Sophia Rose Reviews - When She Dreams by Amanda Quick

Today Sophia Rose returns to bring us her thoughts on one of my absolutely favorite historical authors, Amanda Quick and her new release, When She Dreams. My copy is high on that shelf so until I can open the pages I'll live vicariously through her review.
Enjoy!

When She Dreams by Amanda Quick

#6 Burning Cove

Romantic Suspense, Historical

Publisher: Berkley Romance

Published:  5.3.22

Pages: 320

Rating: 4 stars

Flames: 3

Format: eARC

Source: Berkley

Sellers: Amazon

ADD TO: GoodReads

 

GoodReads Blurb:

Return to 1930s Burning Cove, California, the glamorous seaside playground for Hollywood stars, mobsters, spies, and a host of others who find more than they bargain for in this mysterious town.

Maggie Lodge, assistant to the reclusive advice columnist known only as Dear Aunt Cornelia to her readers, hires down-but-not-quite-out private eye Sam Sage to help track down the person who is blackmailing her employer. Maggie and Sam are a mismatched pair. As far as Sam is concerned, Maggie is reckless and in over her head. She is not what he had in mind for a client but he can't afford to be choosy. Maggie, on the other hand, is convinced that Sam is badly in need of guidance and good advice. She does not hesitate to give him both.

In spite of the verbal fireworks between them, they are fiercely attracted to each other, but each is convinced it would be a mistake to let passion take over. They are, after all, keeping secrets from each other. Sam is haunted by his past, which includes a marriage shattered by betrayal and violence. Maggie is troubled by intense and vivid dreams--dreams that she can sometimes control. There are those who want to run experiments on her and use her for their own purposes, while others think she should be committed to an asylum.

When the pair discovers someone is impersonating Aunt Cornelia at a conference on psychic dreaming and a woman dies at the conference, the door is opened to a dangerous web of blackmail and murder. Secrets from the past are revealed, leaving Maggie and Sam in the path of a ruthless killer who will stop at nothing to exact vengeance.

 

Sophia Rose's Review:

The glamorous and nostalgic Old Hollywood feel of the Burning Cove series continues with this latest that delves into the disturbing world of dark dreams and nightmares that are anything but normal.  Starting out with a case of blackmail and ending up to include murder, I was excited to dive into the world of the series laid out by Amanda Quick.

 

When She Dreams is the fifth standalone romantic suspense set in historic 1930’s Southern California.  I’ve had no trouble reading this series out of order (and by that I mean starting with book three and then getting the first two after book four), but I did like knowing the background of the other characters who pop up as secondary characters around Burning Cove.

 

Starting out in another town, the book opens when the secretary of a popular advice columnist, Maggie Lodge, hires ex-cop private detective, Sam Sage, to track down a would-be blackmailer who has threatened to bring up an old murder if demands aren’t met.  Maggie is supposed to meet the person at a conference held for those interested in psychic dreaming at a new retreat in Burning Cove.  Sam agrees to go with her.

Sam thinks the psychic dream stuff is all a bunch of hooey, but a fresh corpse is very much solid fact and he suspects that Maggie is in more danger than ever.  A weirdo scientist covets her as a study subject and someone else just wants the pair of them gone especially since they make a good detecting team when they’re not bantering and trying to ignore what lies behind their sizzling remarks.

 

When She Dreams, like the other books in the series has the psychic element and this time its dreams.  This didn’t do much for me, but I loved the suspense element, the glamorous setting, details, and engaging characters.  The author gives a lot of effort into the dialogue, activities, and dress.  I chuckled as the pair reminded me of a Bogart and Bacall movie even while bashing The Maltese Falcon’s Sam Spade for taking a mickey finn from the bad guy.  I really enjoyed this pair and thought they had fabulous connection even from the first moment.  I was tickled to get more time with Luther and Rayna though the other regulars were only mentioned in passing.

 

The book read quickly, pulling me into the world and I left it reluctantly.  For those who love their mysteries with an old-style hard-boiled detective, a sassy heroine, and a spectacular historical backdrop, look no further.

 

Author’s Bio:

Pseudonym of Jayne Ann Krentz

The author of over 40 consecutive New York Times bestsellers, JAYNE ANN KRENTZ writes romantic-suspense, often with a psychic and paranormal twist, in three different worlds: Contemporary (as Jayne Ann Krentz), historical (as Amanda Quick) and futuristic (as Jayne Castle). There are over 30 million copies of her books in print.

She earned a B.A. in History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and went on to obtain a Masters degree in Library Science from San Jose State University in California. Before she began writing full time she worked as a librarian in both academic and corporate libraries.

Ms. Krentz is married and lives with her husband, Frank, in Seattle, Washington.
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/JayneAnnKrentz

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/JayneAnnKrentz/

Sophia’s Bio:

Sophia is a quiet though curious gal who dabbles in cooking, book reviewing, and gardening. Encouraged and supported by an incredible man and loving family. A Northern Californian transplant to the Great Lakes Region of the US. Lover of Jane Austen, Baseball, Cats, Scooby Doo, and Chocolate.

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GoodReads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13418187.Sophia_Rose