is that it's better to be alone than to risk being hurt and disappointed by trusting someone not worth trusting. I understand that about him." Aaron asks what if he's nothing like that.
She takes the SUV home, leaves her crossover at the hospital. She gets inside, no Freddy (her mastiff). She goes outside, he comes running eating a huge piece of meat. In bed, she thinks about Aaron. She hasn't had any romantic relationships since she fled Tommy 16 years ago. She hears an intruder.
Aaron can't sleep. He drifted off, once, saw himself standing over another dead body holding the smoking gun. He decides to trust his instincts. He steals Olivia's car key and some other patient's clothes. He heads to her house.
Where is Freddy? The landline is dead. She gets out of bed, looks out the bedroom door, sees Freddy is dead. Then the door hits her. The gunman asks Sarah where the disks are. She tries to go to Freddy, he throws her on the bed. Aaron beats him up, disarms the gun faster than she gets her cell. The intruder runs, she goes to Freddy, who's breathing. The steak! Aaron gets ice for her face, says she can't stay here because the intruder will return until he gets the disks. Why are you helping me? Until I know what's going on with my killer, might as well help you with yours. She wants to call Bryan, Aaron talks her out of it. He thinks their attacks are related. She knows they're not because only 2 people know she's Sarah. She wants to grab Freddy, her bug-out bag, and run. He convinces her to stay together. She's further convinced he's OK when Freddy puts a paw on Aaron's knee. She asks how he learned to fight and handle the gun. He doesn't know, maybe research?
Aaron knows he's not the writer: he's not sensitive or lonely and wouldn't have named a character Harvey Trudeau. He knows he's here to see her. He knows he's killed. He's staying with her until he figures out the rest. He also knows he's attracted to her, but a relationship isn't smart.
Olivia packs. Aaron shows her the vet tranquilizer he found. Nope, he doesn't know how he knows all about it. She worries about trusting him, but knows she can't stay. She leaves Bryan a note to delay him a few days.
EVALUATION
I was expecting some paranormal, based on the first book. There is none. However, we get an incredible story with a fabulous mascot.
The pacing of Aaron's slow memory return mixed with escaping whoever's after them is finely balanced, keeping intrigue hopping with downtime for romance to build. We get comedy, too, at the motel with adjoining rooms when Aaron gets pouty and sarcastic. Well done.
The story ends well. We don't know Aaron's plans for the future or how he wraps up his past….
RECOMMENDATION
All adults who like romance and suspense
FAVORITE QUOTES
[keep your gun on him] Oh, believe me, I am. He twitches and I'm going to dot his third eye for him.
POSSIBLE TRIGGERS (SPOILERS)
Sex: multiple scenes
Language: 23 f***, 76 Lord's name in vain, 23 s***
Violence: attempted murder, hostages, beatings, intruder, gunfights, drugs
July 4, 2013
Great book with a twist!
August 31, 2017
Aaron (that's who he may be, he has amnesia) and Olivia (though she has stolen someone's identity). This book was okay. The author pretty much reiterated what happened in the previous book (so now I don't need to read it!). Usually I can suspend disbelief, but I had a really hard time with this one. She doesn't know who he is, but she goes out into the middle of nowhere to camp in the wilderness to avoid "the bad guys" and she wants to have sex with him? And, to be honest, both of their histories were so convoluted, I couldn't get attached to either one of them.
October 27, 2017
It has been a while since I've read a Maggie Shayne book. This was a good read with good characters--human and canine. It features Olivia Dupree and a John Doe with amnesia. Both of them have secrets that could be deadly. I figured out what was going on with the hero but it didn't ruin the story. Highly recommended!
September 15, 2018
Suspenseful read with action and romance. Best to read these in order as the villain of the first book is mentioned in this one as well as how things ended. Because I am using interlibrary loan books, I have read the series backwards. Wasn't really a problem with book 3, but book 2 spoiled book 1 for me.
February 12, 2024
I picked this book up on a cruise from their library. I had not read any of this author’s books before. It was a great read. The mysteries of the past and plot twists held my attention. I was worried when I realized it was part of a series, but I don’t think each story needs to be read chronologically. I’ll be following this author now.
October 6, 2017
Great read
This is Really good second book in this series. You need to read the first book to find the back story on the main character Olivia, but it is a stand alone otherwise. I can't wait for the next in the series.
