Romance

This was a huge disappointment coming on the heels of just having read "The Obsession". I agree with the reviews saying there was too much dog training storyline. It was boring to me. The exciting part was the serial killer storyline. I also agree that the romance part wasn't really that good either. I think the way Simon and Fee talked to each other was supposed to be straight forward, no nonsense, but it came off as unromantic. The way they told each other they were in love and when Simon told her she was going to marry him weren't even romantic. ( )

broke the mold of just guy seeks girl or girl seeks boy. It was almost as if the romance was a side story, just part of the developing characters. This book was a mystery/suspense and I loved the search and rescue dogs angle. Would even give it 4.5 stars. Great vacation read. Couldn't put it down. ( )

Fieldnotes:
Orcas Island, Washington, Contemporary (p.2010)

1 Pack Leader Dog Trainer with Tragic History (but So Much Competence)
3 Search and Rescue Labradors named after Classic Movie Stars
Obedience Classes
4 On-Page Searches

1 Grouchy Woodwork Artist (Overbearing Variety)
1 Terribly Behaved Puppy
1 Stump Turned into a Sink

1 Serial Killer (Incarcerated Variety)
The One that Got Away
1 Copycat/Protege
4 New Victims
2 Taunting Red Scarves

1 Overzealous Reporter
2 FBI Agents (Competent Variety)

The Short Version:
I didn't love the balance between the suspense and the romance on this one. Simon is overbearing, bossy and inflexible and because Fiona is actually in danger he doesn't get called out on it in a meaningful way.

I really enjoyed watching Fiona work her search and rescues, her innate profiling of the serial killer she escaped to flip the interview he demands into closure for her, her dog training tips. Fiona is delightful. What she sees in crotchety idiot Simon is a mystery to me.

There are some very jarring (though short) sections with the new killer and his victims that I found ugly and distressing. This one isn't going to make the keeper shelf for me. ( )

Para la mayoría de la gente, Fiona Bristow parece tener una vida idílica: una pintoresca casa en una isla próxima a la costa de Seattle, una próspera academia de adiestramiento canino y un trabajo como voluntaria realizando búsquedas y rescates con perros que es todo un reto para ella. Sin hablar de sus tres leales labradores. Pero Fiona a llegado a ese punto sobreviviendo a una pesadilla...
Varios años atrás, Fiona fue la única superviviente del asesino en serie del Pañuelo Rojo, que disparó y asesinó a la prometida de su compañero policía con el arma de este.
En la isla de Oscas, Fiona encotró la paz y la soledad que necesitaba para reconstruir su vida. Pero todo ese cambia el día en que Simon Doyle llega como un loco a la entrada de su casa desesperado por conseguir su ayuda. Simon es el reacio propietario de un cachorro incontrolable que su madre le ha endilgado. Jaws se ha dedicado a roer todo cuanto ha encontrado en su casa y a Simon se le ha agotado la paciencia.
Para Fiona, Jaws es fácil de manejar, pero Simon es otra historia. Simon es un artista temperamental y muy reservado recién llegado a Orcas, conocido por los exquisitos muebles que crea. Él nunca quiso tener un cachorro y, mucho menos, una mujer. Además, aquella pelirroja larguirucha no era su tipo. Pero a ver quién le decía eso a sus hormonas…
Mientras se dedica a entrenar a Jaws y Simon comienza a apreciar al perro y a la entrenadora, el pasado irrumpe de nuevo en la vida de Fiona. Un imitador ha surgido de las sombras, un hombre cuya sed de sangre ha sido canalizada por un maestro con un fin: reclamar a la mujer que se le escapó de las manos...