Amber Beach [Hardcover]

Elizabeth Lowell (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1997

From highly-acclaimed New York Times best selling author Elizabeth Lowell comes a novel of contemporary intrigue, treacherous liaisons and consuming passion; all in the pursuit of a lost treasure that was once the Russian Czar's exquisite, world-renowned Amber Room.

In a family dominated by men, Honor Donovan is a woman struggling for recognition. Then her favorite brother, Kyle, vanishes, along with a fortune in stolen amber. The rest of the Donovan males seem all too eager to ignore the situation, so Honor heads off on her own to the San Juan Islands to find her brother.

To help her on her quest, she hires Jake Mallory to run her boat and be her guide. But what she doesn't know is that Jake has been brokering amber deals for Donovan International, and he now suspects that he's been set up to take the fall for Kyle's crimes.

Alone at sea, Joke and Honor pursue the stubborn mystery of the Amber Room. In an adventure that sets them against ruthless enemies from around the globe, they finally learn to let go of the dangerous secrets that keep them apart and discover a love that could be their greatest treasure.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Honor Donovan needs help and she needs it fast. Her brother Kyle is missing, along with a fortune in rare Baltic Amber. Honor hires the lethally attractive fishing guide Jake Mallory to guide her through the waters surrounding the San Juan Islands where she believes Kyle to be. Little does Jake know the web of intrigue he has entered--or does he? Is Jake really the experienced guide he says he is or does he have his own agenda? And just how long can Honor resist the rugged charms of this mysterious fishing guide? The San Juan Islands of Puget Sound provide a lush backdrop for Elizabeth Lowell's enthralling novel. Nothing is as it seems in this gripping pageturner. And readers have more to look forward to in Jade Island, the continuation of the Donovan's story due out in the fall of 1998. --Maudeen Wachsmith

From Kirkus Reviews

A well-made, completely predictable and unchallenging second hardcover from Lowell (Winter Fire, 1996)--a romance that offers all the sexual tension, adventure, and squishy clich‚s that fans of the genre could possibly want. Tough Jake Mallory (Jake being this year's romance-novel nom de choice for soldiers of fortune and macho men) passes himself off as a fishing guide in order to keep tabs on Honor Donovan, a jewelry designer who's searching for her lost brother Kyle in the San Juan Islands. (Honor needs a boat to find Kyle, and she doesn't know how to pilot a boat; in fact, she hates boats, and she hates fishing.) Kyle, it seems, has disappeared from Russia with a million dollars' worth of Baltic amber and, perhaps, a priceless panel from the famous Amber Room, which had been disassembled and taken from a czar's palace by the Nazis. Jake (``Been there . . . done that . . . got the T shirt'') is a former government agent who now manages his own international investment company. Like most heroes of his ilk, he comes complete with scars, black stubble, and the requisite ``clean fingernails'' (which is typical for the genre: only villains have problems with personal hygiene). Jake believes that Kyle and the Donovans, a colorful family, have framed him for the crime; Kyle's family believes that Jake has set Kyle up; and the CIA is trailing Jake and Honor to get its hands on the Amber Room, as are the Russian mafiya, a Lithuanian freedom fighter, ex-employees of the former KGB, and the Coast Guard. While he strives to clear his name, Jake teaches Honor how to drive a speedboat, catch salmon, and have good sex, which heretofore she'd always found pretty ``boring.'' Some parts of his job are, obviously, more fun than others. Much livelier than Winter Fire, and perhaps the beginning of a series. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 387 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; 1st edition (October 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0380973170
• ISBN-13: 978-0380973170
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (69 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #948,847 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

NEW YORK TIMES Bestselling author Elizabeth Lowell has numerous historical and contemporary novels in print, including her four-book series of suspense novels featuring the unforgettable Donovan family--AMBER BEACH, JADE ISLAND, PEARL COVE and MIDNIGHT IN RUBY BAYOU. Ms. Lowell's current release, DEATH ECHO, is Book 5 in her St. Kilda Consulting series and features twin yachts, international gangsters, and plenty of romantic-suspense. There are more than thirty million Elizabeth Lowell books currently in print. Ms. Lowell lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling, May 11, 2000

By 

"iceangel742" (Virginia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Amber Beach (Donovan, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Amber Beach was the first book by Elizabeth Lowell that I have read. My friend read it and passed on the information to me. In a few words, I can say that Amber Beach knocked me off my feet. After reading this book, I became so entrapped into the story that after I had finished it, I just had to read the other books that she had written. Amber Beach is a thrilling story based upon the Czar's Amber Room that immediately disappeared after World War I. The main characters are Honor Donovan, a sister who is determined to go after her (disappeared but presumed dead) brother. Jake Mallory is a rugged man aborbed by the brillant heat of Amber. His business was kicked out of many countries when he becomes framed of stealing the Amber Room. Jake goes undercover to help Honor Donovan find her brother, Kyle. The sweet part of this book is the fact that a sweet romance developes nicely as the story progresses.This book is passionately intense and has intense passion too! The Donovan family will warm your hearts as you read more and more about them. The Donovan saga continues into Jade Island and Pearl Cove. So do what I did and take my advice. Read Amber Beach and you won't be disappointed.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book ! The first in a Great Series!, June 12, 2001

By 

Joy Maxey "jrturtle" (Dallas, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Amber Beach (Donovan, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Honor Donovan and Jake Mallory set the pages on fire with their fiery personalities and passion but both are afraid to trust and love. It was a great adventure with plenty of action, 'shady' characters and love scenes. Elizabeth Lowell really writes wonderful books, but I have one complaint. The endings to all her stories come so quickly that I feel I'd like to know just a little more, like a short epilogue about the wedding or honeymoon, etc., something so that I don't feel like I'm left hanging. I have read all the Donovan stories in this series that she has written so far and they are all GREAT! I'm looking forward to the last two brothers' (Lawe & Justin) stories. If you like a good romance with lots of action, suspense and steamy love scenes, you'll love this book and all the others in the series.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Action and Suspense blended with a Nice Touch of Romance, February 3, 2004

By 

Ruthie Ramirez (San Diego) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Amber Beach (Donovan, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

Kyle Donovan is missing, so his sister Honor goes to his home in Washington State's San Juan Islands to search for clues. She doesn't know how to work Kyle's boat so she hires Jake Mallory to teach her how and to act as a guide. However, unknown to her, Jake is a dealer in gemstones as is Honor's family. When Kyle disappeared a shipment of amber Jake had entrusted with him disappeared as well.

And in that shipment is a panel from the czar's fabled Amber Room that went missing during World War II. The Donovan family claims Kyle never received the shipment and they get Jake barred from doing business in Russia. Jake figures if he stays close to Honor, she'll lead him to Kyle and the stolen amber.

However, Jake isn't the only one who wants to find that amber. There are others hot on Jake and Honor's trail, others like the Russian mafiya, Lithuanian separatists and agents of the United States government.

Of course, Jake doesn't trust Honor or any of the Donovan clan and, of course, when she finds out who Jake really is, she doesn't trust him either, but there is that old devil attraction between them, but before they can do anything about it they have to get beyond that trust thing, get away from their pursuers and get to the bottom of what happened to Kyle and the missing amber.

Though many think of Lowell as a romance writer, she can write action and suspense too and she can do it well, as she proves with this first story about the Donovan clan that I just could not put down.