HAVE YOU SEEN HER?
Grand Central Publishing
February 2004
ISBN-13: 978-0-446-61281-4 | ISBN-10: 0-446-61281-2

DO YOU LOVE HER?

One by one, the girls disappear from their beds at night.  Each one is pretty, with long, dark hair.  And each one is found brutally murdered.

DO YOU MISS HER?

Special Agent Steven Thatcher has sworn to find the serial killer preying on this small town.  As the investigation pulls him one way, his family pulls him in another.  A widower haunted by loss, he now worries about his son Brad slipping away.  But there's a bright light in his life; his son's teacher, Jenna Marshall, has reached out to help.  She's beautiful, kind, and considerate— and slowly, tentatively, she and Steven are starting to fall in love.  But both have been hurt before— badly. And as the two try to find the courage to bare their souls, a murderer who has slain many looks for the real treasure he craves.  He sets his traps.  And waits.  For Jenna . . .

HAVE YOU SEEN HER?

V

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All Romance Writers

Publishers Weekly

Romantic Times Magazine

Romance Junkies

Rendezvous

Romance Reviews Today

Bookloons

New and Used Books Online

 

Ratings
Overall: 10
Sensuality: 8
Suspense: 10

"...An exceptional thriller... Absolutely wonderful! One of the best romantic suspense stories out so far this year. Rose takes you on a taut psychological journey..." —MizSavannah

"Offering heart-racing thrills, both in the bedroom and the forensics lab, this second romantic intrigue from Rose (Don't Tell) showcases her growing talent. Rose has created complex, realistic characters in high school teacher Jenna Marshall and Special Agent Steven Thatcher, whose eldest son, Brad, is in Jenna's class. Though Steven, a widower, is in the midst of a search for a serial killer who targets cheerleaders in their small North Carolina town, he takes time to visit Jenna when she calls to tell him that Brad, who used to be a high achiever, is flunking out of chemistry. When they meet, their own chemistry takes over and they find themselves falling in love, despite their troubled romantic pasts and the fact that Jenna may be next on the killer's list.

"Rose populates her novel with vivid characters—like Steven's seven-year-old son Nicky, who was a character in Rose's previous novel—and stokes the tension to a fever pitch, throwing in shocking twists each time the story threatens to settle into predictability. Though some of Steven and Jenna's lovers' quarrels deteriorate into melodrama, readers will hardly notice as they rush to the novel's thrilling conclusion."

—Publishers Weekly, © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

"Having survived his son Nicky's kidnapping and rescue, North Carolina Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Steven Thatcher feels a special empathy for child abduction cases. As a widower raising three boys, Steven has his hands full, especially with the atypical behavior of his oldest son, Brad.
"High-school teacher Dr. Jenna Marshal is very concerned over the sudden decline of Brad's grades and attitude. So concerned, in fact, she arranges to contact his father for a conference.
"Meanwhile, tragedy is stalking area high schools: one cheerleader has been kidnapped and murdered and now a second girl is missing. This killer is both arrogant and viciously cruel—he also has plans for Jenna. Can Steven and his task force expose this murderer before more girls die?
"Terrifying and gripping are two words that accurately describe this new thriller from rising star Rose. The relationships and emotions in this book are multi-faceted, convoluted and, at times, scary. Everyone has a past—and leaving it behind is not always easy."

—Jill M. Smith

 

"After his son's kidnapping by a psychopath Special Agent Steven Thatcher vowed to pay more attention to his family. That's kind of hard to do when he has a serial killer on his hands who mutilates teenage girls and taunts the police. This case takes up a great deal of his time and his family's falling apart, especially his oldest son who has turned rebellious against everyone. Steven needs a miracle and he gets one in the form of his son's chemistry teacher, Jenna Marshall.

"Jenna has her own set of problems when she flunks the football quarterback who's looking to pay her back. Jenna doesn't fear him as much as she fears what she's beginning to feel for Steven. With the clock ticking both professionally and personally, Steven may lose everything as the killer targets Jenna for his final revenge. The romance in HAVE YOU SEEN HER is good but the suspense is absolutely astounding. The red herring Ms. Rose uses kept me glued to the pages as the tension builds to the surprising conclusion."

