NEXT COMES LOVE – Helen Brenna
A Perfect 10
An Island to Remember Series – Book 2
Harlequin SuperRomance #1594
ISBN: 978-0-373-71594-7
October 2009
Series Romance

Mirabelle Island, Michigan – Present Day

The crime: Erica Corelli and her nephew, Jason, are hiding. Erica snagged Jason from his school in Chicago and took off for parts unknown, or so goes the story Jason’s father, Billie Samson, is telling the police. And no one really knows where Jason’s mother, Marie, is. Billie's wife just disappeared right along with Jason and Erica, and now the Chicago PD is looking for them all. But one of Chicago’s finest, Detective Billie Samson, is lying. He knows exactly where Marie is, and he's determined to find Erica and Jason no matter where they’re hiding. Billie’s strange sense of security is an arrogance born of his job. As a police officer, he thinks he can fool the authorities enough to lay the blame on Erica. Should be a piece of cake. Then he’ll be home free.

The truth: Erica Corelli is calling herself Erica Jackson and her nephew, Jason, is now her son Zach. Yes, she took Jason and ran. But she was only doing what her sister, Marie, asked. Billie Samson is a dangerous man. In another of his rages, he beat both Marie and the boy, leaving Jason sporting several nasty bruises. Erica and Marie lived much of their lives as the target of the abusive men their mother brought home, and some of them were cops, which adds to Erica's fear of anyone behind a badge. Not knowing where to hide, she takes Jason to the only place that represents safety, Mirabelle Island. She cuts her hair and dyes Jason’s, and when they step off the ferry on the island, Erica is just another unemployed single parent looking for work. Luckily, she scores both a job and an apartment at Duffy’s Pub, then enrolls Zach in the local school.

But she can’t outrun the law.

One person isn’t buying Erica Jackson’s story. Police Chief Garrett Taylor can spot a lie when he hears one and he can finger a fellow Chicagoan when he hears that telltale accent. Erica Jackson and her son are hiding from something or someone, but before he puts a few calls into his friends on the Chicago police force, Garrett wants to know who inflicted those ugly bruises hiding under Zach’s collar.

There is danger, and there is fear, and somewhere in the middle NEXT COMES LOVE when Erica Corelli and Garrett Taylor meet. Erica is constantly jumping at shadows. She watches everything and everyone who comes into Duffy's Pub, hoping against hope that Billie Samson won’t find her, and worrying about her sister Marie, who has gone missing. Mirabelle Island is a haven of sorts for Erica. She felt safe here once, and now she wants Jason to feel the same, but she's worried about the police chief, Garrett Taylor. There are sparks between them whenever they're within inches of each other, and she’s certain he can see right through her lies. Garrett is just waiting for her to slip and tip her hand. Erica tells herself she can fool him; all she has to do is avoid him, which is nearly impossible as Duffy's Pub is one of his main hang outs. As for Garrett, he left Chicago when he started acting much like the criminals he hunted, nasty and mean. For him, Mirabelle is the peace he needs. But Erica Jackson is a package of trouble, and he wants her off his island just as much as he wants her to stay.

NEXT COMES LOVE is the second book in An Island to Remember series, and the phenomenal aspect of these stories is Mirabelle Island itself. Mirabelle might be the one place in the world that time forgot. There are no modern vehicles; people walk where they have to go, and they live life at a leisurely pace. Visitors come here for the summer to enjoy the quiet pleasures of the island and the comforts that exist there. The setting and the places on the island stay the same, the people change from book to book. The first book in this spectacular series, FIRST COME TWINS (August 2009) is a great read. In December, THEN COMES BABY will be available, so watch for that review in RRT's next update; and in June 2010, we'll get to read, ALONG COMES A HUSBAND.

Many of the characters on Mirabelle stay with us throughout the series...like Herman Stotz, Garrett’s deputy; the owners of Duffy’s Pub, Lynn and Arlo; Jason’s teacher, Hannah Johnson; and so many more! I can write forever about Mirabelle Island and all the dynamic characters, but I think rather than take up all that review space, I’ll just recommend you get these books for yourself!

NEXT COMES LOVE is right up there with one of the best stories I have read in 2009, and I am pleased to award it Romance Review Today's Perfect 10! It is chock full of passionate romance and lots of suspense, so don’t let it disappear off the shelves before you get your copy!

Diana Risso