Tuesday, July 9, 2013

Review of 'Her Sister' by Karen Rose Smith


Her Sister
by Karen Rose Smith
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BLURB:

Clare's little sister, Lynnie, was abducted twenty-seven years ago. Now the retired detective who has never been able to let go of the cold case has a lead. Lynnie could be alive!

Clare's neighbor, Joe, an occasional friend until now, gives her support and...wants more than friendship.

Clare's mom, Amanda, thrown together again with her ex-husband into a crisis discovers forgotten love beneath the regrets.

Clare's sixteen year old daughter, Shara, decides to run from her problems instead of facing them.

A devoted sister, a turmoiled mom and a rebellious daughter find their way back to each other in this contemporary ebook about three generations who discover love can knit their family back together again.

Read an excerpt:
Where is Lynnie? Where did she go?

In her mind, five-year-old Clare Thaddeus called to her little sister—Come back, Lynnie. Please come back.

The huge policeman crouched down in front of Clare's mother at the sofa and said in a deep, slow voice, "Mrs. Thaddeus, I know you're terribly upset. But I need details. We've got an hour before daylight. If your daughter wandered outside—"

Clare's father, who'd been talking to another man in blue, glanced at her, and Clare huddled down deeper into the big green armchair. Her dad didn't come to her but rather went to her mom, sank down beside her and wrapped his arm around her. Then he spoke to the officer. "Our daughter, Lynnie, is three. She would never go outside into the dark on her own."

"Tell us again where you were last night," the policeman demanded in a not-so-nice voice.

"I worked late, preparing a brief."

"Until five a.m.?"

"Yes, until five a.m. As I told you, I always check the girls' rooms before turning in. Lynnie wasn't in her bed. I woke my wife. We looked through the whole house and then we called you."

Clare had been sleeping in her brand new room. They'd moved in here—she studied her hand and counted her fingers—five days ago. Boxes were still stacked down here and upstairs. The house was okay. There were more rooms for her and Lynnie to play hide and seek. But she didn't like being alone in her own room at night. She'd liked it better when she and Lynnie had slept in the same room. She was supposed to watch her sister. She was always supposed to look out for Lynnie. That's what big sisters did.

**My thoughts**

Reading this book was an enjoyable way to spend a couple of hours on a hot summer day by the pool. Shara's disappearance parallels Lynnie's abduction some years before. It is a blessing in disguise, as it helps to bring this shattered family back together. Mothers remember the importance of being in touch with their daughters. Relationships both new and old reinforce the idea of leaning on loved ones in times of crisis. Not all stories like this can have a happy ending, especially when it has been so long since a child was abducted. But, we can always hope ...

~~Buy it on Amazon~~


AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Award-winning author Karen Rose Smith was born in Pennsylvania. Although she was an only child, she remembers the bonds of an extended family. Since her father came from a family of ten and her mother, a family of seven, there were always aunts, uncles and cousins visiting on weekends. Family is a strong theme in her books and she suspects her childhood memories are the reason.

In college, Karen began writing poetry and also met her husband to be. They both began married life as teachers, but when their son was born, Karen decided to try her hand at a home-decorating business. She returned to teaching for a while but changes in her life led her to writing romance fiction. Now she writes romances and mysteries full time. She has sold 82 novels since 1991.

Presently, she is hard at work on a three-book series for Harlequin Special Edition as well as a three-book mystery series for Kensington.

Married to her college sweetheart since 1971, believing in the power of love and commitment, she envisions herself writing relationship novels, both romance and mystery, for a long time to come!






Karen will be awarding a Landau charm bracelet and a $25 Amazon Gift Card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour (US ONLY). Follow the tour for more chances to win!

15 comments:

  1. Andi--Thanks for hosting me today. It's a pleasure to be here. I have a question for readers--Is your reading seasonal? For example, would you pick up a Christmas title in July? I look forward to talking with all of you. KRS

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  2. Thank you for the excerpt, it sounds like a compelling read.

    Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com

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  3. You use a lot of unique names for your characters. How did you come up with them? Were they based off people in your life?

    andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com

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  4. I can imagine it would be so tough to live for so long without answers. Was this inspired in any way by the children than have been found after so long like Carlina White?

    fencingromein at hotmail dot com

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  5. Thanks for sharing your post and the giveaway! So who was your favorite character to write?

    hense1kk (at) cmich (dot) edu

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  6. Andra--my characters just seem to name themselves. I might use a name and then realize I heard it on the news. On the other hand, sometimes I name a had acted and then I hear iton the news!

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  7. Andra Lyn--Hi! My characters just seem to name themselves. Though I do read the credits at the end of movies and TV shows to fill up my subconscious with names. :)

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  8. Shannon--There have been so many children gone missing. I think Elizabeth's Smart's kidnapping had an impact. I also wanted to make the book hopeful in some way.

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  9. Kate--My favorite character to write was Amanda because I identified strongly with her in age and background. When I was about twelve, I went out into the fields on the back of a trailer to help harvest tobacco plants. I also had access to a farm because my cousins lived on one. I loved walking the fields, playing with the kittens and just the solitude of it. I also identified with Amanda as a mom who'd grown wiser with the years passing.

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  10. This sounds like a great book for any fan of mystery and suspense.

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    Replies
    1. I tried to create a mix!

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    2. Thanks to everyone who stopped by today to comment. Good luck in winning a prize.

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  11. Nice review

    bn100candg at hotmail dot com

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  12. I've never read Karen's work before. This sounds like a really good story and a good place to start.

    kareninnc at gmail dot com

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