Shadow Lines

Dr. Eve St. Giles knows she is witnessing a catastrophe in the making when she is called to investigate a flu outbreak. Is it really possible that someone is specifically engineering this flu and that it is geared to affect women more than men? Unfortunately, her best ally in tracking the perpetrator is also the man she once loved, Nick Petter. Will Eve and Nick be able to stop the spread of this virus before it's too late? What an action packed tale! SHADOW LINES is an excellent continuation of the series about the Black Madonnas and the Marians who have protected them throughout the centuries. I have to admit that some of the twists Carol Stephenson put into the storyline were a bit unexpected, but added an entirely new layer of depth to this phenomenal series. SHADOW LINES is easily read as a stand alone. However, readers familiar with the series will appreciate some of the secrets that are revealed. More information is provided on the Adriano family and their quest to destroy the Marians and this information sheds an entirely new light on some of the events in past books. I love the paranormal element in SHADOW LINES. Eve's ability to sense disease is an unusual one. My only regret about the storyline is that I would have liked to see her use her gifts just a tad more, as the scenes with the flu outbreak are some of the more powerful ones I have read. SHADOW LINES is easily recommended and will appeal across genres due to the strength of the storyline. COURTESY OF CK2S KWIPS AND KRITIQUES

From Damassine, Switzerland, her sister Yvette, a wealthy widow raising a child by herself, calls European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control epidemiologist Eve St. Giles claiming everyone in the town seems ill including her. When her sibling dies from a virus long dormant, Eve has no time to mourn as she thinks this was a man-made test. Eve begins her quest to locate the manufacturer before the deadly disease causes pandemic deaths. She uses her psychic skills and reluctantly accepts the help of her former lover, security expert Nick Petter. As the countdown nears the point of no return, Eve seeks the culprit as much as she searches for ancient healing practices that seem to have contained the lethal virus. The fascination in this paranormal thriller comes from the ease in which Carol Stephenson incorporates a historical subplot mostly through the research Eve does that takes her back to a thirteenth century victim of the French Inquisition. The story line is fast-paced from the moment a panicked Yvette calls Eve interrupting her field work on potential Mad Cow Disease and never slows down as the heroine and her beloved teammate Nick race against the clock. This is a one sitting romantic suspense tale. Harriet Klausner

Carol Stephenson is one of the best, and maybe the most underused writer for Harlequin Romances. She had done three amazing books for them, Nora's Pride, Courting Danger, and now the fourth installment of Bombshell's brilliantly conceived and realized Madonna Keys series. The books in order - 1) Lost Calling by Evelyn Vaughn 2) Haunted Echoes by Cindy Dees 3) Dark Revelation, by Lorna Tedder 4) Shadow Lines by Carol Stephenson 5) Hidden Sanctuary by Sharron McClellan 6) Veiled Legacy by Jenna Mills and then ending up the series with Vaughn again with 7) The Seventh Key. In this book, Eve St. Giles works for the European Centre for Disease Control. She is head at tracking down flu strains and trying to stop them from breaking free in the population, a "Flu Hunter". Only this is not a visitation of the swine flu or bird flu, terrorist have released a genetically mutated disease in Switzerland and Eve's sister is a victim of this attack. Oddly, this flu is slightly different than most flu viruses - it only attacks females. Private securities expert, Nick Petter is Eve's former lover, but soon their paths cross again. One of his clients, a manufacturer of drugs, makes the alarming discovery that a highly risky experiment was wrecked by a former employee and Nick must track down the missing virus before it's too late. He is shocked to learn that Eve is already on the same trail. He's never forgotten their love, but now they must put their personal feelings aside and work to stop this killer. They must join forces in a race to stop the deadly flu from killing more women. Eve has begun to experience visions, visions of a healer from the time of the Third Crusades. She's always known she has psychic abilities, but suppressed them. Now their power is stronger, growing. She must reach out and embrace these visions before it's too late. Stephenson is a powerful writer that just gets better with each book. She is a strong addition to this wonderful series.

Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques Eve St. Giles is the best flu hunter the European Center for Disease Control (ECDC) has. She loves her job tracking down diseases and controlling them before devastation hits. But this time it's personal. When an unknown terrorist releases a deadly disease in Switzerland, Eve's sister is one of the victims. Though this outbreak has all the earmarks of the lethal Spanish Flu, it appears altered to only affect women. Former Swiss Guard Nick is now in the private sector as a securities expert. When one of his clients, a huge pharmaceutical company discovers one of its supposedly destroyed experiments was stolen and used by a rogue former employee, Nick is called in to track down the perpetrator. His job puts him in close contact once more with Eve, his one time love, whom he's never forgotten, and they find themselves working for the same cause. But events spiral out of control, pitting them on a race against time to stop the monster responsible for the deadly epidemic before he can destroy even more women. I love this book! Each installment of the Madonna Key is more complex and more exciting than the last, and Shadow Lines is no exception. Fans of adventure, romance, and paranormal genres will all find something to love between the covers of this story. The action begins in the opening pages when Eve is first set on the course to track down this threat to international health and safety of untold numbers of women. Enter Nick, a suave, sophisticated, and dangerously sexy guardian, and sparks are sure to fly. The paranormal element comes to play in Eve. A descendant of an ancient sect of Black Madonna worshippers, the Marians, and very strong in psychic abilities, she has suppressed them for several years after one attempt to use the power had disastrous effects. Feeling her talents are unreliable and dangerous, she has no desire to use them now, until their strength seems to have grown by leaps and bounds, with visions of a healer from the time of the Crusades helping her to solve the current crisis. Readers who have followed the mini series from book one, will love how each book delves farther back in time to the history of the Black Madonna and what has led to today's problems. We also learn more about the just-as-ancient enemy of the priestesses, the Adriano family, and see their desperation to succeed in their mission grow even stronger. Secrets are revealed, and even more mysteries are introduced, which catapult readers through a fascinating adventure ride. Shadow Lines by Carol Stephenson will grab you by the throat and provide many pulse pounding moments of excitement until the conclusion is reached. I for one can't wait to see what happens next in the unique and compelling Madonna Key series. © Kelley A. Hartsell, August 2006. All rights reserved.

Having read several I have yet to be disappointed in the Silhouette Bombshell series and the latest one I picked up, SHADOW LINES by Carol Stephenson completely blew me away! Be assured it's going to grab you from page one and never let you put it down! Dr. Eve St. Giles is an epidemiologist working for the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). She is brilliant and dedicated with a kick-ass attitude when it comes to chasing down flu bugs and saving peoples lives. Eve was special in that she had also inherited psychic abilities from her mother later discovering she is a descendent of an empathic `Marian' healer inheriting other traits that she views as both a gift and a curse. While investigating a horrendous flu outbreak in Damassine, Swizerland which killed her sister, Eve sensed it was man-made. She later discovered it was a mutated version of the Spanish flu re-engineered specifically to target women. Hot on the trail Eve discovers her ex-lover searching for the same madman and they agree to combine forces. Trying to keep her distance from Nick Petter would be as elusive as finding the courier intent on delivering death and mayhem. The closer they come to finding the source, the closer they come to each other in a much more intense understanding of the love and passion that exists between them. In a spectacular cliff hanger-ending and finally admitting to a love that never died, Eve with other worldly guidance, would willingly lay down her own life to save the one true love of her life. *** AWESOME! The thrilling premise of this book captivated me from the very first pages with high intensity and an emotionally compelling plot. I was fully engaged with this very sensual romantic suspense tale. I especially liked the heroine Eve, who was superbly crafted as both highly professional and achingly tender towards those she loved. The hero Nick was also crafted as the strong silent type who was infinitely capable and one this reader would scoop up in a second if given half a chance! His declarations of love were to die for [sigh]. The references to the Knights Templars, the Cathars, and the mysterious priest Berenger Saunière were interesting historical points adding much to the mystery involved behind the intrigue of the plot. Stephenson showed top form in this volume of the series and I will definitely be looking for her backlists as well as for prequels and sequels to this fabulous Madonna Key series. This one packs a powerful punch, a sweetly poignant ending and I strongly recommend this book for all lovers of romantic suspense. Marilyn Rondeau, RIO - Reviewers International Organization