ALL NIGHT LONG by Jayne Ann Krentz
Jayne Ann Krentz's new novel ALL NIGHT LONG is a story about love, power, and death. At the core is a blossoming romance between two wounded people who have the good fortune to find a kindred spirit in each other and with that bonding a chance for a new life. The essential element of the story is hope and the resultant factor of this hope is love. But getting from hope to love is a hazardous journey and one that is fascinating to watch. This is Krentz at her romantic and suspenseful best.
Irene Stenson's idyllic life came to an end when she was fifteen years old. It was then that she discovered her parents' bodies and learned her father had allegedly killed her mother and then himself. Irene never believed this but it was the story the police accepted and one she was forced to live with. Now seventeen years later she has returned to her hometown, summoned by an e-mail from a childhood friend.
This friend, Pamela Web, had been with Irene on the night she discovered her parents' bodies. She had just let Irene out at her house and had driven off. Irene entered her home and made the discovery. Now Irene has been summoned by Pam to her hometown because Pam says she has information about what happened that night.
Irene gets a room at a local motel and prepares to meet with Pam. The motel is owned by Luke Danner, an ex-Marine with problems of his own. When he and Irene meet there is an instant attraction. So much so that when Irene leaves to meet Pam he follows her, planning to just watch and make sure she is safe. Luckily he is able to back her up her story when she discovers Pam is dead.
This starts a fast-paced involvement of both Irene and Luke into several suspicious events in the small town, and the final trail of a killer with old secrets to keep. As the love affair between Luke and Irene deepens so does the level of danger to both of them. They are targeted by the killer for a final extermination.
Krentz keeps the story moving at just the right pace, and mixes the romance and the mystery in just the right amounts. Irene and Luke are both fascinating characters and together they are even more inviting. They are flawed human beings with clouds lingering from the past, but with each other as allies they may be able to solve the mystery and get their lives back on an even keel.
Stories like this are what keeps Krentz at the top of the best seller lists. She knows how to create compelling plots, and she knows how to generate heat between her leading characters. Knowing how to do both is what makes her one of the best novelists around today. If you are not a fan you will be as soon as you read ALL NIGHT LONG.
ALL NIGHT LONG is published by G P Putnam's Sons. It contains 401 pages and sells for $24.95.