Customer Reviews

Taken

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is my first trip into the world of Barbara Freethy, so I am NOT familiar with this author's normal writing style. However, here Freethy did leave me in a state of total bewilderment! I was stunned! Why? Barbara Freethy's TAKEN doesn't have an ending! I actually turned to a blank page, looking for more! Did I mention the word bewilderment? At the end of this book, I was totally bewildered! I was the one who was TAKEN!

Would the real Nick Granville please stand up? Or so Kayla Sheridan wanted to shout. Kayla Sheridan had been royally wounded! On her wedding night the man she married had forsaken, abandoned, and deserted her. Why? There were no neat, tidy answers. Her husband had just walked out! Once taken, twice cautious! So now - who was this guy claiming to be Nick Granville - claiming to be the real Nick Granville?

Nick Granville came home to discover his life in chaos. He returned from his business trip to discover a victimized apartment, ravaged finances, and a newly-acquired wife! What had happened? There were no neat, tidy answers. There was just Kayla Sheridan Granville. Only Kayla had the key and he, the real Nick Granville, would make sure she twisted it.

Fifty years is a long time to hold secrets and Kayla's grandmother had secrets. Fifty years ago, childhood friends experienced life together. Childhood friends who shared life, love, and happiness and went on to share greed, lust, and disaster. Kayla's grandmother, a mysterious watch, and unfriendly relationships delay the truth. Yet, Kayla and Nick are determined.

Barbara Freethy does a nice job teasing with this whodunit. Deliberately, the author taunts with shattered information . . . and the pages turn. Was TAKEN an intriguing mystery? Absolutely! However, the ending is the mystery! Hint - a sequel? Positively. Did I feel victimized? Absolutely! I am in the here and now! And although I don't mind some sequel "elbow room," I don't want to be left behind . . . waiting! No! I want completion. With its unsatisfactory ending, TAKEN is disappointing!
Grade: C

MaryGrace Meloche.
Reviewed for Romance Designs.
This review is based on an Advanced Reading Copy.

Stained glass artist Kayla Sheridan fell in love with and married a man she'd only known for three weeks. He disappeared on their wedding night. A few weeks later she found a stranger living in her husband's home.

Nick Granville is a bridge engineer who'd just spent three months working in Africa. Nick came home to find someone had been living in his home and spending his money - Nick `s identity had been stolen. The con man who stole it, Evan Chadwick, had married Kayla, using Nick's name. Nick has a history with Evan and it looks like Evan is out to get even.

On her "wedding" night, Kayla gave her husband her grandfather's pocket watch. Looks like that's all Evan wanted from her. Now Kayla and Nick need to figure out why. They are one step behind Evan and his scheme involving four pocket watches and a 50 year old heist.

Interesting and fast-paced story. I liked Kayla's grandmother and her secrets. It bothered me that Nick and Kayla had sex at inappropriate times; they're being conned and threatened and they grope and get naked?!! Hmm. It also bothered me that Nick didn't spend any time repairing his credit or fixing the mess Evan put him in. (I know, I know, this is fictional romantic suspense and I'm being too real.) Still those are minor problems and I'm looking forward to the sequel, PLAYED, which will be out October 2006.

Barbara Freethy has fast become one of my favorite romantic suspense authors. The books are full of twists and turns and a multitude of threads, which she handles deftly, weaving them all together to make a believable and satisfying conclusion. I've been slowly collecting her backlist.

In Taken, a young woman's decision to take a chance on love has disastrous consequences when her brand-new husband goes out for ice... and never comes back. Weeks later, she goes past his house, and finds another man living there, claiming to have the same name.

A con artist, the FBI, a decades-old robbery and jailbreak, a 12-year-old grudge, people with hidden pasts and shadowy presents... and two people trying to unravel it all while becoming inextricably entwined with each other.

Good book. I recommend it.

It's her wedding night but Kayla Sheridan's husband, Nick Granville, has walked out on her. Kayla only knew Nick for three weeks prior to their hasty marriage, but when Nick went to get ice on their wedding night, the last thing she expected was never to see him again.

Nick Granville has just returned from spending three months in Africa engineering bridges. He discovers several messages from a woman named Kayla claiming that she is his wife and that he walked out on her. Nick also realizes after looking around his home that someone has been in it. Deeply concerned and puzzled, Nick calls the police while tying to figure out how to get in touch with Kayla. Getting in touch with her is easier than Nick thought though when she shows up on his doorstep.

