Sweetheart (Archie Sheridan & Gretchen Lowell, #2)

by Chelsea Cain

[ibeforem]

I think that Chelsea Cain has really explored an area that is rarely seen in suspense fiction… What happens to the victims? What happens to those who have been attacked, tortured, nearly killed? How do they cope? Is it possible to live your life like nothing happened? When this book begins, you think that maybe Archie has started down a new path… He’s taking fewer pills, he hasn’t seen Gretchen in months, he’s moved back in with his ex-wife and kids… But then Gretchen sings her siren song, and once again Archie can’t help but to come running. I think in this book, more than in Heartsick, you learn a little more about who Archie really is, and of the true nature of the relationship between he and Gretchen.

There are no “heroes” in this book, but there is a lot of obsession. Archie is obsessed with Gretchen, who is in turn obsessed with him. Henry is obsessed with keeping Archie away from Gretchen. Susan is obsessed with the chase for a story, and not a little obsessed with herself. Everyone has their own personal motives, and these motives push the story along. But in the end they manage to work together to bring about what may not exactly be a happy ending, but is at least some closure.

I think the Senator Cassell (sic) mystery gets a little buried under all of the Archie & Gretchen stuff, but it still has an interesting ending. A third book in this series is due next September, and I can’t wait!