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Close Encounters
Lee Grafton is a divorced cop and the father of a teenage girl. Carol Taggart is a newly single professor. Their lives collide one night when Carol is caught in the crossfire of an undercover drug sting gone south. Shot and seriously wounded, she finds an unexpected friend in Lee . . . unaware that the man she’s falling for could be the shooter.
Twenty years on the street do nothing to prepare Lee for the night that changes his life. Determined to make amends, the special-operations lieutenant finds himself irresistibly drawn to Carol. But Lee soon faces a new threat. With his career and heart on the line, he races to prevent Carol from becoming a victim once again.
Passionate and bold, Close Encounters shatters myths about race, gender, and love.
Twenty years on the street do nothing to prepare Lee for the night that changes his life. Determined to make amends, the special-operations lieutenant finds himself irresistibly drawn to Carol. But Lee soon faces a new threat. With his career and heart on the line, he races to prevent Carol from becoming a victim once again.
Passionate and bold, Close Encounters shatters myths about race, gender, and love.
440 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 2000
26 people are currently reading
285 people want to read
About the author
Sandra Kitt
56 books237 followersSandra Kitt is the author of more than twenty novels, including The Color of Love, Significant Others, and Close Encounters, as well as numerous short stories.
Her work has been nominated for the NAACP Image Award and has appeared on theEssence and Blackboard bestseller lists. She is the recipient of the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award and the Zora Neale Hurston Literary Award.
A native New Yorker, Kitt previously worked as a graphic designer, creating cards for UNICEF, illustrating books, and exhibiting her own work, which is included in the collection of the Museum of African American Art in Los Angeles. She formerly served as the managing director of the Richard S. Perkin Collection in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History.
Her work has been nominated for the NAACP Image Award and has appeared on theEssence and Blackboard bestseller lists. She is the recipient of the Romantic Times Lifetime Achievement Award and the Zora Neale Hurston Literary Award.
A native New Yorker, Kitt previously worked as a graphic designer, creating cards for UNICEF, illustrating books, and exhibiting her own work, which is included in the collection of the Museum of African American Art in Los Angeles. She formerly served as the managing director of the Richard S. Perkin Collection in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
November 27, 2012
This book was so amazing. Everything about it was well done. I loved that fact that it was not thrown together and I did not spend all my time mentally correcting typos and grammar problems. IT really was a true romance book that focused on not only relationships between the main character but also between other characters. The people in the story had real lives and real feelings and realistic ways of dealing with things. I found it to be a breath of fresh air.
November 15, 2013
Close Encounters by Sandra Kitt was originally published in 2000. The book is being released in digital format by Open Road Intergrated Media. I received a copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book was read as part of the Goodreads Reto Romance group hosted by Open Road media.
Carol is taking her dog for a walk early one morning and gets caught in the line of fire during a police sting operation. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time and ended up getting shot.
Lee really is an honest cop. But, he made a terrible mistake. When the ballistics test come back on the bullet that struck Carol, it proves the bullet came from his gun.
If this weren't bad enough, Carol is a young black woman and Lee is a white cop. Needless to say , that makes things much more complicated.
Racked with guilt, Lee visits Carol in the hospital and the two of them connect quite easily. But, Carol's brother and ex-husband are pushing her to sue the city. It's a slam dunk if she decides to follow through with it. But, Carol doesn't want this incident to define her life. So, she holds off of making a decision.
In the meantime, Lee and Carol begin talking to each other and more and more they feel that connection between them growing. But, will be strong enough when the world comes in to make as a couple?
This story has so many angles. This is a romantic suspence novel, a crime novel, a love story and a family drama all rolled into one. Not only that, the author raised some real issues that make this a great book for a book club read.
The obvious issues of race are addressed, an interacial couple trying to make things work can be difficult under any circumstances, but adding to that is Lee being a cop and the mistrust aimed at him by Carol's brother and meddling ex-husband.
The issues of Carol's being raised by white parents, who obviously love her and gave her a good start in life, are questioned. Carol felt loved by her parents by they seemed out of touch with how awkward she felt being different from everyone else.
Lee is dealing with a teenage daughter that is very insecure and really needs him in her life more. Watching Lee mature as a man since the incident with Carol was uplifting. Carol brought out the best in him.
