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Small Town Romance #2
Woman On The Run
Julia Devaux loves big cities. She’s partial to chic cafes and old movies and charming men. So she’s not ready to be relocated by the Witness Protection Program to a small isolated town in the middle of nowhere. But it’s either that or be whacked by the mafia don she witnessed murdering one of his minions. Simpson, Idaho doesn’t have chic cafes or cult movie theaters or even sidewalks. And it definitely doesn’t have charming men.
It does have Sam Cooper, former Navy SEAL, now horse breeder, who makes her feel safe and excited at the same time. True, he doesn’t have any charming conversation in him. But conversation isn’t what Cooper does best.
The gorgeous new second grade schoolteacher who just showed up one day in Simpson is a miracle in Cooper’s eyes. Beautiful and smart and kind, she has the town of Simpson wrapped around her little finger. His heart, too, though he doesn’t have the words to tell her that. But when killers come for her, Cooper doesn’t need words to show what he feels. He’s willing to lay down his life for her.
This book was originally published by Ellora's Cave and is a lightly re-edited version.
“Lisa Marie Rice is an autobuy author for me. She never disappoints! Her books are comfort reads that I re-read time and time again. Hands down she is one of my favorite authors.” (NYT bestselling author Maya Banks )
“The right blend of romance and pulse-pounding thrills makes this a riveting story. Rice creates strong characters that develop and grow. ..Sensual sex scenes, action, suspense and some unpredictable twists keep the pages turning.” (Romantic Times )
“Edgy, sexy, endlessly exciting, Lisa Marie Rice never disappoints! . . . Give me a dangerous, seductive Lice Marie Rice hero any day . . . or night.” (Shannon McKenna, New York Times Bestselling author )
“Watching a warrior choose a woman over his brotherhood is definitely addictive, and for me, I Dream of Danger was a gateway drug.” New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James
It does have Sam Cooper, former Navy SEAL, now horse breeder, who makes her feel safe and excited at the same time. True, he doesn’t have any charming conversation in him. But conversation isn’t what Cooper does best.
The gorgeous new second grade schoolteacher who just showed up one day in Simpson is a miracle in Cooper’s eyes. Beautiful and smart and kind, she has the town of Simpson wrapped around her little finger. His heart, too, though he doesn’t have the words to tell her that. But when killers come for her, Cooper doesn’t need words to show what he feels. He’s willing to lay down his life for her.
This book was originally published by Ellora's Cave and is a lightly re-edited version.
“Lisa Marie Rice is an autobuy author for me. She never disappoints! Her books are comfort reads that I re-read time and time again. Hands down she is one of my favorite authors.” (NYT bestselling author Maya Banks )
“The right blend of romance and pulse-pounding thrills makes this a riveting story. Rice creates strong characters that develop and grow. ..Sensual sex scenes, action, suspense and some unpredictable twists keep the pages turning.” (Romantic Times )
“Edgy, sexy, endlessly exciting, Lisa Marie Rice never disappoints! . . . Give me a dangerous, seductive Lice Marie Rice hero any day . . . or night.” (Shannon McKenna, New York Times Bestselling author )
“Watching a warrior choose a woman over his brotherhood is definitely addictive, and for me, I Dream of Danger was a gateway drug.” New York Times bestselling author Eloisa James
326 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 1999
About the author
Lisa Marie Rice
66 books1,599 followersLisa Marie Rice is eternally 30 years old and will never age. She is tall and willowy and beautiful. Men drop at her feet like ripe pears. She has won every major book prize in the world. She is a black belt with advanced degrees in archaeology, nuclear physics, and Tibetan literature. She is a concert pianist. Did I mention her Nobel Prize? Of course, Lisa Marie Rice is a virtual woman and exists only at the keyboard when writing erotic romance. She disappears when the monitor winks off.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 197 reviews
December 22, 2022
I have to say that I find this book extremely frustrating. There is nothing special in it, it's pretty basic, with a well known structure, a typical plot line, plenty to criticized about the characters, yada, yada, yada. And yet, I find myself coming back to it and rereading it!! Why? Why? I have read it at least 3 times already! What’s wrong with me? I swear I have more bad things to say about it than good things but for some reason it beckons me! It kills me to admit it, but I find Sam Cooper (hello stamina) and the sex scenes hot…argh!! I keep analyzing the book in my mind and I find it so poor, of such a low literary quality that I am baffled at myself for liking it! I am so frustrated, damn it! And the worst part is that I know that a part of me might be tempted to come back to it sometime in the future and skim it again! I'm the worst!
P.S.: I reread it again, and again. 6 times now. I hate that I love it so much.
P.S.: I reread it again, and again. 6 times now. I hate that I love it so much.
August 4, 2016
11/01/2014 re rated from a 3 star to a 4. I had issues with the start, but since I finished it I have found myself thinking about it and how much I liked it in the end and I shall be trying more books of hers out.
This was my first book by this author.
