Seventeen years ago. That was the last time Mercy Callahan saw Ephraim Burton, the leader of the twisted Eden cult where she was raised. But even though she escaped the abuse and terror, they continue to haunt her.
When her brother Gideon discovers new evidence of the cult’s–and their victims’–whereabouts, Mercy goes to Sacramento to reconnect with him. There, she meets Gideon’s closest friend–homicide detective Rafe Sokolov. From Rafe, she receives an offer she never knew she needed: to track down Ephraim and make him pay for everything.
But Ephraim, who had thought Mercy long dead, discovers she is in fact alive and that she is digging around for the cult’s secrets. And now he’ll do anything to take her back to Eden–dead or alive.
Release Date: Aug 11, 2020
Publisher: Penguin Group
Series: Sacramento
Book: 2
Heat: Sensual
Imprint: Berkley
Price: $13.99
Content warning this book deals with some very difficult themes including: murder, cults, child abuse, abuse by a religious figure, and sexual assault. Rose is excellent at handling these topics with an amazing amount of honesty and compassion, but readers should be warned this book is darker in nature.
Say No More is the second installment in Karen Rose’s latest romantic suspense series. The story is about Mercy, a woman who escaped the horrible cult of her childhood seventeen years ago. Though the horror is in her past she still lives with the aftershocks of the trauma in the present day. Mercy gets word from her brother, Gideon, that there’s new evidence in finding the cult and the cult’s current victims. So she goes to Sacramento to help.
Once she lands in California she’s confronted by a man from her past, Ephraim, and she’s paralyzed with fear. Lucky for her, she’s saved before he can take her back into the fold. Once they get Mercy to safety Gideon’s friend, Detective Rafe Sokolov, offers to let her help track the cult. This work may be healing, but it’s also going to be dangerous for Mercy. Thankfully, Rafe will do anything to keep her safe and make sure that justice is served.
The budding romance between Rafe and Mercy was a sweet and poignant counterbalance to the tension of the mystery. These two meet in the previous book and Rafe thought he’d lost his chance with her, so he’s anticipating another chance. I loved how caring and tender Rafe was with Mercy, especially considering her background. Rose always writes such compassionate men, it’s one of the reasons I love her books. Even though I am not a fan of slower paced romances the feelings between these two felt exactly right.
Rose’s books are always filled with twists and turns that keep the readers guessing and this book is no different.
Several plot threads are weaved together in a masterful way. This may be confusing for some readers since the book does also have a long word count, but I didn’t find this a problem for me. The tension is interspersed with Mercy and Gideon working through old hurts, or Mercy and Rafe falling in love. This may make the pace seem slow to some readers, but I like that Rose gives us breaks from all the action to see these real slices of life.
The content of the mystery was hard to read and there are some gory bits, but I trust Rose to always write these scenes well. Also, this story has ties to the first book, Into the Dark, so some readers may want to check that out first. I personally think this story can stand on its own and was wrapped up well enough for most romance readers to get their HEA. Overall, I enjoyed this book and would recommend it to anyone that loves romantic suspense and mystery.
~ Lindsey
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