Connie’s review of Traceless by Debra Webb
Romantic Suspense released by St. Martin’s 28 Aug 07
Traceless is a story of how old small town secrets always come back to haunt you.
Traceless opens with Clint being released from jail after serving ten years for a murder he didn’t commit. He returns home, to the small town he grew up, determined to clear his name, find out who made him waste ten years of his life in jail for and even though it isn’t clearly a goal to him – to prove to Emily he didn’t do it.
Emily and Clint grew up together in the usual roles of bad boy/good girl. They went to a typical small town high school together. He was the typical bad boy, to her typical good girl. For Clint it was a lust for the good girl he could and would never have and for Emily it was a ‘secret crush’ of sorts with the boy from the wrong sides of the tracks, until she saw him murder her “best” friend.
Things are anything but typical from there. As the person who found Clint holding the body, Emily was THE key witness and biggest reason Clint finds himself behind bars for 10 years. Or at least the biggest reason the author gives us, all the ‘evidence’ that is used to this young man away for 10 YEARS really didn’t add up to me.
Over all I wanted to like the book and I did enjoy the story but it is so sad. There is so much lost time, the things he went through in prison, Heather dying for what turns out to be such a stupid reason and a small town evil that is hard to believe wouldn’t have come out in the last ten years (really longer because Heathers murder was not the start).
I can’t say I didn’t enjoy the book. It kept me turning the pages. I read it in close to one sitting and there were many things about Clint and Emily I enjoyed reading about but over all this isn’t a good suspense story.
Grade: C
Here is the summary:
She’s In Search of Justice
Emily Wallace has no doubt about who killed her best friend ten years ago. Clint Austin, the town bad boy. The key witness in his trial, Emily put Clint behind bars with her tearful testimony. But when Emily learns that Clint has been released on parole, she returns to her Alabama hometown to confront him—and make sure he never forget the damage he has done.
He is Dead-Set on Revenge
After serving ten years for a crime he didn’t commit, Clint knows only the truth can set him free. Ignoring warnings from his old friend, now the chief of police, Clint will let no one stand in his way as he tries to prove his innocence – including Emily, the girl he once loved. Prison has made him a hard man, yet he yearns for Emily…and he can see in her eyes that, in spite of herself, she feels the same. But even if he can convince her to trust him, it might be too late to clear his name – before the real killer strikes again.
Sybil’s review of Traceless by Debra Webb
Romantic Suspense released by St. Martin’s 28 Aug 07
I REALLY was excited when I saw this book. And ended up reading a few pages just to ”try’ it out. I stayed up all night reading it but when I closed the book I was really disappointed. The whole bad guy plot is so unbelievable, even though I could see it being ‘ripped from the headlines’ over the last five or so years. Maybe it is a case of truth being stranger than fiction – although I haven’t seen anything, anywhere saying the author based this on any ‘real life events’.
The good news is she is a long-time Harlequin author, I have enjoyed before. This could explain the almost 30 virgin heroine and prison rapes which are never STATED but alluded too. I kept telling her, you are writing for St. Martin’s now, you can say those things. Yes I talk to my books sometimes. Stop looking at me like that!
I think this is her first time out the gate with a full length novel. So even though I ended up not really liking this book, I look forward to trying the next in the trilogy, Nameless. I think it is a trilogy. If she can get the suspense to be as good as the characters, I think we will see some great romantic suspense from Debra Webb.
Grade: C-
The next book in the trilogy (?) will be out in Feb 2008:
Nameless
