Gina Rae Mitchell

Stolen Obsession by Marlene M Bell | Review

Thank you to the author, publisher, and BookSirens for the opportunity to read & review this book.

Stolen Obsession by Marlene M Bell
Series: Annalisse #1
Published by Ewephoric Publishing on 01/12/2018
Genres: Fiction, Detective/Sleuth, International Crime, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Organized Crime, Romance, Thriller
Format: Audiobook, eBook, Paperback
Pages: 294

People die, but legends live on.

New York antiquities appraiser Annalisse Drury recently lost her best friend to murder. The killer’s identity may be linked to her friend’s expensive missing bracelet—a 500-year-old artifact that carries an ancient curse, one that unleashes evil upon any who dare wear the jewelry created for the Persian royal family.

Weeks later, Annalisse sees a matching necklace at a Manhattan gallery opening. She begs the owner to destroy the cursed piece, but her pleas fall on deaf ears—despite the unnatural death that occurs during the opening. With two victims linked to the jewelry, Annalisse is certain she must act.

Desperate, Annalisse enlists the gallery owner’s son to help—even though she’s afraid he’ll break her heart. Wealthy and devastatingly handsome, with a string of bereft women in his wake, Greek playboy Alec Zavos dismisses Annalisse’s concerns—until his parents are ripped from the Zavos family yacht during their ocean voyage near Crete.

Annalisse and Alec race across two oceans to save his mother, feared dead or kidnapped. When the killer changes tactics and goes after Alec behind Annalisse’s back, can her plan to rescue Alec’s mother save them all?

Hold on for a heart-thumping, thrilling adventure through exotic lands in this fast-moving romantic suspense mystery by Marlene M. Bell.

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Source: BookSirens, Received from the author or publisher for review.

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Purchase Links for Stolen Obsession by Marlene M Bell

Amazon    Amazon UK     Barnes & Noble     iTunes

Waterstones     The Book Depository     Chapters/Indigo

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My thoughts on Stolen Obsession by Marlene M Bell

I loved the mystery, settings, and characters of this book. So let’s break it down a bit more,

Stolen Obsessions is book one of the Annalisse series, but it feels like there should be a prequel. I was a little confused at the feeling of missing some information in the opening chapters.

Each scene is described vividly and plays like a movie in your head while reading. From the gallery to apartments to villas in Greece, you live the lushness of the descriptions.

The main characters jump off the page and demand your attention. Annalisse, Alec, Gen, and Chase captivate and beg you to keep turning the pages.

I did have issues keeping all the minor characters straight. Between changing aliases, the nationalities, the government agencies, and too many possibilities for the bad guys, I frequently got lost. Now some of this is probably my fault. I’m easily distracted and needed to direct my focus to keep everyone straight, so I didn’t have to reread sections.

However, that did not stop me from devouring the chapters because I needed to know how this mystery turned out.

The slow-burn romance between Annalisse and Alec is superbly written. I could visualize them in the villa with the sheer drapes gently moving with the breeze. Oh, how I loved that part.

The author keeps you hooked with the desire to discover who is behind the horrible murders and mayhem. By the end, I suspected everyone!

Overall, this is a good romantic mystery/suspense story. The reader needs to focus and pay attention to all the small details. This is not a book for light reading. Put on your super-solver spectacles and dive deep into the mystery.

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Stolen Obsession by Marlene M Bell

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