ROMANTIC
SUSPENSE
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SUSPENSE
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Early Creole musicians playing an accordion and a washboard in front of
a store, near New Iberia, Louisiana (1938). Zydeco music originated
from Creole music—today's rubboard or frottoir rubbing the washboard is
a stylized version of the early washboard.
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Bayou
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BOOK
ILLUMINATIONS
From Merrimon Book Reviews
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Touch of Evil
by Colleen Thompson
One suicide seems to change the face of a small lakeside border town
between Texas and Louisiana. When not one but three members of a
zydeco band turn up dead with nooses around their neck, Sheriff Justine
Wofford doesn't believe the deaths are suicide. Justine has her
hands full enough as it is but she can't help but go against her.
Serving out her late husband's term, she butts head with other law
enforcement officers and she herself is under investigation for
corruption matters. Her personal life is not much better,
She worries about her autistic son and an old flame, Doctor Ross
Bollinger is back in town. Ross Bollinger's cousin Laney
Thibodeaux is the sole
surviving member of the zydeco band. A break-in at Laney's
house complicates the case. Once a suspect, now possibly in
danger, Laney brings together Justine and Ross in an uneasy
relationship. Together they ignite the passion that once was but
life and this case has a way of complicating matters. As Justine
investigates the case, suspicions turn to her as the guilty party, but
somewhere out there a killer still threatens. Will that danger
bring Ross and Justine back together or separate them forever?
Will they discover the identity the murderer before it is too late?
In TOUCH OF EVIL, Colleen Thompson revisits the community of Bone Lake,
a book that first introduces Sheriff Justine Wofford to readers.
A TOUCH OF EVIL can most definitely be read as a stand-alone novel or
even in reverse order. However, to feel the full effect of the
effect of Colleen Thompson's innovation, this reader recommends reading
both TOUCH OF EVIL and BENEATH BONE LAKE. Justine Wofford is
surely a fascinating character in both books, but Colleen Thompson fans
will find a special delight in seeing the development of Justine from
the previous novel into a heroine of romantic suspense in A TOUCH OF
EVIL. Colleen Thompson is an innovative writer, a writer who
takes chances -- chances that work. Each book provides something
new, something daring, something exciting.
Quotes about hanging begin each chapter, ramping up the eerie,
emotional dimension of the suspense and deaths of the Zydeco band
members. At first glance, Sheriff Justine Wofford seems an
unlikely heroine with all the issues pressing down on her, and yet
Colleen Thompson brings a richness of character to her. Despite
all the hecticness of her life, Justine is quite alone inside.
She doesn't love easily. Ross is an admirable man. The
passion between them was intense in the past. Why did he
disappear? Colleen Thompson adds a touch of mystery to the
romance as well as the exhilarating hunt for the answers to the
case. Colleen Thompson's flawed characters make for one exciting
thrill ride. When physical passion between her and Ross turns to
love, the romance feels all the richer and complete. TOUCH OF
EVIL is edgy fast-paced romantic suspense with chilling twists and
turns to keep readers on the edge of their seats. The passion is
exciting, the romance full of depth, and the race to catch the
mysterious killer keeps the pages flying.
Publisher: Love Spell (February 23, 2010)
Author
website
Reviewed by Merrimon,
Merrimon Book Reviews
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