Sunday, February 12, 2017

Romantic Suspense Annotation

Don't Tell
by Karen Rose


Synopsis:
Mary Grace Winters only knew of one way to escape her abusive cop husband; faking the death of herself and their son Robbie, and secretly skipping town. Nine years after the incident, Mary Grace is in a new city, with a new identity, and a clean slate. This clean slate includes a stable job, a pending bachelor's degree, and an acceptance into law school. She even has an opportunity for new love, found in her new boss, Dr. Max Hunter. Hunter has his own scars but finds happiness when Mary Grace enters his atmosphere. All seems well until Mary Grace's "grieving" husband starts to uncover her trail, and he closes in on her in the very city she escapes to. Her loved ones are no longer safe and there is a potential for her past and present to come together in a head on collision.

**BEWARE OF THE SPOILERS!**

Elements of Romantic Suspense:

1. Pacing - The plot is fast and uneasy. This usually starts within the first pages of the book, like the prologue or chapter one. In the prologue, Officer Winters is begging to see his wife after she was in a horrible accident, and the doctor tells him of her injuries. Then chapter one cuts to nine years later, when the police are dragging the lake looking for evidence regarding Mary Grace and Robbie Winters' apparent death.

2. Characterization - The story is told mostly from the point of view of the threatened heroine. Mary Grace is our heroine, who has fled from her abusive husband to create a new life for her and her son. The story does cut to other points of view; i.e. Special Agent Steven Thatcher, Officer Winters, and Max Hunter.

3. Graphic details - Very explicit details are given about the abuse and scars of our heroine. There are details about Officer Winters' behaviors towards the women he encounters throughout his hunt for his family. There is one very vivid sex scene between the heroine and Max Hunter, which comes after a few vivid scenes of the characters fooling around.

4. Romantic relationship - The developing romantic relationship between the heroine and Max Hunter is at the core of the story. As much as Mary Grace wants to welcome new love, she continues to have flashbacks from her past that threaten her future.

5. Language - The language contains witty rapport between characters, along with "sensual descriptions" of situations and conversations. The author uses explicit sexual descriptions (Saricks, pg. 37).

6. Detailed background - Each location of the story is described in great detail, like Asheville, North Carolina, where the heroine is from and where Officer Winters begins his search. Max Hunters' house is described with great detail, set in the country and away from the city in a peaceful area.

Read-alikes:

One Scream Away by Kate Brady

Beg for Mercy by Jami Alden

To the Edge by Cindy Gerard

Moving Target by Cheyenne McCray

References

Saricks, J.G. (2009). The readers' advisory guide to genre fiction: Second edition. Chicago: ALA.

4 comments:

  1. Great annotation! The book sounds very creepy and suspenseful. How did you find your read alikes? Do you have a favorite resource for finding read alikes?

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    Replies
    1. Kate,

      Sorry for the delay! Thanks for stopping by to read my annotation. I find readalikes through Goodreads.com. It is my favorite source!

      Delete
  2. Great annotation! You did an excellent job describing the appeals and how they fit the romantic suspense genre. Full points, keep it up!

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