I loved this book. I loved Darcy and the kids, and the pace kept me hooked from the first page to the last. I didn't want it to end and would love to read more about the secondary characters, the Knight family. ( )

Who can resist a cover with a girl in a red coat? Not I. I’d heard some book noise that Runaway Lies was a fantastic book with some gripping suspense scenes, so naturally I had to pick it up. I don’t think that description did it justice, because this book is bloody good (not bloody as in gore, bloody as in the Aussie adjective). It would perfectly suit two types of readers – those who are fans of romantic suspense and those who enjoy suspense with a little bit of romance. The suspense is brilliantly written – just when you think Darcy (the heroine) is safe, something else jumps out of the shadows. It’s taut writing that will get your pulse racing. Oh, and if you don’t mind a bit of romance (which I don’t), the hero, Dom, is a hot multi-billionaire with baggage.

The story opens with Darcy, who is on the run as she’s a wanted woman. Not for what you might think though – Darcy’s a whistle-blower against her boss, who lost a lot of people’s life savings. Now he wants her gone. There’s not long until the trial, so Darcy has changed her appearance and gone into the Australian bush. But while driving, she notices a vehicle behaving erratically, which then crashes into the river. Darcy can’t help but to try to save the occupants and that’s where she comes into contact with Dominic St John, multimillionaire property developer. His children were in the car and his ex-wife has disappearance. Dom is incredibly grateful to Darcy for saving his children and wants her to stay until she recovers from her injuries. Darcy really doesn’t want to put the family in danger and declines, only to be forced to accept under explosive circumstances. Here begins a game of cat and mouse, where Darcy is the hunted and multiple threats turn up on her doorstep. Dom is under fire too – someone has a grudge against him and things turn nasty. In the midst of this uncertainty, Dom and Darcy turn to each other. But can they outrun their enemies?

While the characters of Dom and Darcy are incredibly well done (both their pasts are revealed slowly and deliberately – it’s like an intricate jigsaw puzzle where you only see the picture as the final piece is slotted in), the secondary characters are just as amazing. Dom’s security man, Alex and his police siblings were fascinating in the way they combined their skills to solve the mysteries. I would be a happy reader if any of them got their own story. Dom’s twins are just delightful – they’re cute and clever. It’s easy to see why Darcy falls for them and is determined to protect them at all costs. Even the minor characters, such as Darcy’s physiotherapist, are memorable. It really packed a punch when something happened to them (there’s a bit of a body count in this book).

The plot of Runaway Lies breaks all the speed limits and flies through some rough terrain – it’s incredibly well done and once I’d established Darcy’s motivation for being on the run, I was happy to be taken for the ride. It’s a wonderful story, not just for romance fans, but for anyone who likes a suspense thriller.

Thank you to Harlequin Australia for the eARC. My review is 100% honest.

http://samstillreading.wordpress.com ( )

Runaway Lies is an engaging novel of romantic suspense from Shannon Curtis. The plot is fast moving, offering some exciting and dramatic moments, and the romantic tension sizzles.

Darcy Montgomery has managed to elude her former boss for four months but when she rescues the children of wealthy business tycoon Dominic St. James from his ex wife's sinking car, her anonymity is at risk of being compromised. Despite her injuries, Darcy is determined to slip away before anybody discovers the dangerous truth about her.
Dominic is grateful to Darcy for saving the lives of his four-year-old twins, and feels responsible for her injury when it's determined that the accident was engineered. He's puzzled though by her reluctance to accept his offer of help, even when she has lost everything.
Despite Darcy's hesitation, Dom convinces her to spend at least a few weeks recuperating with him and his family and, after months on the run, she finally begins to let down her guard. But just as Darcy decides to trust Dom with her secret, her carefully constructed facade collapses and Darcy has no other choice but to run to protect her life...and her heart.

I wasn't sure what to think of Darcy at first. Curtis presents her as a guilty woman on the run and I made the assumption that she had somehow bought her troubles on herself. I was relieved to discover as the story unfolded that Darcy had simply found herself in an awful position and was doing her best to do what was right, even though it meant she had to lie.

I have to admit my least favourite character trope in romance is the 'billionaire boyfriend', it is usually relied upon as a plot convenience allowing the author to circumvent issues that would trouble someone without a Platinum credit card, but Dom's wealth doesn't interfere in the story. I liked him a lot, he proved to be a great guy and a caring father.

I really liked the way Curtis involved the children in the story. It's notoriously difficult to do so in a way that is realistic but the author manages to integrate them neatly into the plot and keep their behaviour and actions age appropriate.

An entertaining tale of intrigue, action and romance, set in NSW, I really enjoyed Runaway Lies and would recommend it to fans of Helene Young and Bronwyn Parry. ( )