Book Review: Known by Kendra Elliot

The Book:

The Blurb:

After a brutal snowstorm in the Cascade Mountains, Chris Jacobs discovers two things he never expected to see: the charred shell of a cabin, and Gianna Trask and her sixteen-year-old daughter huddled in an SUV, having barely escaped from their burning vacation rental.

Still scarred from a childhood ordeal, Chris knows there’s something sinister about the scene—it’s the stench of burned flesh.

Forced to wait out the blizzard in their rescuer’s retreat, medical examiner Gianna Trask wonders if her hidden past has finally caught up with her. When a body is found in the destroyed cabin’s ashes and a forest ranger is brutally murdered, both Gianna and Chris must confront their secrets if they want to escape the violent threat lurking outside.

The Review:

Completed Apr 21, 2016
348 page Kindle ebook

Received from NetGalley for my honest review

In the 5th installment of the Bone Secrets series, we revisit Chris, who we met in the book "Buried", book 3 of the series. Chris is looking forward to some quiet time when he smells smoke and goes to investigate. He finds Gianna and her daughter huddled in their truck while they cabin they were staying in goes up in flames.

Chris was a good character in Buried and continues to be a good character in this story. He's still got his demons and is a recluse so it's nice to see him having to interact with others and you see how he could be hand he not been so damaged.

Gianna is a pretty good character. While her daughter is perhaps a typical teen, and therefore hard to really like, Gianna is doing what she can and staying strong in the face of everything. She's a character you can't help but root for as things keep piling onto her.

It story was engaging and kept me interested. It kept me guessing and I was actually a little surprised by some things. I like it when books are able to surprise me, it's not all that often. The romance wasn't central to the story and instead of a typical "insta-love" it was almost slow growing and tentative, which was a nice change of pace. It was still fast, in terms of the story, but it seemed slower as they talked and were shy around each other for a little while. It was nice.

I highly recommend the Bone Secrets series to any romantic suspense fans, I basically just recommend Kendra Elliot. She's an enjoyable author and I've enjoyed most of what I have read by her. The books could be read as a stand-alone, but definitely would be better enjoyed as a series. Check them out! :)

Setting = B+
Plot = A
Conflict = A
Characters = B+
Theme = A

The Rating:

Really Liked it, a really good book! (3.5 stars)