Breath of Scandal by Sandra Brown
Published by: Grand Central
Publication date: February 26th 2013
Genres: Adult, Suspense, Thriller
Stars: 4 ****
The Blurb
On a rainy Southern night, Jade Sperry endured a young woman’s worst
nightmare at the hands of three local hell-raisers. Robbed of her youthful
ideals and at the center of scandal and tragedy, Jade ran as far and as fast as
she could. But she never forgot the sleepy “company town” where every man,
woman, and child was dependent on one wealthy family. And she never forgot their
spoiled son, who with his two friends changed her life forever. Someday,
somehow, she’d return . . . exacting a just revenge, freeing herself from her
enemies’ grasp, and, perhaps, fulfilling a lost promise of love.
My Thoughts
First of all I just want to say that I am a fan of Sandra Brown's novels so I was really pleased to be able to take part in another blog tour for one of her books. If you want to check out the rest of the tour schedule then visit Xpresso Book Tours
This book was first published back in 1991 but because the initial storyline takes place in the 1970s & because the plot is so character driven it feels as though Sandra Brown could have written it yesterday. Don't let the fact that the book is almost 25 years old put you off reading it as it has truly stood the test of time.
At the beginning of the book we meet 18 year old Jade Sperry, she's the girl that has it all. She's beautiful, popular, has just received a full scholarship to college and is totally in love with her high school sweetheart, Gary Parker. However things take an unexpected turn for Jade one night when she is subjected to a brutal & violent attack that changes everything & her world begins to spiral out of control. The knock on effects of that fateful night leave Jade with both scars that run forever deep and a constant reminder of what happened.
Fast forward 15 years and we see a very different Jade. She has picked herself up, dusted herself off and now she is heading back to her home town of Palmetto hell bent on revenge. She has a plan to take down everyone involved in the attack and the cover up that followed. She's determined that the good old boys club that stuck together and ensured that no one believed Jade's story all those years ago will be held responsible for their actions.
We also have our hero, Dillon Burke who has also been traumatised by tragic events from his past. Since losing his family he has been a loner and moving around working on building site doing manual labour. I must admit that Dillon's story caught me a little off guard when we are first introduced to his story as it seems totally unrelated to what is going on with the rest of the story. I really couldn't work out where Brown was going with his story arc & even found myself thinking that maybe the e-book I was reading had been corrupted with another story. However once Jade meets Dillon whilst looking for a project manager for the newest development her firm are working on all the pieces begin to fall in place.
What follows is the journey of a strong woman heading back home to face her demons and a man who carries his own demons with him supporting her and teaching her to be able to trust men again. Jade has been left so scarred by the events of that night all those years ago that relationships of any kind have always been very difficult for her.
This book had some really wonderful and some really despicable characters. Jade is such a fantastic character, she is strong and driven and so determined not to be defined by what happened to her. She is a character who due to what we see happen to her we are instantly drawn to her and on her side. She goes on one heck of a journey to put her life back together. Then we have the ring leader of the group who attacked Jade, Neal Patchett who along with his father is truly one of the most detestable characters I have ever come across in a book. He has no redeeming qualities what so ever. He's a man driven by jealousy and always used to getting his own way and his sense of entitlement is strong believing that he can have whatever he wants.
I loved the relationship that Jade had with the college dean and his wife who take her in when she has absolutely no one left to turn to. All of sudden she feels warmth and acceptance for the first time and the bond between them is very clear and carries through right to the end of the book. Then their was the friendship that Jade had with Hank who so obviously wanted more from her but was happy to just be friends if it meant keeping her in his life.
At times the book was a little obvious and it certainly made for some uncomfortable reading but Sandra Brown handles Jade's character sensitively and this led to me being hit quite hard emotionally. I would have liked more from the ending and this is the reason I have only given Breath of Scandal 5 stars as it all fell a little flat but I was so pleased that justice was served in Jade's own unique way. The book is a fast paced and addictive read and I devoured it really quickly eager to see that the those involved in the scandal got their come-uppances. Sandra Brown is truly the Queen of romantic suspense and I highly recommend giving this book a read if you a fan of the genre.
At the beginning of the book we meet 18 year old Jade Sperry, she's the girl that has it all. She's beautiful, popular, has just received a full scholarship to college and is totally in love with her high school sweetheart, Gary Parker. However things take an unexpected turn for Jade one night when she is subjected to a brutal & violent attack that changes everything & her world begins to spiral out of control. The knock on effects of that fateful night leave Jade with both scars that run forever deep and a constant reminder of what happened.