This is Really good second book in this series. You need to read the first book to find the back story on the main character Olivia, but it is a stand alone otherwise. I can't wait for the next in the series.
January 30, 2018
Very enjoyable. I was in the right mood to read a romance with a little thriller attached and this fit the bill. I guess it was a little predictable but it was also what I wanted to read at that moment. I loved the dog, Freddie. He was my favorite character.
July 7, 2020
Nancy
Wow wow! Fantastic séries. Great characters, storyline, and romance. Suspenseful and intriguing! What a wonderful time I had reading this story. I love the big dog to. thanks
Wow wow! Fantastic séries. Great characters, storyline, and romance. Suspenseful and intriguing! What a wonderful time I had reading this story. I love the big dog to. thanks
October 29, 2017
19/2015/262
December 31, 2017
Fast paced. Not quite 4 stars but closer to 4 then 3.
February 2, 2018
Good book except didn't like who done it.
April 17, 2018
I think this is a fantastic read. I nearly started bawling when Freddy got shot running to the recuse.
October 10, 2018
Leuk boek.
February 13, 2020
Nota Geral: 3.2/5
Escrita: 3
Cenário: 4
Originalidade: 3
Personagens: 3
Suspense: 3.5
Humor: 3
Romance: 3
Capa: 3
Aditivo: 3
Previsível: 3
Escrita: 3
Cenário: 4
Originalidade: 3
Personagens: 3
Suspense: 3.5
Humor: 3
Romance: 3
Capa: 3
Aditivo: 3
Previsível: 3
July 19, 2021
3.5 stars
October 17, 2021
I liked it.
Good story lines and characters I enjoy following both along every twist and turn and hope the last book in the series really brings it home.
Good story lines and characters I enjoy following both along every twist and turn and hope the last book in the series really brings it home.
September 28, 2024
Man, I had a great time reading this book, I had to know what was going to happen next!
October 8, 2018
Great series!!
November 3, 2013
“Voor Olivia is het bijna niet te bevatten dat ze eindelijk haar favoriete auteur, Aaron Westhaven, gaat onmoeten. Al zestien jaar houdt ze zich schuil, al zestien jaar leeft ze in angst, en de boeken van Westhaven zijn haar enige troost. Nu zal hij bij hoge uitzondering – hij leeft als een kluizenaar – een lezing geven aan de universiteit waar ze werkt, en bovendien zal hij bij haar logeren!
Dan krijgt ze een telefoontje van het ziekenhuis: er is een onbekende man gevonden: Hij is neergeschoten en kan zich niets meer herinneren. Het enige wat hij bij zich had, was haar visitekaartje. Zo snel mogelijk vertrekt ze naar het ziekenhuis, en eenmaal daar blijkt dat het kaartje identiek is aan het exemplaar dat ze Westhaven stuurde. Maar is hij wel echt de auteur? Ze weet immers niet hoe hij eruitziet.
Kan Olivia deze man vertrouwen, of is het iemand anders, iemand die is gestuurd om haar op te sporen? In dat geval moet ze zo snel mogelijk vluchten...”
Eigenlijk viel dit boek beter mee als verwacht, al moet ik wel eerlijk bekennen dat mijn verwachtingen gebaseerd waren op het paperback formaat en de sobere cover. Nogmaals het bewijs dat je niet op de verpakking maar op de inhoud moet letten. :) Het verhaal zelf viel immers goed mee. Een leuke, vlot lezende thriller die je liefst in één keer uitleest.
Zoals je in de samenvatting die op de achterzijde van het boek gedrukt staat, kon lezen komt Olivia plots in contact met haar favoriete auteur. Een persoon die ze nog nooit ontmoet heeft maar wiens verhalen heel veel voor haar betekenden in een moeilijke periode. Een man die als een kluizenaar leeft, geen interviews geeft, geen foto's van zichzelf verspreid, … een grote onbekende.
Wanneer deze onbekende per grote uitzondering dan toch eens buitenkomt en meteen wordt neergeschoten, blijkt deze actie als een eerste dominoblokje, een rij van gevolgen in gang te duwen.
