Mean Streak

 tags: mystery, thriller



From Amazon.com

Dr. Emory Charbonneau, a pediatrician and marathon runner, disappears on a mountain road in North Carolina. By the time her husband Jeff, miffed over a recent argument, reports her missing, the trail has grown cold. Literally. Fog and ice encapsulate the mountainous wilderness and paralyze the search for her.

While police suspect Jeff of "instant divorce," Emory, suffering from an unexplained head injury, regains consciousness and finds herself the captive of a man whose violent past is so dark that he won't even tell her his name. She's determined to escape him, and willing to take any risks necessary to survive. 

Unexpectedly, however, the two have a dangerous encounter with people who adhere to a code of justice all their own. At the center of the dispute is a desperate young woman whom Emory can't turn her back on, even if it means breaking the law. Wrong becomes right at the hands of the man who strikes fear, but also sparks passion.
As her husband's deception is revealed, and the FBI closes in on her captor, Emory begins to wonder if the man with no name is, in fact, her rescuer from those who wish her dead - and from heartbreak.

Combining the nail-biting suspense and potent storytelling that has made Sandra Brown one of the world's best loved authors, MEAN STREAK is a wildly compelling novel about love, deceit, and the choices we must make in order to survive.

I borrowed this recently published Kindle book because it's mystery/thriller and was available from our library. The name of the author is somewhat familiar; I may have read one of her books many moons ago but I couldn't remember which one. 

The novel is interesting at the beginning and her writing style is acceptable to me but the characters are not well-developed. I had a hard time finishing the book as soon as the story morphs from mystery to a Mills&Boon/Harlequin romance with sexual tensions and all that nonsense. It's so unbelievable that a successful pediatrician and marathoner would fall in love and lust over a nameless stranger in a matter of 3 days! He could be a mass murderer wanted by the FBI and our heroine can't help herself going horizontal with him ASAP. Um. *eye roll*

Notable negatives:
>Sandra Brown throws in a ton of stinky red herrings that one can smell kilometers away. Guessing the culprit is easy as pie and the motive for harming her is as trite as can be. 
>The name of the nameless guy and his reason for going under the radar are revealed almost near the end of the novel. The reason is very very lame and RIDICULOUS, incredibly RIDICULOUS. 
> Stereotyped side characters of incestuous murderous uneducated hillbillies, and incompetent New York FBI agent flying all the way to the West coast achieving nothing worthwhile.

After suffering through 400+ pages of this book, I vowed never to read anything by Sandra Brown ever again even if it's free.

Not recommended