Shattered [Hardcover]

Karen Robards (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 23, 2010

Secret, betrayal, and a mysterious family history plague the heroine in the latest novel from New York Times-bestselling author Karen Robards.

The past is never over. It just gets dusty.

Lisa Shewmaker was a rising star in a prestigious law firm in Lexington, Kentucky; that is, until the firm went bankrupt and she lost her job. With an ailing mother to care for, Lisa takes the first position she can find: research assistant to District Attorney Scott Buchanan. Scott is as disagreeable as he is sexy, and Lisa suspects the only reason she got the job is because of her privileged upbringing as the daughter of a wealthy federal judge.

While reviewing cold cases in the Fayette County courthouse, a particularly thick manila envelope draws Lisa's attention. The details of the case are engrossing: An entire family-father, mother, and two children-disappeared more than twenty-eight years ago. Except that's not all: The mother in the photo could have been Lisa's twin, and the toddler in the picture bears an uncanny resemblance to Lisa herself. Before Lisa can learn more about her past, a series of catastrophes strike close to home. Lisa confides in Scott, and their relationship develops into something completely different. Together Lisa and Scott unravel a terrifying web of criminal connections that could destroy the very fabric of Lisa's life-if she lives long enough, that is.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

After Lisa Grant loses her job at a Lexington, Ky., law firm in this seductive romantic thriller from bestseller Robards (Pursuit), she heads home to Grayson Springs, a once thriving Kentucky horse farm, owned by her mother, who's dying from ALS. Lisa becomes a research assistant for former crush Scott Buchanan, the Lexington-Fayette County DA. While she initially finds Scott's grumpy personality unappealing, she begins to feel differently after looking into a cold case: the inexplicable disappearance of Michael and Angela Garcia and their two children, Tony and Marisa, in 1981. Astonishingly, Lisa discovers that both a treasured childhood doll and herself as a young girl resemble Marisa. Lisa's informal investigation leads to dangerous repercussions, including an act of arson at Grayson Springs, in which she and her mother almost perish. Scott's timely rescue tightens their budding relationship as the action builds to a startling if far-fetched conclusion. (Mar.)
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From Booklist

While growing up on a prestigious horse farm, Lisa Grant took her exalted position in life for granted, growing close to her mother after her parents divorced. So she doesn’t hesitate to leave her law practice in Boston to take care of her mother, who is suffering from ALS and impending financial ruin. Lisa is lucky to get a job as a research assistant for District Attorney Scott Buchanan, her former lowly neighbor who made good. As a teen, Lisa tortured Scott with sexual innuendos, while he did odd jobs for her mother, and now it is Scott’s turn to lord it over Lisa. Sexual tension crackles between the two, but when Lisa is late for court, Scott orders her to work on cold-case files. On her first foray, she finds a picture of a missing family, and the mother looks just like her. Suddenly, her life becomes harrowing. With no one else to turn to, she confides in Scott, who, surprisingly, agrees to help, knowing that Lisa won’t like what they discover. Robards proves once again to be a master of romantic suspense, creating likable characters and an intriguing, well-paced, and nail-biting plot. --Patty Engelmann

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 400 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult; First Edition edition (March 23, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399156275
• ISBN-13: 978-0399156274
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (53 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #601,117 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Karen Robards is the bestselling author of twenty-seven novels. The winner of six Silver Pen awards for favorite romance novelist, as well as numerous other awards, she lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with her husband, Doug, and their sons Peter, Christopher, and Jack. She says, "I read, I write, and I chase children. That's my life."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars drawn in, March 25, 2010

By 

Jill Marie Riffe (Portland, OR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Shattered (Kindle Edition)

I couldn't put this book down or sleep until I finished it! My heart was pounding and after I finished it I still could not sleep. It's been awhile since a book had this much physical effect on me.
I love the writing style, and am very drawn to the main characters. One can not help but "feel" with them (and for them )especially as some very sensitive areas were revealed.
If I have a criticism it would be that the end was a bit rushed- too many "facts" dropped in without enough support, and some key "evidence" thrown in that could not have been known, or quickly known, from skeletal remains, as was presented . I would have been happy to keep on reading and reading while all these details, and some secondary relationships, were fleshed out or resolved however!! I did not want to "leave" the world of this book or the charicters!

23 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good romantic suspense, March 29, 2010

By 

Luanne Ollivier - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shattered (Hardcover)

Karen Robards is a New York Times best selling author with over thirty books to her credit. I had never read Robards before Shattered.

Little Marisa Garcia is afraid of the woods near her new home. She knows there are shadow people hiding there - and they're watching her.....and she's right.

Fast forward thirty years. Lisa Grant has been assigned to work cold cases for Scott Buchanan, the District Attorney. While going through the file of a family gone missing - the Garcias - Lisa is stunned by a photo in the file. The mother of the family is a dead ringer for herself. As Lisa follows up with the case, it seems that someone is just as determined that she won't. Complicating things further are her feelings for Scott - their pasts are intertwined -will their future be as well?

Now having never read Robards before I had no idea of her writing style. For those who love romantic suspense, I would say - put her to the top of your list. She skillfully combines romantic tension with an interesting plot. I was happily ensconced on my couch for the day with a wicked head cold and was quite happy reading steamy scenes and smoldering glances. The mystery is really not the main thrust of the plot, more the vehicle to carry the relationship between Lisa and Scott.

I do prefer my mysteries a bit more convoluted, if you will. I did have the plot figured out before the end. The 'bad guys' are easily identified, as are the red herrings. But it was a thoroughly entertaining read for the day.

Fans of Sandra Brown, Linda Howard or Julie Garwood would enjoy Karen Robards.

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Who Wrote This?, March 29, 2010

By 

LM Bruce "Butterfly Queen" (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shattered (Hardcover)

It is hard to believe that Karen Robards wrote this. I love every book she has written, until this one.
The story line is actually very good, and at times I was riveted. There were some tense moments. However,
the writing is horrible. The sentences are so long that by the time you get to the end, you have to look
back at the beginning to see how the sentence started. There are way too many commas and unbelievably numerous hyphens. On the first page of Chapter One:
"He stood behind his battered metal desk--no expensive mahogany for this district attorney, the blue-collar man's
friend!--glaring at her out of light blue eyes that were, on this Tuesday morning, slightly bloodshot, as though he'd
tied one on the night before or, more probably, though she hated to admit it, been working until the wee hours."
What?!? This is not an exception; this is the norm for the entire book. In fact, it gets much worse. Some sentences even had the addition of parentheses thrown in. It was exhausting to read and re-read these run-on sentences. It totally took away from the plot.