Where Secrets Lie (Harry Bronson)

Rating:
Summary: Harry Bronson's Third Book
Review: This is a story of betrayals: fathers and mothers are busy betraying their children, and the children, likewise, are betraying one another, sometimes knowingly, sometimes not, but the betrayals cascade like dominoes. This is also the story of an adoption that goes terribly wrong. It opens with James Johnson burying his latest blond victim. He calls her Bobbye, and cuts her blond hair to take with him. He knows this is not the Bobbye he seeks, but his Bobbye's image transposes itself on other blonds. Or is it his blond sister Michelle's image? Questions, questions, questions... Suffice it to say that the man is a serial killer who, when his own wife dies, promises her memory that he will stop the killing. Unfortunately, Johnson is the father of a blond-blue eyed toddler. Officially, he arranges her death by drowning. Unofficially, he sells her in an illegal adoption. This little girl grows up as Lisa Littau, until her adoptive mother confesses, on her death bed, that Lisa was bought, and offers only one small clue as to the identity of her original family. Lisa, now a 28 year old divorcee with a blond blue-eyed, 5 year old daughter of her own, begins her quest to find her biological roots. She places an ad in the local paper and contacts Harry Bronson, also known as the "Ma'am Guy", a detective with the missing persons bureau. Harry gently tries to screen the parent pretenders that surface, as well as Lisa's other activities, but the gullible Lisa is determined to do things her way. It is not long before the wealthy James Johnson is back in the hunt, stalking a naive Lisa and her daughter. Will Lisa find out that she is the daughter of a serial killer? And what about Thomas, her dark haired, previously unknown stepbrother, exclusively in line to inherit Johnson's fortune? Who is trying to kill whom, here? When all the loose ends are finally tied together, and Lisa discovers where the secrets lie, how will this knowledge effect her relationships with those she loves? Is it possible for a serial killer to emerge as a hero? Lots of questions, but no soap box preaching about adoption pro or con. Take a deep breath on page one and you may not come up for air until half way through the book. If you like high action, and a fast paced mystery, with no deep messages, you will like this book. The action is not slowed down by long descriptiveparagraphs. Settings are rather sketchy except for a marvelous man-made West Virginia hill that defies my imagination. The emphasis is on plot and fast action, and Hayden is a master at ending a chapter at the proper moment and rolling you right into the next page before you know it! The story does have a few minor flaws within the details. Don't let them snag you, keep on going! Again, the strength of this book is in its speed and its plot; everything else is secondary. My only major complaint is that Harry does not get enough print space. He is a quiet, polite, competent detective, but this is presented as Lisa's story and I do get impatient with her from chapter to chapter. Neverthe less, this is a galloping good entertainment.

Rating:
Summary: Secrets uncovered
Review: What do you do when you find that your whole life is based on a lie? Lisa Littau is called to the hospital when her mother has a heart attack and as she lies dying, tells Lisa that as an infant, she was illegally adopted. Lisa is devastated, her entire world turned upside down and she becomes obsessed with finding her birth parents. With her young daughter in tow, she heads to Dallas to search for her natural parents. Her search attracts the attention of James Johnson, one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in America. Johnson is a haunted man, who has also built his life on a series of lies, most of which will destroy him if they become known. Where Secrets Lie, L.C. Hayden's latest is an absorbing suspense novel, filled with red herrings that will have you dashing down many wrong turns in your efforts to solve the puzzle. She brings such depth to her characters that you sometimes forget they aren't real. As Lisa spirals closer to the truth, she faces the realization that someone doesn`t want her to find that truth. This is a good old-fashioned heroine in danger suspense novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.

Rating:
Summary: Secrets uncovered
Review: What do you do when you find that your whole life is based on a lie? Lisa Littau is called to the hospital when her mother has a heart attack and as she lies dying, tells Lisa that as an infant, she was illegally adopted. Lisa is devastated, her entire world turned upside down and she becomes obsessed with finding her birth parents. With her young daughter in tow, she heads to Dallas to search for her natural parents. Her search attracts the attention of James Johnson, one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in America. Johnson is a haunted man, who has also built his life on a series of lies, most of which will destroy him if they become known. Where Secrets Lie, L.C. Hayden's latest is an absorbing suspense novel, filled with red herrings that will have you dashing down many wrong turns in your efforts to solve the puzzle. She brings such depth to her characters that you sometimes forget they aren't real. As Lisa spirals closer to the truth, she faces the realization that someone doesn't want her to find that truth. This is a good old-fashioned heroine in danger suspense novel that will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last page.