"the rocky road to romance is a delight!"

A delightful, change-of-pace story from Anne Stuart. He is no madman, a killer, insane, or a dabbler in the Black Arts, this Stuart hero is an alpha-male, not one of her dark gamma-rogues who live outside the laws of man. In fact, he is a man of the law, a policeman from Chicago. After a long two-year manhunt for a serial killer, Matthew Connelly wants only to heal from the death of his partner and the terrible gunshot wound to his hip. Even more, he wants solitude to heal his troubled soul. He comes to an isolated island off the coast of Maine, figuring this to be the perfect place to be alone with himself and face his inner demons.

The last thing Matthew wants is a romance, especially with a sassy little redhead who lives just down the beach. The minute he caught sight of Jeannie MacPherson standing in his kitchen, he knew she was going to be trouble. She is not his type.

He likes big, buxom blondes, not a pert little redhead that won't take the hint he does not want her TLC. In the following weeks on the island, she keeps invading his solitude, with baked bread, muffins and the mothering that he really resents, though at times he really needs. Jeannie is on retreat as well, but it has stretched to a two-year long sojourn, but at thirty-one, her biological clock is ticking. She wants kids to mother, a man to love her, and she figures after one look, Matthew is not the man for those dreams. Only, something keeps pulling her back. Unable to resist him, she has a torrid affair with him, hoping that it will turn into something more.

Very wealthy, she is co-partners of a national ice cream franchise, and when she is called away for a week on business, she tells Matthew she will be back on the island on the following Thursday. Instead, she rushes home on Monday to find Matthew sneaking off the island. Jeannie is devastated that he was not even going to tell her he was leaving. In a fit, she tossed a lobster trap at him breaking a couple ribs and his wrist.

Matthew accepts a temporary position as a Police Chief of a growing resort town in Colorado. He figures it will give him time to finish healing, and sort out what he wants to do with his life. Also, give him time to heal from his brush with Jeannie. He plans on giving it five months, to see if he can put the nightmare of being a cop behind him, before seeking out Jeannie again, and seeing if he can build a relationship with her. Only, Jeannie is not about to give him time. She comes to town under the guise of putting in an ice cream factory and proceeds to show Matt there is no escaping her. Jeannie does everything to get Matthews attention, even to stealing his police car, daring him to arrest her.

The story is a bit lighter than some Stuart's typical dark and deadly tales, with some charming humor tossed in the mix. Matthew and Jeannie are vivid characters that will enchant you from beginning to end.

Reviewed by DeborahAnne MacGillivray
Posted August 20, 2004