Beth lives with her Aunt Sarah. She needs to be on her own because her Aunt's shop barely supports the woman alone. She has a brother, Andrew, who is very possessive of her. He has just eloped with Jill, a woman they don't know; this has shocked them both. Andrew hates the idea of her living at Holly Lodge.

On her first day at work, Josh is showing Beth around the grounds. They are in the garden, by the lake, when a sudden storm comes up. Josh is gone. She looks into the water, but the face she sees is not her own. When Josh arouses her after her faint, he says there was no storm. Why would Josh lie? A bit later, inside her bathroom, she splashes some cold water onto her face. Someone behind her forces her head into the sink again and again. When she could move, the bathroom mirror is steamed up, and scrolled across it the word: beware. Who has done this? Flora, who doesn't like her? Has Flora somehow found out about Beth's past?

Beth needs to make a brochure for Josh, so she looks at all of his paintings. His studio is in the tower off the lovely old Lodge. The exhibition he is preparing for is of fairy tale paintings. He wants Beth to model for Rapunzel. Since she will only pose in costume, she agrees. When Flora brings her a sandwich for lunch, Beth finds a dead beetle hidden inside. Josh has an agent, former lover Sylvia, who also dislikes Beth. She is a good friends with Flora. Josh holds a surprise birthday party for Beth, and invites her family, and her best friend Alice. While she is in her room changing clothes, she sees her reflection in the mirror, but the face is that all of the girl she sought in the lake. The girl is mouthing the word murder. Very soon, they find her drowned in the lake. Beth tells the police she knew all of the drowning because of her visions. Now she is a suspect. Later, when someone slashes Josh's painting of Rapunzel, Beth realizes someone hates not only her, but Josh too.

Drowning Rapunzel is a delightful mystery and a delightful romance. There are secrets and plot twists aplenty. I enjoyed watching Beth and Josh slowly fall in love as they deal with the people and happenings around them. There were a couple of people that I would have liked to know more about, but perhaps they will inhabit another Romantic Suspense novel, so I won't mention them here. I highly recommend DROWNING RAPUNZEL. I think you will like it as much as I did.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Mildly sensual

Reviewer: Judy Cook
March 9, 2004