Jasmine Cresswell

The first novel I've read by this author and I can't wait to explore more of her writing! The book has been on my "to read" shelves for a long time and now I can't understand what took me so long to explore the offering.

It's a page-turning thriller and with a copyright date of 2003 it seems even more creative to be written before the word "terrorist" was part of our nation's daily headlines and daily vocabulary. For anyone who has been deceived by the partner he/she married this captures the innermost feelings of betrayal, guilt, and the aftereffects to his/her self-confidence. Charlotte has been told by the FBI that the man she married and dearly loves is an international terrorist and at Christmas when emotions always seem closer to the surface. So begins twists and turns that I never saw coming on the next page or pages and I couldn't stop reading!… (mere)

Missing
1 Star

Ron Raven, a successful and respected businessman, is missing and presumed dead, but this is merely the tip of the iceberg because Ron is also a bigamist. Not only has he scammed his separate families for more than two decades, he has also conned his brother-in-law out of three million dollars. As the Raven and Fairfax families struggle to come to terms with Ron’s betrayal, his daughter, Megan, and brother-in-law, Adam Fairfax, must work together to locate the missing millions.

The suspense plot has such tremendous potential. Unfortunately, the writing is long-winded, repetitive and redundant - too much telling and not enough showing. By the time the villain and motive are revealed, it is difficult to care one way or the other.

The romance doesn’t fare much better as Megan and Adam have very little chemistry and don’t even meet until halfway through the book.

All in all, an excellent premise but the writing is so poor that I’ve no interest in continuing with the series.… (mere)