the mountains bow down by Sibella Giorello

This is a WOW, 5-Star novel. The end of the first chapter made me gasp and I was hooked for every page until the end. I'm delighted to say that Christian Fiction has a magnificent author in Sibella Giorello. You won't want to miss a single paragraph of this novel, and for sure you'll want to purchase all the other books by Giorello.

Even though this is well into the Raleigh Harmon series, it is a perfect stand alone. You know something went on before, but you don't need that information for the storyline or for the characters believability and development.

The cruise ship is a great place for a murder mystery, and the suspects are mostly neurotic Hollywood types, but the way Giorello moves the plot along, you really aren't sure who the killer is until the last which is extremely satisfying.

I have complained so much before that writers are basically inept at combining romance with suspense. I have seen them make characters kiss at the most inopportune times or exchange mooning glances while embedded in unraveling a knot of mystery. Well, I stand corrected. Giorello is a genius at adding that romance touch with just the right amount of flavor and spice. Excellently done. 

This one is a keeper!

ABOUT THE BOOK
Even Alaska can't give Raleigh Harmon a vacation from her job as an FBI forensic geologist.
A cruise to Alaska sounds like the perfect vacation--it's a geologist's dream and will give Raleigh space to sort out her feelings about her recent engagement. But before the ship even reaches its first port, a case manages to find her. The producer of a movie that's being filmed onboard goes missing and is then discovered hanging from the railing. Suicide seems to be the cause, but Raleigh quickly realizes the pieces don't add up.

When the Seattle field office sends Jack Stephanson to assist her in the investigation, her personal uncertainty skyrockets. Why is it that she forgets to even call her fiance back in Virginia. And Jack seems to know her as well as she knows herself. She'll have to wait to sort out those feelings, though, because she and Jack only have five days before the cruise ends to solve this case.

The Black Madonna by Davis Bunn

MY REVIEW...
I adore Davis Bunn. His versatility in subject matter, his way with word pictures, his grasp of what makes suspense and avoidance of that which I like to skip in other, less professionally written novels all add up to some very excellent reads.

Black Madonna is another smash. Although, I really do not like it when men try to get into women's thoughts, Bunn does okay with it. He focuses more on the story than on angst which makes the story so much more interesting. Bunn also learned some great things from Janet Oke when he collaborated with her which makes these later novels by him so much better. (I'm quite sure she's learned a lot from him, too. It is a good author match.)

The suspense will have you reading far into the night. The surprises will chill your spine, and there is enough humor to break the tension just enough your muscles don't get sore.

The only thing that could make it better is the sub-story between Storm's two friends is not developed well. Bunn pulls the reader from the delicious suspense to agonize over a love story with few particulars so it just isn't satisfying. The other thing is Storm's attraction to the man she loves to hate in the beginning. That is truly formulaic and I am just a bit disappointed with T. Davis Bunn over that. However, it does not detract from the story line at all.

This one gets 5 of 5 stars. Worth the money and it's a keeper.

ABOUT THE BOOK...

Following the internationally acclaimed Gold of Kings, Storm Syrrell returns in the compelling story of The Black Madonna.

Antiques expert Storm Syrrell heads to Europe to investigate the clandestine trade in religious artifacts. She dismisses superstitious tales of miraculous healings and divine omens. Yet when an obsessive Russian oligarch calls—just as her friend Harry Bennett vanishes—all assumptions must be cast aside. Storm seeks answers in a medieval monastery. There, the scarred visage of an icon provokes ever more startling questions. Is she prepared to confront both earthly and spiritual powers? Storm remains haunted by lessons in love and betrayal that lie just outside her grasp. But hesitation now holds mortal consequences.