Now, Kayla and Nick team up to find out who the imposter is and why he's done it. The more they uncover, the deeper the trouble and all the while Nick and Kayla are slowly falling for each other.

The suspense grows and the plot thickens on every page of Taken. Nick and Kayla are drawn on a roller coaster ride full of lies and deceit trying to solve the mystery. Nick is such a great guy, he's sexy and a strong protector. Kayla is tough and smart. I loved them together. Just when you think it's over, it's not. There is more to come in this story and I'm looking forward to reading it!

Nannette
reviewed for Joyfully Reviewed

TAKEN is the first of two books and I read them back to back. The first story introduces con man Evan Chadwick, who was a great villain, a nice mix of evil and charming. Nick Granville is the hero and also shares a past with Evan. Kayla Sheridan is the woman Evan uses to take everyone on a ride. I liked the blend of romance and suspense in the story. And I thought it moved at a great pace. The story kept me guessing until the end.

Kayla Sheridan marries, but instead of spending an evening of bliss, her groom Nick Granville vanishes. The stunned bride visits her spouse's home to confront him, but the man who greets her is not her husband though he claims and proves that he is Nick Granville. Both are taken aback as Nick, who has been overseas for months on a bridge construction project realizes someone has taken identity theft to a new level. The thief lived in Nick's home, spent his money, and married in his name.

Already suspicious as to the identity of the conman, Kayla's description affirms Nick's believe that his college days' enemy Evan Chadwick pulled a stunt. He can understand why him, but neither Nick nor Kayla can figure out why her. As both know he still stalks them, the duo agree they need to comprehend why Evan picked her because he would not have used her if she did not fit into the equation.

This is an exhilarating romantic suspense with the emphasis on the amateur sleuth investigation conducted by the two targets. Barbara Freethy leaves clues to what is going on especially the real link between Evan and Kayla, yet the fascination is trying to separate out those that provide information from the red herrings. The lead couple is a delightful teaming while the villain serves as a matchmaking cat toying with the two mice he brought together. Fans will enjoy this tense thriller.

Harriet Klausner

After a whirlwind romance of three weeks, Kayla and her lover decide to tie the knot in Vegas. After exchanging wedding gifts, the two are ready to consummate their marriage, when he leaves the room to get some ice, he disappears...

Nick Granville returns from a three month assignment to find that someone has been living in his apartment, has cleaned out his accounts, and has obtained a wife for him. The victim of identity theft, he is not sure who the culprit is until he meets his "wife" Kayla and discovers that both were used as pawns by Evan Chadwick, a sociopath that he once crossed when Evan was seeing his sister Jenny. Why Kayla is involved is a mystery to them both, until she reveals that she gave him her grandfather's pocket watch as a gift before his departure.

Also after Evan is Nick's other college roommate, JT, who is an FBI agent trying to put a stop to Evan's crime spree that includes fraud, embezzlement, theft, and possibly even murder. The three try to determine the significance of the watch, and all questions lead to Kayla's grandmother who has a shady past. Will they be able to catch Evan at his own game before he wreaks further havoc on his victims (or finds new victims?) And what is Evan really after?

Freethy has penned and engaging and sensual thriller with charismatic protagonists who won't be able to relax until the find the man that played with their lives. Unfortunately, the reader won't be able to rest either, as the story is left open-ended, requiring a sequel ("Played") to complete Evan's story.

This books is boring. I forced myself to read it yet did not care at all for the characters. Kayla was a complete imbicile. Nick was boring, just a typical alpha guy. The characters felt fake, forced. Evan was vaguely interesting and unique, because I wasn't sure how he ticked or how far he would go, but other than that, I was falling asleep reading this. Some parts were all right, but mostly, it's nothing special. The mystery was about a bunch of elderly people and not at all engaging. I'd skip this one.

Great romance,not so great suspense,I mean,too many characters,a lot of questions we'll never now:why would our heros want to find all the watches in the first place?I love romantic suspense even if I've read some of Ms. Freethy's romance novels and I've loved them.Strange enough,I couln't digest the suspense part,not believable at all,sorry.If this is the best she can get at romantic suspense , I think Ms Freethy should stick to romance only.

When I read the back cover of this book I thought it sounded like a great mystery. The first couple of chapters had me hooked. However, as the book went on, the addition of a million different characters became so tiresome! Instead of a well written, clever mystery I found myself reading a sappy, bodice-ripper. The Kayla character is just stupid--she is more worried about whether Nick likes her or not than the fact that she is being stalked by cons left and right! Don't bother with this, unless you are in to romance novels disguised as a real book.