Antiquities expert Annalisse Drury and tycoon Alec Zavos are at an impasse in their relationship when Alec refuses to clear up a paternity issue with an ex-lover.
Frustrated with his avoidance when their future is at stake, Annalisse accepts an invitation from an acquaintance to fly to New Zealand—hoping to escape the recent turbulence in her life.
But even Annalisse’s cottage idyll on the
family sheep farm isn’t immune to intrigue.
Alec sends a mutual friend and detective, Bill Drake, to follow her, and a local resident who accompanies them from the Christchurch airport dies mysteriously soon after. A second violent death finds Annalisse and Bill at odds with the official investigations.
The local police want to close both cases as
quickly as possible—without unearthing the town’s dirty secrets.
As she and Bill pursue their own leads at serious cost, the dual mysteries force Annalisse to question everything she thought she knew about family ties, politics, and the art of small-town betrayal.
HALL WAYS REVIEW: In Copper
Waters, Marlene Bell is back with the fourth installment of her Annalisse
Series! The New Zealand setting allows for another amazing armchair travel
adventure – which is one of the things I like best about the Annalisse Series.
Bell always does a great job of putting readers right in the scenes. The
descriptions of not only the natural elements, but also the look and vibe of
the buildings and town, add an extra dimension of enjoyment. And language lover
that I am, the sprinkling of Kiwi terms and sentence constructions are a fun
bonus. Oh, and it’s always excellent to (vicariously) live the lavish lifestyle
of the rich and famous!
I
have read two of the prior three books: Stolen
Obsession (which has since been considerably revised), and
Spent
Identity, so the significant backstory given to readers in Copper
Waters bogged things down for me; I want the here and now, not the then and
there! I wonder if it was almost too
much detail for new-to-the-series readers. But, on the plus side, it does allow
the book to stand alone, and when reading the blips from Anna’s prior
adventures, without a doubt, it gets one’s attention and piques one’s curiosity.
(Admittedly, I feel the need to go back and read Italy-set Scattered Legacy.)
Seriously – how can one gal be embroiled
in so much delicious drama?
Copper Waters isn’t
the same level of action and suspense as the prior books, and readers spend a
lot of time inside Annalisse’s ruminations about the present, the past, and her
future – with or without Alec, the boyfriend who continues to offer a ring
despite Anna continuing to decline the marriage offer. Not that I blame her
this time around. That sub-plot, and a contributing factor in why Anna bolts to
New Zealand, are one of the interesting parts of the story.
I found that in this book, likely
due to the amount of internal dialogue, I started to understand Annalisse a
little bit better, and hallelujah, I think she’s maturing at last. I loved
having Bill Drake back and as a more central figure. He’s a character I’d like
to learn more about and one who could carry a series on his own, I think. There
is plenty that happens outside Anna’s thoughts, too, and the focus on the
mystery / whodunit was more enticing for me than any romantic elements. Characters
and situations are not all that they seem, and kudos to Bell for an unexpected
and extraordinarily chilling resolution.
I enjoy this series and am
interested in seeing what happens next (a horse racing scandal, perhaps?) and
maybe even what happened before…not only is Bill Drake intriguing, but I’d love
to go waaaay back to what started it all and get a prequel about Anna’s BFF
Samantha. There are all kinds of possibilities, and from a writing perspective,
I am enjoying watching Bell, a gifted storyteller, hone her craft. Can’t wait
to see what’s next!
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02/21/23 | Review | |
02/21/23 | Review | |
02/22/23 | Review | |
02/22/23 | BONUS Promo | |
02/23/23 | Review | |
02/23/23 | Review | |
02/24/23 | Review | |
02/24/23 | Review | |
02/25/23 | Review | |
02/26/23 | Review | |
02/27/23 | Review | |
02/28/23 | Review | |
02/28/23 | Review | |
03/01/23 | Review | |
03/01/23 | BONUS Promo | |
03/02/23 | Review | |
03/02/23 | Review |
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