Thursday, April 4, 2013

Book Review: Swoon by Rolynn Anderson

Blurb

Her dead clients won’t rest in peace.

When the dead tell tales, Jan Solvang’s first reaction is to RUN! But then she gets caught up in their mysteries.

Jan’s a boutique funeral planner, new to risk, hired to bury a missing woman and memorialize an infamous man. Yet when she digs for clues to write their eulogies, she disturbs family secrets and unmasks killers.


Roman Keller, hard-driving documentary writer, is in complete control of his life and his stories, until he falls for Jan, a woman who trusts her dog, her faint-dreams, and her instincts more than she trusts him.

Can they make the sacrifices necessary to cement their relationship or will the mayhem caused by the dead ruin their second chance at love? 





***

“Don't miss SWOON by Rolynn Anderson! If you like an interesting cast of characters, a heavy dose of mystery and a lot of fabulous surprises, you'll be happily turning pages late into the night.ˮ
~ Brenda Novak, NYT and USA Bestselling Author of WHEN LIGHTNING STRIKES


***
“I need you to make me feel like a healthy, sexy woman, Rome. I must have known that when I put this halter on and went out to weed.” She blinked. “It brought you to me: that’s a miracle.” She whispered in his ear, “I almost died Roman.”
He tightened his hold on her.
“Our problems seem petty in that light, you know?”
Roman pulled away from her to look into her eyes. He teared up. “I know.”
“I love you, Roman.”
“Jazz,” he said, the word spoken with reverence. “I love you.”

Rolynn Anderson crafts more than mere words in her unusual romantic tale. Her storytelling is complex and interesting with plot twists as sinuous as any serpent, taking the reader on a wonderful ride that delivers one surprise after another. Mystery. Murder. Missing people. Menacing stalkers. Man, oh man, I'm running out of "M" words.

Mind-blowing.  Oh wait, maybe I'm not. 

Boutique funeral planner Jan Solvang has unusual problems to go with her extraordinary professional. A grieving husband hires her to memorialize his missing wife, and a shocking discovery leaves her with the ornery task of writing the obituary of a man widely despised. Jan's search for information on the deceased leads her into danger as secrets are revealed.

Roman Keller is a determined documentary writer and Jan's former lover.  The chaos that seems to follow Jan around like a little dog thoroughly threatens the orderliness of his life. The hero embodies many swoon-worth qualities—courage, compassion and protectiveness—adding a whole new meaning to the story's title.  

At the heart of the story, Jan's complicated relationship with Roman, serves to illustrate her deep-seated inability to trust. The heroine is smart and savvy, but seems to lack faith in her own judgment. Her deepest attachment is to her black Scottish terrier, Elwood. Through the course of the story, Jan must make difficult decisions and learn how to put her faith in both Roman and herself.

Swoon is a fast-paced engrossing story with great plot development and wonderful supporting characters. I especially enjoyed Jan's interaction with her father, Walter Solvang, "The General".  The love scenes are sensual, focused more on the characters emotions than physical details. Rolynn's prose is information-rich, so this is not a novel for skimming. The reader's attention needs to be fully engaged to absorb every nuance and capture every plot detail.

Five stars all the way.

15 comments:

  1. Sounds like an awesome read!! And the review makes me want to do nothing but stop what I'm dong and read it! I love the plot twist of the funeral planning career.

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    1. Leanne, it makes you think. I suppose I'm morbid but I've actually thought about how I want to go. Cremation, ashes scattered by the ocean. I've never thought about writing my own obit but Swoon made me do that. If I want it to be funny, I'd better get going because Mr. Snark would say something prodigious and poetical if left to his own devices. :D

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    2. I know what you mean, Melissa. Especially after writing this series, I've gotten a lot more interested in planning a 'send-off' that fits my personality.

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    3. Leanne, Melissa is the poster woman for writing reviews. I am in awe of her!

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  2. I so cannot wait to read this book! It's been on my radar for weeks now. I hate that my TBR list is so long...means I don't have enough time for reading these days!

    Great review, Missy!

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    1. Niecey, Go, go quickly! You're missing out!

      Thanks! :)

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    2. Niecey, you're always an enthusiastic supporter of my series. I know what you mean about the stack of books to read. This writing world has opened up new windows to reading, hasn't it?

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  3. What a great cover and the plot sound fascinating. I must check this one out.

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  4. Thanks, R.E. My cover artist is Kim Mendoza...my boutique funeral planner business has turned into a detective agency! Rolynn

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  5. What a FANTASTIC review, Melissa! Congrats, Rolynn. I've got my eye on this one too :) Like a few of the above, I've got a groaning TBR pile, but this one is going to get bumped up the pile for sure.

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  6. Sweet of you to say, LaVerne. We're lucky we have so many books to look forward to reading!

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  7. Many thanks, Angela. I know you love Elwood, the Scottie. He must live on in the third book of the series, for sure! Rolynn

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  8. Thanks for having me on your blog, Melissa. I'm so glad I met you, your blog, Mr. Snark and all your friends. I so appreciate your honesty, humor and support! Rolynn

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    1. Rolynn, it was great having you! Thank you for being my guest today. :)

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