Revenge is the only thing Raffaele Rossellini has in mind when he knocks on Lana Whittaker’s door. His first impression of her is an ice maiden, with not one iota of passion in her soul. An affair is part of his revenge; emotional pain, to be inflicted on the woman he believes betrayed his sister.

Lana is in shock after finding herself penniless and soon to be homeless, after her husband Kyle is killed in a car accident. When she thinks life couldn’t get any worse, Lana learns Kyle not only embezzled money from his clients, he was having an affair.

When Raffaele comes into her life, she believes him to be yet another creditor to the estate. He offers her his help, without realizing he has a hidden agenda. Lana is desperate and accepts help; when it’s too late she learns he hates her. She has lost her heart to the charismatic Italian business man. He betrays Lana, against a background of death and sensual desire.  

The actions that Raffaele take will make him a hero that most romantics will dislike. As the story unfolds, he seems to have few redeeming characteristics toward anyone other than his family. The heroine has been used badly by the men in her life, making her very vulnerable. Lana’s seesaw of feelings compelled this reviewer to empathize with her. The action is easy to follow and the dialogue was clear and concise, with no confusion in the plot. There is depth, sensuality and energy in Ms. Lindsay’s writing that encourages the reader to keep turning pages.

The characters were complex, and the heroine’s distress and actions were easy to understand. The hero’s actions were motivated by grief, but still seemed too harsh at times. The structure was good with a consistent dark tone held throughout. The ending was a bit too easily resolved, but a satisfying end where a hero had learnt about the errors he’d made. The lesson in this tale was to always check your facts are correct.

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