Twenty years ago, Jolie Royale's life came crashing down around her. In one day, she lost her family and nearly died. The day began with Jolie's discovery of her father's affair with Georgette Deveraux. Angrily she ran home, only to discover the murdered bodies of her mother, Audrey, and her aunt Lisette. Before she sees the killer, she's shot and left for dead.

When she recovered and learned that her father remarriedto Georgette of all peopleJolie left Belle Rose mansion. Twenty years later, her father has recently died and Jolie must return there to face her stepmother and her 18-year-old half-sister, Mallory. She must also face Georgette's son, Max.

The years haven't dimmed Jolie's anger and the discovery that she has inherited Belle Rose gives her some ammunition. Besides her father's funeral, Jolie has an additional reason for returning to town she wants a new investigation into who really massacred her family. The authorities claimed it was a murder/suicide by the groundskeeper. Jolie never believed Lemar was the killer. Naturally, the true killer is utterly determined to stop her.

Talk about a dysfunctional family! This one really takes the cake. Combining dark and twisted family secrets with dangerous romance, Beverly Barton delivers high-octane thrills! (Apr., 383 pp., $6.50)

Reviewed by: 
Jill M. Smith