SUNNY - ARC REVIEW: "Sweeter Than Sin" by Shiloh Walker

CAN’T FORGET THE PAIN

It took years for Adam to stop drowning his regrets in alcohol, and running the local bar doesn’t make it any easier—especially not when everyone he knows gathers there to discuss the shocking allegations that have shattered his hometown. When another murder rocks sleepy Madison to its core, it becomes chillingly clear that even more vicious wounds are waiting to be exposed.

WON’T RESIST THE PLEASURE

Nothing is sacred anymore, and no one is safe, least of all the mystery woman who shows up in town out of the blue, looking like every fantasy Adam’s ever had. She may have her own dangerous secrets, but she can’t ignore the urgent heat between them any more than he can. As a killer’s quest for vengeance explodes into violence, Adam is tempted to lose himself in the delicious promise of her body—until he realizes he’ll risk anything if she’ll give him her heart…in Sweeter than Sin by Shiloh Walker.

Adam Brascum

Lana Rossi

It's Halloween and it is probably fitting that I post my review of this book today. The story embodies a haunting moodiness. 

Sweeter Than Sin is Book Two in the Secrets & Shadows series.  I love these kinds of Shiloh Walker stories.  They are dark, creepy and chilling.  This is the story of a small town, a small town with lots of terrifying secrets.  The atmosphere reminds of any good Stephen King book or Alfred Hitchcock movie.  This is the kind of place where people you meet have a little bit of guilt written on their face.  

The first part of the story is a bit slow.  If you haven’t read book one, you will appreciate the history of the evil that haunts this town.  Because this series takes place in a concentrated area, we get to revisit familiar characters.  The secondary characters are as important to the story as the relationship between Adam and Lana. 

The last half of the book is COMPELLING.  The narrative is tragic and sad.  I felt a lingering sense of horror and grief.  Even Adam and Lana’s happy ending did not lift my spirits. What happened to those boys by the Cronus Club left me depressed.  I suppose this is the hallmark of a good story. 

In Shiloh Walker fashion, this series has sucked me in. Not going to be able to let go until I'm finished.

Shiloh Walker is an award-winning writer…yes, really!  She’s also a mom, a wife, a reader and she pretends to be an amateur photographer.  She published her first book in 2003. Her newest series, Secrets and Shadows, launched with Deeper than Need, followed by Sweeter than Sin and Darker than Desire.

She writes romantic suspense and contemporary romance, and urban fantasy under the name J.C. Daniels.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.