Cassie Jackson reluctantly sells her Boston business and
follows her husband Alan Harrington to his backwoods
Virginia hometown of Andrews Meadows. His plan to abandon
corporate law to start an alpaca farm with his brothers
seems strange, but is of little interest to her in the big
scheme of things. She just wants the chance to rekindle
their marriage. After a series of miscarriages their
relationship could use time away from the pressures of the
city to heal, to become as it had been when they first met
in college.
The behavior of her hellish mother-in-law during Alan's
welcome home meal is the first inkling that the move may
have been a mistake, the inability of her husband to see his
mother's cruelty is another. It is as if the man she married
has become a stranger, or as if the man he was in Boston was
a lie.
Andrews Meadows has nothing suitable available to rent as
their new home, but the little town of Silver Grove just
across the river is a gem. It's friendly townspeople and
picturesque main street is a world away from the grubby and
disturbing Andrews Meadows. Cassie finds the perfect home
next door to the owner, the warm and welcoming Morgaine Gold
who decides on the spot that Cassie should have the cottage.
Her grandnephew occupies the third house on the lot. David
Argon is one of Silver Grove's finest, his job as a cop
making Cassie feel safe even as her attraction to his good
looks and kind demeanor make her feel a bit guilty.
Rosemary Laurey's interesting take on paranormal romance
elevates DARK IN THE WOODS a bit above the rest. The bucolic
setting she creates is shattered by brutal murders and
Laurey doesn't hesitate to entice readers to care for
characters whom are later killed off. There is not much slow
building of tension in the beginning, more of a series of
shocks interspersed with the growing relationship between
Cassie and David. Later in the story the tension is
skillfully ratcheted up to make this one of the better
suspense novels I've read. Overall I found it an enjoyable
read, if a tiny bit too far on the horror side of the line
for comfort. If you like romantic suspense, though, you will
very likely enjoy this paranormal take on the genre.
When the wild things are stirring, taking sides could get
you killed.
Uprooted to a remote Virginia mountain town by her husband
in a failed attempt to start afresh, Cassie Jackson gets the
cold shoulder from his reclusive, dark-haired family of
“hunters”. And only cool friendship from the tall, fair
neighbors across the river. When her husband is murdered,
and she is shut out of the burial plans, she sneaks into the
funeral home to at least say goodbye and discovers what it
is her mother-in-law from Hell didn’t want her to see.
Something oddly…furry.
Silver Grove used to be a quiet town—until Cassie arrived.
She has dared to cross the river, and from their first
glance, Deputy David Argon found himself drawn to his newly
widowed neighbor. Now, in the midst of the biggest crime
investigation in years, he feels compelled to shield her
from the rising tension among the citizens and the hunters.
Except protecting her means his hands-off policy is doomed
to failure. And when another murder hits too close to home,
staying out of her arms is mission impossible.
Warning: If you go out in the woods tonight, you’re sure of
a big surprise—and we’re not talking bears of the teddy variety!