Review by Kayleigh
Nora’s stand alone romantic suspense books always please and delight me.
Favourite Quote:
She found a face that brought that itch between her shoulder blades.
The guy, she thought … Dustin. Again? Sitting there, hands folded on a copy of her book.
She couldn’t say unreal, as there he sat, but she considered it several clicks over weird, and yes, into that spooky she’d felt the last time.
He wanted to write, she understood that, and how lonely it could feel. But to show up at all her events? Just a little too obsessive for comfort.
She decided she needed to ease off the friendly there, and stick with professionally polite.
Book Synopsis:
He showed up at Arden Bowie’s debut author appearance with a copy of her novel and an eager smile. He showered her with compliments and got her autograph. Then he came to her next event. And the one after that.
Dustin was just an aspiring writer who wanted advice, Arden reassured herself. But after giving in to one of his incessant invitations and chatting with him over coffee, she discovered that ignoring her inner alarm bell had been a terrible mistake…
An introvert at heart, Arden had long craved solitude―but now, after a harrowing assault, she finds herself hiding behind locked doors and startling at every sound. And her relief at his imprisonment is tempered by anxiety when Dustin’s wealthy mother helps to get him a paltry five-year sentence at a psychiatric facility.
Arden decides to write a new story for herself, moving to a tiny Oregon town and befriending Gideon, an ex-LAPD detective. But while she learns to thrive, Dustin remains his delusional, twisted self, as fixated as ever and now seething with anger. He still believes Arden’s purpose on earth is to serve and please him. And his job is to protect her. But who will protect her from him?
Review:
I love a Nora Roberts romantic suspense. Does she have a formula? Yes. Is it tried and true? Also yes. Will I always read the new ones? One hundred percent yes. I love Nora’s May book release because she normally delivers a romantic suspense, which as she gets further along in her career has turned more into a suspense with a romantic subplot. I love the character work she’s been doing in these novels and find they are always compulsive reads for me. The Final Target is a wonderful addition to Nora’s standalone book list.
In The Final Target we meet Arden, a young woman who’s published her first book at age 25 (shout out to Nora for actually creating a writer who talks about the years it took her from idea to complete manuscript to getting agent to getting a story sold) and it gets published and does OK (also a shout out to Nora for making Arden a more realistic author who keeps writing and slowly makes a name for herself instead of discovering overnight fame).
During her first book signing ever she meets a young man, Dustin, who’s a little intense but also keen to talk about the book he’s working on. Little does she know that being polite to Dustin is one of the worst things she can do in her life. Dustin is actually a sociopathic rich kid who believes women owe men for everything. And his current obsession is with Arden. Eventually he’s tired of being sloughed off and he assaults her. He ends up in prison and Arden has to learn to live and trust again.
Fast forward five years and the story picks back up with Arden moving across the US and starting a new life for herself near some extended family. Here we get to watch her learn to trust herself and build herself a life she deserves instead of living in fear. This contrasts nicely to Dustin’s POV which we also get that shows his manipulation and lies throughout his imprisonment and the obsession he still has with Arden, especially as she dared to upset his life and have him locked up.
Of course the two are on a fast track to another encounter as he’s released and determined to claim what’s his: Arden. Arden however is building out a life, which includes letting in the hunky woodworker she meets in her small Oregon town. Gideon is a smart and seasoned ex-cop who has his own shadows he carries. Instead of smothering her with protection when he finds out her shadows, he works to ensure she knows how to protect herself and live as a survivor instead of a victim. I loved these two and their quiet and steady romance (filled with classic Nora heat and humour).
Like so many of Nora’s books, there is an excellent cast of secondary characters that build out the heart of this story. Arden, who loses her parents in a tragic accident at a young age has built her family out of extended relations and learns how important friends can be in your family structure. There’s a gaggle of cute dogs and kids who read like a warm hug on the page. The setting is also a fabulous part of this story, and getting to see Nora visit Oregon was fun. It’s a gorgeous slice of the Pacific North West and I don’t recall reading another of her books set there. The gorgeous scenery made me want to book a flight to explore it for myself, and maybe also fund a hunky wood worker/ ex cop to keep me company.
The Final Target is an excellent Nora read filled with twists, turns and a happy ending.
