Author: Shannon Curtis
ISBN: 9781489220394
RRP: $29.99
Heart Breaker is a gripping suspense novel with a touch of angst and a smattering of steam. There is an element of ill-advised romance but the main focus is a suspenseful murder investigation.
Harmony Talbot returns from a business trip to discover her cousin, and best friend, murdered in their home. This is the second time there has been a murder in her family and Harmony is determined that this one will not be left unsolved, her family couldn’t survive that pain again.
The cousins were close, they’d been living together since moving out of home, and it helped them both to cope with their widowed mothers. Leona was the caretaker of the family, she looked out for everyone and now that she’s gone Harmony isn’t sure how to look out for everyone and make sure that this time justice is done. Her mother is still haunted by the unsolved murder of the past and she makes Harmony promise that they will catch the killer – whatever the cost.
Harmony has a very special skill set as a digital forensic investigator and it’s a skill set she is prepared to use to help with the investigation, even if sometimes that means working outside the law to do so.
Bern Knight is the homicide detective on the case and he is good at his job, he had to be to make sure everyone forgot the stain on his reputation. He wants to make sure they get the killer, and he tries to promise Harmony they will but she has been through it all before and resents the platitudes.
The lead characters have both been burned by the force in the past and are still working to get over the scars of that which makes them interesting characters to get to know. Following the progression of their interactions is captivating; from the very first time they meet there is chemistry but they both know that it is something they shouldn’t act upon.
It is the murder investigation that is truly gripping. Curtis explores the challenges faced when the killer leaves behind no evidence, the clean up is thorough and the trail is simply a series of dead ends. The police only start to make progress when anonymous tips start arriving, then the discovery of more bodies that fit the same pattern also help.
I was fascinated by the killer, I wanted to get inside his head and understand why. It was clear from the outset that there was a lot going on behind those eyes because there was a very clear methodology and I wanted to understand it.
So many elements of this story grabbed my attention and Curtis weaves them all together brilliantly. It took me a lot longer to read the book than I would have expected but only because I have been finding it hard to sit down and read, given the opportunity I would have devoured this one in a sitting.
The digital forensics were actually quite frightening. The ease with which trackers can be embedded and a digital footprint can be followed. We all know the importance of online security but Curtis explores how easy it can be to get around that. How certain can you ever be of someone you communicate with digitally? The answer should scare you, it sure scared me; not necessarily for me but for my children.
Heart Breaker is a gripping psychological thriller that I loved. It explores the characters intimately and allows us to get to know how the past has affected our characters and why they are behaving as they are in these circumstances. Tense, disturbing and completely fascinating this book will satisfy fans across genres.
Heart Breaker is book #21 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2017.
Shannon Curtis can be found on Facebook, Twitter and her Website.
Heart Breaker is published by Harlequin and is available now through Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Harlequin 20 of our Beauty and Lace club members will be reading and reviewing Heart Breaker so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
“Heart Breaker” is a well written, absorbing romantic suspense novel. Unfortunately it has a couple of plot holes that nagged me; however, this didn’t stop it being an extremely enjoyable novel.
Harmony Talbot is deeply traumatised when she discovers the murdered body of her cousin and housemate. This isn’t the first time tragedy has struck her family, and the last occasion left her with little confidence in the police. Harmony feels compelled to use her skills as a digital forensic investigator to try to find the killer.
The detective leading the investigation into her cousin’s murder is Bern Knight, dedicated, effective – and devastatingly handsome. The attraction between the two of them complicates both Bern’s official investigation and Harmony’s unofficial investigation.
The plot holes that nagged at me were largely around technical things. The killer does not usually wipe the data from his victim’s devices, but when disturbed by Harmony, he has time to find her cousin’s phone, ipad, and laptop, break into them, and wipe them, before escaping. It’s also not clear what this achieves; most of that information would be recoverable from her service providers (email, Facebook etc) with a warrant. At a later stage, Harmony places a lure which will bring the killer somewhere to use the wifi – but he’d have to be somewhere with access to wifi to see the lure. Why would he move?
The biggest plot hole, however, was this: when Harmony realises her cousin’s devices have been wiped, she also realises that she has an illegal backup that she made a few days before. This sets a series of obstacles for the investigation, and for Harmony’s relationship with Bern, as she feels unable to admit she has this data.
But it’s not illegal to download your own data – in fact, backing up is a sensible recommendation. So why not just tell the police that your schoolteacher cousin asked you, her technically skilled cousin and housemate, to do her backups? Who would gainsay that, under the circumstances? This feels like a very contrived problem that could have been solved so easily.
