"Romance and Suspense deJour"

If LOVE IS MURDER was a baseball game it would be batting .666--two out of three attempts were hits and one major out. Not bad for an average, but the first story was so disappointing that I am hoping that readers won't give up and miss the really great story at the end.

To start with the hits: Maureen Child's IN TOO DEEP is the tale of L.A. area Asst. D.A. Gina Palermo, the daughter of a Chicago gangster and her love interest, the 'thug' Nick Falcone.

Gina's Daddy sends Nick to protect his daughter from an army of crooks who have headed west to find the 'treasure' of Gina's deceased 'Uncle' Jimmy. Jimmy had bragged of his treasure and the crooks are determined to tear Sunrise Beach or Gina apart to find it. Gina is dismayed that her Dad sent Nick, as she had a short fling with him in Chicago and fled knowing she couldn't love a gangster.

Nick Falcone is an absolutely divine hero and I will be amazed if any romance reader doesn't think there is more to this 'thug' then meets the eye when he first appears. This tale, while predictable, was lots of fun and the repartee between Gina and Nick was lots of fun.

Linda Winstead Jones's story CALLING AFTER MIDNIGHT was so good that I was wishing it was a single title, so I could read more about this great couple.

Veronica (Ronnie) Gray is a late night DJ who is down on love and the only rule of her show is: no sappy love songs. Her theme song is Joan Jett's Love Stinks and that song sums up her attitude towards men.

One night Ronnie receives a call from 'Wayne' who tells her that he took her advice and got rid of his girl friend--he stabbed her to death. Ronnie is horrified and her boss thinks she needs protection, so he hires P.I. Eli Benedict.

Eli is a first rate hero: handsome, kind, smart and sexy. Watching Eli unravel this tale of a dark killer and his fixation with Ronnie kept me turning the pages quickly and I did not suspect who the killer was till close to the end. My only wish is that we could have gotten to know Eli and Ronnie even better--it is a great short story that leaves you wishing it was longer.

The lead story is TO DIE FOR by Rebecca Brandewyne and it was marred by too much description and not enough plot. The murder was solved over breakfast, with no clues given the reader before the denouement.

Also, someone ought to tell Brandewyne that a hero in a contemporary who lights up cigarettes often and blows clouds of smoke at the heroine is NOT sexy. I kept thinking about second hand smoke, not to mention bad breath, black lungs and a hacking cough. Brandewyne's last single title DAUGHTER OF DESTINY also had a smoking hero, so I can only think she must like smokers--but for me it is a BIG turn off. Smoking heroes in contemporary books makes them seem dated.

With two out of three stories a hit, this anthology was fun and I think the Jones story alone is worth the price of the book.

Reviewed by Linda Hurst
Posted April 17, 2003

Summary

One murder-three points of view.

"To Die For"
by New York Times bestselling author, Rebecca Brandewyne
Attending a society party was to be Paul and Lily Clothier's last act as a married couple, until their participation in a parlor game ended in murder -- with Paul as the leading suspect! Only together could they find justice -- and love.

"In Too Deep"
by Maureen Child
Assistant D.A. Gina Palermo was a nice girl -- with a gangster family. And when a threat to her life put this law- abiding daughter under the protection of her dad's mob men, Gina wondered if she could resist the tempting embrace of sexy Nick Falcone . . .

"Calling after Midnight"
by Linda Winstead Jones
Late-night radio host Veronica Gray never expected her advice to a lovelorn listener to lead to murder! And once handsome detective Eli Benedict was one the case, she was suddenly in need of guidance herself -- in the art of seduction . . .