Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    River Road
    River Road
    River Road
    Audiobook9 hours

    River Road

    Written by Jayne Ann Krentz

    Narrated by Amanda Leigh Cobb

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    It' s been thirteen years since Lucy Sheridan was in Summer River. The last time she visited her Aunt Sara there, as a teenager, she' d been sent home suddenly after being dragged out of a wild party-- by the guy she had a crush on, just to make it more embarrassing. Obviously Mason Fletcher-- only a few years older but somehow a lot more of a grown-up-- was the overprotective type who thought he had to come to her rescue. Now, returning after her aunt' s fatal car accident, Lucy is learning there was more to the story than she realized at the time. Mason had saved her from a very nasty crime that night-- and soon afterward, Tristan, the cold-blooded rich kid who' d targeted her, disappeared mysteriously, his body never found. A lot has changed in thirteen years. Lucy now works for a private investigation firm as a forensic genealogist, while Mason has quit the police force to run a successful security firm with his brother-- though he still knows his way around a wrench when he fills in at his uncle' s local hardware store. Even Summer River has changed, from a sleepy farm town into a trendy upscale spot in California' s wine country. But Mason is still a protector at heart, a serious (and seriously attractive) man. And when he and Lucy make a shocking discovery inside Sara' s house, and some of Tristan' s old friends start acting suspicious, Mason' s quietly fierce instincts kick into gear. He saved Lucy once, and he' ll save her again. But this time, she insists on playing a role in her own rescue.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateJan 7, 2014
    ISBN9781470392116
    River Road
    Author

    Jayne Ann Krentz

    The author of over fifty consecutive New York Times bestsellers, Jayne Ann Krentz writes romantic-suspense in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick), and futuristic/paranormal (as Jayne Castle). There are over 30 million copies of her books in print. She earned a BA in history from the University of California, Santa Cruz and went on to obtain a Master’s degree in library science from San Jose State University in California. Before she began writing full time she worked as a librarian in both academic and corporate libraries. She is married and lives with her husband, Frank, in Seattle, Washington. Jayne loves to hear from her readers and can be found at Facebook.com/JayneAnnKrentz.

    More audiobooks from Jayne Ann Krentz

    Related to River Road

    Titles in the series (6)

    View More
    View More

    Related audiobooks

    Romance For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      La Bohème

      Mar 1, 2022

      ON A SATURDAY or Sunday afternoon in the cold early months of 1988, I sat alone at a table for two in a Greenwich Village diner, twenty-four years old, hopelessly young, my notebook open in front of me. At the table next to mine were three people, al

      13 min read

    • Article

      Witness

      Jun 9, 2020

      My sister threw open the door so that it banged against the little console table she kept by the entrance. “Silas,” she said breathlessly, before even removing her coat, “I have to tell you something.” Which was enough to make me feel trapped, as tho

      25 min read

    • Article

      Cold Calling

      Jan 18, 2021

      Two or three phone calls per week. Every week for six months. All more or less the same. “Hello Mrs Redmond, this is Martin/Tim/Alice/Marmaduke [I’m serious], I’m calling from your internet provider to let you know that your broadband server has been

      6 min read

    • Article

      LOVE, Virtually

      Feb 16, 2020

      LOVE, Virtually
      5 min read

    • Article

      Take a Writer Like Him: My Complicated Love Affair with Kingsley Amis

      Aug 24, 2018

      1. As much as I may rack my brain, there are 15 minutes or so in the dark that I can’t account for and that I’ll never get back—15 minutes during which, I have to think, that creep’s hands were touching my body. It’s a weird thing to think about all

      12 min read

    • Article

      That Particular Sunday

      Jul 6, 2023

      That Particular Sunday
      26 min read

    • Article

      The Last Friend on Earth

      May 4, 2023

      It was as if Doreen Saunders had been waiting for me, passing the time until my arrival. She might as well have been sitting in a rocking chair, knitting needles clicking, jam tarts cooling on the side, the door wide open, waiting for the next visito

      6 min read

    • Article

      Last Night At The FESTIVAL

      Aug 2, 2023

      Last Night At The FESTIVAL
      6 min read

    • Article

      POISON ON Pink Paper

      Dec 23, 2019

      POISON ON Pink Paper
      8 min read

    • Article

      Justin Timberlake and the Whoever of Whatever: Fame Drags You Down.: Fame drags you down.