Although Carol made mistakes in her life, she was a very grounded person that didn't rush to judgement and had a very open mind and open heart. She was an inspiration, a role model and someone I grew to admire more and more.
This romance is very character driven, about adults being put in stressful situations and the forces that are out of their control trying to make things more difficult, and how these people grow and become stronger. But, it is also a very sensual romance.
I can't find anything to critque in this one. A+
Carol is taking her dog for a walk early one morning and gets caught in the line of fire during a police sting operation. She was in the wrong place at the wrong time and ended up getting shot.
Lee really is an honest cop. But, he made a terrible mistake. When the ballistics test come back on the bullet that struck Carol, it proves the bullet came from his gun.
If this weren't bad enough, Carol is a young black woman and Lee is a white cop. Needless to say , that makes things much more complicated.
Racked with guilt, Lee visits Carol in the hospital and the two of them connect quite easily. But, Carol's brother and ex-husband are pushing her to sue the city. It's a slam dunk if she decides to follow through with it. But, Carol doesn't want this incident to define her life. So, she holds off of making a decision.
In the meantime, Lee and Carol begin talking to each other and more and more they feel that connection between them growing. But, will be strong enough when the world comes in to make as a couple?
This story has so many angles. This is a romantic suspence novel, a crime novel, a love story and a family drama all rolled into one. Not only that, the author raised some real issues that make this a great book for a book club read.
The obvious issues of race are addressed, an interacial couple trying to make things work can be difficult under any circumstances, but adding to that is Lee being a cop and the mistrust aimed at him by Carol's brother and meddling ex-husband.
The issues of Carol's being raised by white parents, who obviously love her and gave her a good start in life, are questioned. Carol felt loved by her parents by they seemed out of touch with how awkward she felt being different from everyone else.
Lee is dealing with a teenage daughter that is very insecure and really needs him in her life more. Watching Lee mature as a man since the incident with Carol was uplifting. Carol brought out the best in him.
Although Carol made mistakes in her life, she was a very grounded person that didn't rush to judgement and had a very open mind and open heart. She was an inspiration, a role model and someone I grew to admire more and more.
This romance is very character driven, about adults being put in stressful situations and the forces that are out of their control trying to make things more difficult, and how these people grow and become stronger. But, it is also a very sensual romance.
I can't find anything to critque in this one. A+
November 20, 2013
I'll be honest, but I don't usually much go for contemporaries. It's not that I have anything against contemporary romances, but I find them quite disappointing more often than not, and it seems to be a genre that's populated with quite a few authors who churn them out on an industrial scale. Every now and then I make the mistake of picking one up, which puts me off the whole genre for a while.
This one, provided by the published through netgalley, was a real eye-opener and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
The book was first published in 2000, but before you look elsewhere, let me say that it doesn't feel dated at all. The essentials are all there - strong hero and heroine, strong storyline, realistic plots and real people. There is a bit of violence, but it's not gut-churning, and the racial issues are, sadly, as relevant now as then.
In fact, I particularly enjoyed how the author used a light touch with the racial issues, and although they are recognized as an important part of the story, they don't completely dominate, but just provide a nice frame for the romance to develop. The romance itself is absolutely beautifully written. It feels like it develops relatively slowly, at least in Romancelandia terms, and two wonderful people ending up finding each other in unusual, but not ridiculously crazy, circumstances.
By the end, I was so glad I'd read this one. It has partially restored my faith in contemporaries.
4 stars. I really liked it.
This one, provided by the published through netgalley, was a real eye-opener and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
The book was first published in 2000, but before you look elsewhere, let me say that it doesn't feel dated at all. The essentials are all there - strong hero and heroine, strong storyline, realistic plots and real people. There is a bit of violence, but it's not gut-churning, and the racial issues are, sadly, as relevant now as then.
In fact, I particularly enjoyed how the author used a light touch with the racial issues, and although they are recognized as an important part of the story, they don't completely dominate, but just provide a nice frame for the romance to develop. The romance itself is absolutely beautifully written. It feels like it develops relatively slowly, at least in Romancelandia terms, and two wonderful people ending up finding each other in unusual, but not ridiculously crazy, circumstances.
By the end, I was so glad I'd read this one. It has partially restored my faith in contemporaries.
4 stars. I really liked it.