Have to admit, in the first few pages, I was wondering if I would finish this.
We have Julia Devaux, who witnesses a mob murder.
And what are her concerns upon being told she has to go into the Witness protection programme? The name she has been given. "That's ridiculous" Julia Devaux snapped testily. "Do I look like a Sally" And that is hardly a huge spoiler, it is the 2nd line in the book.
Now at this point, I am thinking, if you have witnessed a mob hit, and the mob guy has put out a bounty on your head, I would be grateful for any help and assistance I could get.
But she agrees to it, although not before we are given a full breakdown of her history and "pedigree" to understand just how sophisticated she is.
Off she goes into witness protection and it feels like it has to be pointed out, repeatedly, just how sophisticated she is compared to where she is now.
But then enter Sam Cooper, who saved this for me, and Julia started to grow on me. Sam is a big quiet man, and his inner dialogue when he is thinking about how much he likes Julia, or actually wants to jump Julia is humorous and endearing.
It had good cast of secondary characters that you actually cared about.
And I liked the ending, I have read that a few ppl maybe had an issue with the abruptness of the ending, but I liked how it was done
All in all, it was a solid 3 stars after a shaky start for me, but I do not know if this would inspire me to read any more by this author.
This was my first book by this author.
Have to admit, in the first few pages, I was wondering if I would finish this.
We have Julia Devaux, who witnesses a mob murder.
And what are her concerns upon being told she has to go into the Witness protection programme? The name she has been given. "That's ridiculous" Julia Devaux snapped testily. "Do I look like a Sally" And that is hardly a huge spoiler, it is the 2nd line in the book.
Now at this point, I am thinking, if you have witnessed a mob hit, and the mob guy has put out a bounty on your head, I would be grateful for any help and assistance I could get.
But she agrees to it, although not before we are given a full breakdown of her history and "pedigree" to understand just how sophisticated she is.
Off she goes into witness protection and it feels like it has to be pointed out, repeatedly, just how sophisticated she is compared to where she is now.
But then enter Sam Cooper, who saved this for me, and Julia started to grow on me. Sam is a big quiet man, and his inner dialogue when he is thinking about how much he likes Julia, or actually wants to jump Julia is humorous and endearing.
It had good cast of secondary characters that you actually cared about.
And I liked the ending, I have read that a few ppl maybe had an issue with the abruptness of the ending, but I liked how it was done
All in all, it was a solid 3 stars after a shaky start for me, but I do not know if this would inspire me to read any more by this author.
September 8, 2021
What wins 4*s for this rom thriller?
Insta connect, Insta lust that translates to some hot, raw, basic, sheet scorching sex.
Actually that's just a Lisa Marie Price thing, her USP.
And I buy it and love it. Each time.
Insta connect, Insta lust that translates to some hot, raw, basic, sheet scorching sex.
Actually that's just a Lisa Marie Price thing, her USP.
And I buy it and love it. Each time.
May 15, 2011
This was another good book by LMR. I loved both Coop and Julia, even though I didn't understand at first how she fell in love with him since he barely talked to her and, quite frankly, he didn't know what foreplay was - I mean, he knew what it was but just didn't have enough control to dedicate himself to it, LOL.
The thing that bothered me in this book was the amount of scenes dedicated to the villain bent on killing Julia. There were too many of them, to the point that it was annoyingly distracting, and they didn't add anything to the story. LMR made a point of calling the villain "the professional" all the time, trying to keep his/her gender a secret until the end, but I had him/her figured out right from his/her first appearance. No biggie, but not good for the "suspense" part of the book.
I had some good laughs with this book - it was funnier than I'd thought, in a good way - and I closed it with a smile on my face. Very nice!!! So far, I haven't read a LMR book I didn't enjoy. :)
Final note: This book is pretty tame, considering that it's an EC release. The c-word is used a few times, but this book is neither erotica nor romantica.
The thing that bothered me in this book was the amount of scenes dedicated to the villain bent on killing Julia. There were too many of them, to the point that it was annoyingly distracting, and they didn't add anything to the story. LMR made a point of calling the villain "the professional" all the time, trying to keep his/her gender a secret until the end, but I had him/her figured out right from his/her first appearance. No biggie, but not good for the "suspense" part of the book.
I had some good laughs with this book - it was funnier than I'd thought, in a good way - and I closed it with a smile on my face. Very nice!!! So far, I haven't read a LMR book I didn't enjoy. :)
Final note: This book is pretty tame, considering that it's an EC release. The c-word is used a few times, but this book is neither erotica nor romantica.
September 16, 2020
Under the Witness Protection, Julia is relocated to a remote town. Sam, a former Navy Seal, previously bored, finds Julia’s arrival right on time. When things start to become suspicious. Sam steps in to protect Julia.
There was suspense, some action, hot sexy times, the author tried for a big reveal at the end, but this was a mediocre read for me. I could not connect. I felt distanced from the story.
This story had the elements that I usually go for, so I will search through Lisa Marie Rice’s Catalog for something else.
