novelesque_life's review against another edition
3.0
DARKNESS
Written by Karen Robards
MARCH 29, 2016; 384 Pages
Genre: romantic suspense, thriller, mystery
(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.)
★★★
Dr. Gina Sullivan is a renowned ornithologist on a group research grant trip on the remote island of Attu, Alaska. One day while she is gathering research she hears a BOOM and see a plane go down. When she goes to see the wreckage there is a survivor...a man named, Cal. Cal mistrusts Gina so will not share anything of his circumstances but demands she tell him everything about her. He starts to think maybe her team was sent for a purpose other than research. Before they can figure anything out they realize there is a killer on the island and they need to save themselves.
I have read Karen Robard's historical romance, contemporary fiction, and romantic suspense and enjoy most of her novels. I even liked her Dr. Charlotte Stone series which is romantic suspense with paranormal aspects; however this novel never gelled for me. I did not bond with either character and it felt sort of like I was reading the story secondhand. It just feels like something is missing for me...it was too formulaic. Most reviews on Goodreads has been good...but if you find yourself not being able to get into...abandon ship on this one.
k (My Novelesque Life)
Written by Karen Robards
MARCH 29, 2016; 384 Pages
Genre: romantic suspense, thriller, mystery
(I received an ARC from the NETGALLEY in exchange for an honest review.)
★★★
Dr. Gina Sullivan is a renowned ornithologist on a group research grant trip on the remote island of Attu, Alaska. One day while she is gathering research she hears a BOOM and see a plane go down. When she goes to see the wreckage there is a survivor...a man named, Cal. Cal mistrusts Gina so will not share anything of his circumstances but demands she tell him everything about her. He starts to think maybe her team was sent for a purpose other than research. Before they can figure anything out they realize there is a killer on the island and they need to save themselves.
I have read Karen Robard's historical romance, contemporary fiction, and romantic suspense and enjoy most of her novels. I even liked her Dr. Charlotte Stone series which is romantic suspense with paranormal aspects; however this novel never gelled for me. I did not bond with either character and it felt sort of like I was reading the story secondhand. It just feels like something is missing for me...it was too formulaic. Most reviews on Goodreads has been good...but if you find yourself not being able to get into...abandon ship on this one.
k (My Novelesque Life)
jacquelynrovene's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
kookie9200's review against another edition
2.0
This book was more of a disaster than the contrived plot Ms. Robards created. It was as if the author didn't even try, or got bored after describing Attu Island and just relied on shopworn phrases that she repeated over and over until you wanted to bash our skill against a wall. I usually enjoy Ms. Robards books, and have read some great ones by her, but lately, she just hasn't done it for me. I always know the men will be big, burly, and hairy, and gifted physically, and the woman will, despite a life threatening situation, fall helpless at his feet. I mean...at one point in this book, he pats her down for a weapon, which she was totally against and yet she still gets turned on? Please. From that moment on, I couldn't get back into the narrative. On top of the almost skeevy quality of the "romance" in this book, the only interesting part, the thrill, so to speak, was more of an afterthought that was wrapped up way too neatly to be even possibly realistic. Suffice to say, I was extremely disappointed.
hammilf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
a_story_in_punk's review against another edition
1.0
DNF
Not my cup of tea.
I almost fell asleep reading this a few times :/
Not my cup of tea.
I almost fell asleep reading this a few times :/
mellymel35's review against another edition
4.0
Quite good! I kept interested throughout the whole book and will look for another book by the same author.
bookworm84's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book! So much so, I read it in a day.
It was a great and well paced mystery with very likeable characters. The only thing that bothered me about the book was the insta-romance between the two main characters. Other than that, it was a great read and I highly recommend this read.
It was a great and well paced mystery with very likeable characters. The only thing that bothered me about the book was the insta-romance between the two main characters. Other than that, it was a great read and I highly recommend this read.
ela_35's review against another edition
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I liked the plot, but the book doesn’t really show what the main characters’ real lives are going to look like after this.
The plot was interesting, and I liked seeing how Cal and Gina tried to survive on Attu. However, the whole book (excluding the first 2/3 pages and the last few pages) happens over the course of 3 days which wasn’t enough time for the characters to really get to know each other and spend time together, especially given the circumstances.
I liked Cal and Gina. Their interactions were realistic as both of them were weary of each other. I did want to see a few more chapters showing them interacting in the real world and what their lives would look like when they were not busy trying to survive.
I liked this book, but I don’t think I would want to reread it. I still want to try other books by this author though.