The Sinner
Kathleen O'Brien
Harlequin SuperRomance, Jan 2005, $5.50, 294 pp.
ISBN: 0373712499

Rising Hollywood star Lara Lynmore gives a presentation at the Breast Cancer Awareness luncheon when her stalker, stuntman Kenny Boggs, makes his move. Her bodyguard, former FBI Agent Bryce McClintock, intercedes. The deranged Kenny uses a knife to stab Bryce in his upper arm to the bone; Bryce shoots and kills the dangerous intruder.

Bryce returns home to Heyday where he surprisingly inherited the home of his estranged father. His plan is to recuperate enough to play blackjack in the Bahamas. Lara follows Bryce, not because she hero-worships him, but because she has loved her bodyguard from almost the first moment her lawyer, his friend, introduced them. Now she must persuade him that he comes first, not fame.

The latest "Heroes of Heyday" (see THE SAINT) is a fine, contemporary romance starring two likable lead protagonists though the hero is in denial perhaps a bit too long as he insists he is not the marrying kind and that she is. Lara is a terrific individual who struggles to not let fame overwhelm her as much as she toils with getting Bryce to recognize they belong together. Fans will enjoy this fine look at the price of fame while looking forward to the third brother's tale, THE STRANGER.

Harriet Klausner