      Sep 19, 2013

      About six years ago, I was putting a new roof on a 200-year-old house on an island in Maine when I got a call from Justin Timberlake’s cousin and assistant, a girl named Melissa. I put down my nail gun, told my boss I was taking five, and answered.

      22 min read

    • Article

      Happy Endings

      Sep 1, 2023

      Happy Endings
      5 min read

    • Article

      Festival

      Sep 15, 2018

      My husband, who loved festivals, who was a great fan of festivals, wanted to get to the square in time for the first band at eleven o’clock. From bed, the dog and I watched him dress. He tried on various T-shirts, declaring some of them too tight and

      13 min read

    • Article

      Monster

      Dec 1, 2022

      Monster
      7 min read

    • Article

      Cycles

      Nov 10, 2022

      His online profile was promising: good hair, straight teeth, college degree. And he was nice-looking too, in his photo anyway, standing on a clifftop with the sun rising over his welldefined, muscular shoulder. He was attractive enough, the kind of u

      18 min read

    • Article

      Australia Reads At Home

      May 18, 2020

      Australia Reads At Home
      7 min read

    • Article

      Not That Story

      Oct 28, 2017

      Not That Story
      7 min read

    • Article

      Philip Roth

      Jun 4, 2018

      Philip Roth
      25 min read

    • Article

      Apparent

      Mar 3, 2020

      When my son Henry was a year old I took him to Boston to meet my mother. She didn’t show up. It turned out that she had gone to Foxwoods Casino instead, which sounds bad and maybe was, but it had been three years since I’d seen her or even spoken to

      20 min read

    • Article

      The Inherited Imagination

      Aug 18, 2020

      The Inherited Imagination
      9 min read

    • Article

      Six Dart Out

      Sep 10, 2023

      Marc figured the girl was a vegan. Her puke had overflowed the sink and run onto the floor—tomatoes and rice marinated in microbrew lager. He’d told Vegan Girl to slow down, but her friends had won the turning-21-peer-pressure battle. Admittedly, Mar

      9 min read

    • Article

      All Of Us Here

      Jun 4, 2020

      All Of Us Here
      6 min read

    • Article

      Ashley McBryde

      Jun 23, 2020

      Ashley McBryde
      3 min read

    • Article

      Three Poems

      Sep 1, 2023

      How thoughtlesslyI took it, this castiron Aunt Jemima doll hauled from the trunkof my whitefriend’s car. Another of T’s, her Jamaicanhusband’s, mementoshe collected as a joke. Not unlikethose figurinesI recall a college friend once exhibited, who’d b

      6 min read

    • Article

      The Duplex

      Jun 9, 2020

      I moved to Los Angeles to sing. When was this? August? June? I was twenty-nine, and those were shapeless months, when the days blended together and I refused to pull them apart. My landlord was unusually close to her adult son. His name was Jeffrey,

      21 min read

    • Article

      Getaway Driver

      Feb 10, 2022

      Getaway Driver
      11 min read

    • Article

      Four’s A Crowd

      Sep 24, 2020

      Four’s A Crowd
      4 min read

    • Article

      Hello, My Name Is Bill

      Nov 25, 2019

      Hello, My Name Is Bill
      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for River Road