Olivia die zich de afgelopen zestien jaar heeft schuilgehouden voor haar verleden en niemand kon/kan vertrouwen moet, nu iemand haar geheim kent en ze niet meer veilig is, plots op de vlucht slaan in het gezelschap van iemand die ze niet kent. Meer zelfs, ze moeten elkaar vertrouwen willen ze hun achtervolgers te slim af zijn. Net nu ze zo opgejaagd wordt lijkt het wel alsof ze voor het eerst in zestien jaar terug echt leeft. En dan is natuurlijk Aaron nog, een auteur met geheugenverlies bij wie stilletjes aan herinneringen en vaardigheden opduiken... die je niet verwacht bij iemand die boeken schrijft.
Dan krijgt ze een telefoontje van het ziekenhuis: er is een onbekende man gevonden: Hij is neergeschoten en kan zich niets meer herinneren. Het enige wat hij bij zich had, was haar visitekaartje. Zo snel mogelijk vertrekt ze naar het ziekenhuis, en eenmaal daar blijkt dat het kaartje identiek is aan het exemplaar dat ze Westhaven stuurde. Maar is hij wel echt de auteur? Ze weet immers niet hoe hij eruitziet.
Kan Olivia deze man vertrouwen, of is het iemand anders, iemand die is gestuurd om haar op te sporen? In dat geval moet ze zo snel mogelijk vluchten...”
Eigenlijk viel dit boek beter mee als verwacht, al moet ik wel eerlijk bekennen dat mijn verwachtingen gebaseerd waren op het paperback formaat en de sobere cover. Nogmaals het bewijs dat je niet op de verpakking maar op de inhoud moet letten. :) Het verhaal zelf viel immers goed mee. Een leuke, vlot lezende thriller die je liefst in één keer uitleest.
Zoals je in de samenvatting die op de achterzijde van het boek gedrukt staat, kon lezen komt Olivia plots in contact met haar favoriete auteur. Een persoon die ze nog nooit ontmoet heeft maar wiens verhalen heel veel voor haar betekenden in een moeilijke periode. Een man die als een kluizenaar leeft, geen interviews geeft, geen foto's van zichzelf verspreid, … een grote onbekende.
Wanneer deze onbekende per grote uitzondering dan toch eens buitenkomt en meteen wordt neergeschoten, blijkt deze actie als een eerste dominoblokje, een rij van gevolgen in gang te duwen.
Olivia die zich de afgelopen zestien jaar heeft schuilgehouden voor haar verleden en niemand kon/kan vertrouwen moet, nu iemand haar geheim kent en ze niet meer veilig is, plots op de vlucht slaan in het gezelschap van iemand die ze niet kent. Meer zelfs, ze moeten elkaar vertrouwen willen ze hun achtervolgers te slim af zijn. Net nu ze zo opgejaagd wordt lijkt het wel alsof ze voor het eerst in zestien jaar terug echt leeft. En dan is natuurlijk Aaron nog, een auteur met geheugenverlies bij wie stilletjes aan herinneringen en vaardigheden opduiken... die je niet verwacht bij iemand die boeken schrijft.
September 22, 2016
This is Book 2 of the Shadow Falls. It was very good. The suspense and the movement of the storyline was great.
August 24, 2015
This is the second book in the trilogy, and it picks up with Oliva Dupree's story. We learn in the first book, that Oliva has a secret, she isn't really Oliva, but Sarah Quinlan. She took her murdered roommate's name to hide her identity from a abusive and powerful ex. Flash forward: Oliva, has invited an author, who is a recluse, but one that she deeply admires to speak at a fundraiser. She is surprised when she gets an acceptance, but the day he is to arrive, she gets a call from her friend, Dr Carrie Overton, requesting that she come to the hospital to ID the author. Problem is, Oliva nor anyone has actually seen this reclusive author. But, the man in the hospital bed has her card with her handwriting on it, that she sent to the author. The man, who Oliva believes to be the author, has amnesia and someone shot him in the head. The steel plate saved his life. The man is taken by Oliva immediately, but while he begins to ponder his situation and realizes that he can't trust anyone, and someone might return to finish the job. He takes off in Oliva's vehicle to find her, and arrives just in time to hear her cries. He rescues Oliva from an attacker, and the both of them decided that they need to take off for awhile and figure things out. Aaron, starts to have bits of his memory return, except what is returning doesn't make sense, which all add up to him being a hired gun. He doesn't think he is the writer, but if his memory is to be trusted, he may have been sent as a hired gun to kill Oliva. Oliva's past is catching up to her.
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