Jayne Ann Krentz

3.3 stars

This month's TBRChallenge (I know, I know, late again!) theme was Location, Location, Location. I can't imagine I'm the only one who's first thought was, “Get me the hell off this planet.” So, with that desire, I dove into my boxes of books and found myself on the way to the Stanza Nine system!

"What is it you want delivered?"
Cidra cleared her throat. "Myself."

We're in space, folks! With povs from both our mains, Cidra and Teague, readers join them as Cidra is looking to book show more passage to travel the system in search of an artifact that she thinks will alter her mind to biologically become a Harmonic. While Cidra was born on Clementia to Harmonic parents, she didn't get the gene. In this time and space, humans are divided into Harmonics, intellectually and emotionally advanced, and Wolves, basic normies. Cidra's studied the Harmonic ways but can never really be them, she feels emotions in a way that doesn't cause her to be catatonic for hours. As a trained archivist, who focused on the First Families of their civilization, she thinks there's a “Ghost” artifact that can help her alter her brain. Teague's a postman and she wants to book passage on his ship to take her around to the different planets to search for it.

Teague Severance hadn't been quite what she had expected, and Cidra had been trying to adjust to that fact.

It's a set-up for a road romance between opposites attract, except Cidra and Teague are more alike than they want to admit, Cidra can't stop feeling those debased normie lust feelings and Teague is more kind and protective of Cidra than a Wolf should be.

His mouth came down on hers with the urgency of a man who was running toward the promise of safety in a wild and uncontrolled land.

On the cramped ship, these two have plenty of time to get to know one another and I enjoyed their calm, sweet, and frustrated with each other at times chemistry. There was humor and heart to Cidra being a little naïve and Teague doing some underlining talk but Cidra also pleasantly surprises with staying out of Mary Sue and waif territory. Her background of feeling lonely with not fitting in on her planet and Teague having lost a brother who was a Harmonic deliver some depth to their emotional characterization and provide for a villain in the wings. The villain thread delivered some danger and action but this was more of a sedately paced romance that took time to lean into the scifi world-building (that, ok, slowed it down a bit too much at times for me), but I accepted it because this is the start of the series and I imagine it's all building for a purpose.

He had forced the Wolf in her to the surface after she had spent years struggling to suppress that part of her nature.

Around 60% Cidra and Teague can't fight their chemistry anymore (not so bad lowering yourself to be with us normies now is it, Cidra!?) and we start getting sex scenes. There's more lore added to their Ghost ancestors (they were cats??? need more on this STAT, lol) and we get the calmest third act breakup when Teague is scared Cidra would regret leaving Harmonics for him. Cidra Rainforest would never waver and we get our space HEA. This was fun and had some wildly interesting additives, the aforementioned Furries, Fred the rockrug dog?cat?, a Chekhov's mantis, and the mutie evil alien dinosaurs. Cidra and Teague had just enough depth to them to pull me in and were sweet with a dash of spice to have me enjoy the ride in Stanza Nine.

“You’ll have to trust me to come back, just as I’ll have to trust you to be waiting." show less

This relatively early JAK novel is one of her best. She frequently bases her stories around the concept of found family and the family here is extremely endearing. (It's no wonder that Max and later, O'Reilly are so eager to join the family.) The mystery element, while not hugely surprising, is less obvious than some of he later stories. And the erotic elements are more thoughtful and well played out than "the obligatory sex scene(s)" common in romance novels of this era. Now, my interest in show more the erotic side of romance novels has waned over the years, so I don't appreciate this part of the story as I did when I first read it soon after its publication (1994), but I do appreciate that it was well done. Overall, it was an entertaining visit with a fine old friend. show less

Of the eight romance novels I’ve read over the last two years, I’ve only rated three better than 2 stars. That’s a lot of bad romance, especially considering the affection with which I used to regard the genre. I was surprised and delighted to find that Lies By Midnight bucks this sorry trend. Perhaps I’ve not become a romance curmudgeon after all.