    3.5/5

    145 ratings23 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      This story was Jayne Ann Krentz at her romantic suspense best. The characters were amazingly life-like. Well, except for the fact that, if men life Mason Fletcher exist, they are staying well away from me.The story begins with a prequel. Lucy Sheridan, age 16, is being hauled away from a wild party by her crush, the responsible and mature 19-year-old Mason Fletcher. She leaves town the next day and doesn't return to Summer River for thirteen years. What Lucy doesn't know is that she has been targeted by Tristan Brinker who wants her to star in his latest rape video and Mason saves her from that fate.Now, Lucy is grown up and working as a forensic genealogist. She works for a private investigation firm and finds lost heirs. She is a successful woman in all areas of her life except her romantic life. She has dumped her fiance after finding him in bed with another woman. Her therapist tells her she has commitment issues. She is currently trying to find Mr. Right by using an online matchmaking service.She has returned to Summer River to settle her aunt's estate. Her beloved Aunt Sara and her partner Mary Colfax recently died in an automobile accident. Lucy has inherited her aunt's estate and some shares in Colfax Inc. from Mary. She is being urged to sell Sara's house and land to turn it into a vineyard and she is being wooed by various Colfax family members who want those share back, too.Mason Fletcher has returned to Summer River too. He has established a successful private investigation business specializing in cold crimes with his younger brother Aaron. But when a case goes wrong, he heads for home to rethink his life. He is working in his uncle's hardware store when Lucy comes in for light bulbs. An offer to help her with some home improvements lead to the discovery of Tristan Brinker's body bricked up in her aunt's fireplace which starts a chain of events that combine the past and the present.I loved that both characters were strong people and that, in the course of their falling in love, they didn't have misunderstandings that hurt each other. I also liked the way Krentz wove events and characters from the past into the mystery. She also managed to surprise me when she revealed the villains of the story. I really enjoyed this story and couldn't put it down. For me, it was a compelling page-turner.
    • 4/5
      River Road
      4 Stars

      As an innocent 16 year old, Lucy Sheridan was rescued from a wild party by Mason Fletcher, the older boy who always made her pulse beat faster. Now, Lucy returns to Summer River and realizes not only that her attraction to Mason is still going strong, but there was more to the events of that night thirteen years ago. When the body of Summer River’s resident sociopath is discovered in the house of Lucy’s late aunt, she and Mason set out to discover the truth. But someone is just as determined to stop them at any cost …

      A light read with likable characters and an engaging romance. Nevertheless, the suspense plot is rather predictable.

      Lucy and Mason have great chemistry and the slow built up to their relationship makes it all the more satisfying when they do ultimately give in to their attraction. Mason has a mile wide overprotective streak and there are moments when he seems on the verge of jerk territory, but manages to avoid this pitfall by realizing that Lucy is strong, intelligent and quite capable of dealing with whatever comes along as evinced by the action packed finale.

      The suspense and romance are well balanced yet the mystery is rather obvious and it is easy to guess the identity of the villain at one specific moment of the story when it becomes evident that it couldn’t be anyone else. The motive is a bit more complex and not all that plausible and there are one or two points that remain unexplained, but these do not detract from the overall effect.

