Good murder mystery, but uninspiring romance

This is the second book in a series, and it does help to have read book one. It takes a brave author to have such a flawed character as Keith, who in the first book was a drug addict who took advantage of the kind nature of Nancy, his girlfriend, before taking her money and deserting her. In this book he has broken ties with his controlling and manipulative mother and taken control of his life and his addictions, becoming a successful businessman in the process.

The death of his mother brings him back to the area, in the belief that that it was not suicide, but murder. The subsequent investigation also brings him back to ex-girlfriend Nancy.

The plot moved at a good pace, was never predictable and thankfully, Nancy did not immediately fall into line with Keith’s wish to resume their relationship, albeit on a temporary basis. I have mixed feelings about this book, because I find it difficult to fault, but it just felt something was lacking. The murder mystery in the final chapters was very neatly solved “off screen” without any drama, which seemed to be a missed opportunity. Meanwhile the romance seemed a bit “convenient” for Keith and at the end he left as planned, even though Nancy had admitted her feelings for him, albeit making it clear she would not accept a “casual” relationship. Of course he did admit his mistake, and his feelings, and return, but I did wonder if he would have ever done this if Nancy had not had the strength to dump him unless he offered some commitment. The issue of Keith’s father was a twist that seemed incomplete and a strange thing to focus on in the epilogue. This is a good book, but I felt the romance lacked chemistry, as Keith had never really thought about returning to Nancy, and it was only the death of his mother that brought them back together.

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