Out of the Blue (Stewart Sisters Trilogy Series #2)
- Book Review,
by JoAnn Ross
From Publishers Weekly
Ross's latest, the second in a trilogy begun with the far stronger Out of the Mist, follows famous country singer Lark Stewart through perils worthy of the silent screen's Pauline. They begin when Lark's longtime bandmate Danny Murphy is shot in New Orleans. Briefly suspected of the crime, Lark is then released, but not before a sadist who has stalked her escapes from jail. Her family sends her girlhood sweetheart, Lucas McCloud, to protect her. A onetime sniper and FBI agent turned furniture maker, Lucas's lifelong love for Lark—derailed first by teenage folly and later by his dangerous work—has never died. Though their return to their birthplace in the Smokies re-ignites their romance, Lark remains under threat from the stalker, a scheming ex-husband and Danny's still-unidentified attacker. In place of the colorful history and family humor found in Ross's previous installment, this book offers a jumble of overcomplicated backstory, inconsequential characters and melodramatic plot twists, including a temporary and unlikely bout of amnesia and a plane crash. Crowded with contrivance, the story never finds either its rhythm or its heart; to the end, Lark and Lucas remain puppets of the frantic plot rather than compelling characters in and of themselves. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Desert Storm vet Lucas McCloud, ex-lover of internationally renowned folk singer Lark Stewart, is brought out of FBI retirement by her aunt, who senses trouble for Lark in the form of a stalker. Lucas discovers that his passion for Lark has never ceased, nor hers for him, and Ross concentrates on describing how they rediscover each other both psychologically and sexually, and endure the tearful exorcism of their respective demons. Lucas blames himself for the death of a teenage girl hostage he tried to save, and Lark has to get past her fears of flying and of the dark. All the torment, suspense, and good sex Ross whips up obscures the fact that this is a sequel to Out of the Mist [BKL O 15 03], and that Lark is the second of the three Stewart sisters who were raised in Stewart's Folly in Tennessee. Late in the book Ross plays catch-up, which slows things down, but doesn't ruin the suspense because the reader is already rooting for Lark and Lucas. Mary K. Chelton
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
Romantic Times BOOKclub, Jill Smith
"Gripping and chock-full of emotion . . .exhilarating romantic suspense. This story makes a terrific middle chapter in the Stewart Sisters trilogy."
Old Book Barn Gazette, Suzanne Tucker
"Wrought with terror and intrigue. . . a love story so emotional it practically stops your heart. . . sizzles enough to singe pages."
Romancejunkies.com, Jaymi
"Adventurous, exhilarating story. Danger and intrigue are a constant presence. Highly passionate . . .outstanding; I could not put this book down."
Romance Reviews Today, Susan Lantz
"Hot enough to scorch the pages. . .the best kind of romantic suspense: heart-stopping terror and a heart-tugging romance.
Book Description
Continuing her sparkling, sexy Stewart Sisters trilogy, bestselling author JoAnn Ross pens a romantic suspense story set in the glorious Great Smoky Mountains, where a tough man and a passionate woman find love amid danger. Lark Stewart is on the run from a singing career that skyrocketed out of control...and from someone who's bent on murder. When one of her band members is killed in New Orleans, Lucas McCloud -- her first love and a former FBI agent -- takes Lark home. But the remote Stewart family resort offers no protection from the madman who's working his way across the mountains. A Desert Storm hero and FBI sniper, Lucas is haunted by a tragic mission in his past. But with the mysterious killer stalking Lark, Lucas is forced back into the life he left behind. For Lark is the only woman he's ever loved, and the only person who can save his soul...provided he saves her first.
Download Description
"Continuing her sparkling, sexy Stewart Sisters trilogy, bestselling author JoAnn Ross pens a romantic suspense story set in the glorious Great Smoky Mountains, where a tough man and a passionate woman find love amid danger. Lark Stewart is on the run from a singing career that skyrocketed out of control...and from someone who's bent on murder. When one of her band members is killed in New Orleans, Lucas McCloud -- her first love and a former FBI agent -- takes Lark home. But the remote Stewart family resort offers no protection from the madman who's working his way across the mountains. A Desert Storm hero and FBI sniper, Lucas is haunted by a tragic mission in his past. But with the mysterious killer stalking Lark, Lucas is forced back into the life he left behind. For Lark is the only woman he's ever loved, and the only person who can save his soul...provided he saves her first."