      All in all, a well written and entertaining read recommended for fans of JAKs books.
    • 2/5
      While there were a few flashes of humor and appealing main characters, the amateurish dialogue ruined this book for me. Too often it sounded like a documentary's narration masquerading as conversation.
    • 4/5
      This book reminded me of a Sandra Brown or Nora Roberts novel. Lucy returns to Summer River after her aunt's passing to settle up her estate and meets her high school crush working int the hardware store. He volunteers to help her with some on the refurbishments to help her get her aunt's house sale ready. Lucy doesn't believe her aunt was killed in a car accident but driven off the road and murdered. They discover something very interesting hidden in the fireplace. Meanwhile, threats, past history, strange goings on, and romance all happen before the conclusion.
    • 4/5
      I have been reading Jayne Ann Krentz's contemporary romance novels for years and have enjoyed them so much. I stopped reading her when she wrote her paranormal series, but was very happy to see that she had returned with a stand-a-lone contemporary novel entitled River Road. I liked the story very much. It was a nice escape and an easy read with a story that captured my attention. Her characters were lovable and quirky as always. However, this reader had to suspend reality in order to enjoy the wild ride. The ending especially was over the top. I can't say that it was the most memorable of stories for me, but it was fun, and that was enough for me.
    • 4/5
      It's not often that I have to say this about a book but this is a straight contemporary romance with no paranormal at all in it, there are hunches, but that's about it. I feel a need to say this because I approached this story with thoughts of paranormal and kept expecting someone to start into that, but no. I think I would have enjoyed the read better if I had known this from the outset, but with Ms Krentz's output being mostly paranormal these days I kinda expected some to creep in.Lucy Sheridan has been away from Summer River for thirteen years, last time she was here she was dragged bodily from a party by a guy she had a crush on, Mason Fletcher, and ever since she hasn't gone back. Her aunt discouraged it and the kid who had invited her, disappeared mysteriously, now her aunt is dead and she has inherited the house and some shares in a company that has a winery. She works as a genealogical researcher for a private investigation firm and Mason runs a security business with his brother. When Lucy discovers a secret inside her aunt's house she feels a need to find out the truth and if her aunt's death is related to this discovery.I liked it, the end chase scene had me at the edge of my seat. I liked the characters and their reactions and how they had to build a relationship and learn to trust each other.Overall, an enjoyable read.
    • 5/5
      I pretty much lover everything that JAK writes, no matter which name is on the cover. This is almost a throwback novel. Not psychic powers, no "other world", just a straightforward mystery with the normal amount of romance thrown into the mix.Lucy first met Mason when she was 15, he was 19, and he rescued her from a party. Naturally, Lucy resented Mason for dragging her away from the party, after all she wasn't planning on drinking anything other than the bottle of water she carried with her. Mason, however, heard the rumors that Lucy was the target of the local "super stud" and that the targeting included drugs and rape.Flash forward thirteen years and Lucy is back in town and so is Mason. Lucy is there to take care of the household after her Aunt Sara and her partner Mary were killed in an automobile accident. Lucy's former foe has been missing since a day or two after that party and no one knows what happened to himPlenty of twists and turns in this one and I totally did not suspect that the killer to turned out to be. . ., well, you'll have to read the book to get that bit of information.It was nice to see JAK writing a straight romantic suspense book and I loved that Lucy's career is in genealogy and tracing heirs to fortunes. Not that I dislike the Arcane books or the Castle books set on Harmony or the Quick books that are historical. Just that this was a nice change.
    • 3/5
      I like Krentz and the book started out well with good characterization, interesting story, and solid writing. But about half-way through it petered out. The heroine and hero became more cardboard and I felt less emotionally attached. There were too many stories, too many plot lines being told. It became chaotic. Lastly, the ending felt rushed - the resolution and HEA wrapped up in the last two (short) chapters. Krentz writes well so I did mostly enjoy it, but I think it could have been better with more time spent on it on plotting, making the characters richer and tightening up/removing some plot lines.
    • 3/5
      In River Road, Jayne Ann Krentz returns to what she’s best at—at least in my opinion—straight up romantic suspense with one man, one woman, no big ensemble scenes and no paranormal elements.Once upon a time, I loved both Jayne Ann Krentz and her historical persona, Amanda Quick. (I liked the one story of Jayne Castle’s I read, too, but I just never ran across that many.) In those days, she was writing traditional historicals and traditional romantic suspense novels. Even the first few paranormals didn’t bother me, but the last few books have been bad enough that I gave up and said I wouldn’t buy another. And then came the opportunity to get River Road for review. A quick look at the cover copy had me requesting it because it looks like the Jayne Ann Krentz I’d once known.I wouldn’t call this a must-buy, but it’s definitely better than some of her more recent work. I have some issues with the depiction of Mason. I don’t feel as if I really got to “know” him, which made the romance somewhat hard to understand. I can see why Lucy finds him admirable, but I couldn’t feel her love for him. Likewise, he and Lucy have some nice interactions and good sex, but I don’t feel any particularly strong feelings from him. Lucy always thinks—and frequently says either aloud or to herself—that Mason was born to be a cop, that he’s got an ingrained need to protect people and to right wrongs. The level of repetition is frustrating, especially since it seems to substitute in for any real character development.