Regardless of these problems, however, I found the novel very absorbing. Curtis writes well, and is convincing in both the romantic strand and the serial killer strand of the plot. I completely believed in the romance, and the attraction between Bern and Harmony. The serial killer aspects were also credibly constructed. Curtis has chosen to go easy on the gore, which fits well with the strong romantic strand of the novel. Too much focus on the horrific aspects of the murders would have made the novel feel unbalanced.
There are enough loose ends here to suggest Curtis might have a sequel in mind. She ties up the main plot-lines well, but some of the subplots are left unresolved. Many readers would welcome a return to these characters; they’re strong and engaging, and I’d certainly pick up another book featuring them.
In the suspense/ thriller genre, this falls at the “lighter read” end of the spectrum, but it’s a good solid read with a lot to recommend it. Despite the annoying plot holes, I thoroughly enjoyed this.
Well here is another salute to a great Australian author, Shannon Curtis, with her book ‘Heart Breaker’. A big thank you to Beauty & Lace and publishers Harlequin for supplying another fabulous novel.
Well hold onto your hat and wait for the ride of your life. What a great, fantastic read. Now that was a thriller worth every minute of reading time. I couldn’t put it down.
Harmony Talbot, a digital forensic investigator working for a private firm, returns home from a work seminar to find her cousin, Leona murdered and stuffed into the boot of her car. So begins the rollercoaster ride of excitement, suspense and ever gathering of facts to find this brutal mass murderer. Harmony is left the sole emotional support for her mother and aunty after this second tragic murder in her family, her father being murdered when Harmony was 14 years old.
We learn about the complicated and strained relationship she holds with her mother Elizabeth and are introduced to the growing connection Harmony and Police Detective Bern Knight develop as they search for the killer of her cousin. The Police hit a dead end with no evidence to go on and Harmony takes it upon herself to illegally hack into Police records and begin her own search for information to track down this killer. Harmony is torn between upholding a promise to her mother to find the killer and knowing she is breaking the law and risking her own life by exposing herself to the killer.
This is a ever developing, quick moving, uttering enthralling read. A mystery at every turn with some downright sexy love scenes to satisfy the girls. There is a lot of IT jargon mentioned and even if the reader is unfamiliar with this terminology, it doesn’t take anything away from enjoying this book. The author presents very thorough characters throughout the whole book, the murderer particularly portrayed with great detail and fascinating intrigue.
It gets a big thumbs up from me. You’d be hard to please if you didn’t thoroughly enjoy this one.
Heart Breaker is a thrilling and unpredictable read that delivers us disturbing murders and gruesomely displayed antics of a serial killer .
This is by far the most suspenseful read I’ve read in a long time I spent the entire time reading enthralled at the cleverness of the authors insight into forensic cyber dealings and the information put forth in regards to the ins and outs of the investigating behind murders .
It’s truly a roller coaster ride . Heartbreak , past regrets , suspense , romance , intrigue , family and and unpredictable read that will have you on the edge of your seat till the very last page.
Lots of great characters penned within the pages . Strong , sassy and kick ass heroine . A sexy detective and an array of wonderfully scripted secondary characters .
Family was also an important role within the story , hope , past traumas and standing as a team and loving unconditionally .
I enjoyed the romance and steamy sex scenes 🙂 so for those who like smouldering connections you’ll be pleasantly sated lol
Harmony and Bern found something they never bargained for among a dark road , it certainly brought some light in the turmoil .
The murders are gruesome, dark and twisted .. as the story unravels so does the beginning of the saga . We find out why …. who … and are given closure on all aspects .
The author certainly keeps you on your toes from beginning to end .
The author balanced the romance and suspense giving us a well scripted plot .
My first read from this author and it won’t be my last .
A twisted killer
A sassy cyber whizz
And a hell bent detective …
A thrilling read from beginning to end .
From the first chapter for this storyline I was hooked on a character that seemed to be very endearing but you just knew that something was going to go awry with her character and it was here I felt like jumping into the page to warn her.
Once you read the first chapter of this thrilling book, you already know that there is a psychopathic killer lurking in the shadows.
The author has certainly captured this novel as heart stopping, suspenseful, gripping, creepy and leaving me with trepidation as I continued reading.
We meet the main characters of Harmony and Bern and of course you know there is going to be some attraction with them. There are other characters in the storyline that you will like also.
