Catherine Coulter: Beyond Eden

Signet Fiction (Paperback), ISBN 0-451-20231-7

This review must begin with a couple of warnings.

Warning One: the book’s October 2000 release date misleads prospective readers. In fact, the book represents an updated version, with a new cover, of a ten-year-old book. (A fact which Ms. Coulter quite rightly announces on the back cover.)

Warning Two: one of my pet peeves is finding a book that interests me and then discovering the publishers used a new name and a new cover to disguise a book I read before — and often still own. That prejudice means I would’ve given this book a much higher rating the first time I read it.

Born to old wealth, hated by her father, sexually assaulted by her brother-in-law and rejected by her entire family, Lindsay Foxe hides behind a new name and a successful modeling career until life-threatening danger attacks with a vengeance. The attack leaves her hospitalized and brings S.C. Taylor into her life.

Ex-cop turned private investigator and computer troubleshooter, Taylor hires on to protect Lindsay from the faceless menace trying to end her life. But first, working together, they must ferret out the villain, discover who wants her dead and why. To find the truth and unmask the enemy, Lindsey must face her past squarely, seek out all the hidden places, and find the reasons behind the hate and rejection.

Complete with sexy, sparkling dialog and an action-packed plot that races along at supersonic speed, Beyond Eden provides a great read, a sizzling romantic suspense, and some complex characters (and not just the good guys) whose interaction reveals facet after facet of their personalities.

If you didn’t read the older version, then I recommend you grab this one. Beyond Eden satisfies on all counts: romance, suspense, setting, plot, and characterization.

Patricia Lucas White

Patricia Lucas White’s latest historical novel, To Last a Lifetime, was an Eppie finalist for 2003. To Last a Lifetime and two of her fantasy romances, the Sapphire Award-winning A Wizard Scorned and The Godmother Sanction, can be ordered through Hard Shell Word Factory. Her recent contemporary, PS, I’ve Taken a Lover, is available from Lionhearted Books.