There was suspense, some action, hot sexy times, the author tried for a big reveal at the end, but this was a mediocre read for me. I could not connect. I felt distanced from the story.
This story had the elements that I usually go for, so I will search through Lisa Marie Rice’s Catalog for something else.
July 3, 2008
This was another dip in the erotica genre for me. Although it is only rated S=sensuous by Ellora's cave, it was quite sufficient for me ;) Only down side for the whole book was the use of the c word. My pet hate. Anyway, unlike other reviewers I liked Sam being the strong silent type (I married one and was fathered by one after all). I thoroughly enjoyed the vulnerability and strength of both Sam and Julie. It was a well written book even though the plot line has been used before. It was enough for me to go to Ellora's cave and buy the Midnight series in e-book. (I download and print them as I don't have a e-book thingamagiggee).
Recommended to all who like their romantic suspense heavy on the romance and the romance hot but not too hot. :)
Recommended to all who like their romantic suspense heavy on the romance and the romance hot but not too hot. :)
March 8, 2018
Mujer A La Fuga escrita por Lisa Marie Rice fue una lectura que me sorprendio mucho.
He leido varios libros de la autora, me gusta su forma de escribir y las tramas que crea pero no tenia muchas esperanzas puestas en esta novela, en parte porque al leer la sinopsis me imagine un tipo de historia y la verdad es que Mujer A La Fuga no fue para nada como yo pensaba.
Rapida de leer, entretenida y con un ritmo agil que nunca decae, ademas la pareja protagonista me gusto mucho ( y eso que al principio no me convencian ), sus conversaciones eran divertidisimas.
Esta novela es una mezcla entre las historias de Kristan Higgins y las de Pamela Clare, asi que si eres fan de alguna ( o de las dos ) estoy segura de que disfrutaras con este libro.
3.5 Estrellas!
September 2, 2018
I’m really confused, I like this book more that I should judging by all signs. And it’s probably mostly thanks to the writing and not the story itself.
The whole idea behind the book is pretty fine, while not being overly innovative. There is some potential in the story of a successful business woman from Boston sent by the Witness Protection System to the small town in Idaho. Unfortunately, this promise of a great plot is lost. Still, the book is a rather easy read without too much drama.
And this is one of these times when the book could use some more drama. Sadly, the suspense part is not a great part of the story. Well, that’s not exactly true – there are some big hunks on the professional killer and the Marshals, but they are not really incorporated into the main plot. I would prefer these parts to be more connected, with more thrill in the overall atmosphere of the story.
I would say that the story is more on the romance side than suspense but the romance part is not that developed too. Cooper and Julia make a lovely couple and I enjoy their relationship but it’s really not that developed.
The strong point of the story is Cooper, who is a very well- created hero. He is somewhat different and distinctive. Julia is also a nice heroin. She could easily be your typical shallow city girl but thankfully she is much more than that. The writing and the characters are probably one of the best things in this book.
I have some complains about the end of the book. Everything ends so quickly, without too much fuss. Again, lost potential.
I don’t think this is a book I will remember in some time (but there is some chance I will remember Cooper – again, really nice hero). I would rate this book 3.5 stars. The story needs some tension.
Read
March 24, 2017DNF 30 %
I had decided to give this one a chance simply because I liked the "on the run" concept. I fell in love with Paul's "Loving the Enemy" and was looking for a book that would give me thrills and make me fall in love with the characters while exploring new places, travelling. On the run. That's what I think of when I read the words on the run.
But here, Julia, or Sally, as her new ID states, is relocated to this little town and this is it. I could have sticked with it if the romance had been any good, but I didn't fancy Coop and I didn't feel any real connection between the two of them. Sometimes sophisticated city girl meets silent, brooding ex-seal cowboy works, and some other times it feels like the oddest pairing ever. Unfortunately Julia and Coop didn't fall in the first category.
Also, I discovered only mid-reading that the genre is more of an erotica than an "adventurous romance" and since I tend to often criticize erotica's lack of good plotting and characters development, eventually I decided it wasn't worth it to finish the book and pile up more criticism.
Anyway, the writing style is pretty good and I believe my not appreciation for this book to be originated mainly by the high expectations I had for it, which weren't met on a plot and characters level. I'm sure that other people more in tune with the themes will find an enjoyable read in "Woman on the Run".
I had decided to give this one a chance simply because I liked the "on the run" concept. I fell in love with Paul's "Loving the Enemy" and was looking for a book that would give me thrills and make me fall in love with the characters while exploring new places, travelling. On the run. That's what I think of when I read the words on the run.
But here, Julia, or Sally, as her new ID states, is relocated to this little town and this is it. I could have sticked with it if the romance had been any good, but I didn't fancy Coop and I didn't feel any real connection between the two of them. Sometimes sophisticated city girl meets silent, brooding ex-seal cowboy works, and some other times it feels like the oddest pairing ever. Unfortunately Julia and Coop didn't fall in the first category.
