A man determined to overcome the test of time and claim his only true love.

Due to a misunderstanding ten years ago, Cort lost the love of his life, Riley. For eight years he had been searching for her, but to no avail. Cort's luck was about to change; he had finally run across a private detective agency that had a high success rate in finding missing persons. Cort knew his life would not be complete without Riley sharing it with him. Low and behold, who should be working at the detective agency, but Riley!

Feeling betrayed by Cort those many years ago, Riley ran away not only from him but also from the only real home that she had known. Believing her love for Cort would never be reciprocated, Riley made a new life for herself under an assumed name. She did not know when she left that she was pregnant with Cort's child. Riley was fortunate to find a good support system, and with the help of a small group of people, she was able to raise a happy child and, for the most part, hide the pain of her unrequited love for Cort. How ironic that her chosen profession as a private detective would bring him back into her life when she least expected it.

Cort was determined he was never going to let Riley get away from him again and used a ruse to persuade her to return home with him. Keeping their son a secret from Cort, Riley entrusted his care to her good friend Joe, and made the decision of a lifetime. Riley saw this as an opportunity to see if Cort could love her the way she loved him.

With Crimes of Passion, Heather Holland has written an emotional tale of love lost and found. Ms. Holland is a thorough storyteller. Crimes of Passion has some twists and turns that make it a hard book to put down. Riley is a very strong heroine who has overcome a lot of adversity in her young life. I loved the fact that Cort wasn't afraid to let Riley know that he loved her. A hero that admits his love instead of hiding it from his lady love is a hero that touches my heart. The secondary characters came alive for me and one person in particular, Riley's good friend Joe, made an impression on me. Ms. Holland, I think he deserves his own book, pretty please.

Reviewed by SexiVixen
© September 2004