Secret Shadows

Author Judie Aitken is a true wordsmith. She tells her stories in such a way that you cannot put the book down...really. I read Secret Shadows straight through. I had to know who killed Dane's little sister. Had to know how Dane would handle the killer once found. And of course, the hot romance is a driving factor in this story as well. Judie Aitken is a force to be reckoned with in the Romance and Suspense genre.

Just in time for Summer reads, Berkley has cut the prices on some of it most talented authors. So here is a chance to find some new voices you might have missed. One of the best finds is Judie Aitken. She is an extremely talented writer, drawing strongly on her Native American background. It's through this pride, this passion she is able to write vivid books with strong Lakota backgrounds that carry the reader into a brilliantly envisioned world of the Lakota Indian Reservation. Secret Shadows was a 2004 Reviewers International Award Winner, as well as winning other awards for her books, Love Beyond Time, A Place Called Hope and Distant Echoes. Once you read one of her books you will be scrambling to get the others. In Secret Shadows, Dane White Eagle is an undercover FBI agent. He is hot on the trail of drug dealers using the Lakota Reservation as a cover for other dirty dealings. Dane is furious they're peddling the stuff to his people and wishes to stop it. As he is drawing nearer to the Ecstasy dealers, they move to put a stop to his meddling. Dane returns home to find his 13-year-olds sister, who was dying of cancer, shot with his gun. Dr. Claire Colby is covering the graveyard shift at the emergency room when Dane's sisters is rushed there. She is the one who pronounces her dead. Dane is arrested for the sister's death and Claire is called to testify against him. With the strength of her testimony Dane is sent to prison. Their paths cross again as Dane is knifed by an inmate and she must save him. Later, after Claire takes a job on the Cold Creek Lakota Reservation, she is surprised to learn Dane is there. He has been freed on a technicality. Dane is more determined than ever to find the drug lab and the true killers of his sister. Claire becomes involved with Dane's investigation, and finds herself falling for the brooding man, even though she is not certain whether he is innocent or not. Still, she cannot deny the dreams she has begun to have, begun to share with Dane. As Dane and Claire fight to end this evil plaguing the reservation, they cannot fight the passions that arise between them. The book is simply unforgettable. I read hundreds of books each year, and maybe only a dozen will stay in my heart and mind, that ten years later I will touch the spine of that book and recall all the details so vividly. Secret Shadows is just that sort of a book. Aitken is just not a well-researched writer, she is a Native America, proud of her heritage and it's that power that gives her the magic ability to pen such strong tales depicting the beauty and grim realities of the reservation and the people who have often been denied their rights, their voice. Her prose are fluid, moving the reader through the mystery, the passion. So take advantage of Berkley Summer push to introduce you to new writers. It's just doesn't get any better than this.

Judie Aitken has woven an intricate pattern of cultural history and loyalty. She describes facets in life that few of us will experience. Her characters come to life and enter the reader's mind, to travel the adventure together. A great read, her best effort yet!

The author is delighted to share this review with you... The brutal murder of his baby sister, Kylee, puts undercover FBI agent Dane White Eagle in a unique and dangerous position. He is trying to infiltrate the Big Elk gang, which manufactures a deadly form of Ecstasy. The FBI hopes that by pinning Kylee's murder on Dane, he can get into prison, and more importantly, next to Bobby Big Elk. Dr. Claire Colby ends up involved with Dane. It was Claire who treated Kylee's gunshot wound and who testified at Dane's trial. She is shocked when months later, Dane's murder conviction is overturned and he goes home to the reservation where Claire now works. The evidence points to Dane being a scoundrel, but she can't help feeling there is more to him than meets the eye. Both Dane and Claire appear to be experiencing the same strange dream, but what does it mean? Can they figure it out before danger boils over? The culture and beliefs of the Lakota people play a significant and influential role in Aitken's mesmerizing novel. Having to keep so many secrets from those he loves places a great burden on Dane. Choices made and justice sought make this extremely powerful reading. Jill M. Smith - reviewer

Dane White Eagle works undercover for the FBI at the Cold Creek Lakota Reservation in South Dakota trying to find the lab where the Big Elk gang makes dangerous Ecstasy to sell to tribe members. Dane takes his dying thirteen year old sister Kylee to a party in Rapid City, but stops at his home. When he returns he finds Kylee shot with his revolver in her good hand. He quickly takes her to the nearby Pennington General ER where Dr. Claire Colby pronounces Kylee dead. Dane's FBI partners arrange for him to be convicted of his sister's murder. In prison he befriends Big Elk before being released on a technicality. Big Elk's brother Leland adds Dane to the team at the same time Claire joins the Red Star Clinic on the Cold creek reservation. As she and Dane meet outside a medical facility, they fall in love, which places her in danger from the Big Elk gang even as Dane nears achieving his personal objective of finding his sister's killer. This exhilarating Native American police procedural romance is action packed starring two caring protagonists, especially Dane. His courage is unbelievable not because of risking his life, which he does, but because he knows how much he has hurt his mother yet knows his sacrifice is the right thing. The motive for killing Kylee seems ridiculous even though life is cheap to the culprit. Adding to the fine tale is strong support characters to include the two fed partners, Kylee's dog, Claire's medical friend, Dane's sis, mom and surrogate grandfather, and the comparison between the two gang brothers. Together the cast makes for a strong tale. Harriet Klausner