Also, I discovered only mid-reading that the genre is more of an erotica than an "adventurous romance" and since I tend to often criticize erotica's lack of good plotting and characters development, eventually I decided it wasn't worth it to finish the book and pile up more criticism.
Anyway, the writing style is pretty good and I believe my not appreciation for this book to be originated mainly by the high expectations I had for it, which weren't met on a plot and characters level. I'm sure that other people more in tune with the themes will find an enjoyable read in "Woman on the Run".
March 2, 2009
Romantic Suspense (Steamy) - Stand Alone
A very good story of a young woman whose life is suddenly turned upside down after she witnesses a mob murder. Julia is hurriedly relocated via the Witness Protection Program from big city Boston book editor to a tiny rural Idaho town, where she's now a grade school teacher.
Julia, now known as Sally, is doing pretty well under the circumstances, just trying to keep it together until she can testify and regain her real life. In a moment of panic after hours in her classroom, she attacks (in the most hilarious way) a man she thinks might be after her. Nope, he's not a bad guy, he's local rancher/horse breeder Sam Cooper.
Sam's a man of few words, a former SEAL, and while a commanding presence, not a handsome guy. (May I say how much it adds to a character when the author draws him/her as not particularly handsome/pretty! A leading man doesn't have to be drop dead gorgeous to be attractive. There's much to be said for being smart, kind, capable, likeable, etc. :-)) Sam and Julia/Sally begin a relationship, just as Julia/Sally develops her ties to the rural Idaho town.
Lisa Marie Rice did a great job of interweaving Sam/Sally's story with the ongoing quiet subplot of the mobster's "professional" working to hack the government codes and computers to find Julia/Sally, winding the suspense tighter and tighter as the story moves along.
Lots of little things added to the reading pleasure ... the "curse", the quirks of small towns and the folks who live there.
And I'm happy than unlike Dangerous Lover (#1 in LMR's Dangerous series), she didn't pile on the bad luck/tragedy on the heroine. Plus, Julia/Sally was made of much tougher stuff.
Looking forward to reading more of Lisa Marie Rice.
A very good story of a young woman whose life is suddenly turned upside down after she witnesses a mob murder. Julia is hurriedly relocated via the Witness Protection Program from big city Boston book editor to a tiny rural Idaho town, where she's now a grade school teacher.
Julia, now known as Sally, is doing pretty well under the circumstances, just trying to keep it together until she can testify and regain her real life. In a moment of panic after hours in her classroom, she attacks (in the most hilarious way) a man she thinks might be after her. Nope, he's not a bad guy, he's local rancher/horse breeder Sam Cooper.
Sam's a man of few words, a former SEAL, and while a commanding presence, not a handsome guy. (May I say how much it adds to a character when the author draws him/her as not particularly handsome/pretty! A leading man doesn't have to be drop dead gorgeous to be attractive. There's much to be said for being smart, kind, capable, likeable, etc. :-)) Sam and Julia/Sally begin a relationship, just as Julia/Sally develops her ties to the rural Idaho town.
Lisa Marie Rice did a great job of interweaving Sam/Sally's story with the ongoing quiet subplot of the mobster's "professional" working to hack the government codes and computers to find Julia/Sally, winding the suspense tighter and tighter as the story moves along.
Lots of little things added to the reading pleasure ... the "curse", the quirks of small towns and the folks who live there.
And I'm happy than unlike Dangerous Lover (#1 in LMR's Dangerous series), she didn't pile on the bad luck/tragedy on the heroine. Plus, Julia/Sally was made of much tougher stuff.
Looking forward to reading more of Lisa Marie Rice.
December 27, 2020
.
One of LMR's better books imho.
Julia sees a gangland killing and is put into witsec. A woman who is used to a comfortable big city life, now has to fit into a very small town in Idaho as a school teacher. But Julia was raised as a world traveler and fitting in to new places is her forte.
What she's not used to, is getting all hot and bothered over a man who hardly talks.
Right from the moment they meet, their connection is more about action and feelings than words. And this is a woman who used to be a top editor.
Coop is a man of few words because his brain tends to freeze when he's around Julia. She turns his crank by just standing there. I like that as the reader you get both their POVs so you can see how they connect even without words. Coop's a rancher who used to be a Navy Seal. Just what Julia will need.
There's some page space given to a silly curse that fortunately doesn't lead to anything. I hate curses as a plot device.
Unfortunately you also get the POV of the assassin who wants to kill Julia to get the contract fee.
But these parts are short and keep you abreast of how close the killer is getting.
Safety is very good
One of LMR's better books imho.
Julia sees a gangland killing and is put into witsec. A woman who is used to a comfortable big city life, now has to fit into a very small town in Idaho as a school teacher. But Julia was raised as a world traveler and fitting in to new places is her forte.
What she's not used to, is getting all hot and bothered over a man who hardly talks.
