Diamond Bay
4 Stars

When an injured and barely conscious man washes up on her isolated beach, Rachel Jones makes a split-second decision to keep his presence secret while he recuperates. CIA operative Kell Sabin is grateful yet wary of the beautiful stranger who saved his life. Neither Rachel nor Kell can deny the attraction that sizzles between them, but can their love survive the danger that stalks them?

The basic premise requires a certain degree of suspension of disbelief mainly due to the heroine's questionable decision-making processes at the beginning of the book. Nevertheless, the romance is engaging and the suspense plot ratchets up the tension.

The primary focus of the book is Rachel and Kell's growing physical and emotional intimacy. They have wonderful chemistry and their traumatic backstories not only contribute to their individual characterization, but make their relationship all the sweeter.

The villains are rather cookie-cutter, but there are some intense moments and the final showdown is satisfying.

All in all, another entertaining golden oldie from Linda Howard.



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Decent story. Reread. This one was okay but not one of my favorites from Linda Howard. Still it was fairly solid. I think mostly I felt that Kell Sabin could have been developed more in depth. It seemed to lack a bit of tension between the two leads. Plus John Rafferty's arrival was a bit of a deus ex machine. Not bad, just not a favorite for me. ( )

***Re-read***

Diamond Bay is the 2nd book in Linda Howard's Rescue series and had a lot to live up to after the exciting debut of Midnight Rainbow. I'd hoped to see some spark that I'd missed in my first read of the book, but it wasn't meant to be. There are a some strong points in this nursed-back-to-health theme romance, such as an exciting start and a mysterious hunk, but sadly the bulk of the romantic relationship fell flat. It was clear the couple were attracted to one another physically. Other than that, I don't know how Rachel could stand him.

I had serious issues with Kell Sabin - our above mentioned mysterious hunk. He came across as an azzhat to me, at least in the beginning. I didn't expect him to be the closed off, short temper type, but whenever he was angry, his reactions were over the top. Finally, there there was this altercation after Rachel accepts a date with Tod Ellis to glean information on Kell's behalf:

“His hard fingers closed on her shoulders in a grip that bruised, and he shook her slightly, his face hard and set with rage.”

If you guessed that Kell didn't like that idea, congrats. You're a rocket scientist, like me. *snark*

I know, I know...this book was originally written "back in the day" when "jealous rage" in fiction obviously meant something different, but my brain couldn't get past it. I'm a smart women. I know better, but just for the heck of it I suspended belief (twice now) and got through the steamy sex in hope that Kell would take a step toward enlightenment. It took him awhile, and a lot of help from friends Grant and Jane, but I think he's going to be okay. I think Rachel should've been a lot harder on him though.

So, why three stars with all that? Because the series as a whole is really good and the other aspects of the book are really well written. And let's be honest, I'm a loyal fan of Linda Howard. This isn't my favorite book and the issues I had were all based on personal preference, so my 3 stars is obviously going to be another persons 5 stars, or maybe 1 star. Regardless, I still think these books, especially the heroines, were originally written ahead of their time.



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After re-reading Midnight Rainbow I decided I needed to re-read this one also. I love Kell and Rachael. Again, I had to make allowances for when it was written, but I really enjoyed it. ( )

The naked man who washes up on Rachel Jones' isolated beach with two bullet wounds and a concussion should have had made her call 911 - but the same instincts that tell her he's a dangerous man also tell her he's no danger to her. Only to her heart.

Kell Sabin has no intention of falling in love - he's going to heal enough to stay alive while he goes hunting for traitors. Too bad his heart has other ideas.

Strong, independent heroine, and a big, tough, injured hero. What more could one ask? A good plot - and Howard delivers. ( )