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SandyWolters
Posted July 24, 2012
Book: Tide Of Lies
Author: Sarah Ballance
Genre: Romantic Suspense, Mystery
Length: Novella
The following is my July 24, 2012, 5 Star review:
TIDE OF LIES by SARAH BALLANCE is a follow up of FAMILIAR LIGHT. Tide Of Lies is a stand alone. It's not necessary to read Familiar Light first, but I highly recommend doing just that because I enjoyed Familiar Light as much as I did Tide Of Lies.
Julia Cohen has been getting disturbing notes. Detective Holden Whitlow is a lover from her past and a man she hasn't been able to get over in all of these years. Julia is sure these letters that she's been receiving have something to do with an ongoing serial killer case so she swallows her pride and goes to talk to Holden, whom she hasn't seen in ten years, when she is brutally attacked and left for dead. The letters disappear before Holden can see them. Did they really exist, or did her attacker take them?
Holden has never gotten over Julia, but never fully realized that what his seventeen-year-old heart was feeling for her at the time was love and not just sex. Now he's got a second chance to see if they have a future together but only if they can get past all the secrets from so long ago and only if he can keep her alive.
Tide Of Lies is a masterfully written suspense with beautifully seductive and sensual love scenes and several shocking twists at the end. I really like the flow of Ms. Ballance's writing, and I've become a huge fan. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough while reading this book. Just like Familiar Light, Tide Of Lies starts at a fast pace and picks up steam with each page. I devoured it. I couldn't put it down and highly recommend it.
When a woman is beaten and left for dead, Holden Whitlow never expected that a cold case he’d work on not too long ago would rise from the ashes. While there are similarities with the current case and the unsolved murders, Holden can’t help but wonder if it’s the same person who tried to kill his best friend’s girlfriend not too long ago. Yet that can’t be possible since the culprit supposedly killed himself in order to cover up his crime.
Determined to get to the bottom of things, he comes face to face with the victim in hopes of making sense of what has transpired. Having run from the ghost of a woman who disappeared years ago, Holden is unsure of what to make of the fact that she’s now within vicinity and lying in the hospital because of the beating she’s received. When Julia’s admission that she was there because of him throws him for a loop, he begins to wonder what her ties to the unsolved murders are. The assailant has made it clear that Julia’s life is forfeit and Holden knows that the culprit will stop at nothing until he finishes what he started.
Julia can’t deny that she still harbors feelings for the man she left behind so long ago. Ever since she lay eyes on him, Holden has been a part of her in more ways than one. She knows he has questions whose answers only she can provide, but she’s unsure as to whether she can truly tell him what she needs to know.
Her disappearance ten years ago was unexpected and her survival depended on her keeping mum about the secrets she hides inside. Yet as her love and attraction to Holden grow with each minute that passes, she knows she’ll need to come clean and tell him what he needs to know. It’s their only chance in overcoming the obstacles that now litter the path between them, but first they’ll need to work together in deciphering the small clues the killer has left behind before he ends up taking Julia’s life in the process.
This was another great book written by the lovely Sarah Ballance. This story is a continuation of Familiar Light which tells the story of Bridger Jansen and Laney Kent. It’s a wonderful series. I truly recommend reading the first book, in addition to this one, in order to glean a little more insight as what’s going on. All in all, both stories can also stand alone in reading. I enjoyed the book immensely!
Tide of Lies is a quick second chance at romance plot with lots of suspense and a serial killer mystery all rolled into one which will allow you to enjoy the escape for a couple of hours. The characters are very well developed for a short book of 100 pages or so and Ms. Ballance’s ability to paint scenes is the best. Holden and Julia have a lot of obstacles from the past to overcome so it keeps you on your toes wondering if they will be able to overcome those obstacles and solve the mystery of the serial killer before it’s too late. The mystery kept me guessing right up to the end. Will be looking for more from Ms. Ballance and highly recommend this one if you like a little romance with your suspense! Review copy supplied by author.
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Overview
Haunted by three unsolved murders, Detective Holden Whitlow is stunned when his cold case takes a heated turn. Julia Cohen, his ex-lover, is back in town, and in the face of a brutal attack she's ready to run. No matter how tightly she holds her secrets, for Holden, turning away from the woman he's spent a decade...