Right from the moment they meet, their connection is more about action and feelings than words. And this is a woman who used to be a top editor.
Coop is a man of few words because his brain tends to freeze when he's around Julia. She turns his crank by just standing there. I like that as the reader you get both their POVs so you can see how they connect even without words. Coop's a rancher who used to be a Navy Seal. Just what Julia will need.
There's some page space given to a silly curse that fortunately doesn't lead to anything. I hate curses as a plot device.
Unfortunately you also get the POV of the assassin who wants to kill Julia to get the contract fee.
But these parts are short and keep you abreast of how close the killer is getting.
Safety is very good
May 12, 2008
I liked this book and thought it had some neatly written passages throughout, but neither Sam nor Julia (Sally) fascinated me. Sam wasn't much of a talker...This book is rated S (Sensuous) by the publisher and, frankly, I've read hotter books in mass market format. I can't even place this in my "Hot" bookshelf. So, if you are looking for a nice romantic suspense (which is where I would categorize this one), you should enjoy it.
There were some similarities to this author's book "Pursuit" written by Elizabeth Jennings (AKA Lisa Marie Rice), but they are completely different books. "Pursuit" was one of my favorites...;-)
There were some similarities to this author's book "Pursuit" written by Elizabeth Jennings (AKA Lisa Marie Rice), but they are completely different books. "Pursuit" was one of my favorites...;-)
October 16, 2023
3.5 stars. Lisa Marie Rice books have an old-school Linda Howard feel to them and I'm a sucker for that. Big, strong, inarticulate ex-soldier meets delicate, sophisticated editor hiding from evil villains, and within hours he's on her like a stallion on a filly. I'm not even kidding.
A little more heavy-handed than it should be, there's no subtlety here at all, but if you feel like a reading about a damsel in distress rescued by a big strong hero, it satisfies a craving.
A little more heavy-handed than it should be, there's no subtlety here at all, but if you feel like a reading about a damsel in distress rescued by a big strong hero, it satisfies a craving.
July 5, 2024
Julia Devaux finds herself in the mother of all fixes when she witnesses a mob hit and becomes a valuable witness who could put away the dangerous Joey Capruzzo behind bars for a good long time. However that also means that one seriously rich and pissed off Capruzo is after her pretty little head served on a platter which would mean another failed attempt by the US government to indict him.
A book worm and film buff at the core, though Julia has lived a life of moving from one place to the other with her parents always on the move, she is not at all prepared to change into a Sally Anderson, a second grade school teacher in the middle of nowhere in Simpson, Idaho. With her life turned completely upside down, Julia is one step away from just simply sitting down and wailing at the winds when things take an interesting turn and she starts having an unholy fascination for anything to do with the tall, strong and silent Sam Cooper who turns up on her doorstep most unexpectedly.
Ex-Navy SEAL, Sam is a man who finds himself in serious trouble when the delectable new teacher in Idaho leaves him with a raging hard-on for the first time in almost two years. Sam's past and the famous Cooper curse makes him a wary man on all counts. On top of all that, Sam is not a man who has much inclination to talk which has him sweating buckets when it comes to wooing and seducing the one woman whom he wants more than his next breath.
With a whopping figure of two million on her head, Julia is far from safe even in a no name town such as Simpson when it brings out a killer most cunning who will do anything to find out and kill Julia, all for the luxury the money for the kill would bring.
Whe Sam finds out that Julia, the woman who has turned his life and that of his town around is a woman on the run, there is no stopping him from pulling out all the stops in protecting the one woman who means the world to him. Towards the end, the cunning killer almost wins in putting Julia six feet under until Sam arrives to the rescue with just seconds to spare.
I loved Woman on the Run by Lisa Marie Rice as this turned out to be refreshingly different from the rest of her novels I have read to date. I say different because of the take on humor this story has which had me laughing out loud in several places when Julia's quirky sense of self-depreciating humor along with the small town life comes into play.
From the aspect of the hero and the trademark LMR sensuality, this book is another winner with Sam being the uber-alpha and the protective kind whose want and need for Julia goes beyond anything describable. Juia is an endearing heroine whom I loved from the start of the novel though she sounds a bit confused of what she wants and needs at the beginning of the story. The villian when brought to light turned out to be the biggest shocker rendering this as one of the most enjoyable romantic suspense by the author. For me the best part of the epilogue of the story which takes place 4 years later turned out to be how different a man Sam is towards the end. And I would love to point it out that the overly descriptive narrations that annoyed me in Hotter than Wildfire which I reviewed earlier were non-existent in this one, making it earn a whopping 5 stars from the sunny side of life!
Rating=5/5
Original review posted at MBR's Realm of Romance
A book worm and film buff at the core, though Julia has lived a life of moving from one place to the other with her parents always on the move, she is not at all prepared to change into a Sally Anderson, a second grade school teacher in the middle of nowhere in Simpson, Idaho. With her life turned completely upside down, Julia is one step away from just simply sitting down and wailing at the winds when things take an interesting turn and she starts having an unholy fascination for anything to do with the tall, strong and silent Sam Cooper who turns up on her doorstep most unexpectedly.
