Amanda Quick, Second Sight

Second Sight

Amanda Quick

Putnam, May 2006, $24.95

ISBN 0399153527

Knowing her family needs money, photographer Venetia Milton obtains a gig at isolated Arcane House where she plans to seduce her employer Gabriel Jones. She succeeds on both parts, but feels despondent when she has to leave, as she believes she is in love. However, not long afterward, she reads in the newspaper that her beloved died.

Feeling like a widow, Venetia pretends that she and Gabriel were married. To her shock, Gabriel arrives at her home. Apparently, he arranged his death to fool his enemies who want his secrets that he possesses, as the current ancestor of an alchemist who formed a clandestine society to study psychic phenomena; Venetia hides the fact that she sees auras from her "guest". As they fall in love, they team up to uncover killers, blackmailers, and thieves who covet both their secrets, in a world filled with masquerades in which SECOND SIGHT can prove misleading.

This is a delightful Victorian romantic suspense with a touch of the paranormal. The storyline balances the kissing scenes with the perilous escapades so that the audience obtains a quick-paced fun thriller. Venetia is a wonderful protagonist struggling with her secrets, including her desire for her "late" employer, while Gabriel battles his enemies, but has revised his life goals as he reciprocates his employee's desires. Historical romance fans will enjoy this charming couple, who are either in the fire or causing the fire.