—DK, Rendezvous

"HAVE YOU SEEN HER is a thriller from page one...a riveting page-turner that melds the genres of suspense and romance in a way that will keep those who like either genre happy."

—Brenda Edde, Romance Junkies

“Pineville, North Carolina—Present Day

“Special Agent Steven Thatcher of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation has enough worries to bow even Altas's shoulders. Shortly after discovering the body of a dead sixteen-year-old cheerleader, he gets a call that another girl, also sixteen and a cheerleader, is missing. Steven, a single father widowed when his wife died in a car accident while leaving him for another man, also has a seven-year-old son, Nicky, who is just beginning to recover after being abducted by a killer six months ago (see DON'T TELL), a seventeen-year-old son. Brad, who suddenly became withdrawn and surly a month ago, and a wonderfully normal thirteen-year-old son, Matt. With the crime scene evidence suggesting a serial killer, one who has killed before and will kill again, Steven really doesn't have time for the meeting Brad's chemistry teacher demands. Running late, Steven races into the school and knocks down the most beautiful woman he's ever seen.

“After her fiancé's death two years ago, Dr. Jenna Marshall did not want to return to the pharmaceutical research they'd done together, so she became a high school chemistry teacher. While the job won't garner her more patents or a fortune, it has its own rewards, such as students like Brad Thatcher. But she's worried about him; not only has his attitude changed drastically, he flunked his chemistry test. Determined to do what she can to help, she requests a meeting with his father. Reaching the school lobby, she's stopped by the principal and, over her protests, ushered into his office. There she meets the father of the school's star quarterback—whose son, Rudy Lutz, was just suspended from the football team because of a failing grade in her remedial science class.

“Despite the man's veiled threats, Jenna refuses to change Rudy's grade. Furious—at a father more concerned about sports than education, at the principal for his lack of support, and because she missed her meeting with Brad Thatcher's father—she storms out of the office and is bowled over by a very handsome man.

“Despite their inauspicious first encounter, Steven and Jenna are immediately attracted to one another, but both have more pressing concerns. Steven's days become longer and longer as the body count rises. Jenna's car, then her classroom are vandalized. Can Steven find the killer before more girls die? Will the violence directed at Jenna continue to escalate? Might there be a connection between the wrath toward Jenna and the murders? Can love blossom and flourish amidst murder and mayhem?

“HAVE YOU SEEN HER? is a riveting tale of suspense, mystery, and romance. The tension ratchets higher and higher as, one by one, more teenage girls disappear and the retaliatory acts directed at Jenna become increasingly violent. Readers were fascinated by Steven Thatcher when he appeared in DON'T TELL—he was clearly hero material—and in this book he comes into his own and proves himself heroic indeed, in many ways.

"At first glance, Jenna and Steven may seem an unlikely pairing, but at heart, where it matters most, they are perfectly matched. Both characters are likable and engaging, and readers can't help but care about this couple and their problems. And there are plenty of obstacles Steven and Jenna must overcome, not only solving the crimes, but dealing with the emotional baggage each of them brings to the relationship. Having loved and lost, both Steven and Jenna are wary of risking their hearts again—Steven more so than Jenna—but when they finally do, they don't hold back. A diverse cast of secondary characters, including Steven's children and Jenna's friends and neighbors, add depth and texture to this well-wrought tale. For a gripping novel of romantic suspense, I highly recommend HAVE YOU SEEN HER? Not only will the suspense have you on the edge of your seat, but the characters' emotional dilemmas will tug your heartstrings. Steven, in particular, is a hero that readers will remember long after the last page is turned.”

Susan Lantz
Romance Reviews Today

"This is a riveting blend of great plotting, fine characterizations and sizzling romance, all of which create the perfect recipe for an edge-of-your seat suspense."

—Bookloon Reviews

"A fast paced, three-dimensional story...A must read."

—New and Used Books.com