Review: Intimate Whispers
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 01 16, 2012
I've read contemporary titles by Dee Carney and really enjoyed them but this is my first paranormal romance by her. What I enjoyed about Ms. Carney's contemporaries is the almost instant likability of the heroes and heroines I experienced and how I was ready for their romances early on the stories. I supposed I went into this one with the same expectations, however it was clear early on, that it was going to take a while for me to warm up to the heroine.Sabrina hears the voices of spirits who call out to her. They are drawn to her in masses to the point where it's debilitating and she experiences mental breakdowns. The only relief she gets is in allowing a certain spirit to have sex with her. It's as though he marks her as his own this way and it temporarily keeps the other spirits away. Emotionally she is resentful of having to give herself over to this spirit in order to stay sane, but physically her body welcomes the pleasure he brings her.Jason is Sabrina's neighbor and a pretty nice guy. He comes upon Sabrina during one of breakdowns and escorts her home. He believes she's suffering from mental illness and just wants to help her out and make sure she's safe. But then Sabrina says something in the midst of her fog that captures his attention. Something that only his dead brother would know. And now he can't just walk away.This story was a little darker and scarier than I expected. I wasn't hiding behind the couch while reading but I admit the incubus who uses and takes advantage of Sabrina was definitely evil and villainous. I suppose I must read too much paranormal romance because I half expected his identity and back story to be revealed and he would to turn out to be an okay guy(spirit). But no, he was horrible until the end as should have been.Sabrina was abrasive and cold and clung to defensiveness a little too long. I won't say this totally didn't work for me, since I get where she is coming from. She's scared and has to depend on a spirit she views as evil for her own sanity. But I really had a hard time keeping that in mind when the hero was so nice to her.Also, I had a hard time with the sexual relations between Sabrina and the incubus. What bothered me was the conflict between her feeling forced and hating it, yet her body craving the pleasure he gives her. I had a hard time understanding how feeling desperate and blackmailed into the act can lead to good sex, paranormal style or not.Final conclusion: Overall, I liked the premise of the story and enjoyed reading it. While I didn't love everything about it, I appreciate that the story didn't go exactly how I expected it to.