About the Author
JoAnn Ross has published more than 75 novels, has been published in 26 countries, and is a member of the Romance Writers of America's Honor Roll of bestselling authors. She has won several writing awards, including being named Storyteller of the Year by Romantic Times. Her work has been excerpted in Cosmopolitan and featured by the Doubleday and Literary Guild book clubs. She lives with her husband and dogs in eastern Tennessee and is inspired daily by the majesty of the Great Smoky Mountains, where she set her Stewart Sisters trilogy.
Excerpted from Out of the Blue by JoAnn Ross. Copyright © 2004. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Prologue The moon over New Orleans was a thin silver sickle, the dense night air scented with salt and the musk from the surrounding swamps as Lucas McCloud lay prone on the roof of the building, the familiar weight of a Remington rifle pressed hard against the hollow of his shoulder. His cheek rested against the wooden stock. Lucas didn't know how long he'd been in the same spot, in the same pose. He'd learned to be silent, still, and patient. And disinterested in anything but the target that kept moving in and out of the night scope's crosshairs. The French Quarter had glowed in a red twilight when the hostage team had arrived at the small shotgun house. Now the only light came from the neon flash of the strip joint across the street. There should have been streetlights, but he supposed they'd been shot out by criminals who preferred not to have an audience for all those indecencies human beings could perpetrate against one another. Lucas didn't mind the dark; the night scope didn't need much light. He didn't mind the waiting. Nor did he have any interest in the conversation taking place between the team negotiator and Lucas's target, who, on a murderous spree across the country, had already killed four people, including a Louisiana state trooper, and had now taken a nineteen-year-old college student from Baton Rouge hostage. If Lucas heard the conversation, he might make the mistake of getting emotionally involved, which would only complicate what he was paid to do. It was important to keep his work in the abstract, to not allow the slightest tinge of doubt to creep into his mind. And brooding about the results afterwards was only asking for trouble. The rifle was an old friend. When he'd first arrived on the roof, he'd loaded a total of five rounds to satisfy the Bureau's desk jockeys: four in the magazine, one in the chamber. He had no intention of using the four in the magazine. One shot, one kill. It was the marine sniper motto; one Lucas had lived by during the Desert Storm war. Focused as he was, he was only aware, on the most distant level, of the others involved in this Code Red situation. The Containment Team had taken up the outer perimeter, restricting the target area. The Rescue Team, whose specialties were firing on the move, room entries, and evacuating hostages, waited inside the perimeter along with the Arrest Team. As members of the FBI Hostage Rescue Team, Lucas and his spotter provided observation and intelligence at the crime scene, along with their more obvious duty of precision suspect neutralization. A damn stupid euphemism for taking the life of another human being, he'd always thought. His spotter, Jack Barnes, a fellow former marine scout, sat in a folding chair nearby, calmly drinking from a foam cup of steaming coffee. Lucas never drank caffeine; it jangled the nerves, something a guy in his business couldn't allow. Barnes's job was to listen to the on-going conversation on the earphones. When he got the green light from the team on the ground, he'd pass the order on to Jack, who'd bring the Remington's hammer down and bring an end to the stand-off. Moody blues floated seductively on the night air; Lucas didn't notice. A rat scurried through the shadows, his eyes shining in the thin slash of moonlight. Lucas didn't care. He watched the target pacing back and forth in front of the window, phone to his ear, a shotgun in his hand. Even without sound, Lucas could sense that the tension level was cranking up inside the house. It wouldn't be long now. He squinted and ordered his mind to stay cool and collected. The New Orleans humidity could affect bullet trajectory, but he'd adjusted for that. His finger caressed the trigger as he steadied his lungs and slowed his heart, seeking the stillness deep within himself as he waited. One shot. One kill.
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