    • 3/5
      Not the worst Janye Krentz I've read but just sort of middling. As usual, it's sort of paint by numbers but at least is's contemporary and not paranormal or inauthentic regency or victorian. Krentz used to write excellent contemporaries with strong women and interesting relationship issues. But that's a long time in the past. I no longer buy her books but will take them out of the library if I come across it.
    • 2/5
      JAK used to be one of my go-to authors for a fun and good romance. I think that the time for her being a must buy author for me is over. I know from reading her books that she tends to recycle characters and have certain types of characters that she uses frequently, but since they are the kind of characters I like, this doesn't bother me. However, this book just did not grab my interest. I wanted it to, and I wanted to enjoy - I was so excited to get one of her books as a review - I like to give good reviews. However, this book just bored me. I wish there was a nicer way to say it, but I felt like I had to slog through a bunch of information and descriptions that was mostly just filler. The quality of JAK's writing has been going steadily downhill and I think this is the final book by her I am going to buy for a while. I don't know if she is in such demand that they are not giving her enough time to write the usually excellent novels she has put out in various names, or if she is just bored with writing and phoning it in. Either way, this one was a bummer because it could have been good and just simply wasn't.
    • 4/5
      In her most recent contemporary romance, Jayne Ann Krentz returns to a more mainstream romance (no paranormal, psychic elements in this one), and takes a trip to the heart of California wine country. As a teenager, Lucy Sheridan became the target of a charismatic young sociopath during a summer stay with her aunt. Mason Fletcher, her self-appointed guardian angel, saved her then. Thirteen years later, Lucy inherits her aunt's house, and returns to town to settle the estate - and to find answers to her questions about her aunt's death. Mason may still be a protector at heart, but Lucy's out to show him that she's no damsel in distress, and rescuing is the last thing she needs from him. A hot affair, on the other hand, might be at the top of her to-do list! While this offering isn't quite up to Krentz's usual standard in terms of plot complexity and character-driven action, it's still a great read, and well worth it for die hard fans and new readers alike.
    • 3/5
      If you're a fan of Jayne Ann Krentz’s books then you know that for the past few years she’s woven a mixture of the paranormal into her contemporary novels including her historical and futuristic novels. I was a bit unsure if I’d enjoy RIVER ROAD because as much I liked her Arcane series, I was tired of reading about the paranormal. There’s been a lot of talk about Krentz’s return to romance (just plain old fashioned romance) and it’s refreshing to see her return to her roots.Thirteen years ago, Lucy Sheridan was a teenage girl spending the summer at her aunt’s house and crushing on Mason Fletcher. Unfortunately, Mason never saw Lucy as more than a kid and when he escorts her from a party she’s attending she’s embarrassed that he thinks she can’t take care of herself. Over the years Lucy didn’t think about Mason and when she returns to Summer River she didn’t expect to run into him. Mason is surprised to see Lucy and even more so that she’s grown up. He has his own reasons for being back in Summer River and little does he know the events of that night thirteen years ago will be the talk of the town. When a body is found in Lucy’s aunt’s house all fingers point to her aunt as the culprit and suddenly, Lucy doesn’t believe her aunt’s death was an accident. With Mason’s help Lucy decides to investigate her aunt’s death and the deeper they dig, the more they find things aren’t as they seem.As for character development, we have strong characters. Krentz is known for writing strong female characters who aren’t afraid to do things on their own and Lucy is no different. I had a hard time warming up to Lucy. I think it had to do with the way she wanted people to view her instead of who she really was. With Mason she’s able to let go and be herself and when she’s with him, I really liked her then. As for Mason, he’s a bit of a mystery. We know he’s protective of Lucy and values her opinion so much so that he does end up going into law enforcement as she had suggested. He’s also been hurt, first as a child with no one wanting him and his brother after the death of his parents and he’s trying to come to terms with the end of marriage. Krentz isn’t one of those authors that tells us everything about the hero and slowly we get details regarding why Mason is back in town and I really liked getting to know him.I liked RIVER ROAD and as I stated, it was refreshing to read! There were some ties to her use