Quarter to Midnight by Karen Rose ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Quarter to Midnight by Karen Rose is a romantic suspense novel set in present-day New Orleans. Gabe, chef and restauranteur who became famous through a reality show, does not believe his father committed suicide and goes to his father's former partner in hopes of uncovering the truth. Burke, who owns a private investigations firm, feels he's too close to be objective and puts his best detective on the case. Gabe isn't too happy, but that might be more because he won't be able to deny his feelings for Molly if they are working together.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

August 2022; Berkley; 978-0593336298
audio, ebook, print (608 pages); romantic suspense

I don't read too much romantic suspense. I love a good suspense novel and I don't mind that characters develop feelings for each other during the incredibly tense and dangerous plot. It's that I don't want to read about them having sex. Karen Rose is one author I make the exception for as I love her characters and her plots grab me and don't let go. But I do skip over the pages when the characters have sex.

I've read several of Rose's romantic suspense novels and they never fail to draw me in. Typically I would shy away from a 600+ page tome but the story reads so fast that I don't realize I'm reading so many pages. Because it does read quickly, you appreciate the length of the book because it isn't over in just a few hours. You can consume great big chunks at a time but still have much more to go which makes it an even more satisfying read. And reading big chunks at a time is exactly what I did over the weekend. It started Friday night when I didn't put it down until 2 am, but I still had plenty to read and enjoy over the rest of the weekend.

There are two somewhat detailed sex scenes so if you are looking for a clean or chaste read, this isn't it. I enjoy the characters and plots so much that I don't overly mind having to skim through the scenes. In the print book they probably are only a page or two long but on my Kindle I had to swipe several times to get past them. I did glance at the scenes since I am writing a review of the book so that I can also tell readers that they aren't overly explicit. I would say the scenes are of the medium heat variety.

Rose isn't one of those authors that turns out a new book every three or four months (at the length of these books that would be impossible) but that's a good thing. It gives the reader a chance to distance themselves from the previous books. I think if I read her books rapidly one after the other I would grow bored as her characters are on the cookie-cutter side and the plot is a bit formulaic. Yet, it is a formula that works as I love her characters just as much as I love the plot.

If you are looking for a suspense novel that will have you on the edge of your seat, then this is a must read book.

Buy Quarter to Midnight by Karen Rose

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

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