Ex-Navy SEAL, Sam is a man who finds himself in serious trouble when the delectable new teacher in Idaho leaves him with a raging hard-on for the first time in almost two years. Sam's past and the famous Cooper curse makes him a wary man on all counts. On top of all that, Sam is not a man who has much inclination to talk which has him sweating buckets when it comes to wooing and seducing the one woman whom he wants more than his next breath.
With a whopping figure of two million on her head, Julia is far from safe even in a no name town such as Simpson when it brings out a killer most cunning who will do anything to find out and kill Julia, all for the luxury the money for the kill would bring.
Whe Sam finds out that Julia, the woman who has turned his life and that of his town around is a woman on the run, there is no stopping him from pulling out all the stops in protecting the one woman who means the world to him. Towards the end, the cunning killer almost wins in putting Julia six feet under until Sam arrives to the rescue with just seconds to spare.
I loved Woman on the Run by Lisa Marie Rice as this turned out to be refreshingly different from the rest of her novels I have read to date. I say different because of the take on humor this story has which had me laughing out loud in several places when Julia's quirky sense of self-depreciating humor along with the small town life comes into play.
From the aspect of the hero and the trademark LMR sensuality, this book is another winner with Sam being the uber-alpha and the protective kind whose want and need for Julia goes beyond anything describable. Juia is an endearing heroine whom I loved from the start of the novel though she sounds a bit confused of what she wants and needs at the beginning of the story. The villian when brought to light turned out to be the biggest shocker rendering this as one of the most enjoyable romantic suspense by the author. For me the best part of the epilogue of the story which takes place 4 years later turned out to be how different a man Sam is towards the end. And I would love to point it out that the overly descriptive narrations that annoyed me in Hotter than Wildfire which I reviewed earlier were non-existent in this one, making it earn a whopping 5 stars from the sunny side of life!
Rating=5/5
Original review posted at MBR's Realm of Romance
March 27, 2018
This is an erotic romantic suspense novel and a snob out of water story but neither of these are the reason I have reread it and given it five stars.
Growing up a (non) military brat Julia was taught to make the best of whatever her current living situation, but as her adult life was posh Boston the sudden move to nowhere Ohio was harsh.
Julia's relationship with Cooper is what jars her out of self pity to redecorate her shabby home into a warm and welcoming cabin. Seeing Julias skill her new friends are inspired and with her help transform what was once a dying town.
It's the strength of the secondary characters, the town, that make this a five star erotica.
Growing up a (non) military brat Julia was taught to make the best of whatever her current living situation, but as her adult life was posh Boston the sudden move to nowhere Ohio was harsh.
Julia's relationship with Cooper is what jars her out of self pity to redecorate her shabby home into a warm and welcoming cabin. Seeing Julias skill her new friends are inspired and with her help transform what was once a dying town.
It's the strength of the secondary characters, the town, that make this a five star erotica.
August 21, 2018
A keeper for me! One of those stories with "the woman hiding from the villain" theme. For whatever reason I love that theme and this book did it right for me. Julia Devaux witnesses a mob hit and ends up in the Witness Protection program as Sally Anderson, in the small Idaho town of Simpson. Enter rancher and former Navy SEAL, Sam Cooper, who has an immediate attraction to the new school teacher in town.
October 25, 2012
3.75 stars, rounded up. Absorbing. Suspenseful erotica with a lovely feel-good STORY about a dying community. Some bits at the end bugged me, we spent too much time in the killer's mind, and the sex ... felt exhausting. But I just loved Cooper! (The cover art does NOT do him justice.)
June 10, 2017
Bueno! Terminé, en cuánto?, 2 días??, "Mujer a la fuga" de L.M. Rice. Super recomendada!!!!
Y con razón!! me enganchó (a pesar de que estaba pasando por un mal período), me divertí, me reí bien alto!!
Es policial, porque Julia es testigo de un crimen y entra en un programa de protección a testigos. Cambia su vida totalmente: de la ciudad al campo.
Cooper (criador de caballos y ex SEAL) es un moreno divino, parco, seco, casi no habla, pero piensa mucho y es muy, muy tierno.
Hablar no habla, pero no puede dejar de pensar, durante todo el día, las mil maneras de f*llársela. Cuando se encuentran solo puede decir: - cama.
Ahhhhhhhh! y además le arregla todas las cosas de la casa!
Muy divertida
Y con razón!! me enganchó (a pesar de que estaba pasando por un mal período), me divertí, me reí bien alto!!
Es policial, porque Julia es testigo de un crimen y entra en un programa de protección a testigos. Cambia su vida totalmente: de la ciudad al campo.
Cooper (criador de caballos y ex SEAL) es un moreno divino, parco, seco, casi no habla, pero piensa mucho y es muy, muy tierno.