Fast forward 15 years and we see a very different Jade. She has picked herself up, dusted herself off and now she is heading back to her home town of Palmetto hell bent on revenge. She has a plan to take down everyone involved in the attack and the cover up that followed. She's determined that the good old boys club that stuck together and ensured that no one believed Jade's story all those years ago will be held responsible for their actions.
We also have our hero, Dillon Burke who has also been traumatised by tragic events from his past. Since losing his family he has been a loner and moving around working on building site doing manual labour. I must admit that Dillon's story caught me a little off guard when we are first introduced to his story as it seems totally unrelated to what is going on with the rest of the story. I really couldn't work out where Brown was going with his story arc & even found myself thinking that maybe the e-book I was reading had been corrupted with another story. However once Jade meets Dillon whilst looking for a project manager for the newest development her firm are working on all the pieces begin to fall in place.
What follows is the journey of a strong woman heading back home to face her demons and a man who carries his own demons with him supporting her and teaching her to be able to trust men again. Jade has been left so scarred by the events of that night all those years ago that relationships of any kind have always been very difficult for her.
This book had some really wonderful and some really despicable characters. Jade is such a fantastic character, she is strong and driven and so determined not to be defined by what happened to her. She is a character who due to what we see happen to her we are instantly drawn to her and on her side. She goes on one heck of a journey to put her life back together. Then we have the ring leader of the group who attacked Jade, Neal Patchett who along with his father is truly one of the most detestable characters I have ever come across in a book. He has no redeeming qualities what so ever. He's a man driven by jealousy and always used to getting his own way and his sense of entitlement is strong believing that he can have whatever he wants.
I loved the relationship that Jade had with the college dean and his wife who take her in when she has absolutely no one left to turn to. All of sudden she feels warmth and acceptance for the first time and the bond between them is very clear and carries through right to the end of the book. Then their was the friendship that Jade had with Hank who so obviously wanted more from her but was happy to just be friends if it meant keeping her in his life.
At times the book was a little obvious and it certainly made for some uncomfortable reading but Sandra Brown handles Jade's character sensitively and this led to me being hit quite hard emotionally. I would have liked more from the ending and this is the reason I have only given Breath of Scandal 5 stars as it all fell a little flat but I was so pleased that justice was served in Jade's own unique way. The book is a fast paced and addictive read and I devoured it really quickly eager to see that the those involved in the scandal got their come-uppances. Sandra Brown is truly the Queen of romantic suspense and I highly recommend giving this book a read if you a fan of the genre.
About The Author
Sandra Brown is the author of more than sixty New York Times bestsellers,
including DEADLINE(2013), LOW PRESSURE (2012), LETHAL (2011), TOUGH
CUSTOMER (2010), SMASH CUT (2009), SMOKE SCREEN (2008), PLAY DIRTY
(2007), RICOCHET (2006), CHILL FACTOR (2005), WHITE HOT (2004), &
HELLO, DARKNESS (2003).
Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages.
A lifelong Texan, Sandra Brown was born in Waco, grew up in Fort Worth and attended Texas Christian University, majoring in English. Before embarking on her writing career, she worked as a model at the Dallas Apparel Mart, and in television, including weathercasting for WFAA-TV in Dallas, and feature reporting on the nationally syndicated program “PM Magazine.”
In 2009 Brown detoured from her thrillers to write, Rainwater, a much acclaimed, powerfully moving story about honor and sacrifice during the Great Depression.
Brown recently was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer’s Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Brown began her writing career in 1981 and since then has published over seventy novels, bringing the number of copies of her books in print worldwide to upwards of eighty million. Her work has been translated into over thirty languages.
A lifelong Texan, Sandra Brown was born in Waco, grew up in Fort Worth and attended Texas Christian University, majoring in English. Before embarking on her writing career, she worked as a model at the Dallas Apparel Mart, and in television, including weathercasting for WFAA-TV in Dallas, and feature reporting on the nationally syndicated program “PM Magazine.”
In 2009 Brown detoured from her thrillers to write, Rainwater, a much acclaimed, powerfully moving story about honor and sacrifice during the Great Depression.
Brown recently was given an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Texas Christian University. She was named Thriller Master for 2008, the top award given by the International Thriller Writer’s Association. Other awards and commendations include the 2007 Texas Medal of Arts Award for Literature and the Romance Writers of America’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
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