of the paranormal with Lucy’s aunt and I thought for a moment that Krentz was going to go in that direction but she surprised me. If I have one small compliant is that the mystery surrounding the death of Tristan. Krentz doesn’t come out and say exactly x did it because of y and we have to take things for face value and make an assumption as to why. In the end, the two people behind the string of incidents just left me wanting more. We aren’t shown why, but rather just given a summary of events and readers aren’t given that sense of accomplishment at figuring out the mystery and unmasking our villains. Instead we have to take things for face value and believe that what Mason and Lucy tell us is exactly what happened.If you’re looking for a full fledged romantic suspense novel, this isn’t it. Devoted fans of Jayne Ann Krentz may be a bit disappointed with RIVER ROAD, but overall, I do believe they’ll still enjoy aspects of it.
    • 4/5
      I really enjoyed this book, I was a classic Janye Ann Krentz stand alone book. The characters were well written and I really enjoyed the back and forth between the hero and heroine. I was thrown for a bit a of a loop when it was revealed who the murderer was. There were many twists and turns and one of the characters I was set to hate turned out to be one of my favorite. Good read.
    • 4/5
      This book was typical Krentz syle. The characters were well written and the plot while not totally predictable did have some surprises. I was most intrigued with Aunt Sarah and would have loved to here more about her and her role in the story. Overall, and easy read and enjoyable.
    • 4/5
      I received this book in exchange for a review. I love murder mystery romance. This will be one of my favorite books. The murderer was a complete surprise. I never saw it coming. The main characters feel realistic and are easy to connect with. The romance comes across as natural not forced. This book combines all the right elements to keep you interested to the very end.
    • 4/5
      Sixteen year-old Lisa Sheridan isn’t too happy when the guy she has a crush on, nineteen year-old Mason Fletcher, drags her away from the A-list teen party she’d been invited to while spending the summer with her Aunt Sara. He doesn’t tell he what he’s saving her from, but the next day her aunt cuts her vacation short and sends the girl back home and won’t let her come back.Thirteen years later her aunt is killed in a car accident and Lisa needs to pack up her aunt’s stuff. Mason is also back in town and they’re both jolted when seeing each other. He’s an investigator in cold cases and she’s a forensic genealogist and both skills are needed when they have to get to the bottom of what took place all those years ago after finding something surprising in Aunt Sara’s covered up fireplace. The answers have far reaching results and the danger is real.Set in small town wine country, I enjoyed the story. The characters and various situations are interesting and there are plenty of suspects with motives that’ll keep you guessing. And I really liked Lisa and Mason and how their romance was handled. A nice way to spend a few hours escaping the cold and snow.Read as an ARC via LibraryThing.
    • 5/5
      Teenaged Lucy accepted an invitation to a party while visiting her aunt, not knowing that she was a target. A slightly-older-than-her Mason rescued her when he found out about the sociopath host's plans for her. Together, they set a standard they would measure the future against.When Lucy returns thirteen years later upon the death of her aunt, Lucy uncovers secrets and plots and the truth about her rescue from that party. That same truth reveals an unsavory secret about her aunt and about the cause of her aunt's "accident."A thirteen year old mystery, murder, intrigue and a wealth of suspects keeps you reading while Lucy and Mason back into a relationship that started on that fateful night when he first rescued her. An excellent tale of moral fiber, this is one I will keep on my shelves to read again!
    • 4/5
      I like Krentz and read all her novels, which are always well-written. This, like many, is enjoyable romantic suspense but is ultimately forgettable. I never really felt connected to the main characters ~ Lucy and Mason ~ and didn't feel that they had a strong connection to each other. Yes, we are told they had a strong connection and there is a good backstory to back it up, but I just never felt it. The mystery was okay even though I kind of figured out the villain early on, although many of the secondary characters seemed pretty villainous, if sketchily drawn. I'd recommend this lightly suspenseful romance for anyone who wants to relax with an entertaining but easy novel.
    • 5/5
      It's been awhile since Jayne Ann Krentz had written a Romantic Suspense without the the Arcane Society in the main role so this was a refreshing read for me and it was a great read from the beginning to the end. The last time Lucy Sheridan saw Mason Fletcher we was taking her out a Summer party in Summer River the town her aunt Sara lived in, Lucy had no idea how that one act saved her live and changed Mason's also until thirteen years later. Lucy is back in Summer River settling her aunt Sara's estate after her death in a car crash and it so just so happens so is Mason visiting his Uncle Deke, while helping Lucy with some home renovations well you have to read the book to find the rest of it out, but know this it's a quick read and very enjoyable read Lucy and Mason are an interesting pair and a very interesting couple to say the least.What I really enjoyed was the pace of the story it was always something going on the book focused on the main characters but it was not just about them falling into each other arms and drawn out love making scenes in every chapter. Lucy's career was really interesting a forensic genealogist , Mason and his younger brother Aaron established a company that solves cold cases for police dept.. If your looking for in-depth character development and a heavy plot then this book isn't for you it down bogged with just a lot of in depth information on just anyone one character we are given information on the main characters jobs but still it's doesn't leave you filling over loaded with unnecessary information. After Lucy hits town though things start happening and with Mason and Deke's help maybe just maybe she can find out what happened to Sara and on the night thirteen years ago.