Hablar no habla, pero no puede dejar de pensar, durante todo el día, las mil maneras de f*llársela. Cuando se encuentran solo puede decir: - cama.
Ahhhhhhhh! y además le arregla todas las cosas de la casa!
Muy divertida
March 23, 2017
a reread and I did enjoy the story but the development of the romance seems a little disjointed for me. I remember enjoying the first read and looking for other LMR books to read after that.
April 29, 2018
2,5 ? ça ferait un bon téléfilm sur la 6, après c'est gentil et pas super réaliste mais y a des moments rigolos ^^ (et le côté érotique est pas si prononcé que ça - et pas très réaliste non plus lol)
August 6, 2020
Para pasar el rato. No es una historia que me marcaraá pero se ha pasado bien
December 4, 2013
I’d been wanting to read this Lisa Marie Rice book for a while. If I’d had more of this author’s books handy after devouring Pursuit, which she wrote under her pseudonym of Elizabeth Jennings, I would have been reading them too. This woman can write. She pulls you in immediately, gives you characters, especially heroes, you love (at least for me), and a storyline that won’t let go of you until the very last word is read.
Julia is in the proverbial wrong place at the wrong time, witnessing a mafia hit. She’s scheduled to testify against the mob boss who pulled the trigger, but in the meantime she’s been tossed in the Witness Protection Program. She’s now Sally Anderson, an elementary school teacher in Simpson, Idaho. She can’t get any further away from her life in Boston, all of it upscale.
Cooper is also sort of in the wrong place at the wrong time. He’s looking for his best friend’s son’s teacher to talk about Rafael and the problems he’s having in school, because the boy’s father lately spends his time soused. However, it’s after school and Julia is in her room alone when she hears someone outside in the hallway. Arming herself with the only thing available — a Jack o’lantern the kids made just that afternoon — scared spitless, she wallops the intruder when he dares breach her sanctum. Needless to say, these two don’t hit off at first glance.
But there is a pull between them, and when Coop volunteers to shuttle Rafael from his ranch to Sally’s during the week for tutoring, they begin to learn about each other and their attraction can only grow. They have their moments in between, though, some contentious and some hilarious. But when they both finally give in to the feelings and lust, this is one explosive couple.
Of course, Coop is one of those dominant alpha males that I love to read about. He’s a former SEAL (which comes in handy later), and Julia makes him hard instantly and he stays hard for her no matter how often they have sex. Talk about explosive. He can’t control himself to go slow and easy when it comes to Julia. That’s what I love about Ms. Rice’s heroes. They don’t need a lot of words (and Cooper sure doesn’t) to let their heroines know how they feel about her and how she affects them.
While all of this excitement is going on, a professional assassin is very logically hacking away at the FBI’s computer system and figuring out where Julia is. He, and plenty of other wannabes, are out for the 2 mil on the pretty teacher’s head.
Cooper is determined to keep Julia safe when he discovers her secret and how inept the FBI has been at her protection. He takes over and when all hell breaks loose, thank goodness he’s around. But when relief settles on Julia in place of her fear, she can’t wait to get home, which causes Coop to say goodbye. But can he really walk away? Will Julia let him? Or will the killer get their job done after all?
Vintage Lisa Marie Rice. From sassy heroine to alpha hero to quirky secondary characters — who are all hoot — along with a twist at the end you don’t see coming, this hit the spot for my LMR fix. Now I want another.
See my complete review at http://www.goodbadandunread.com
Julia is in the proverbial wrong place at the wrong time, witnessing a mafia hit. She’s scheduled to testify against the mob boss who pulled the trigger, but in the meantime she’s been tossed in the Witness Protection Program. She’s now Sally Anderson, an elementary school teacher in Simpson, Idaho. She can’t get any further away from her life in Boston, all of it upscale.
Cooper is also sort of in the wrong place at the wrong time. He’s looking for his best friend’s son’s teacher to talk about Rafael and the problems he’s having in school, because the boy’s father lately spends his time soused. However, it’s after school and Julia is in her room alone when she hears someone outside in the hallway. Arming herself with the only thing available — a Jack o’lantern the kids made just that afternoon — scared spitless, she wallops the intruder when he dares breach her sanctum. Needless to say, these two don’t hit off at first glance.
But there is a pull between them, and when Coop volunteers to shuttle Rafael from his ranch to Sally’s during the week for tutoring, they begin to learn about each other and their attraction can only grow. They have their moments in between, though, some contentious and some hilarious. But when they both finally give in to the feelings and lust, this is one explosive couple.
Of course, Coop is one of those dominant alpha males that I love to read about. He’s a former SEAL (which comes in handy later), and Julia makes him hard instantly and he stays hard for her no matter how often they have sex. Talk about explosive. He can’t control himself to go slow and easy when it comes to Julia. That’s what I love about Ms. Rice’s heroes. They don’t need a lot of words (and Cooper sure doesn’t) to let their heroines know how they feel about her and how she affects them.