I do love captivating storylines with a twist of steamy romance engaging characters. This book certainly was a page turner for me. I just couldn’t put the book down because I was on the edge of my seat and wanted to know who the killer was and why he was doing the killing.
Though a thrilling, gripping murder story, I wasn’t prepared for the tears that I would feel in reading this novel. There are no definite boring bits in this story either. Sometimes in these storylines I can lose the plot but Shannon has kept the pages moving.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story and will certainly be looking out for more of Shannon’s books.
Thank you to Beauty & Lace and Harlequin Mira for introducing me to yet another unknown Australian author. This story shows us that Shannon Curtis certainly researches what she writes in her novels.
I have had the pleasure of reading Heart Breaker it is very good. It is about a murder of a family member which has rocked their world. Harmony is wanting to find the killer to give her family peace.
Heart Breaker by Shannon Curtis is a fast paced with murder, mystery, romance and a look inside the terrifying mind of a murderer.
A digital forensic investigator returns home after a weekend away to discover the brutally murdered body of her cousin. She makes a promise to her family to bring the murderer to justice at whatever cost.
The Homicide Detective incharge of the Investigation struggles with his growing attraction to the victims cousin.
They both are caught up in the race to catch the killer before he strikes again.
A great read that I thoroughly enjoyed and I passed the second copy I received from the Publishers onto a friend and also my copy has been paid forward to another friend to read and review.
I was lucky enough to be chosen to read and review Heart Breaker written by Australian author Shannon Curtis.
I would describe it as a psychological thriller, with a hint of romance thrown in for good measure, which centres around a murder investigation and the events that unfold from there.
It will have you gripped (quite literally I think I was gripping the book tight at times, screaming to the character in my head of something bad is going to happen!), suspense lingers around each page turn and it really draws you in. I liked the aspect of the digital mixed with conventional crime investigations, and thought there were some really good writing in this book and enough detail for me to understand what’s going on without it being way too technical.
Harmony comes home to discover a murder scene – how horrific and utterly terrifying were my first thoughts. She was quite a good character, someone who I felt connected to which made her much more likeable.
Bern is the detective assigned to the murder case, and you get that hint of something might just happen with these two characters after a while! It also helps that Harmony already has some sleuthing skills of her own to add to the story, I liked that as well, gave her more of a storyline of her own.
It all gathered pace well to the conclusion, as you were racing to find out the ending. I thoroughly enjoyed Heart Breaker, and will be sure to put Shannon Curtis on my list of authors I’d love to read more books from!
Thanks Beauty and Lace, and Harlequin for the opportunity to read this thrilling book.
Wow this is one of those books that literally once you have started to read it, you wont want to put it down, and for me, that is okay, as I am resting after an accident, and some 19 stitches in my arm out…This is a gripping story, and it makes me wonder now….. with this new hacker on the loose this last few days, and demanding money from people….. how easy is it to get into peoples computer and see and read what is there. I dont know that there is a great lot more I can write here, as the people that also got this book, and probably long before it arrived in w.a. for me, have written quite a lot.. I have a son who is in IT but he never discusses anything about the computer with me, his mum, probably horify me. The story is very absorbing, and to read that the cousin had done a back up piece as well is unusual, but that in itself might prompt more people to do that on their own computers. The story is very engrossing with all the murders, but each one is laid out as the one before, and it makes one wonder why and how. read on my friends and you will be able to find out the how and why of the story like I have just done.. There must have been a lot of thought put into it by the person who wrote it, and you would need to have a good list to work from to be able to put all the graphic detail into each and every one.. thanks for the chance to read it.
I enjoyed the story Heart Breaker, did not put the book down once I started until I finished it. The story involves a woman, Harmony, who arrives home to find her cousin dead in their home. Harmony”s occupation is a digital forensic investigator, and as the story unfolds we learn the killer has been finding his victims online, so Harmony becomes involved in her own investigation as well as the police. She also becomes involved with Ben, the policeman handling the investigation. Lots of twists and turns in the story, and a warning as to how the internet can be dangerous to the unwary.
This is a vibrant read, the first with this author.
It is a crime romance , I guess you would call it.
The crimes are quite brutal and the psychopath is viscous and repulsive in his acts.
I did scan through the ‘sex scenes’ but I was happy the main characters had them as I did want them to enjoy themselves and be a happy!
The pacing was tight, the ending satisfying , I liked all the characters ( except that dastardly one) and I am interested to read another Knight Family murder.
A good read. Congratulations to the author Shannon Curtis and her team.
Review: Kai Lexx