Pearl's World of Romance - Reviews with a Passion: Desire Never Dies

August 2, 2007

Desire Never Dies - Jenna Petersen

6:01 PM |

Shy, intelligent widow Anastasia Whittig is really a Lady Spy in name only. Though she invents important items and decodes evidence, she’s hardly ventured into the field and keeps herself wrapped in a shroud of mourning for her late husband. She’s perfectly content to continue her sheltered life, but when one of her best friend’s is shot, she’s forced into service at the side of Lucas Tyler.

Lucas is a daring, talented spy, driven to solve the case of attacks on his fellow agents. He doesn’t want any help, and certainly not from Ana. But as the two edge ever closer to the disturbing truth, they cannot keep from developing a grudging respect for each other. And they cannot ignore the undeniable desire that threatens to change both their worlds.

Ana is the quiet, intelligent one of the Lady Spies. She cracks codes, invents gadgets, makes disguises and is not involved much in the actual field work.
Lucas is a straightforward, blunt, cut-to-the-chase kind of man.
After Emily is shot, ambushed while working with Lucas, Ana has to take her place in the field. Something neither she or Lucas is happy with. Ana prefers working behind the scenes and Lucas doesn't want a partner and certainly not a female one. And besides that, they both feel things they don't want to feel when the other is around and working together means they have to be in each other's vincinity a lot.
But they have no choice and it turns out Lucas brings out the best in Ana: spunk, liveliness, things she was hiding by staying in the background hiding herself.
For Lucas it's love at first sight. For Ana it takes a while for her to acknowledge her feelings for Lucas because she stills clings to the memory of her deceased husband, seeing falling in love with another man as a betrayal to him.
Circumstances force them into marriage and the danger of losing the other while solving the case makes them acknowledge their love for each other.

This is book 2 of the Lady Spies and Jenna Petersen continues the series in a formidable way. The story is fast-paced, action-filled, with sensuality and a whirlwind of emotions. I really love the way Jenna makes the characters come to life, everything sparkles and sizzles making you want to delve deep into the book and just come up for air when really neccesary.
The plot is obvious fairly early in the story but this doesn't matter because the focus is on solving the case and dealing with the consequences. And on how Ana and Lucas deal with these consequeces and feelings and the effect it has on their relationship and partnership.

The connection to book 1 (Meredith's story) is there and the friendship between the women, as in book 1, is strongly present. But Ana and Lucas truly hold their own in an unique and beautiful love-story that made me laugh a little, cry sometimes, hold my breath on occasion and feel like fanning myself at times.

I'm really looking forward to Emily's story and I'm sure it will be the perfect addition to these first two books.

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