March 11, 2019
*3.5 STARS*
I gave it the extra .5 because the narration was good. This story got on my nerves because it seemed like every other sentence said something to effect of: because she is black and he is wife. OKAY! WE GET IT. IT'S AN INTERRACIAL RELATIONSHIP. We also got it the other 9,999,999 times you mentioned it.
Ok, now that I got that off my chest, I really thought the story was pretty good. I think that Carol was a little too forgiving about being shot but I guess that's just me. I really liked the addition of Erica's character. But, honestly I wish we could have gotten a little more of an epilogue for the story.
I gave it the extra .5 because the narration was good. This story got on my nerves because it seemed like every other sentence said something to effect of: because she is black and he is wife. OKAY! WE GET IT. IT'S AN INTERRACIAL RELATIONSHIP. We also got it the other 9,999,999 times you mentioned it.
Ok, now that I got that off my chest, I really thought the story was pretty good. I think that Carol was a little too forgiving about being shot but I guess that's just me. I really liked the addition of Erica's character. But, honestly I wish we could have gotten a little more of an epilogue for the story.
December 15, 2013
I really enjoyed this book. It had a fast paced plot, with numerous twists and turns along the way. There are a number of interesting subplots that bleed into the action of the main plot, that are all tied up nicely before the final resolution of the story.
This book was a great romance, but it was so much more than simply that. This book had many of the elements of a great crime story. In addition it dealt with a number of difficult topics of an interracial nature.
The action began almost immediately, and set the stage for the development of the remainder of the story. The main characters were all introduced, in some way, in the first few pages of the book. The characters were interesting and the author made them very believable, through great description and the use of ordinary language and dialogue.
I particularly enjoyed the treatment of the burgeoning relationship between Lee and Caro, as the revelation of his involvement in her situation was revealed. The trials and tribulations that the two were subjected to, in order to be together, and for their relationship to progress, gave the story significant interest and provided adversity and challenge for each of the main characters.
The ancillary characters were also well developed and provided additional interest, both in their involvement to the main plot, and in their own right.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in a clever romance, that is not just a straightforward love story. If you enjoy reading about two people having to struggle and overcome hardship, simply in order to be together, then this would certainly be a great book to read.
This review was based on a review copy.
This book was a great romance, but it was so much more than simply that. This book had many of the elements of a great crime story. In addition it dealt with a number of difficult topics of an interracial nature.
The action began almost immediately, and set the stage for the development of the remainder of the story. The main characters were all introduced, in some way, in the first few pages of the book. The characters were interesting and the author made them very believable, through great description and the use of ordinary language and dialogue.
I particularly enjoyed the treatment of the burgeoning relationship between Lee and Caro, as the revelation of his involvement in her situation was revealed. The trials and tribulations that the two were subjected to, in order to be together, and for their relationship to progress, gave the story significant interest and provided adversity and challenge for each of the main characters.
The ancillary characters were also well developed and provided additional interest, both in their involvement to the main plot, and in their own right.
I would recommend this book to anyone interested in a clever romance, that is not just a straightforward love story. If you enjoy reading about two people having to struggle and overcome hardship, simply in order to be together, then this would certainly be a great book to read.
This review was based on a review copy.
November 17, 2013
This is a daring and complex novel with well thought out characters and a quickly paced plot. I was immediately impressed with this book for two reasons:
It doesn't take long for the action to begin, and even in the short space of time before it does, you come to know one of the characters well enough to care about what happens to them.
One of the reasons I wanted to keep turning pages in this story, was that it wasn't just a simple romance. The characters face adversity and have to make tough decisions in order to make a relationship work. The dialogue was honest and had a natural feeling that made it easy to keep reading.
I was also happy that the main people in this book were people that I liked immediately. I love it when you can find a book that has a great plot, worthwhile characters and keeps you intrigued until the very last page.
If you like stories that are deeper than the surface and you want more than just an average romance, this book would be an excellent pick.
This review is based on a digital ARC as part of the Retro Reads program. My opinions are reserved as my own.
It doesn't take long for the action to begin, and even in the short space of time before it does, you come to know one of the characters well enough to care about what happens to them.
One of the reasons I wanted to keep turning pages in this story, was that it wasn't just a simple romance. The characters face adversity and have to make tough decisions in order to make a relationship work. The dialogue was honest and had a natural feeling that made it easy to keep reading.
