Beguiled

This was very readable and I found myself not wanting to put it down, but to be honest - I'm giving this one away again as it left quite a sour taste in my mouth. Overall, this is a rather dark, heavy and even sinister novel which left me feeling rather shaken, and sad.

Set in the beautiful historic district of Charleston, South Carolina, a young female adult resident Rylee who walks dogs for wealthy clients finds herself thrown into a mystery when she encounters the "Robin Hood" thief while in one of her clients mansions. He steals from the rich to give to the poor. Rylee finds herself in deep trouble when the police begin to suspect her of the robberies. Her new friend Logan Woods who is a local reporter is sure she is innocent and sets out to help prove it and protect her reputation but even he begins to grow suspicious of her involvement in the crimes as evidence mounts against her. Throw in some old family ties of Rylees, some deep greed, questions about Rylees parents death, and some bad guys and you have one deep mystery that had me on the edge of my seat until the end of the book. I was hooked from the start and had a really hard time putting this book down. I stayed up until 2am one morning because I just couldn't stop reading....I just had to see what the next chapter held. The writing is fast paced from the start and never let's down until the completion of the book. Beguiled was written by romance writer Deanne Gist AND crime writer J. Mark Bertrand. I do believe that this was the first piece of fiction that I have ever read that had two authors and I do believe it was the combination of their talents that made this book so good! I loved the setting, loved the characters, and the mystery & suspense held me completely captive all the way through. Just when I thought I had figured it all out, something new was thrown into the storyline that showed me that I was wrong. Highly, highly recommend this one! My only complaint was that the story eventually came to an end. This one gets 5 stars from me!

This mystery is one I just could not get enough of. It was hard to put down. It was filled with enough intrigue that even the most stalwart detective wouldn't guess the ending. Rylee Monroe is a dedicated, compassionate dog walker in the upscale part of town. But she has trouble, big trouble. She finds herself a suspect in the Robin Hood mysteries that have the police force scratching their heads and accusing everyone. This book has enough twists and turns to keep you interested all the way through. There are several plot lines that make you wonder what the outcome will be. There are characters to love and some to hate. In all, this book was a welcome change to the flooded market of Christian romance novels. I loved this book so much I searched to find another of her books to read.

I've never been disappointed in anything I've read by Deeanne Gist. Every book I've read by her has always gotten a 5-star rating simply because I am incapable of putting her books down! I have to keep reading them....even if I should be doing other things. :o) Well, Beguiled did not disappoint one bit, and I didn't mind that it wasn't Deeanne's usual historical fiction. Placing the story in Charleston, SC with all it's own personal history made up for it being written as a contemporary novel. Also, the fact that the book was a mystery helped me enjoy it even more, and it began right in the very first chapter....wow! There was no worrying with trying to get into the story at all because it just takes off on its own with very little build-up, character development, etc. Those things came into the picture gradually throughout the book, and it was just one more reason why I couldn't put it down. The only qualm I had with this book was some of the conversation in the beginning. There were a few places where it seemed to be very clipped and stilted, which I can only contribute to Mark Bertrand's style of writing since I've never noticed that with Deeanne's. After awhile, it started to fade away, and the dialog began to flow much more naturally. This is one book that you can't go wrong with even if you've never read a single Deeanne Gist book. Don't get me wrong--her historical fiction is second to none, but it's always nice to see an author go outside their norm every now and then and write something different. I would love to see this author combination again, particularly if they choose another location that is rich with history like Charleston.

Beguiled, a collaboration between established romance author Deanne Gist and new mystery author J. Mark Bertrand, lures you with its great characters and a mystery that is unraveled piece by piece. Rylee Monroe, a dog walker in historic Charleston , happens upon a reporter, Logan Woods, who is covering the thief dubbed Robin Hood. The thief steals from the rich and donates it to a local charity. When it appears she may be involved, Logan races the police to find the real culprit. I highly recommend Beguiled! It fleshes out the characters and gives clues without giving away the resolution. I look forward to Mr. Bertrand's solo book, Back On Murder, coming in July.