Love’s Shadow (Brother's Maledetti #2)

Nichole
Van
Genre: 
Paranormal

Branwell D’Angelo met the woman of his dreams 6 years ago — when she started dating his brother.  He hid his feelings then and has loved Lucy Snow in secret ever since, even while he consoles his brother Tennyson when his relationship with Lucy ends.  Lucy, for her part, has secrets of her own, and that includes how she actually feels about Branwell.  When her niece disappears while Lucy is watching her, the only people who can help are the D'Angelo brothers. Branwell travels to Florence, Italy to help Lucy but when he arrives, things are much more complicated than he anticipated.  Not only that, his feelings for Lucy have never gone away.  Is it possible that she feels the same way?  As they desperately search for Lucy's niece Branwell and Lucy realize that they are in for much more than they bargained for — and it involves everyone Lucy has ever cared about. 

What an engrossing adventure!  Branwell has impeccable morality and stands out because of it. Lucy is a great heroine and a terrific compliment to Branwell. The forbidden love aspect is an intriguing aspect to the story, and Ms. Van sets it up beautifully with flashbacks to the past. The mystery of the disappearing niece compliments the rest of the well- executed plot and sub-plots. The settings are lush and draw the reader in: featuring the beautiful Pacific Northwest and Italy the author transports readers to these places. A small detriment is the use of repetitive phrasing to note pauses in the narrative, which is distracting. With great characterization, beautiful settings, and a compelling romance this book is truly captivating!

Jessica Samuelsen