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Excellent. Couuld not put it down. ( )

Robert Whitlow made his fans wait a little over a year for the next installment in his Santee series. The good news is--the wait was worth it. The bad news--the book was so good, it just flew by and I'm left wondering where Whitlow will go next.

A word of warning--if you've not read Whitlow's marvelous "Life Support" you need to before reading this book. The story here continues the story begun there and while readers of "Life Support" will be able to pick up on what's happened even if it's been a while since you read the book, new readers will probably come away a bit confused. But trust me--both of these novels are worth reading.

Whitlow continues the story of Baxter and Rena, Alexia and Ted. One thing I've come to enjoy about Whitlow's novels is that he places the characters in interesting moral and ethical situations and doesn't take the easy way out. Also, his characters feel real over the course of his story. He gives them strengths, weaknesess and flaws--just like all of us. His prose is extremely readable and he never goes over the top. Instead, he draws you in like an old friend telling a story and the pages just fly by. Indeed, my only complaint about this story is that it ended too soon. I was ready to spend another 100 or more pages with the story of Alexia Lindale and her personal journey. I am crossing my fingers that since this book is listed as the second book of the Santee saga, that Whitlow will make a return visit to his fictional characters and town soon. ( )