I was also happy that the main people in this book were people that I liked immediately. I love it when you can find a book that has a great plot, worthwhile characters and keeps you intrigued until the very last page.
If you like stories that are deeper than the surface and you want more than just an average romance, this book would be an excellent pick.
This review is based on a digital ARC as part of the Retro Reads program. My opinions are reserved as my own.
December 11, 2015
This wasn't a bad story I actually enjoyed it it's definitely a happily ever after type of story but it needed a little bit more spice. After all it was about a New York cop accidentally shooting a civilian you know how many different ways I could've gone. Not to mention he's a white cop she's a black civilian.
April 1, 2009
Sandra Kitt never disappoints
November 26, 2019
Disappointing ending
I love the premise of the book. Intriguing even more so in this day and age. The couple really got to know each other and that was nice. I didn’t like how the book just glossed over her relationship with Matt. I
would have like to know how long they where together for and what happened to break them up. I loved how Lee and Carol developed a bond and how honest Lee was. I was however disappointed in Carol. She says that she can look after herself but she let her brother steamroll her into suing the city. He had his own agenda as a lawyer, same thing for Matt. The truth is here there was no police brutality case. She got caught in the crossfire. It’s awful but it was an accident. Her being black was completely irrelevant there. I know we live in a litigious society but here it was an honest mistake and Lee did more for her by telling her the truth and risking his job and pension than whatever amount the city paid out. Money doesn’t give you closure as much as the truth does. I was also very disappointed that in the end Lee gave up his job. He was a good, experienced, honest cop and more of those are needed. Because she sued I suppose his position was untenable if he wanted to pursue his relationship with her. I would have preferred if he stayed in law enforcement, FBI maybe. The book ended far too abruptly for my liking. At the end of the day, they still barely knew each other and I would have liked to read about how they were going to build a life together and with his daughter.
As an aside what what she thinking by going back to her place instead of waiting for the cops at the train station?
I love the premise of the book. Intriguing even more so in this day and age. The couple really got to know each other and that was nice. I didn’t like how the book just glossed over her relationship with Matt. I
would have like to know how long they where together for and what happened to break them up. I loved how Lee and Carol developed a bond and how honest Lee was. I was however disappointed in Carol. She says that she can look after herself but she let her brother steamroll her into suing the city. He had his own agenda as a lawyer, same thing for Matt. The truth is here there was no police brutality case. She got caught in the crossfire. It’s awful but it was an accident. Her being black was completely irrelevant there. I know we live in a litigious society but here it was an honest mistake and Lee did more for her by telling her the truth and risking his job and pension than whatever amount the city paid out. Money doesn’t give you closure as much as the truth does. I was also very disappointed that in the end Lee gave up his job. He was a good, experienced, honest cop and more of those are needed. Because she sued I suppose his position was untenable if he wanted to pursue his relationship with her. I would have preferred if he stayed in law enforcement, FBI maybe. The book ended far too abruptly for my liking. At the end of the day, they still barely knew each other and I would have liked to read about how they were going to build a life together and with his daughter.
As an aside what what she thinking by going back to her place instead of waiting for the cops at the train station?
January 10, 2020
This the third book that I’ve read by the author, and I was surprisingly disinterested and “meh” about the story. The circumstances in which the main characters begin their connection are obviously improbable. Therefore, I expected there to be an intensity of chemistry to balance things out and explain the inexplicable, and I didn’t see that. In fairness, I loved the other two books so much, and still reread them periodically, so perhaps my expectations were too high. Even so, it didn’t resonate with me. I definitely recommend “The Color of Love”, and “Between Friends”, both by Ms. Kitt, for anyone looking for a good interracial love story.
August 16, 2023
I was not a fan of the heroine nor did I buy into the romance between her and the cop. I found myself skipping through their romance interactions. I was more interested in Mario and Barbara storyline than carol and Lee. Maybe if the author made her a bit stronger and less brainwashed . At the same time it would not have made sense given her adoption story line; she had to be this way.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2020
First interracial (b&w) romance I ever read. I didn't love the writing, but I LOVED the idea and, to this day, remember the feeling of coming upon it in the Boston Public Library, never having seen such a thing before.
December 12, 2024
This book was ok. At first carol seemed like a really nice person just nice nice nice but after a while I found her irritating. Being nice and lacking common sense when someone’s trying to kill you? Also very very very slow burn I guess cause she’s nice and the spice is like salt and pepper.
