Carnal Innocence [Mass Market Paperback]

Nora Roberts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1991

In the small town of Innocence, Mississippi, days are long, nights are fragrant, and secrets are hard to keep. But when a brutal killer starts claiming the lives of the town's most attractive women, lifelong neighbors are forced to wonder if the culprit is a stranger lurking in the bayou...or someone right next door.

Burned out by a whirlwind career, world-famous concert violinist Caroline Waverly arrives in Innocence looking for a little peace and some time to think. She hopes that a stay at her late grandmother's house--the one with a covered porch just made for soft summer nights--will provide the tranquillity she needs.  But Innocence has something else to offer Caroline: handsome, charming Tucker Longstreet.

Tucker is known for keeping his romances short and shallow. But one look at Caroline, and Tucker realizes that she is unlike any other woman he's met. The coolly reserved Caroline feels an unexpected thrill at his ardent advances. But when she discovers a third murder victim in the murky waters behind her home, her summer liaison threatens to become much more. Because there's just one small problem with her new romance: Tucker is the leading suspect in the killings.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Old favorite. Bestselling author Nora Roberts grabs her readers from page one. Innocence, Mississippi, isn't innocent for long when a murderer strikes the sleepy town. Concert violinist Caroline Waverly has returned to her deceased grandparents home to escape high-pressured concert tours. She is soon caught up by the irresistible charm of Southerner Tucker Longstreet. The dark secrets of Innocence soon begin to surface and together Caroline and Tucker not only face a murderer but discover secrets from the past.

From Publishers Weekly

Roberts ( Genuine Lies ) plunks a pair of likable lovers into an equally likable rural Southern community; she then keeps the story from turning sweeter than blackstrap molasses by setting loose a serial killer. World-class violinist Caroline Waverly, recovering from a breakdown and an affair gone bad, arrives at her grandparents' house in Innocence, Miss., looking for peace and quiet; what she discovers is the naked, mutilated corpse of Edda Lou Hatinger. Only days earlier, Edda Lou had thrilled local gossips by publicly blowing up at Tucker Longstreet: he wanted out of their affair; she wanted marriage. Edda Lou is the third woman stabbed to death recently, so local police call in Matthew Burns, a federal investigator who specializes in tracking serial killers. In the meantime, Tucker decides to be right neighborly to Caroline, and after her initial resistance crumbles, she responds to his Southern charm. Tucker is on Matthew's list of suspects, and soon a fourth dead woman is found on the Longstreet family property. Caroline, too, faces the knife as she is drawn into a confrontation in which she learns who is behind the deaths.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; later printing edition (December 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553295977
• ISBN-13: 978-0553295979
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (118 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #636,892 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

53 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Carnal Innocence, February 22, 2008

By 

Kelly "Reviewer for The Sinfully Sensuous" (Littleton, Colorado) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Carnal Innocence (Mass Market Paperback)

Caroline Waverly is a world-renowned violinist in desperate need of some overdue relaxation. She decides that Innocence, Mississippi is the perfect place to find some peace in the only place she has truly ever felt roots. As she makes her grandmother's old home her own, her serenity is shaken when she finds the body of young woman in the lake, and in to the path of a serial killer.

Tucker Longstreet is a true southern gentleman and appears as easy going as a man can get. He enjoys fast cars and faster women, but Caroline is a challenge for him. Tucker is immediately taken with her, and appoints himself her protector. It is then we learn that the good ole boy surface hides a very smart and sharp-witted man.

As the town lives in the grips of fear, Tucker and Caro must identify the killer to have any chance of a future.

This was very well written with wonderful characters. The secondary characters are especially good - LuLu was a scream! This one kept me guessing till the very end!!

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Provocative Title, Wonderful Book!, May 17, 2005

By 

Susie Morris "Book Junkie" (Southern California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Carnal Innocence (Mass Market Paperback)

Ok, I'll admit I thought that CARNAL INNOCENCE had a very strange title and didn't understand the implied reference until I was actually reading the book. Innocence in this case is actually a town in Mississippi. The main female character, Caroline Waverly, is a famous violinist who decides to go to Innocence, Mississippi to get away from a much-publicized break-up with her fiancé. She retreats to her family's quaintly charming old bayou home and begins to learn to relax and enjoy life, something she has never had the opportunity to do.

What she doesn't know is that this town is full of deceptions and people hell-bent on revenge. When a murder victim is found, she begins to question her decision on moving to Innocence. Is the killer the one she's fallen in love with - charming, handsome Tucker Longstreet (ever notice how romance novels always have charming and handsome characters - no ugly, rude ones!). As Caroline tries to figure out her feelings while keeping out of harms way, many things come to light.

CARNAL INNOCENCE is a very good book and definitely worth the price! It's full of suspense, romance, and unexpected twists and turns. I highly recommend reading this book, but make sure you have plenty of free time, because you won't want to put it down!

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A who dun it with a dash of romance., July 6, 2001

By 

Denise Bentley "Kelsana" (The California Redwoods) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Carnal Innocence (Mass Market Paperback)

Someone in the sleepy little Mississippi town of Innocence is far from innocent. Women are turning up dead and that is just not healthy. Body number three has just shown up in the pond behind Caroline Waverly's home and she's wondering how much rest she is going to get in this little town off the beaten track.

Caroline is a famous concert violinist and has come to stay in her grandmother's house when she realizes that still waters run deep and more goes on in this backwater town than meets the eye. She is swept off her feet by Tucker Longstreet, one of the town's favored sons, unfortunately he is one of the prime suspects. What is a girl to do?

I thought I had it all figured out as I devoured the pages but was pleasantly surprised by the end when I was completely wrong. A good mystery to fill your summer days. Kelsana 7/6/01