What made me dig out this review of Karen Rose, “Die For Me” is that I’m reading Sandra Brown’s latest, Lethal and I’m not getting anywhere fast with it and I’m a fan. Romantic suspense is a not a favorite for a lot of readers. Usually the plots are implausible and the characters do a lot of stupid stuff. Added to that, the romance is not well balanced with the suspense or vice versa. Well, with new writers emerging in this area, I wanted to highlight a writer who does a good job of balancing romance and suspense and that’s Karen Rose. She’s written 12 romantic suspense books (not counting anthologies) to date with her latest being You Belong To Me. The first book I read from this author was Die For Me (2007) and I am re-posting the review. I plan to read her latest.
PPD officers, Vito Ciccotelli and his partner, Nick Lawrence have to race against time to catch a perp who uses Medieval torture devices to kill his victims. Sophie Johannsen is a linguist and archaeologist who helps the PPD uncover nine graves most of which are filled with human remains from years past. With more than a few still empty. Another thread develops with a cop from the Georgia Bureau looking for his estranged parents. Then there’s the romance that is pretty well balanced with the suspense part of the story.
The story is tightly plotted with an almost unrelenting pace. The reader is engaged almost immediately into the story and really, you literally can’t put it down until the last page is turned. The suspense part of the novel is pretty gruesome as only Karen Rose can come up with. The perp in here has all the trademarks of your typical serial killer profile. A monster seeking out victims whose vulnerabilities renders them blind to his deceit.
The romance in Die for Me is pretty explosive. Sophie and Vito’s first impression of each other is not a good one. This instigates many do-overs until they finally find a connection. Character wise, we see that Sophie Johannsen finds herself disappointed in her career. She left an important dig in France to take care of a family obligation. Hired as a curator for the Albright Museum, part of Sophie’s job as historian is dressing up in costume and giving public tours at the museum. This leaves her with little time for her exhibits and doing ‘real work’.
Meanwhile, Vito’s family is dealing with a crisis and like a strong family they stick together. And then you have the perp working for a B-list game designer, oRo Entertainment, who was faced with bankruptcy until Behind Enemy Lines video game racked up enough sales to get oRo a booth at Pinnacle (which is like the Oscars for game designers). Few suspect but no one knows definitively that the perp has used real models for his death scenes. Talk about art imitating life or vice-versa.
Karen Rose is at the top of her game and she continues to get stronger with each effort. I enjoyed Count to Ten but I enjoyed Die For Me even more. Of course, there are some little quibbles that plague almost all romantic suspense novels. It can’t be helped. Like the perp explaining all their motivations to the faux victim before they’re rescued or the quickie romance that develops within a week’s time.
What I love is that Ms. Rose doesn’t make it easy for the reader to identify the perp even when we are given their POV for a brief time. I find the most enjoyable part of reading her books is trying to figure out who the perp is with the few clues that she doles out. She really is good at throwing out red herrings and making me think twice about who I think is the killer. Also, her novels are loosely connected to each other. This is my second Karen Rose book and I didn’t have any problems following along. There is maybe one character from a earlier book that make an appearance, I think.
All in all, Die For Me was a un-put-downable read. The romance and the suspense are equally balanced and well thought out. I debated on a grade for this story because this read like an A read for me but it’s not a book I’d say I’d reread anytime soon. But I so enjoyed the story and the characters, so it’s a B+ read for me even if it is a one time read. Do you enjoy Karen Rose novels? Since I’m behind, what are your favorite titles from her?
Karen Rose, for me, is in that list of authors who can be relied on to put out a good book consistently. The trouble with that kind of list is that when she stumbles a little, I’m too quick to judge, having to remember that I’m dealing with one of the best in her field. I think my favorite is probably “Count to Ten,” which was published three or four years ago. I recall briefly that it held my interest all throughout. There are other authors in this genre (some write stories with relationships, but are probably not classified as romantic suspense writers) who pen equally as well and maybe even better at times. But Karen Rose is great at her craft and anyone interested in this particular area would do well to at least try her.
Who do you think writes great r/s alongside Karen Rose? I don’t like Stephanie Tyler’s stuff at all.
If we’re strictly talking romantic suspense, then I have a few authors, in addition to Karen Rose, whom I enjoy reading. They are:
Mary Burton
Mariah Stewart
My list for suspense with a good possibiity of a relationship would be:
Linda Castillo (excellent)
Lisa Gardner (excellent)
Jillianne Hoffman (excellent)
Cody McFadyen
The authors writing suspense with possibly just a hint or no relationship are:
Tess Gerritsen
Tami Hoag
Karin Slaughter (excellent)
Chelsea Cain
McFayden I have as well as Linda Castillo, Lisa Gardner and Jillianne Hoffman. Appreciate your list. I will prioritize accordingly.
The Vartanian trilogy is very good. If you enjoyed this one, you’ll like ‘Scream for Me’ and ‘Kill for Me’. Your review reminds me that I’m behind with Karen Rose’s books. Must get the most recent two.
I did read Scream for Me and enjoyed and you’re right,it is good. I completely missed her latest, You Belong To Me that I heard is quite good. Plan to read it after Voices by my favorite Icelandic writer.
Arnaldur Indridason? I like that series. I’m a couple of books behind. I still need to read ‘Hypothermia’ and the most recent one.
Yes, it is so very good. Moves at a good pace too. I should have it finished this weekend.
I enjoyed ‘Voices’. I think it’s the third in the series. The fourth, ‘The Draining Lake’, is my favourite so far. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on ‘Voices’.
As for romantic suspense authors I enjoy: Not many, sadly enough. The two most recent Pamela Clare i-Team books were very good. Jill Sorenson’s stories are less gritty than I usually like my romantic suspense, but somehow they work for me. I can’t define it except to say her writing voice appeals to me.
I have one Jill Sorenson r/s in my tbr pile. I think it’s the one that you read and reviewed. I can’t wait to read The Draining Lake. I keep wanting to dive into that one first but said I would read in order.