My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Veil of Night by Linda Howard is one of those easy reads that you enjoy whilst reading but should never reflect on, once you complete reading it. ‘Coz then all the criticisms would probably come pouring out. But Linda Howard does write compelling stories, her characters are not completely caricatures but there are the general cliched attitudes that run as a fashion in them. Eric is the badass hero who has no good opinion about women and Jaclyn is the level-headed cool heroine who has trouble breathing when the hero is near.
I loved the premise of the one-night stand and then becoming a suspect in the murder and how the relationship becomes that much more complex between them. The suspense was not too hard to guess at and there are not many surprises in store in the unraveling of the murderer but Linda Howard writes excellently to keep the readers excited and the chemistry between Eric and Jaclyn, well, Linda Howard is a pro at that so no worries, it was smoking hot. There are also many humorous scenes, those with Eric and his coffee and one of the weddings in the barn which had me smiling.
In all, an interesting breezy read.
Jaclyn Wilde is a wedding planner who loves her job—usually. But helping Carrie Edwards with her Big Day has been an unrelenting nightmare. Carrie is a bridezilla of mythic nastiness, a diva whose tantrums are just about as crazy as her demands. But the unpleasant task at hand turns seriously criminal when Carrie is brutally murdered and everyone involved with the ceremony is accusing one another of doing the deed.
The problem is, almost everyone— from the cake maker and the florist to the wedding-gown retailer and the bridesmaids’ dressmaker—had his or her own reason for wanting the bride dead, including Jaclyn. And while those who felt Carrie’s wrath are now smiling at her demise, Jaclyn refuses to celebrate tragedy, especially since she finds herself in the shadow of suspicion.
Assigned to the case, Detective Eric Wilder finds that there’s too much evidence pointing toward too many suspects. Compounding his problems is Jaclyn, with whom he shared one deeply passionate night before Carrie’s death. Being a prime suspect means that Jaclyn is hands-off just when Eric would rather be hands-on. As the heat intensifies between Eric and Jaclyn, a cold-blooded murderer moves dangerously close. And this time the target is not a bride but one particularly irresistible wedding planner, unaware of a killer’s vow.
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