Laine Tavish only wanted to live an ordinary life out from the shadow of her colorful, con man father, Big Jack O'Hara. To that end, she changed her name and purchased an antique shop in the small town of Angel's Gap, Maryland. Laine enjoyed being an upright citizen and honest merchant, even though she had to constantly re-invent her past into one of stolid respectability. Despite all her hard work, the past stumbled into her shop in the guise of her long-lost uncle.

Her uncle managed to whisper a cryptic warning before dying in her arms. His final words were something about a pooch, or a pouch. If a relative dead on her doorstep wasn't bad enough, a sexy stranger named Max Gannon showed up on the same day. Even though Max was close-mouthed about his purpose in town, his attraction to Laine was immediately obvious. Laine found herself keeping company with Max even though she had doubts about his real intentions. Should she trust him or was he responsible for her uncle being run down on a rain slick street?

To complicate the situation, Big Jack Ryan arrived for an impromptu visit indirectly bringing with him his murderous comrade. Not far behind were the police and the FBI. Laine, faced with break-ins, a gorgeous stranger, odd messages, and an overzealous police chief-who was also the husband of her best friend-decided to focus on first things first: staying alive.

The story doesn't end with Laine and Max. Eve Dallas picked up the case of the missing diamond about fifty years into the future with the next version of REMEMBER WHEN. The capable Eve Dallas, assisted by her drop dead scrumptious husband Roarke, team up to find who was after the diamonds this time. Dead bodies suddenly began appearing after a book written by Laine's granddaughter detailing the diamond heist was published. All the obvious suspects are long dead leaving only a few hundred other possibilities.

Nora Robert's REMEMBER WHEN is classic Roberts with endearing supporting characters and her velvet-over-steel heroine, Laine Tavish. Max Gannon is an extraordinary personal investigator with muscles, brains and vulnerability. A nice touch is that Max doesn't always get his man, right away. Instead he makes mistakes, chases red herrings, and is even clubbed by the bad guy. Still, he gets up and keeps going-that's what makes him especially noteworthy. No wonder Laine falls for him; who wouldn't? Laine's struggle with revealing her true family history to close friends, especially after a surplus of small-time con artists hits town, shows a realism that makes Ms. Roberts the queen of her genre.

If one truly wonderful story wasn't enough, there is a double delight with Nora Roberts writing under her other pseudonym J.D. Robb. The stark futuristic New York City provides quite a contrast to the quaint Angel's Gap. The story is peopled by familiar characters from previous Eve Dallas' stories. Hard as steel Eve Dallas tackles the case with the help of newly-minted detective Peabody, who gets quite a bit of dialogue this time around. Good thing too because Peabody has a lot to say; most of it holds a mirror up to any of us who have doubted our place in life. The read is gritty and real with more twists and turns than a construction detour.

Need a really good book this summer? This is it. Be prepared to read it all at one sitting because it is almost impossible to put down. If you think you know who the killer is in the beginning, be prepared to be surprised. Another excellent reading experience by Nora Roberts and her alter ego, J.D. Robb

Reviewed by Morgan Wyatt

© June 2004