"fast-paced, suspenseful read"
Nine months after her adoptive parents are killed in a
freak car accident on a secluded Denver highway, Coffee
Cup owner Addison Fox is on a quest to find her birth
mother, Agnes Beckett. Addison's to meet with Private Investigator Jack Talbot
but instead meets younger brother Randall who for the last
few months has been working with the new Denver Agency.
Suffering burn-out from his job as an investigator with
the National Transportation Safety Board, he seeks refuge
in a bottle and goes through the motions of living. That
is until the woman with the unruly mass of brown hair
walks through the door and into his life. The meeting turns ugly right from the start as Randall
mistakes her for another client, delinquent in her
payments. Randall realizes too late that he made a
dreadful mistake. Not only has he embarrassed both
himself and the young woman, he lost a client. Not giving up on her search, Addison gets news that her
lawyer Jim Bernstein has found Agnes. Addison doesn't
waste time and heads to Ohio to meet her real mother. But
the reunion would never be as she finds out that her
mother has been murdered. A random act of violence. Or
is it? Weeks later, Randal can't get Addison off his mind. So in
an attempt to make amends, Randall goes to the trendy
coffeehouse to apologize. While there, an apparent
robbery takes place. The police and Addison are convinced
it is just a robbery attempt but Randall thinks
otherwise. Randall offers his services to check out the situation and
to keep Addison safe. Little did they both know what they
were in for as they peeled away layer upon layer of a
sinister plot to rid anyone that knows the truth of
Addison Fox's paternity. The closer they get to the
truth, the more people die and the ante is raised on
Addison's life. A definite attraction to one another since the day they
met burns out of control, and they succumb to their
desires even though they both know it will never lead to a
happy ending. He's made it clear his intentions to go
back to Washington but first Randall must catch a killer
before they both end up dead. This is the first single title romantic suspense for Linda
Castillo and what a debut. I couldn't put this book down
as Linda's prose evokes so much emotion in the reader.
THE PERFECT VICTIM is a fast-paced, suspenseful read full
of twist and turns on ever page. Randall is so tortured and flawed but my heart went out to
him. Definite hero material as he rises above his own
demons to help Addison and in the process allows love into
his heart. These characters are amazing and will remain in your heart
long after you have finished the book and it is firmly
planted on your keeper shelf. I especially hope Linda has
plans to write Jack's story. What an intense and
wonderful character. The escalating suspense and sexual tension pushes the
story forward and keeps you hooked. Not many authors keep
me up all night but Linda has succeeded with this riveting
read. I highly recommend this book.
Reviewed by Janice Wagner
Posted July 18, 2002
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