May 28, 2017
Good story
I really enjoyed this book. Great characters and story line. Ms Kitt's style of writing made this seem really believable.
I really enjoyed this book. Great characters and story line. Ms Kitt's style of writing made this seem really believable.
October 8, 2019
SO GOODDDDDDDDDD
September 10, 2024
Solid 3.
The book is not bad, but leaves much to be desired. It is written well, prose-wise if not a bit stifled. Entertaining as well, not at all boring. But it is flawed. The relationship felt like it was missing a middle. It was based off mutual attraction, physical and to each other's personalities, doing a slow crawl towards one another, and just exploded into fireworks at the first kiss.
It needed to show us proof of a foundation. It also notably failed to wrap up some loose ends with key characters, enemies and past lovers. Just for one small example, we never even find out if he was indeed the one who shot her. That seemed like a big question that needed answering. I also was getting the ick by the implications that suing cops as a Black woman for literally shooting you is unnecessary, even militant.
I believe it was written for, and at, a different time. Still needed work and perhaps could use an update. This version of cover (yellow one with the girl biting her finger) doesn't match the seriousness of the book either.
TW SEXUAL ASSAULT
I also think the brutal sexual assault scene (not involving the heroine) was unnecessary. It didn't need to be so detailed, if it needed to occur at all. The person involved, overall, felt like wasn't giving much justice in terms of her development journey and her ultimate fate.
The book is not bad, but leaves much to be desired. It is written well, prose-wise if not a bit stifled. Entertaining as well, not at all boring. But it is flawed. The relationship felt like it was missing a middle. It was based off mutual attraction, physical and to each other's personalities, doing a slow crawl towards one another, and just exploded into fireworks at the first kiss.
It needed to show us proof of a foundation. It also notably failed to wrap up some loose ends with key characters, enemies and past lovers. Just for one small example, we never even find out if he was indeed the one who shot her. That seemed like a big question that needed answering. I also was getting the ick by the implications that suing cops as a Black woman for literally shooting you is unnecessary, even militant.
I believe it was written for, and at, a different time. Still needed work and perhaps could use an update. This version of cover (yellow one with the girl biting her finger) doesn't match the seriousness of the book either.
TW SEXUAL ASSAULT
I also think the brutal sexual assault scene (not involving the heroine) was unnecessary. It didn't need to be so detailed, if it needed to occur at all. The person involved, overall, felt like wasn't giving much justice in terms of her development journey and her ultimate fate.
November 28, 2013
I’ve had more than the usual number of opportunities this month to read romances featuring couples from different racial and cultural backgrounds. Refreshing! So much more like my life! I’ve even been serializing my own novel featuring an interracial couple here and on Wattpad. I didn’t set out to write an interracial romance; that was just what came naturally. Because so many couples in my life have very different backgrounds, it just seemed logical to include the same in at least one of my works in progress. I didn’t even really think about it; he’s black because that’s the hot guy I was picturing in my mind, and that was that.
Sandra Kitt had the same motivation when she wrote Close Encounters, a novel featuring a relationship between a white man and an African American woman. She wasn’t really consciously writing an interracial romance, she was just writing a romance that reflected what she saw happening in her country in the 21st century. And really, the biggest issue the two characters, Lee and Carol, have to overcome to be together could just as easily be age or the stages they’re at in life. The brick wall between them, however, is unique: Lee, a cop, accidentally shot Carol in a botched drug sting.
So racial tension is an undercurrent, and it’s also how Carol defines her life, but it’s not an issue for them as a couple. Which it really shouldn’t be, because that would be way too frustrating to read. Most of the time (as in life) it’s the others in the characters’ lives who are the dissenting voices. In this case it’s the world at large, the people who will be morally outraged that a white cop shot an innocent African American woman, even accidentally, and then took up with her, and Carol’s ex-husband, who is African American and can’t understand why Carol doesn’t identify as strongly with that as he does. But she can’t; she could never, even when she tried as a rebellious teen. Carol’s been struggling with her racial identity her whole life, since she was abandoned by her mother in a bus station and adopted by a loving, patient, colour-blind white family.
