Guest Review: Laid Bare by Cerise Deland

Judith’s review of Laid Bare by Cerise Deland

Tate Ryder, a former NFL football star, has spent his life savoring plenty of women until luscious anna Stevens comes aglong, who doesn’t seem to know he is alive. Then, inexplicably, Anna is attacked outside Tate’s condo. He keeps her safe by whicking her to his yacht, where he vows to enchant her sleek body with pleasures she’d only imagined.

Anna answers his intimate kisses with scorching caresses and wild revelations. She’s been on the run from the Russian Mafia for years. She’s not who she claims. But one thing is real: her deep craving for Tate. Enthralled, Tate lays bare her body and is equally determined to lay bare her nameless enemy.

I really, really love mysteries! They engage my imagination, make my mind work, pique my curiosity, and keep my interest level consistent throughout the novel. This book has mystery to spare and is, for that reason alone, a good read. However, add in the elements of romance and the journey of discovery that Tate makes as he hears Anna’s story and you have a book that can be riveting, to say the least. For those who don’t want to deal with the suspense, this will not be their “cup of tea.” However, for mystery fans who are also romance fans, this book has both and lots of it.

Deland has written a story that has interesting characters, twists and turns that are the mark of good suspense, betrayal of trust, foiled plots, secrets that have been held for years and which must come out, and the growing bond between two people who come together because of sexual attraction and stay together because they have found someone who can answer their deepest heart call. Tate is a man who has come far from the playboy football star, who now recognizes his own need to be a man of mature values and who wants only the best for those about whom he cares. Anna is so very tired of running, of becoming a new person whenever her life is invaded by the old fears and the old enemy. Tate challenges her to trust, something she has chosen not to do for many years and which she knows she can do with him for the first time in decades. His need to protect and to finally give this woman a chance to live a fear-free life is his own personal challenge, and he makes a commitment to her and to her need for normalcy at a level he has not experienced before.

Romance fans will find this a good story and all you who love a good ending will be pleased with this one as well.

This book is available from Ellora’s Cave. You can buy it here in e-format.

You can read more from Judith at Dr J’s Book Place.