Summer in Eclipse Bay

Sensuality: 6

Art gallery owner Octavia Brightwell turns down six dates with handsome Nick Harte before she finds the courage to say "yes." She knows that not only does Nick have a "no-commitment" reputation, but he's also a member of one of Eclipse Bay's foremost families. Octavia, on the other hand, is the niece of the infamous woman who started a feud between Nick's grandfather and another prominent family, the Madisons, years ago. Sheer attraction wins out, however, and after one date, Nick is determined to make Octavia more than his dinner partner. Before the two have time to explore their relationship, a valuable painting is stolen from Octavia's art gallery and when the town names her as the prime suspect, she turns to Nick to solve the mystery. The investigation unravels an old scandal, heals a broken friendship, and forces Nick and Octavia to face and resolve the passionate attraction that binds them.

In this third tale in Jayne Ann Krentz's trilogy about life and love in a small town on the Oregon Coast, readers get to revisit the quirky characters that populate Eclipse Bay. The supporting cast also includes the fascinating members of the Harte and Madison families who starred in prior books. While the mystery element in the plot is light, the banter between hero and heroine is fun, and watching these two tread warily through the land mine-strewn road of their developing relationship is a pleasure. --Lois Faye Dyer