Whiskey Beach

Well, the other one I bought first, was not what I was expecting; I had a somewhat better idea about this one. Nora Roberts’ strength is character development. She really fleshes her characters, makes them come alive. What bothered me about this one was the number of times she described sex between two of the characters. I don’t consider this necessary to a story, and I don’t like reading it. Oh, she isn’t totally explicit. And she does weave a rather colorful picture, and makes it different each time. It’s just not what I want to read. The mystery (or whatever you want to call it) behind the situation isn’t really given that much attention. In fact a reader gets well into the book before any hints start to get dropped, although I was able to figure out who the culprit was for most of the crimes. The whole thing with the necessary details only takes a few pages at the end.

The other thing that bothered me about this book is that it is very New Age. Not my cup of tea. I especially found the occasional references to Tarot to be most disconcerting and unpleasant. Also, I am no fan of yoga. The female character is quite interesting otherwise, and it’s too bad she was spoiled by these details.

This is much more of a romance novel than any kind of mystery story. I am more interested in police procedurals, detective stories, stuff like that. But if you like a romance done in a way that appeals more to adults than teenagers, you might enjoy this book. But after sampling two of hers, I think I’ll pass. I don’t have enough time to read her other 200 books anyway.

My rating is just my personal opinion. She is truly a skillful writer, and I did really enjoy her character development in general, but it’s just not my cup of tea with the problems duly noted.

So, I don’t really know how many times I’ve read this book now. All I know that I love it every time I read; its like the best Christmas/birthday present you can open again and again. NR always writes great books and I have never been able to choose an all time favorite but this is right up there. I love Eli and Abra (isn’t abacadabra the best nickname ever?), I love their story. How both went through traumatic events, events that shattered the lives they had and thought they wanted and from that wreckage they built lives that best suited them and together they created a life based on love, trust and joy. It’s a story of the resiliency of human spirit and the power of human will. It shows what man and woman can accomplished, even when everything else is taken away, for good and bad. How love can redeem and save you and how much damage it can do when its twisted and abused.

“I learned to accept I was a victim, but I didnt have to stay one.”

YES! Another Nora Roberts and romance winner! I’m all for her series but this stand alone was fantastic.

The story did drag in some parts, but I loved the slow burn romance between Eli and Abra. It was wonderful seeing their relationship go through different stages, how they lived every moment and there was no need to rush. They got to know each other, trust each other, and talk with each other. Couples who communicate are my favorites. Seriously, we don’t always need the keep-secrets or misunderstanding clich. Trust and communication are essential for a relationship to work, and Eli and Abra proved it.

Yes, yes! I loved them individually and apart. I loved how they developed throughout the book, especially Eli. He started as an extremely broken man after being accused of murdering his wife. Thanks to Abra, he slowly got ride of his walls and became the man he was always meant to be. I absolutely loved him. And her. And both! THEY WERE THE CUTEST! AND FUNNIEST! AND SWEETEST!

Another great aspect of the book was the mystery surrounding the book. I guessed the killer of one of the mysteries pretty early on (yes, they’re various but they’re connected and make sense in the end) but that didn’t lower my enjoyment to see Eli finding out.

**OVERALL:

Though Nora Roberts’ newest books had either been a hit or miss with me, there’s no denial that when she hits the jackpot, she’s the best.

‘Whiskey Beach’ was a wonderful, heartbreaking, mysterious, funny, romantic, lovely, and incredible journey. Eli and Abra won me from the very first page and it was sad to see their story ending. Luckily, I can always go back and re-read it.

Definitely recommend for fans of: slow-burn romances, couples who communicate and scarred main characters that finally get their HEA.

Back before Ms Roberts declared war on her readers, she told good stories. I really love everything about this book except Abra. I love Eli. I love his family and history. I love the house. I only like Abra. Shes slightly annoying in that open to all so Im perfect way. The book gives an excellent main story, an excellent side story with Violets, a really good mystery, all told in that perfectly paced Nora Roberts way. Better to read her old stories than the junk shes putting out now, which if I read the reviews correctly, is just a retread of her already published stuff anyway. This one is a winner!

This is a romantic suspense novel with the emphasis very much on the romance (it doesn’t pay to consider the suspense/crime elements too closely as there are some plot holes and a lot is left vague). It centres on Eli, who has been suspected of killing his wife, and Abra, who runs a few local businesses including yoga classes and massage. The two of them come together as they investigate who killed Eli’s wife, who is trying to kill them now and what happened to a treasure held by the family in the past. As is usual with this author’s books it is well written and plotted and has some witty dialogue and a feel-good ending. If you like this sort of a book (and I do) then you will find it enjoyable enough and certainly better than many other books in the genre. Compared with many romantic suspense novels on the market this earns its fours stars.

If, however, you compare this novel with other Nora Roberts books you may find yourself disappointed and wanting to reconsider the rating. This author has used most of the elements in this book before (sometimes many times before)and I really wanted her to do something different in this novel – alas, it is more of the same. The love story between Eli and Abra is predictable and inevitable. Abra is a typical Roberts heroine in that she is independent, self-employed and hard working. Eli is rich (at least one person in each Roberts couple usually is) and a writer. There is a close village community, a supportive family, wacky best friends and a charming dog – we have seen all these before. The sub-plot about the lost treasure has also been used before several times by the author (and is really a bit cheesy in my opinion). This is Nora Roberts writing by formula – it is a good formula and better than many of her competitors but it would have been nice to see something new.

This is not of the calibre of

Birthright

or

Northern Lights

or even of

The Witness

. It was well done and enjoyable enough but routine. I hope that Nora Roberts can come up with something original and exciting for her next stand-alone title.

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