So the true obstacles are professional propriety and Lee’s guilt, but they aren’t obstacles for long. Carol and Lee are drawn to each other, perhaps because of the trauma they’ve been through. The things that pull them apart are rather conventional, until they aren’t, and then they’re riveting. I shouldn’t be writing about this novel in terms of racial and cultural differences at all, because it’s just a love story with a tiny added layer of complexity. But I wanted to write about that aspect, because I want to get to the place where we don’t need to write about it anymore. And I think we’re really, really close. I’ve read a few novels lately that I really enjoyed and then saw them referred to as interracial romances and thought, “Oh, right, I guess so.” Because they didn’t seem odd to me. They seemed normal. Hooray for diversity being normal!
Sandra Kitt said in a chat with us Retro Readers that interracial romance has become a bit of a subgenre. I suppose it has, and there’s nothing wrong with that, and she’s been a significant contributor to it and will continue to be, which I look forward to, but I see it becoming a seamless part of romance and women’s fiction in general. I may be living in a bubble in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world, however. In the tiny remote town where I grew up, that shit just doesn’t go down. Still.
So what about the novel on its own? It’s compelling, well-written, thoughtful, fast-paced, and satisfying. It’s not crazy hot; I didn’t really feel the chemistry between Lee and Carol so much, but I could accept that it was there. The characters grew through their experiences, and I felt I did a bit too. I also loved the secondary characters that added so many diverse viewpoints and plot twists; most were fully realized, compelling characters in their own ways. Being a retro romance, published in 2000, there are a lot of beepers, but otherwise it holds up pretty well. I didn’t love love Close Encounters, but there was so much about it that I really enjoyed, and every good book like this is a step forward to it being just another well-written love story, rather than a subgenre. To which I fully intend to contribute. Hypocrite much?
Lila
Reviewed from ARC. Published by Open Road.
Full review here.
Sandra Kitt had the same motivation when she wrote Close Encounters, a novel featuring a relationship between a white man and an African American woman. She wasn’t really consciously writing an interracial romance, she was just writing a romance that reflected what she saw happening in her country in the 21st century. And really, the biggest issue the two characters, Lee and Carol, have to overcome to be together could just as easily be age or the stages they’re at in life. The brick wall between them, however, is unique: Lee, a cop, accidentally shot Carol in a botched drug sting.
So racial tension is an undercurrent, and it’s also how Carol defines her life, but it’s not an issue for them as a couple. Which it really shouldn’t be, because that would be way too frustrating to read. Most of the time (as in life) it’s the others in the characters’ lives who are the dissenting voices. In this case it’s the world at large, the people who will be morally outraged that a white cop shot an innocent African American woman, even accidentally, and then took up with her, and Carol’s ex-husband, who is African American and can’t understand why Carol doesn’t identify as strongly with that as he does. But she can’t; she could never, even when she tried as a rebellious teen. Carol’s been struggling with her racial identity her whole life, since she was abandoned by her mother in a bus station and adopted by a loving, patient, colour-blind white family.
So the true obstacles are professional propriety and Lee’s guilt, but they aren’t obstacles for long. Carol and Lee are drawn to each other, perhaps because of the trauma they’ve been through. The things that pull them apart are rather conventional, until they aren’t, and then they’re riveting. I shouldn’t be writing about this novel in terms of racial and cultural differences at all, because it’s just a love story with a tiny added layer of complexity. But I wanted to write about that aspect, because I want to get to the place where we don’t need to write about it anymore. And I think we’re really, really close. I’ve read a few novels lately that I really enjoyed and then saw them referred to as interracial romances and thought, “Oh, right, I guess so.” Because they didn’t seem odd to me. They seemed normal. Hooray for diversity being normal!
Sandra Kitt said in a chat with us Retro Readers that interracial romance has become a bit of a subgenre. I suppose it has, and there’s nothing wrong with that, and she’s been a significant contributor to it and will continue to be, which I look forward to, but I see it becoming a seamless part of romance and women’s fiction in general. I may be living in a bubble in one of the most culturally diverse cities in the world, however. In the tiny remote town where I grew up, that shit just doesn’t go down. Still.
