A chaotic welter of loose ends that Fallon himself couldn’t unsnarl.
Premiere of Krentz’s new trilogy about a psychic detective agency.
In this latest addition to the Arcane Society series, para-detective Fallon Jones has finally met his match in Isabella Valdez, who has washed up in his home base, a remote, cliffside Northern California village called Scargill Cove. A few decades back, a commune of hippies lived here, under the sway of a guru who disappeared under mysterious circumstances but whose skeletal remains were later found in a bomb shelter hidden behind the Cove’s no-tell motel. Scargill, a “nexus” of psychic energy, is a magnet for the preternaturally endowed. Strong, silent Fallon, whose psychic “talent” empowers him to see order in chaos, is instantly drawn to Isabella. Isabella invites herself to join Fallon’s agency, Jones & Jones, as an investigator. Fallon is descended from those paranormal aristocrats the Joneses, Victorian-era pillars of the Arcane Society. For centuries, the Society, a shadowy league of talents working for good, has battled the minions of occult evil. The first case Isabella takes on, a routine ghost check of a mansion listed for sale, uncovers much more than she bargained for: a serial killer, a basement hiding human remains and, more importantly for Jones & Jones, a clock invented by Victorian genius, and Jones’ nemesis, Mrs. Bridewell. That’s just the beginning of this impossibly convoluted saga. Fallon and Isabella succumb all too soon to blistering passion, but probably not often enough for romance readers’ expectations. The plot connecting the sex scenes, which involves internecine warfare among good psychics, bad psychics and clandestine government agencies, not to mention factions within the Society itself, soon becomes too “arcane” to sustain interest.
A chaotic welter of loose ends that Fallon himself couldn’t unsnarl.Pub Date: Jan. 3, 2011
ISBN: 978-0-399-15702-8
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: Dec. 23, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2010
Anyone who believes in true love or is simply willing to accept it as the premise of a winding tale will find this debut an...
True love flares between two people, but they find that circumstances always impede it.
On a winter day in London, Laurie spots Jack from her bus home and he sparks a feeling in her so deep that she spends the next year searching for him. Her roommate and best friend, Sarah, is the perfect wing-woman but ultimately—and unknowingly—ends the search by finding Jack and falling for him herself. Laurie’s hasty decision not to tell Sarah is the second painful missed opportunity (after not getting off the bus), but Sarah’s happiness is so important to Laurie that she dedicates ample energy into retraining her heart not to love Jack. Laurie is misguided, but her effort and loyalty spring from a true heart, and she considers her project mostly successful. Perhaps she would have total success, but the fact of the matter is that Jack feels the same deep connection to Laurie. His reasons for not acting on them are less admirable: He likes Sarah and she’s the total package; why would he give that up just because every time he and Laurie have enough time together (and just enough alcohol) they nearly fall into each other’s arms? Laurie finally begins to move on, creating a mostly satisfying life for herself, whereas Jack’s inability to be genuine tortures him and turns him into an ever bigger jerk. Patriarchy—it hurts men, too! There’s no question where the book is going, but the pacing is just right, the tone warm, and the characters sympathetic, even when making dumb decisions.
Anyone who believes in true love or is simply willing to accept it as the premise of a winding tale will find this debut an emotional, satisfying read.Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-525-57468-2
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: July 30, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.
Eleven years ago, he broke her heart. But he doesn’t know why she never forgave him.
Toggling between past and present, two love stories unfold simultaneously. In the first, Macy Sorensen meets and falls in love with the boy next door, Elliot Petropoulos, in the closet of her dad’s vacation home, where they hide out to discuss their favorite books. In the second, Macy is working as a doctor and engaged to a single father, and she hasn’t spoken to Elliot since their breakup. But a chance encounter forces her to confront the truth: what happened to make Macy stop speaking to Elliot? Ultimately, they’re separated not by time or physical remoteness but by emotional distance—Elliot and Macy always kept their relationship casual because they went to different schools. And as a teen, Macy has more to worry about than which girl Elliot is taking to the prom. After losing her mother at a young age, Macy is navigating her teenage years without a female role model, relying on the time-stamped notes her mother left in her father’s care for guidance. In the present day, Macy’s father is dead as well. She throws herself into her work and rarely comes up for air, not even to plan her upcoming wedding. Since Macy is still living with her fiance while grappling with her feelings for Elliot, the flashbacks offer steamy moments, tender revelations, and sweetly awkward confessions while Macy makes peace with her past and decides her future.
With frank language and patient plotting, this gangly teen crush grows into a confident adult love affair.Pub Date: April 10, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5011-2801-1
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Jan. 22, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2018
© Copyright 2026 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
