Tempting Evil by Allison Brennan

The Lucy Kincaid series was selected as a group read in one of my Goodreads groups and we determined, because of character crossovers, we needed to first read her earlier series in publication order.

Romance writer Jo Sutton returned to her family’s lodge in Montana four years ago following the murders of her husband and nine-year old son. Her healing has been slow but enough that she began a relationship with Tyler McBride, the county sheriff, but pulled away when it looked like things were getting serious. It’s been two months and she still unsure. In the meantime, three prisoners who escaped from San Quentin after the earthquake are headed her way. One of them became obsessed with her after reading her books. This man is dangerous and his partner is unstable. To make matters even more troubling, bad weather is descending on the valley, bringing frigid temperatures and blizzard conditions.

This story was frightening from the onset. The tension begins before these creeps even reach the lodge because we get to read their narratives. Communication with law enforcement is already problematic so my imagination just ran away with the potential danger and peril these unsuspecting people were likely to experience. So, be prepared to be uncomfortable for most of this book! And, the weather is as significant a part of the story as any other character. It was fascinating to learn how people in these regions deal with the elements as a regular part of life.

The romance between Jo and Tyler does take a back seat to the suspense and thrills, especially as their relationship had stalled. It didn’t bother me but it may others. However, I loved the scary element and the slow build to the dramatic points. With that said, near the end, I was having to suspend my beliefs a bit much when the prisoners kept eluding local, federal and state law enforcement. It made for exciting situations but I wasn’t buying it. Despite those moments, this was a really good story and I liked that it was connected to the first book, which provides the details regarding the prison break.

Book Info

• Release Date: May 20, 2008
  
• Series: Prison Break Trilogy #2
  
• Page Numbers: 434
  
• Publisher: Ballantine Books

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo