REVIEW: Crux by Moira Rogers

Title: Crux
Series: Southern Arcana, #1
Author:  Moira Rogers
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Source: won from the author
Published: March 2009 by Samhain

To find her destiny, she must trust him with her life...and her heart.

Jackson Holt makes a decent living as a private investigator in New Orleans, home of one of the largest underground supernatural populations in the United States. He and his partners have never met a case they couldn't crack...until a local bar owner asks him to do a little digging on her newest hire.

New Orleans is the fourth destination in as many months for Mackenzie Brooks, a woman on the run from a deranged stalker. After all, any man who shows up on her doorstep claiming to be her destined lover has more than a few screws loose. But crazy doesn't explain why he always finds her no matter how far she runs.

When her well-meaning boss puts a PI on her case, Mackenzie comes face to face with the incredible truth: magic is real, and whatever spell has kept her hidden and separate from the paranormal world is rapidly deteriorating.

With time running out, she has no choice but to trust Jackson as he struggles to uncover the truth of her past-and her destiny.

This book contains devious schemes, epic battles, forbidden love between a shapeshifter and a spellcaster, nosy secondary characters, furniture-endangering sex and a woman fighting to choose her own destiny.

Why I Read this Book: I’ve had Crux on my Kindle for over a year. I feel like I’m the last person to read a Moira Rogers book! So when I saw that Fiction Vixen, Smexy Books and The Book Pushers were hosting a read along, it was a sign from the book Gods. This is why I enjoy participating in read alongs; they get me to read books that I’ve had sitting in my TBR pile forever! 

What I Liked: Since Crux was my first read by these authors (Moira Rogers is a pseudonym for Bree and Donna), I wasn’t sure what to expect as far as their writing style goes. The book blurb for Crux was a bit mysterious to me. Truthfully, I didn’t know what to make of it. It felt like I was going into the book blindly, which I didn’t mind at all. Sometimes that’s the best way to read a book. I am happy to say that not only did Crux catch my attention but held it the whole way through. I was curious to find out more about Mackenzie’s background. And Jackson was an interesting character to read about as well.

The authors did a superb job in making Mackenzie’s reaction to the paranormal world surrounding her totally believable. Mackenzie questioned it even while it was unfolding before her very eyes. She didn’t accept it right way (who would, right?), in fact she was extremely wary and it took quite a bit of time and evidence to convince her otherwise.

I also liked Nicole’s character. I thought it was noble of Nicole to take Mackenzie in under her wing and help her out without really knowing her. And I like the possibility of a love triangle going on between Nicole, Alex and Derek.

Crux ended as a stand alone novel; there were no cliffhangers. It was a clean ending and I got closure. It’ll be interesting to see where Crossroads, book two in this series, takes the characters and storyline. But I do have to say that the line But it was terrifyingly simple towards the end in Crux makes me a bit suspicious about certain events and a certain character in particular. I think if it sounds too good to be true, then it must be. Guess I’ll have to see what happens in the next book to find out for sure, won’t I?

What I Didn’t Like: I can’t believe I’m going to say this but Crux was a bit heavy on the romance. Don’t get me wrong, I like romance and I like PNR but it felt like it was laid on a little bit too thick. (Says the vixen who needs romance in just about anything she reads.) I guess I wanted the focus to be more on Mackenzie and her ancestry than her relationship with Jackson.

Overall Impression: Crux was my first read by these authors and won’t be my last. I am definitely looking forward to reading more from the duo behind Moira Rogers.

The Book Vixen’s Rating: