Down to the Bone

Karen Harper has always been one of my favorite writers in the romantic suspense genre. Down to the Bone is one of several of her books that feature the Amish community. The juxtaposition of Amish ways with modern ones and the interactions that take place are fascinating. Because of the Amish element, the romance is kept out of the bedroom and is played out instead with romantic tension and relationship development. I prefer my romances this way. The relationship that develops between Mitch and Rachel is electric while the suspense, mystery and danger keep the story tense and fast moving. I read this book from cover to cover in one evening. I highly recommend it for fans of romantic suspense. I was reminded of the movie Witness with show more Harrison Ford. show less

After a freak accident kills Rachael Mast's husband, strange things start happening around her Amish farm. Chores are being mysteriously done, her late husband's presence seems to be everywhere and her twin sons claim that "daadi" isn't dead but living in the barn, a disturbing notion that seems to be substantiated by evidence that someone has been spying on her from the hayloft. Refusing to be manipulated or terrified, Rachael sets out to learn who is behind the acts--and why. When bones are unearthed from a shallow grave beneath the barn's floor, Rachael must turn her back on Amish ways and depend on a new friend, antique-barn restorer Mitch Randall, for protection, even though he fits the profile of a stalker. Harper's choice of show more setting and lifestyle for her heartwarming characters adds a fresh twist to an otherwise familiar mystery.

My Thoughts:

On a negative this book was a bit bland. I have read a lot of romantic suspense and this book is not one of the best. The problem for me was the hero and love interest Mtich Randall. He wasn’t just sexy enough and I didn’t get any vibes from his character. For me I to enjoy a this type of book I have to fall for the hero myself.

On a positive this book gave me an insight to the lives of the Amish with their ways and traditions which I knew very little about.

I do have a book on my TBR by Karen Harper about Mary Boleyn which I shall look forward to reading but not sure if I would read another RS by her. show less

I was very skeptical about this book at first. I like books that take place in an Amish setting but I really, really don’t like ‘sappy’ romance novels, which is what most of the Amish books I’ve been seeing lately are all about. But this book was passed down to me by two people who really enjoyed it and were excited enough about it to find someone to share with. I had to at least try it, right? After leaving it for about a month and going back and reading the back cover, realizing it was actually a mystery, I was much more intrigued and ready to start reading.

I really enjoyed this book but I do find it hard to describe it without seeming a bit negative (keep in mind I really did enjoy this book). At first glance there really show more doesn’t seem to be much different from this book than any other standard mystery. It’s pretty formulaic in that way and there’s nothing really different about Harper’s writing style that makes it so special. The formula? Woman’s husband dies in a freak ‘accident’ but she doesn’t think it is one, mysterious things are happening all around her, she meets a man who happens to want to help her but she doesn’t know if she should trust him, there are twists and turns to throw the reader off and eventually everything comes together in one giant reveal, woman decides what to do about man who has been helping her and she lives happily ever after.

But there was so much about this book I personally really enjoyed that made it hard for me to put it down. First, Rachel is Amish but it’s not the standard Amish story. Rachel isn’t as sheltered as her other community members. She has an English friend and spends a lot of time with her, even using her as a babysitter for her children. She visits the library and reads English books and throughout the course of the story she gets involved with many other English people. This makes her place in the community very unsteady and makes the mystery behind her husband’s death (and her new possible romance) very interesting. It also makes all the explanations of Amish vs. English lifestyles much more realistic. It fits into the storytelling unlike those other stories where the Amish are too sheltered to make the kind of comparisons authors usually do. There is of course romance in this book but it’s not the ‘sappy’ romance I was afraid of. The mystery and ‘creepy’ vibe from the story is much more prominent here. There was lots going on in this story which gave me lots of things to want to find out and keeping me reading. It was very hard to put down.

Bottom line is, I really enjoyed this story. Enough to search through Karen Harper’s other stories to find some future reads.

Note: This review was originally published on my blog, 100 Stars or Less. Go there (www.100starsorless.blogspot.com) to see this and other reviews. show less

This was another good one by KH. It was a very good creepy suspense book. The romance part was extremely lackluster. It seemed that the Amish woman and the English man didn't really spend anytime falling in love but the mystery part was so well done that I forgave that. The only thing I don't forgive is that the author had the Amish woman owning golden Percherons to work her farm. Percherons are black or shades of grey. Belgians are light chestnut. They can be any shade of red from light gold to dark red and they have light manes and tails. Such a simple detail to check and so annoying to horse people.

Story about a Amish Community. Rachel Mast was raised with Amish traditions yet she is drawn to some of the people in her community that are not Amish. This creates tension within her community and as she becomes stronger being a widow raising two young sons and running her farm by herselft she realizes she will soon have to make a choice between the Amish and her worldly friends.