So what about the novel on its own? It’s compelling, well-written, thoughtful, fast-paced, and satisfying. It’s not crazy hot; I didn’t really feel the chemistry between Lee and Carol so much, but I could accept that it was there. The characters grew through their experiences, and I felt I did a bit too. I also loved the secondary characters that added so many diverse viewpoints and plot twists; most were fully realized, compelling characters in their own ways. Being a retro romance, published in 2000, there are a lot of beepers, but otherwise it holds up pretty well. I didn’t love love Close Encounters, but there was so much about it that I really enjoyed, and every good book like this is a step forward to it being just another well-written love story, rather than a subgenre. To which I fully intend to contribute. Hypocrite much?
Lila
Reviewed from ARC. Published by Open Road.
Full review here.
January 8, 2014
Close Encounters was originally published in 2000, which makes me wonder why the color lines seemed so antiquated.
The focus of the book is on Carol Taggart a professor who got in the middle of a take down while walking her dog at an ungodly hour of the morning.
That's where the story started to go wrong for me. I can't deal with the death of an animal in a book and it happened so early on.
I was hoping for a more cutting edge romance between Carol and Lee, but instead there was more about "the case" and less about the relationship, that didn't really start until the book was more than halfway through.
Carol was such a strong character. I wanted more of her. I wanted to know more about her and I wanted more of her with Lee, even though, Lee comes across as quite a manwhore at the beginning. There's no real reason for the two of them falling for each other either.
Then there's Carol's ex who is a douchebag. I couldn't quite understand why she had a fling with him at the beginning of the book. Sex with an ex-husband that you aren't in love with is always bad news.
Lastly there's Barbara Pena, who gets painted as some hero, when she isn't. I would have liked to have seen her exposed for what she was, rather than made out like some sort of wonderful cop.
Sandra's writing is great though I would have preferred this book to have been more of a mystery than a romance, because for me that part just didn't work.
The focus of the book is on Carol Taggart a professor who got in the middle of a take down while walking her dog at an ungodly hour of the morning.
That's where the story started to go wrong for me. I can't deal with the death of an animal in a book and it happened so early on.
I was hoping for a more cutting edge romance between Carol and Lee, but instead there was more about "the case" and less about the relationship, that didn't really start until the book was more than halfway through.
Carol was such a strong character. I wanted more of her. I wanted to know more about her and I wanted more of her with Lee, even though, Lee comes across as quite a manwhore at the beginning. There's no real reason for the two of them falling for each other either.
Then there's Carol's ex who is a douchebag. I couldn't quite understand why she had a fling with him at the beginning of the book. Sex with an ex-husband that you aren't in love with is always bad news.
Lastly there's Barbara Pena, who gets painted as some hero, when she isn't. I would have liked to have seen her exposed for what she was, rather than made out like some sort of wonderful cop.
Sandra's writing is great though I would have preferred this book to have been more of a mystery than a romance, because for me that part just didn't work.
November 27, 2013
Close Encounters deals with a lot of different issues that still hold up to be relevant 13 years after it was first published. Taken on the surface, it is a sweet romance suspense between a policeman and the woman he mistakenly shot in a botched sting operation. Lee and Carol have an intense chemistry that they can't deny. I thought they were a great couple and I found myself rooting for them to work out.
Woven into the story, the author has included the issues of race relations between the police and the minority community. I thought it was interesting how the police automatically assume Carol is was more than an innocent bystander after she was shot all because of her skin color. The story also deals with the realities of interracial couples, was well as white couples raising a black child. There is a lot packed into the story and I do recommend it.
Woven into the story, the author has included the issues of race relations between the police and the minority community. I thought it was interesting how the police automatically assume Carol is was more than an innocent bystander after she was shot all because of her skin color. The story also deals with the realities of interracial couples, was well as white couples raising a black child. There is a lot packed into the story and I do recommend it.
September 8, 2015
I was actually expecting something completely different, the reviews for this book were pretty good so I decided to check it out. Now I would like to start by saying the book was overall a very simple read and interesting nonetheless BUT it was just not for me.
I had a very hard time getting into this book, I skimmed... when I skim through a book that is a red flag.
I just had a hard time connecting the characters together, and with all that was going on I was still waiting on something to draw me into the book and for me it personally didn't happen.
This will not hinder me however from recommending this book to certain friends, it was just personally not my cup of tea.. but I do know a few people who would enjoy it.
I had a very hard time getting into this book, I skimmed... when I skim through a book that is a red flag.
I just had a hard time connecting the characters together, and with all that was going on I was still waiting on something to draw me into the book and for me it personally didn't happen.
