Review: Perfect Touch by Elizabeth Lowell

Beneath the majestic Teton Range, a former soldier turned rancher and a beautiful designer and art appraiser must race to stop a vicious killer—and quench a blazing passion that burns deep in their hearts—in this beguiling thriller from perennial New York Times bestselling author and queen of romantic suspense Elizabeth Lowell

An art dealer and owner of her own design studio, Perfect Touch, Sara Medina travels the world to find the ideal artwork for her clients. Her sophisticated, comfortable life in San Francisco is light-years away from the poverty of her family's dairy farm. Sara worked too hard to get out of the rural countryside to want to go back again for more than just a brief visit—even for someone as enticing as her new client, Jay Vermilion, a man with dozens of fine-art paintings that could kick her career up into the stratosphere.

Jay recently inherited Vermilion Ranch, a working ranch near Wyoming's breathtaking Tetons—and the estates of the rich and restless. While Jay was fighting in two wars, his father tried to keep the homestead running, until illness stole his fight and then his life. Jay is determined to restore Vermilion Ranch—the fruit of generations of his ancestors—but first he's got to settle a vicious battle with his scheming former stepmother and greedy half-brother over the paintings that belonged to his late father, a collection of works by a talented yet often overlooked artist named Armstrong "Custer" Harris. The last thing on Jay's mind is finding a wife and creating a seventh generation of Vermilions.

When Jay and Sara meet face to face after months of intimate phone calls, it's love at first sight—a mutually inconvenient attraction that is soon complicated by a double murder at the edge of the ranch and a potential betrayal even closer to home. Working together to unmask a murderer, Sara and Jay are powerless to resist the intense heat between them. While Jay's waited a lifetime for someone like Sara—a strong, smart, sassy woman as comfortable in the saddle as she is in stilettos—he knows the life he offers isn't what she wants. And Sara knows she's the wrong woman for Jay, even though the fire between them feels so very right.

Then the killer targets Sara. And suddenly, Jay, the war-weary soldier, finds something he's once again willing to die for . . .

ebook, 368 pages

Expected publication: July 28th 2015 by William Morrow

Terri's Thoughts

I received an advanced copy of this book from the publisher William Morrow via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.  The expected publication date is July 28th 2015.

This story delivered exactly what I expected to.  A little bit of romance and a little bit of suspense. 

I liked the fact that there was a backstory to the love instead of instant chemistry...because really does that exist, instant lust maybe but not instant love.  The fact that Jay and Sara had been talking on the phone for months before meeting actually put some substance to their relationship.  Too many times stories head straight to the bedroom scenes and you are left scratching your head and asking if they even got each others names.  In this case there was a certain element of realism to their relationship which was refreshing.

For a story that is centered around a murder and some suspense I did fond that it was a little slow moving.  You need to look no further than the horse ride with the cattle to Fish camp.  This was very long and I swear it lasted half of the book.  I just wanted them to get there.  The story starts to move after this point so you need to hang in for a while before there is any momentum. 

I have to admit that this story held no surprises for me.  I figured out what was going on and who the "villain" was pretty early on.  It was still fin to see how it would play out.

Overall this was a satisfying read for me.

About the Author

Individually and with co-author/husband Evan, Ann Maxwell has written over 60 novels and one work of non-fiction. There are 30 million copies of these books in print, as well as reprints in 30 foreign languages. Her novels range from science fiction to historical fiction, from romance to mystery. After working in contemporary and historical romance, she became an innovator in the genre of romantic suspense.

In 1982, Ann began publishing as Elizabeth Lowell. Under that name she has received numerous professional awards in the romance field, including a Lifetime Achievement award from the Romance Writers of America (1994).

Since July of 1992, she has had over 30 novels on the New York Times bestseller list. In 1998 she began writing suspense with a passionate twist, capturing a new audience and generation of readers. Her new romance novel Perfect Touch will be available in July of 2015.

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