Review: In The Midst of Passion by Altonya Washington
In the Midst of Passion by AlTonya Washington Published by Kensington Publishing Corporation on 2006
Genres: Contemporary, Fiction, Romance
Pages: 346
Format: eBook
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Gorgeous Topaz Emerson has always chosen thrills over safety. Instead of choosing a law career like her parents, she opens her own auto repair shop. And when she meets newspaper owner Alexander Rice on a deserted road in North Carolina, she doesn't run. Instead, she finds the very tall, intense and handsome stranger irresistible. She never bothers asking about his past...
In The Midst of Passion lies love, pain, and a few secrets some would rather keep buried, if you’re not careful. At least that’s the case with Altonya Washington’s latest novel.
In the Midst of Passion tells the story of Topaz Emerson and Alexander Rice. Topaz is the independent owner of a car shop and Alex s the owner of Queen City Happenings, an on the rise newspaper in Charlotte.
Alex has no desire to date, much to the chagrin of his female cousin and many other suitors in town. His perspective changes, however, when he meets Topaz. The attraction is almost instant and we soon find Alex willing to face his demons head on in order to be with Topaz.
Alex is aloof and brooding with an underlying edge when we first meet him. Readers soon find out that there’s more to him than meets the eye. His past is murky and while he’s seemingly the handsome darling to most of the town; violence and danger helped shaped who he is and made him a ton of money.
Topaz finds herself in danger when she uncovers some shady business dealings happening in his business district. This information puts her life on the line while shedding some life into Alex’s pasts and bringing a few skeletons in his closet.
To protect the woman he has fallen in love with, Alex has to decide if he’s willing to go back to his old life at least one last time or if he’s finally turned a new page for good. One thing’s for sure, he’s finally found the woman with whom he can spend the rest of his life with and isn’t afraid of his past. So with that, he’ll stop at nothing to protect her.
This book was definitely more of Alex’s story than Topaz’s. While we did learn a bit of Topaz, In the Midst of Passion was really focused on Alex’s story and how Topaz could fit into his life and accept him for who he really was. The initial danger she found herself in did have to do with her business and a few shady characters she thought were friends, but in the end it was able to tie back into Alex’s story. I did feel like the story dragged on in a couple of places as we were being introduced to several characters who ultimately didn’t play a role in the end game. However, I think that may have been an initial introduction for future books that will feature Alex and Topaz’s friends.
In the Midst of Passion was a solid read with an entertaining storyline that had a good mix of mystery and romance. Topaz and Alex were likable characters and I found myself rooting for them on several occasions.
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Natalya is the author of All The Things I Never Said, a soul-stirring collection of short stories, prose and love letters for the soulful wanderers, the brokenhearted and the hopeless romantics.
You can follow her rantings and occasional sparks of brilliance on Twitter @NatalyaMuncuff.
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