Black Hills

by Nora Roberts

In this #1 New York Times bestseller, Nora Roberts takes readers deep into the rugged hills of South Dakota, where the shadows keep secrets, hunters stalk the land, and a friendship matures into something more....

Cooper Sullivan spent the summers of his youth on his grandparents’ South Dakota ranch, sharing innocent games and stolen kisses with the neighbor girl, Lil Chance. Now, twelve years after they last walked together hand in hand, fate has brought them back to the Black Hills.

Though the memory of Coop’s touch still haunts her, Lil has let nothing stop her dream of opening the Chance Wildlife Refuge, but something—or someone—has been keeping a close watch. When small pranks and acts of destruction escalate into a heartless attack on Lil’s beloved cougar, memories of an unsolved murder have Coop springing to action to keep Lil safe. 

Both of them know the natural dangers that lurk in the wild landscape of the Black Hills. But a killer of twisted and unnatural instincts has singled them out as prey....

• ISBN10: 0515148040
• ISBN13: 9780515148046
• Publish Date: 25 May 2010 (first published 23 June 2009)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: Berkley
• Format: Paperback (US Mass Market)
• Pages: 464
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780515148046

Reviews

[ibeforem]

This was alright, but not the best Nora Roberts I’ve read. Lil holds on to her broken heart a little too long to be truly likable. I wanted to tell her to just suck it up and get on with things, either forgive Coop or get off the pot. So to speak. The setting is good, and as always, Roberts does a great job of making a place come alive. I also liked the concept of the animal sanctuary. It’s nice to have a character with a job that’s a little out of the norm. We read about so many cops, investigators, lawyers, journalists, and ranchers. The formula here is a little different — we find out "whodunit" quite early on in the story — and I’m not sure how I feel about that. The bad guy’s reasons for doing what he’s doing seem a little forced, and I’m not sure it all holds together in the end. Still, Roberts manages to give us at least a few characters we care about, and an interesting climax.

[Eve1972]

Never having read a Nora Roberts book before, I wasn't sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised, fast read, great characters, romance, suspense, just an all around good read. :)

[wyvernfriend]

Lil Chance fell in love with Cooper Sullivan when he first came to her small town in South Dakota. His parents were making gestures at saving their marriage, he was being packed off to his mother's parents. They fall in love over the years and then, suddenly, he stops coming back.

Lil is gutted but moves on, and twelve years later he returns. Both of them have changed and matured, but can she forgive him. To add to their complications, there's a serial killer out there and he appears to have Lil in his sights.

Full of twists and turns and I really did enjoy this one. You can see her passion for the sanctuary and while he's a bit of an Alpha, she regularly gives as good as she gets. I love the sequences involving the naughty lingerie that she had bought for another man and her debate about discarding them. The relationship between Farley and Tansy is almost more fun than the actual central relationship and the relationship between Farley and Lil's parents is also quite well drawn and believable.