All I Ever Wanted
Erin MooreRomantic suspense
Available from Wings ePress
ISBN: 1-59088-280-6
June 2004
| Craig gets a phone call from Amber, his ex-fiance, about his mother. She's in the hospital, dying of cancer. Her request is that he come home after ten years of being estranged. He'd left Amber at the alter after finding her in the arms of one of his friends, assuming that she was cheating. He doesn't want to see her again, yet it is apparent from his conversation with his mother, Ruth, that Amber is a prominent figure in her life. He feels bad over his estrangement with his mother, especially now that he can't correct his error. The doctors say she'll only live a week. Ruth asks Craig to find out what really happened before his wedding and Craig can't deny her dying wish.
Amber has had enough heartache in her life without Craig coming back. She lost her parents five years ago and Ruth became like her surrogate mother. Losing her, after so many losses in her life, is heartbreaking. But even more trouble enters Amber's life when Brian, the man who raped her ten years ago, escapes prison, intent on revenge against Amber. The story developed nicely and the suspense of not knowing why Brian wanted Amber dead so badly, and just what would happen after he escaped, was well-done. It was relatively fast-paced and very easy to read. But the writing sometimes tripped up, going into a style that seemed more step-by-step informative than a style I'd expect when reading a story. Amber, at first, seemed like a victim with everything that had happened to her but was actually pretty tough when it came to making her life into what she wanted it to be. As a rape victim, she wasn't scared of the world nor did she expect Craig to make everything better. It made her a good heroine and was believable after ten years had passed; had the rape been closer to the present time in the story, I'd have been skeptical. I did wonder how Brian managed to elude the police, since there was no indication that he was exceptionally talented in anything, or that he had friends willing to hide him. That was probably the one loose end I wanted to see fixed. All I Ever Wanted is a story of second chances and, in some ways, of healing.
Overall rating:
Reviewer: Tara Black |
