Sharp Edges [Hardcover]

Jayne Ann Krentz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1, 1998

Eugenia Swift is a young woman of singular sensibilities, a connoisseur of beauty... and naturally inclined to tackle even the most difficult tasks on her own. As the director of the Leabrook Glass Museum, she's been asked to travel to Frog Cove Island-- an artistic haven near Seattle-- to catalog an important collection of art glass belonging to the late Adams Daventry. But thanks to unsavory rumors surrounding Daventry's death, the museum insists that Eugenia take along Cyrus Chandler Colfax-- a rough-hewn private investigator whose taste in glass runs to icy cold bottles filled with beer.

When Colfax declares they must pose as a couple, Eugenia protests in terms as loud as his Hawaiian shirts. She's loath to disclose the secret purpose of her trip: investigating the disappearance of her good friend Nellie Grant... the late Adam Daventry's lover. Meanwhile, the green-eyed calm of Colfax's gaze shields his own hidden agenda-- locating a priceless Daventry treasure that will help him avenge an old wrong.

While Eugenia has always kept her heart on a shelf, their very lives soon depend on making an utterly convincing couple. Because among the chic galleries of Frog Cove Island lurks a killer, and their only chance for survival is the boldest, most artful collaboration they can dare to imagine.

At once a fascinating look at today's avant-garde art world and a scintillating adventure, "Sharp Edges" hums with the energy of a couple who bring to mind a thoroughly modern Bogart and Bacall. Add deft displays of wit and a wicked twist, and you've got another winner from Jayne Ann Krentz!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Jayne Anne Krentz is an impresario for creating characters that are both quirky and original. Eugenia Swift is the Director of a world renowned glass museum, Cyrus Chandler Colfax is a private detective who is as rough hewn as Eugenia is slick. When the two get together, readers know that sparks will fly and glass will shatter--especially since the two are posing as a couple to investigate the mysterious death of a famous glass collector. Since this is a romantic suspense, passion flames and ignites molten love despite the ulterior motives of the two leading characters. One of the very best things about reading a Jayne Ann Krentz romance is that her heroines are always intelligent! --Kate Ryan

From Library Journal

Krentz's latest fast-paced, sexy, romantic mystery centers on elegant, educated art-glass expert Eugenia Swift and rugged, no-nonsense security agent Cyrus Chandler Colfax. They are set down in a secluded artists' colony on a small Puget Sound island to inventory a noted glass collection and to check into the death of its owner. The sparks between the reluctant partners are immediate and antagonistic; but when a calculating killer leaves a body in the wine cellar, they reassess their relationship?with dangerous and passionate results. Treachery, greed, and the quest for a priceless glass bowl drive the plot of this fast-paced romance that will appeal to the writer's many fans. Krentz (Deep Waters, Pocket, 1997) is a veteran writer of lively romances filled with strong protagonists and witty dialog; she lives in the Seattle area.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Books; First Edition edition (February 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671523104
• ISBN-13: 978-0671523107
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,481,339 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

The author of over 50 New York Times bestsellers, JAYNE ANN KRENTZ writes romantic-suspense, often with a psychic and paranormal twist, in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick) and futuristic (as Jayne Castle). There are over 35 million copies of her books in print.

Building on the success of her DREAMLIGHT TRILOGY in 2010, Jayne is now focused on writing the LOOKING GLASS TRILOGY. This series will follow the Quicksilver Mirror (a paranormal artifact) through all three of Jayne's worlds covering a time span of several hundred years.

The first LOOKING GLASS book, IN TOO DEEP, will feature Fallon Jones, a recurring character from Jayne's contemporary ARCANE SOCIETY series of novels.

When she's not writing, Jayne can be found at her favorite social networking site posting messages to her fans.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable but not Krentz's best, November 25, 2000

By 

"inazz" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sharp Edges (Mass Market Paperback)

Deep Waters and Absolutely, Positively converted me into a Jayne Ann Krentz fan and I went on to read her earlier work after those two books, including her Regency romances under the pseudonym Amanda Quick. Her trademarks are intelligent, independent heroines and brooding heroes with dark histories. They usually have names that you don't normally tag to romantic heroes and heroines, like Gideon, Molly and Harry.

In this story, it's Cyrus, a private detective, and Eugenia, a Museum Director. The death of a glass collector on Frog Cove Island bring the two together on official missions that hide their real motives: Eugenia to investigate the death of her artist friend (who was also one of the collector's many girlfriends) and Cyrus to hunt down an ancient artifact that was stolen under his security watch three years ago. Their initial suspicion of each other plays against strong physical attraction, but while there is heat and sexual tension, there's no sense of inevitability that these two characters deserve each other and should fall headlong into each other's arms. The main characters are disappointingly flat and the love scenes seem contrived. Krentz tries too hard to make the characters outwardly different that they end up as stereotypes - the sleek, sophisticated Museum Director and the strong, silent detective with the too-colorful shirts. The novel's redeeming features are the snappy dialogue and the quirky secondary characters.

If you want to start on a Krentz romance, I'd strongly recommend Absolutely, Positively, Grand Passion or Deep Waters. While Sharp Edges is still a good read, it won't warm you up on cold nights.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, but still missing something, February 5, 1998

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sharp Edges (Hardcover)

I was excited about this book, because the beginning of it (published behind Deep Waters) seems to be a return to JAK's (and AQ's) normal style, which I think is great. (I do vastly prefer the Quick stories). But I was sad to discover that although this is a pretty good book, it still seems that you are watching the story through a dark, cloudly glass. Her earlier stories made you feel right in the thick of things. I don't care about the "formula" angle of these plots, the formula works great for me. I do want to care more about the characters, however. Ms. Krentz is still about the best Romance writer around. The sad part is that she could be (and has been) so much better! Please slow down. I would pay double for book I wanted to read many times over. None of the recent ones have qualified.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sharp Plot, January 11, 2010

By 

PamelaJ (Tulsa, OK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sharp Edges (Paperback)

I liked this plot. I think JAK even managed to surprise w/who was the bad guy in the end. It had some good twists and turns. The male/female leads were typical, but I like that. I don't want her to change up how she writes her leads. This was published in 1998. It's a good read.