Review: Powerful, emotional and heartwarming story
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 04 2, 2013
HER SISTER is quite the departure from the Karen Rose Smith books I'm used to. Heavy with the suspense and drama with some romance mixed in, HER SISTER takes an in depth look at a family that tries to keep it together after faced with unspeakable tragedy.  And even though it wasn't the type of romance I'm used to, there's no denying that it's a Karen Rose Smith story because underneath all the turmoil is the feeling that love can make good things happen.  In my opinion, that's a Karen Rose Smith hallmark.Clare has never recovered from the disappearance of her younger sister twenty-seven years ago when Clare was five years old, and neither have her parents.  Now an adult, Clare has a family of her own that consists of her sixteen-year-old daughter and her now divorced parents.  She's made a life for herself and her daughter but when Clare's daughter, Shara, starts acting out and finds herself in trouble, Shara decides to run away instead of telling her mother what's going on.Faced with another loved one disappearing on her, Clare tries desperately to find her daughter.  But she also finds solace in her neighbor Joe who would like to be more than just neighbors.While everyone is frantically trying to find Shara, Clare and her parents discover that the past they've tried to move on from may be what holds them all together.I wasn't sure what to expect from HER SISTER since I had advanced warning that it wasn't a straight romance novel.  But I will say that this book, which is the seventh installment of the Search for Love series, was a pleasant surprise.  It was filled with suspense and a little mystery with a little smattering of romance mixed it.  But what kept me reading was the investment that I made in the Thaddeus family--Clare, her mother and father, and her daughter.  They were all affected in different ways by the tragic events surrounding Clare's sister's kidnapping.  It was amazing how a twenty-seven-year old event shaped the events in the present.I was happy to see that everyone had the potential to have a happy ever after even though all of the events in the story weren't completely tied up in a bow for us by the end.  I certainly wouldn't be averse to visiting with this family again if Karen Rose Smith would like to write more about them.  (*hint, hint*)Overall, I thought that HER SISTER was one of those stories that would warm the heart and make you want to give a tight hug to those you love.Reviewed by Rhofor TheRomanceReviews.com