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Nora Roberts and the New York Times bestseller list go hand in hand. Since 1999, every book published under her name has hit this list. With more than 280 million books in print, an average of 21 Nora Roberts books sold every minute, 124 New York Times bestsellers and over two million hits a month to her website, Roberts has legions of fans eagerly awaiting her next books --- and upcoming movies. Lifetime Television announced in February 2006 that they will produce four Lifetime Original Movies over the next year based on her bestselling novels.
Everything about Roberts's latest release, ANGELS FALL, is breathtaking --- the writing, the romance, the rapture of the summer scenery amidst the Grand Tetons. The wide open spaces that surround the "snow-dipped peaks of the Tetons" and the warm reception the heroine receives from a group of small town characters is a welcome break from the many recently released Chick Lit books set amidst the glitz and glamour of New York, Paris and St. Barts. I will be the first to say that I love glitz and glamour, but the majestic setting and vivid descriptions of "miles of wildflowers on the sage flats" of Wyoming drew me enticingly to a place I'd never been. That is what a good book does --- it allows you to escape to another place and experience new things that persuade you to grow as a person.
Healing from the trauma of a near-death situation, Reece Gilmore finds peace and Brody, a sexy novelist in this small-town, put-the-pieces-of-the-puzzle-together novel. When Reece arrives in Angels Fist, population 623, she is skittish, paranoid and fanatical about locking doors. She has panic dreams about being the lone survivor of a random killing spree in the Boston restaurant where she worked. All of her close friends and co-workers were killed and she bears the scar of the gunshot wound that nearly ended her life. Reece has spent time in a psychiatric hospital, but left Boston and traveled cross country to "settle in for a few weeks, pick up some work...then move on..."
As luck would have it, the town diner is looking for a cook. Reece is enticed by the opportunity to get back into a kitchen, a place she once called home, and decides to stay in Angel's Fist and work for Joanie, a tough but fair businesswoman who still smokes Marlboro Lights. Linda-gail is a waitress in this small town diner, in love with Lo, Joanie's son and town heartthrob. Linda-gail's friendship becomes a healing force for Reece, who in the first week of settling into Angel's Fist witnesses a murder down by the river. Brody is the only one who believes her story. He sees the terror in her eyes and knows she is not crazy. The killer covers his tracks well and begins to stalk Reece with a series of subtle events designed to make her think she's losing it again, but she is determined to uncover the identity of the murdered woman, despite the sheriff's inability to find a trace of evidence. Several characters become prime suspects in the reader's mind, and Roberts masterfully reveals the weakness that leads to murder.
As the romance between Reece and Brody builds to tantalizing ecstasy, Brody wonders if this is where he "wants to be." "He wanted most to comfort her, to smooth out all her troubles. No one else had ever reached that tenderness inside him, no one else had ever coaxed it out until it drenched him." Roberts writes the male perspective with raw intensity. Brody's surprise picnic for Reece exceeds romantic fantasy. The location is where Reece and Brody shared their first kiss, the scenery is "pinks and blues, vibrant reds and purples, sunny yellows spiked and spread among the soft green of sage" --- "not only wine, but cheese and bread and fat purple grapes," the scorching kiss framed by "the sun sliding behind the mountain."
The rhythm of doing what is familiar keeps Reece from believing she's the "town cuckoo." Reece brings her Cordon Bleu gourmet cuisine, fresh herbs and paninis to Joanie's diner, where elk chops and stew reign. It's a combination that allows each woman their creativity. A day in Manhattan is more my style, but a moose crossing the road and the majesty of the "white-frosted mountains" that "stood in dazzling splendor" reminded me that simplicity can be so perfect. As the mystery of murder in a small town unfolds, so does a bright future for Reece. Some men come into your life when you need them most and make a profound and lasting impact; they remember what your favorite flower is and give a bouquet of them to you with love in their eyes and their hearts. Brody lets Reece know that she is where he wants to be.
--- Reviewed by Hillary Wagy
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