Title: If You Hear Her
Series: The Ash Trilogy, #1
Author: Shiloh Walker
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Source: review copy from author
Published: October 25, 2011 by Ballantine Books
A CRY IN THE WOODSThe scream Lena Riddle hears in the woods behind her house is enough to curdle her blood—she has no doubt that a woman is in real danger. Unfortunately, with no physical evidence, the local law officers in small-town Ash, Kentucky, dismiss her claim. But Lena knows what she heard—and it leaves her filled with fear and frustration.
Ezra King is on leave from the state police, but he can’t escape the guilty memories that haunt his dreams. When he sees Lena, he is immediately drawn to her. He aches to touch her—to be touched by her—but is he too burdened by his tragic past to get close? When Ezra hears her story of an unknown woman’s screams, his instincts tell him that Lena’s life is also at risk—and his desire to protect her is as fierce as his need to possess her.
Why I Read this Book: I love romantic suspense and I am a fan of Shiloh Walker’s writing. ‘Nuff said.
What I Liked: It was very interesting, and eye-opening, to read from a character’s POV where that character is blind. Lena doesn’t let her handicap hinder her abilities in the slightest; it only makes for a unique vulnerability that forces her to do things differently. She has to completely rely on her other senses – specifically her acute sense of hearing to get around and sense other people's emotions. And because of her being blind, her attraction to Ezra is honest and sincere, in that it is not based on outward appearance but on his inner intellect, personality, and character.
Shiloh Walker doesn’t hold back. The parts told from the villain’s POV where dark, haunting, and chilling. He’s evil and ruthless. The author gave such life to the villain, he scares the shit of out me and he’s just a fictional character!
I was so into the story that when I came to the end, it caught me off guard. Although I’m not sure who the villain is at this point, I am satisfied with how the book ended. I am anxious to get my hands on the next two books, If You See Her (out January 2012) and If You Know Her (out February 2012). I love when books come out back-to-back like that.
What I Didn’t Like: There was an abundant amount of characters who shared the last name Jennings. It was confusing for me to keep track of who’s who in the Jennings family so I made a list.
Some of the text – dialogue and emotions – felt a bit redundant, especially parts from the victims and villain’s POV. It felt like some things were being reiterated but I didn’t feel that that was necessary.
Overall Impression: The author laid the foundation in If You Hear Her nicely for this trilogy. Shiloh Walker fans will definitely want to read If You Hear Her and romantic suspense fans will enjoy trying to figure out the ‘who done it’.
The Book Vixen’s Rating:
Tour Schedule:
10/24 - Urban Girl Reader
10/25 - The Book Vixen (that’s me!)
10/26 - Under the Covers
10/27 - I Just Wanna Sit Here and Read!
10/25 - Lynette’s Two Cents
thanks for the review, BV... glad you liked it!!
ReplyDeleteMaybe I need to try Walker again. I was not in love with the first book of hers that I read, but to be fair, it was the second in a series and I had not read the first.
ReplyDeleteI like your reason for reading the book. I too love Shiloh' work. I appreciate your honesty about what you didna like, thanks.
ReplyDeleteZina
I went out and purchased this book based on your review. I can hardly wait to tear into it! Shiloh Walker is a new-to-me author so I'm totally looking forward to this reading experience.
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