Review: Not so much
Rating: 2 out of 5
Date: 12 22, 2011
A mere 2-stars for me. The story sounded great and the reviews that I read were promising, but Shattered simply didn't do it for me. Jay is a former detective who questions his courage and response in a life-altering situation involving his sister; something that occurred 3-years ago. Tess is the woman he loved, but whom he drove away in the aftermath of that tragedy. Tess goes off to the other side of South Dakota while Jay becomes essentially a recluse on the ranch he works with his father, Tom. Fast forward to current day and in circumstances that seem beyond remotely plausible, Tess ends up as a pawn in avenging the situation from 3-years ago. Who does she reach out to for help? The man who drove her away. Of course.Their romance didn't engage me. Issues for me include repeated references to Tess' strength and ability to be a partner to Jay which seems very much at odds with her landing at his ranch in the first place and contributing little more than good dinners once she arrives. A bigger issue is the idea that in the middle of what is a major mess in her life Tess and Jay "need to get away for a few hours". Really? If someone was after me will ill intent, I don't think that I'd ponder a brief trip to take my mind off of it. I think that every brain cell would be solely focused on catching the bad guys. And then there's the way that Jay talks to her from time to time which borders on condescending. While I like the alpha male concept, let's have some respect for the woman you're supposed to be all twisty about. Being frustrated because your investigation has hit a roadblock doesn't entitle you to talk down to your 'partner'. Finally (and I can't say much about this without giving something away) murders are typically big news and media outlets tend to pick up on those stories and include pictures of the perpetrators. If you've read the book, you'll know where I'm headed.To end my thoughts on a high note, the author did keep me guessing about who the bad guy was. I went back and forth between the two most likely culprits and while I ultimately got it right, the twists and turns kept me guessing. I just wish that Shattered had more in the plus column.