The Persuasion

April 27, 2020
Bestseller Johansen’s fast-paced 25th Eve Duncan thriller (after 2019’s Dark Tribute) finds Eve’s daughter, artist Jane MacGuire, working on an archaeological dig at Kendrick Castle in Wales. Jane’s former lover, Seth Caleb, arrives at the dig to warn her about a murder at MacDuff’s Run in Scotland, where the killer stole a painting and left behind a photo of Jane in its place. Seth later discovers that the culprit is psychopath Stefano Luca, who’s obsessed with Jane and also wants Seth’s help obtaining a valuable hoard known as Cira’s treasure. When a fire rips through the camp at the dig, Luca seizes the opportunity to abduct Jane. As part of an effort to rescue Jane, Seth, who possesses supernatural skills, devises a scheme to trap Luca by agreeing to rob the bank that contains Cira’s treasure. The magnetic relationship between Jane and Seth adds heat to the tense plot. Those who like their romantic suspense with a dash of the paranormal will be pleased. Agent: Andrea Cirillo, Jane Rotrosen Agency.

April 15, 2020
A couple inconveniently at odds with each other battle a sociopath in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse. Continuing the battle against evil she and Seth Caleb joined when they rescued Seth's sister, Lisa, in Mind Game (2017), Jane MacGuire becomes a target of people seeking to take advantage of Seth's dangerous gift of killing people using his mind as a weapon. This time Jane and her 10-year-old brother, Michael, are targeted by Stefano Luca, a ruthless sociopath who's used art theft to finance his fanatical determination to become a modern Medici. First a portrait that looks just like Jane is stolen from a Scottish castle, replaced by a photograph of her dripping in blood. Soon after Seth suddenly turns up at an archaeological dig in Wales where Jane and Michael are staying, someone shoots at them. Michael is psychic, and even though the siblings' parents, Eve Duncan and Joe Quinn, don't encourage him to use his skills, he's communicating psychically with a boy in Italy who's been tortured. Jane may have ended her relationship with Seth, but he'll do anything to keep her safe, and their sexual attraction smolders even while they squabble. Now they must combine their skills and talents to take down Luca, who'll stop at nothing to bring his dream to fruition. Familiar characters and a touch of the supernatural can't overcome the derivative plot and lack of terror or suspense.

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May 1, 2020
A portrait of a beautiful woman bearing a striking resemblance to Eve Duncan's daughter, Jane MacGuire, is stolen from the castle home of one of Scotland's most powerful men, John MacDuff. The thief leaves a message behind, a brutal and macabre image that indicates that Jane is a potential target in an imminent killing spree. Fearing for the safety of Jane and her preternaturally empathic son, Michael, who are working at an archaeological dig in Wales, Eve enlists Jane's on-and-off love interest, Seth Caleb, to ensure her family's safety. With his unique ability to alter a person's physical state and mental perceptions, Seth pursues the villainous cult-killer, Stefano Luca, as he creates a barbarous trail of clues which taunts Jane and challenges Seth's powers. In vintage Johansen fashion, in her twenty-seventh Eve Duncan thriller, allies and adversaries tangle in a contest of wills, while murders increase and mayhem escalates. This storytelling technique showcases each character's individual strengths and exemplifies Johansen's ability to strike a satisfying balance between electrifying action and emotional intensity.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)