Angels Fall by Nora Roberts

Angels Fall by Nora Roberts
Buy Angels Fall by Nora Roberts at Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
Category: Crime
Reviewer: Sue Magee
Summary: The survivor of a murderous killing spree is witness to a strangling in the Wyoming mountains, but only one person will believe that she hasn't imagined the whole thing. It's recommended by The Bookbag as a good holiday read.
Buy? Maybe	Borrow? Yes
Pages: 320	Date: May 2007
Publisher: Piatkus Books
ISBN: 978-0749937829
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Reece Gilmore was the sole survivor of a mindless killing spree which left twelve of her friends, and the people she thought of as family, dead. Looking to pull herself back together she fled Boston and headed west. A year later she found herself in the small town of Angel's Fist needing to get her car repaired and earn some money. For the first time in two years she takes work in a kitchen, but this time it's a local diner rather than the top class restaurant she'd worked in before. Gradually she finds her fears receding as she makes friends with the townspeople - but it all starts to fall apart again when Reece is the witness to a woman being murdered whilst she's out walking in the mountains. It seems that only one person believes her and that's Brody, a writer living in a cabin on the edge of the lake.

If you're looking for a good holiday read then you could do a lot worse than this book. Nora Roberts has a history of producing good readable stories with neat twists and plenty of red herrings and she hasn't let us down with this book. It's easy to warm to the characters. Reece is understandably vulnerable and what appear to be neuroses - her constant checking of locks, keeping lights on and dislike of closed spaces - are entirely reasonable in view of what she's been through. She's a feisty woman though, with more determination than she gives herself credit for. This isn't a story about a wimp.

Brody is the man who doesn't really want to commit himself to any woman and finds herself drawn to Reece against his will. He's gentlemanly enough to feel that he should help Reece and equally happy to take advantage of the fact that she's an excellent cook. The character I liked most, though, was Joanie, the owner of the diner - hard-headed and warm-hearted in equal measures. The supporting cast are all well-drawn and the atmosphere of small-town Wyoming set against a monumental landscape is well-captured.

It's an interesting look at the effect that past mental problems can have on your life, on the assumptions that people will make about how trustworthy, how reliable you are. There's nothing heavy-handed, but it's a thread woven neatly through the plot. The story is well-paced and a good page-turner. I read it in a couple of sittings but it would equally do duty for several lazy days by the pool. I did guess 'whodunit' but not until relatively late in the book and then had sit on the edge of my seat to see how it all worked out.

I'd like to thank the publishers, Piatkus, for sending this book to The Bookbag.

If this is the type of book that you enjoy then you might also like Every Secret Thing by Emma Cole or Carol Goodman's The Sonnet Lover. We loved Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo.

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You can read more book reviews or buy Angels Fall by Nora Roberts at Amazon.co.uk Amazon currently charges £2.99 for standard delivery for orders under £20, over which delivery is free.
You can read more book reviews or buy Angels Fall by Nora Roberts at Amazon.com.

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