A review by annecatz
Afraid of Her Shadow by Carol Maloney Scott

5.0

A frenzied ride with memorable characters.

I read a lot of historical romance, so the first person present approach threw me off initially, but I decided I liked it for the rather confessional tone it loans the story - you feel like Rebecca is whispering her life secrets to you as they happen.

In the beginning, I wasn't sure if I bought into the heroine's main struggle with her new guy - but I have to say a) I have never dated a widower, so what do I know, and b) as the story develops, I really enjoyed how Ms. Scott fleshed out the emotions / insights into Rebecca's character, and I found myself sympathizing with her more and more, and racing along to finish the book!

There's a wonderful blend of humor (the tanning salon 'issue' is hilarious), balanced with thought-provoking insights into the modern psyche and how we deal with love when it's not always quite as easy as simply happily-ever-after.

Ms. Scott has a vivid, energetic writing style that sucks you in, wondering what crazy event is coming next, or what fun phrase she's going to employ (I particularly liked the analogy of a forehead creased like a crinkle cut French fry!). The characters are zany but sharply drawn, and definitely not all the same.

All in all, a great tale full of verve and realistically flawed characters. A worthwhile read!