    • 5/5
      River Road by Jayne Ann Krentz is a refreshing return to the Romance Genre where we first came to know and love her intriguing stories and characters.The story opens up with Lucy Sheridan and Mason Fletcher thirteen years earlier at a wild party with Mason pulling Lucy out of what turns out to almost be a horrible situation although she does not find out what could have been until now.Once the story moves forward there seems to be multiple situations going on that just gets Lucy and Mason closer and more involved than ever, before adding in a dangerous twist that puts both of them in danger. There is love, money, death and destruction, all of which pull you deeper into the story and you will be glad to be there.When I picked up this book I had high hopes that what the publisher said was true, that Jayne Ann Krentz had returned to her beginning genre and I would be happy she did. Well, she is better now then ever before. She wove such an interesting story, leading you down paths where you thought you had it all figured out and the characters in the book came to the same conclusions, so you felt validated in your assumptions and yet there were twists and turns so the story kept you reading and guessing and hoping for Lucy and Mason to figure things out before one or both of them was injured or killed and they have the opportunity to develop a relationship that they both seem to need.I do not want to give away the story because the building of the information is part of the allure of the book but I will say that both Lucy and Mason are such well developed characters that you really come to know and understand them. The twists and turns keep it fresh and exciting and you won’t be able to put the book down until you finish it because each turned page brings something new to the story and you keep turning those pages to get a resolution.I hope to see more of this type of novel from Jayne Ann Krentz because she really “Rocks Romance”.
    • 4/5
      As usual, Jayne Ann Krentz delivers. Set in Northern California wine country, this is the story of Lucy and her guardian angel, Mason--whether she wants him to be or not. Lucy returns to a small town she'd visited in her teens to deal with her recently deceased aunt's estate. Mason is also back in town for some R&R. Mason volunteers to help with some home repairs so Lucy can sell the house--but what they find inside the fireplace throws a wrench into everyone's plans. Questions arise about the car accident that killed Lucy's aunt, and since she is determined to find answers, Mason makes sure he is around to help.I really liked the characters in this book. They both had a few issues, but were up front about them when it came time to fess up. The pacing was really good too. Even though they are attracted to each other, the pair don't immediately hop into bed. We get to see them come to that decision and it feels natural.***SPOILER ALERT****My one problem with the book comes from the lack of any kind of back story on the Scorecard Rapist title. We are told over and over that Brinker was probably the Scorecard Rapist, and that there was a newspaper shut up in the fireplace with him about the crimes, but no one ever mentions why the rapist was called that, or how he committed the crimes that apparently were frequent and significant enough to earn him a newspaper nickname. It was just glossed over and that is a huge hole for me. I also didn't really like how at the beginning when Mason drags Lucy out of the party, he doesn't tell her why, nor does her aunt after she finds out, or her parents who are told by the aunt. She is kept in the dark about the fact she was nearly drugged and raped for 13 years, and then the scene where Mason finally tells her is over in about a page and a half. There is basically just a "oh, well, thanks then" and it isn't really spoken of again. ***SPOILERS OVER***Those are the reasons I didn't give this book a 5 star rating. Some major things were dealt with a little too neatly for me, but other than that, another excellent read from JAK.
    • 3/5
      Lucy Sheridan is 16 when she first tangles with 19 year old Mason Fletcher. And she is not happy about it. "Who appointed you my guardian angel?" Lucy wants to know. Fletcher lays not claim to being a guardian angel and tells her he is just doing her a favor by removing her from a party filled with booze and drugs and one seriously demented teenager who had planned to rape Lucy, film it, and post it on the Internet. Thirteen years pass before Lucy will see Fletcher again. She has returned to settle her aunt's estate, her aunt having died in a suspicious auto accident. Ominous things start to happen; an arsonist has burned down Lucy's aunt's house with a dead body inside, and all events seem to link to the wealthy Colfax family.Fletcher and Lucy start following clues and end up falling for each other.This is a pretty good considering the last several by Krentz have been terrible.