Christine Feehan

Being behind on reviews has had an unexpected plus side.

By having that gap between finishing the book and when I actually sit down to put my thoughts on paper, I have a better take on which books stay with me. Since I have to refresh my memory on some points, I usually have to do a little re-reading. If I really love the book, I tend to keep reading after I found whatever it was that prompted me to refer to the book. That’s a bit annoying, since I should be writing, not reading. The harder it is for me to put aside the book, the more likely the book is going to be a 5-star book, flaws and all.

With that in mind, I’m going to go ahead and give ratings to the books I’ve already posted. I’ll eventually update the individual review posts. Reminder: anything I give a 3-Star or above is a guarantee that I will try other books from the author.

Five Stars: LOVED!

Dawnkeepers (Jessica Andersen)
Bedded for Diamonds (a.k.a. Priceless) (Kelly Hunter)
Ravenous (Sharon Ashwood)
Dark Crusade (Lori Devoti)

Four Stars: Liked a lot!

Driven (Eve Kenin)
An Unladylike Offer (Christine Merrill)
Ace is Wild (Penny McCall)

Three Stars: Enjoyable Read

Slave to Sensation (Nalini Singh)
Cousin Kate (Georgette Heyer)
Shadow Game (Christine Feehan)

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Shadow Game

Author: Christine Feehan
Copyright: 2003 (Jove); pgs. 323
ISBN: 0-515-13596-8
Series: 1st in the GhostWalkers series
Sensuality: Hot

Who: Dr. Lily Whitney and Captain Ryland Miller

Dr. Lily Whitney’s father, Dr. Peter Whitney, has asked her to consult on one of his classified experiments. The project’s goal is to enhance psychic abilities in a select group of men, all volunteers, to be used as a military weapon. With their extraordinary metal powers, these men could infiltrate enemy territory undetected and carry a variety of covert activities. But something has gone wrong with the experiment. Men are dying in training accidents.

Captain Ryland Miller, the senior ranking “GhostWalker”, falls for Lily the moment he sees her. Her presences is soothing, her own psychic gifts toning down the sensory onslaught. Ryland feels he and his men have been betrayed by Dr. Peter Whitney and Colonel Higgens, the military liaison to the project. He and his men are kept separated from each other and caged like lab rats. The team’s mental abilities have been enhanced to such a point that they can’t turn them off and, without sufficient mental barriers, they can barely function outside a controlled environment. The doctor has tried to reverse the process, but has yet to find a way. Colonel Higgens has made no secret that he wants the enhancement process perfected, not reversed, and views the deaths as acceptable losses.

Lily, too, also feels the instant attraction though she’s at a loss on how to deal with it, having never formed any type of meaningful attachment to a man before. She wants to help him and his men. However, her father did not give her much information about the project prior to asking her to stop by. Shortly after Lily agrees to join the project, her father is murdered, leaving Lily with a lot of unanswered questions and the fate of the project — and the GhostWalkers themselves — in her hands. Since her father didn’t trust Higgens any more than Ryland did, he kept his notes in code and hid them for her to find. Searching for the answers to helping Ryland, Lily uncovers things about her own past.

This is the first book I’ve read by Christine Feehan. One of my favorite aspects of the book is the character relationships. Not just the romantic relationship, but also the friendships and the sense of family between Lily and her household staff, the relationships between the GhostWalkers, etc. I really liked Ryland right from the start. All the normal traits you’d expect to find in the hero — leader, protector — but he isn’t closed off. He readily voices his fears and insecurities to Lily. It took me longer to warm up to Lily — a super-smart heroine who comes across a little too naive gets on nerves.

Overall, it was an enjoyable read. I have books from the author’s other series (Drake sisters and the Leopards), plus I plan to continue with this series.

Started: 28 February 2009
Finished: 10 March 2009

Rating:
TBA

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