Plot: Unconventional heroine meets unconventional hero while engaging in heroic activities. Mystery ensues. Growing attraction building show more to a… climax. Secrets kept, then revealed. Everyone lives happily ever after, except the bad guys who get their just desserts.

I hope I haven’t spoiled this for anyone except those unfamiliar with the standard historical romance formula. But what makes this story so much fun is the unconventionality of the characters and the few small ways in which the author deviates from the standard formula. There is no forced love. No rape or dub con, although the spectre of those things features in the plot – in its proper place, as a crime and moral outrage. The female characters all have agency, even over their own sexuality. There is genuine humor, especially in the ways in which the author breaks some of the usual romance tropes.

The only time I became impatient and eye-rolly with this book is toward the end, where the author inexplicably switches from treating the reader to intriguingly small plot reveals to 7 full pages of the main characters sitting around and explaining the entire (now solved) mystery to each other. The author redeems herself, then, with an adorable romantic resolution between hero and heroine and in her setup for their happily ever after. show less

This has been my least favorite Krentz book. Krentz usually writes hero's with such character and excitement. Cole, however, is much more the villain than the hero in this book.

He starts out with scaring Kelsey, the heroine, nearly to death. She tries to end their casual month of seeing each other on weekends, and he reacts by smashing a glass of brandy in his hand (one of a couple of glasses he smashes in anger). He then chases Kelsey out into the rain when she runs to try to escape him. show more Freezing cold and scared, Kelsey walks slowly back to the house, where he jumps out from behind a tree, grabs her by the waist, covers her mouth with his hand and tells her she can't escape. He brings the terrified Kelsey inside and forces himself on her. She finally gives in (why I have no idea) and they sleep together. He then claims that she belongs to him.

He refuses to answer any questions about his past and expects Kelsey to trust him unconditionally (his behavior to me would indicate that he's very violent and possibly a serial killer, but Kelsey is expected to trust him unconditionally). She goes back home to avoid him and thinks her solo cruise she has planned will give her space to clear her mind.

Little does Kelsey know, that Cole follows her onto the cruise (can we say "stalker) and pays a cruise ship employee to give him her room information. When he doesn't see her there he pays another person to arrange her seat at dinner with him. When she doesn't show up to dinner, he bangs on her door, and barges in. (Um, hello, psychopath!). Kelsey is in her room sea-sick so he calls the doctor to give her a sedative which will knock her out. He insists on staying in the room and she is too weak to fight him. She wakes up once in the night and notices he is going through all of her papers and then steals said papers. When she asks him about it in the morning, he then taunts her to "turn him into the police" and is angry with her for not trusting him.

He goes on to yell at her about who she can spend time with, question why she is out of the house, require her to obey orders, threatens to take her over his knee and hit her when she doesn't, criticises what she wears, asks her to leave her job and move in with him (but he is "kind" and accepts eventually that she wants to keep her job to which Kelsey is very grateful- seriously?!?), intercepts her messages, reads her mail from her boss, yells at her, tells everyone she belongs to him, tells her she isn't allowed to leave and he will chase her down, oh and she says she loves him and they will live happily ever after...

There is a little side story going on, but don't want to add any spoilers, so just tlaking about the hero/heroine here.

Seriously?!?!?! I'm all for dangerous bad boys and mysterious men, but Cole is downright creepy! I can't understand at all why Kelsey agreed to all of his conditions when she should have been getting a restraining order and running for her life. I'm OK with females who are a bit submissive, but the extent to which Cole is creepy and she agrees with him is jut scary. This is more like a story for abusive relationships, than a romance. I'm very disappointed in this book.

Maybe the audio version made him sound even creepy than the paper book would have, but his behavior is unexusable and unacceptable in any realm. He's a very possessive controlling man with an anger problem. Kelsey should've kept on running! show less