Release date January 19–don’t miss the author’s post about her book and the giveaway link here.
Summary:
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—to escape the violent threat lurking outside.
In the fifth book in the Bone Secrets series, Kendra Elliot leads readers on a dangerous, twisting journey of two lives forever changed by a fiery snowstorm in the mountains.
Review:
Known features a hero and heroine who both have very complicated pasts, thrown together in a high-octane chase to discover who is after Gianna and her daughter and why before it’s too late. I was honestly surprised by some of the twists here–one in particular I never saw coming!–this was a difficult book to put down once I started reading it. Known was the first full-length novel I’ve read by Ms. Elliot, and it was just as enjoyable as her romantic suspense novellas.
Chris Jacobs is uniquely qualified to help Gianna and Violet Trask–his childhood trauma has made him suspicious of human nature in general and he’s always meticulously prepared for whatever life is going to throw at him. He immediately takes the two under his wing, and it isn’t long before he’ll do whatever he can to keep them safe.
The romance between Gianna and Chris somehow feels like it develops slowly and naturally, even though the events of the entire story happen over a relatively short period of time. I guess it’s because that part of the story is in direct contrast to the drama of the suspense portion, which moves at a quick pace. Ms. Elliott does a good job of making their growing closeness feel natural even as the rest of the story races along.
Though Known worked okay as a standalone, had I realized the hero’s complicated backstory I would have read Buried first. Ms. Elliot does a good job of explaining the basics here, but there’s still a few holes in Chris’s story (nothing necessary to the plot of this one, but I want to know the details to satisfy my own curiosity about him). Michael and Jamie (Chris’s siblings and the hero and heroine of Buried–see? I told you it was complicated) play a pretty significant role in this story; now I need to read theirs. I’ve already added Buried to my audio to library, so I’m good to go as soon as my schedule permits. 🙂
Rating: 4 stars / B+
I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.