This will not hinder me however from recommending this book to certain friends, it was just personally not my cup of tea.. but I do know a few people who would enjoy it.
February 12, 2016
I read this book the first time over 10 years ago. Once I signed up with Kindle, I tried desperately to remember the title. Think this was the first inter-racial romance novel I read. By pure chance, years later, I came across it. So very, very happy that made me!
This novel was not filled with too many hot, explicit sex scenes. Didn't need it!! Pure romance and so sweet. I LOVED this book. I loved Lee. Loved his relationship with his daughter. Loved the connections she made with Carol. Loved that Carol was an artist and Lee was a cop ... not a billionaire.
Would love a sequel to this !!!!
This novel was not filled with too many hot, explicit sex scenes. Didn't need it!! Pure romance and so sweet. I LOVED this book. I loved Lee. Loved his relationship with his daughter. Loved the connections she made with Carol. Loved that Carol was an artist and Lee was a cop ... not a billionaire.
Would love a sequel to this !!!!
July 23, 2012
I saw this book one day on the book shelf at Half Price Books about 10 years ago when I first started reading interracial stories. I still have this book in paperback. It was in pretty good shape when I bought it. Now, it is a well-read paperback. This book will always stay on my shelf. There a a few books that I go back and reread just bacause with this being the main one. No matter how many times I read this book, it will always be a 5 star read for me.
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December 25, 2014A Beautiful Story- BRAB ONLINE BOOK CLUB
I am fast becoming a fan of this author. I love a great storyteller who gets so caught up in the characters, you forget they're fictional. Such is the case with Leo and Carol's story.
Carol and Leo's first encounter is when she was caught up in a police undercover operation, and was shot and injured. Their subsequent encounters which led to a friendship and romance, is a delightful story.
I am fast becoming a fan of this author. I love a great storyteller who gets so caught up in the characters, you forget they're fictional. Such is the case with Leo and Carol's story.
Carol and Leo's first encounter is when she was caught up in a police undercover operation, and was shot and injured. Their subsequent encounters which led to a friendship and romance, is a delightful story.
December 26, 2015
Decent
In the beginning of Close Encounter you were to believe that this was gonna be a deep and highly controversial book, with love story somewhere in between. By the middle you realize it was somewhat controversial and not so deep, the plot came and went and really didn't make too much of a impact on the storyline. If criminals have to pay for their crimes then Barbara ,the dirty police deeds should have been revealed.
In the beginning of Close Encounter you were to believe that this was gonna be a deep and highly controversial book, with love story somewhere in between. By the middle you realize it was somewhat controversial and not so deep, the plot came and went and really didn't make too much of a impact on the storyline. If criminals have to pay for their crimes then Barbara ,the dirty police deeds should have been revealed.
October 14, 2024
I love the artwork on this cover, and this is on my permanent read and re-read list. Years later it still holds up-with the romance, the difficulties of life and talks of the police and community and how police officers are seen in society. The discussion of the way the couple will be viewed as they realize that while the circumstances that start their relationship are strange the love they have is worth fighting for and sustaining are well done.
January 29, 2009
Fast-paced with interesting twists and turns, this book rates well as to readability and suspense. However, it could have delved more deeply into the issues of bi-racial relationships. Instead it dealt mainly with conflict of interest issues of police versus victim, some of which, admittedly, were racial but could just as easily have not had anything to do with racial issues.
November 8, 2015
Nice read
I have read a few of Ms. Kit's books and although I enjoyed her style I often times found myself skipping pages or taking a long time to finish them. This book really held my attention. I enjoyed both characters and sharing their love story.
I have read a few of Ms. Kit's books and although I enjoyed her style I often times found myself skipping pages or taking a long time to finish them. This book really held my attention. I enjoyed both characters and sharing their love story.
August 2, 2016
Insightful. Timeless. Progressive. Heartfelt.
Lee and Carol ignite the pages and make this more than a BWWM interracial romance. I highly recommended this. Many of the issues here in this work are reflected right now in 2016. This novel has staying power and some.
Lee and Carol ignite the pages and make this more than a BWWM interracial romance. I highly recommended this. Many of the issues here in this work are reflected right now in 2016. This novel has staying power and some.
May 27, 2009
This was my first IR romance
October 19, 2013
3, 5 étoiles (4 étoiles pour la première lecture et 3 pour la deuxième.)
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