While all of this excitement is going on, a professional assassin is very logically hacking away at the FBI’s computer system and figuring out where Julia is. He, and plenty of other wannabes, are out for the 2 mil on the pretty teacher’s head.
Cooper is determined to keep Julia safe when he discovers her secret and how inept the FBI has been at her protection. He takes over and when all hell breaks loose, thank goodness he’s around. But when relief settles on Julia in place of her fear, she can’t wait to get home, which causes Coop to say goodbye. But can he really walk away? Will Julia let him? Or will the killer get their job done after all?
Vintage Lisa Marie Rice. From sassy heroine to alpha hero to quirky secondary characters — who are all hoot — along with a twist at the end you don’t see coming, this hit the spot for my LMR fix. Now I want another.
See my complete review at http://www.goodbadandunread.com
May 19, 2015
This is one of the worst books I've read, to be honest. I'll try to keep my rant short.
The plot was barely there. So the heroine has a price on her head. And that's the whole plot line with no other development other than some meaningless small town activities. Even "the professional" wasn't any mystery. For God's sake, you can't throw in some new character, not from the small town of Simpson mind you halfway through book that just keeps popping up every once in a while afterwards, and not have the reader figure it out. Barely any dialog, with nothing meaningful between our hero and heroine. And what's with the Santana ending? The day the would-be-assassin is to do the deed and collect the money bam! . Very anticlimactic. The author even screwed this up.
Moving on to the characters. They were one dimensional at best.
Julia/Sally spent all her time feeling sorry for herself. She was extremely passive with no mind of her own. The towns' women rope her into redecorating their stores and she just says sure, why not. The father of one of her students steamrolls her into tutoring his son and she won't cut him off and decline, though she didn't really want to do it. And what's with all this "Yes, Cooper" crap through the whole book? Seriously? Let your boyfriend run your life why don't you? Oh and not to mention her TSTL moment at the end there. Just the icing on the cake.
Cooper was like a horny guard dog. That's the only way I can picture him. He doesn't talk. He only stares and drags Julia/Sally to bed every chance he gets. And when he finds out she's in danger, he has the me man, you woman thing down pat. He practically becomes the heroine's jailer. Oh, and we have a miracle at the end!! Once he's married and has kids the guy rediscovers speech, you just can't shut him up. Figure that out, why don't you!!
As for the other characters, Rafael started as the highlight in the beginning but then he just disappears, drops from the pages when the author thinks it's convenient. Oh and how about the fact that the people of Simpson have no idea how to run their lives and fall into depression more often than not? Perfect excuse to let our worthless heroine point out some very rational solutions that are just common sense to revive the dying town. Really? Rice couldn't find a better trick to try and make her wishwash heroine loveable? Sorry, didn't do it for me.
Well, I guess that was a rather long rant. I just had to get it off my chest. All in all, I can't believe this book has a 4-star rating. A 1-star is too much.
Recommendation: not worth your time. Drop it before you're sorry.
The plot was barely there. So the heroine has a price on her head. And that's the whole plot line with no other development other than some meaningless small town activities. Even "the professional" wasn't any mystery. For God's sake, you can't throw in some new character, not from the small town of Simpson mind you halfway through book that just keeps popping up every once in a while afterwards, and not have the reader figure it out. Barely any dialog, with nothing meaningful between our hero and heroine. And what's with the Santana ending? The day the would-be-assassin is to do the deed and collect the money bam! . Very anticlimactic. The author even screwed this up.
Moving on to the characters. They were one dimensional at best.
Julia/Sally spent all her time feeling sorry for herself. She was extremely passive with no mind of her own. The towns' women rope her into redecorating their stores and she just says sure, why not. The father of one of her students steamrolls her into tutoring his son and she won't cut him off and decline, though she didn't really want to do it. And what's with all this "Yes, Cooper" crap through the whole book? Seriously? Let your boyfriend run your life why don't you? Oh and not to mention her TSTL moment at the end there. Just the icing on the cake.
Cooper was like a horny guard dog. That's the only way I can picture him. He doesn't talk. He only stares and drags Julia/Sally to bed every chance he gets. And when he finds out she's in danger, he has the me man, you woman thing down pat. He practically becomes the heroine's jailer. Oh, and we have a miracle at the end!! Once he's married and has kids the guy rediscovers speech, you just can't shut him up. Figure that out, why don't you!!
As for the other characters, Rafael started as the highlight in the beginning but then he just disappears, drops from the pages when the author thinks it's convenient. Oh and how about the fact that the people of Simpson have no idea how to run their lives and fall into depression more often than not? Perfect excuse to let our worthless heroine point out some very rational solutions that are just common sense to revive the dying town. Really? Rice couldn't find a better trick to try and make her wishwash heroine loveable? Sorry, didn't do it for me.
Well, I guess that was a rather long rant. I just had to get it off my chest. All in all, I can't believe this book has a 4-star rating. A 1-star is too much.
Recommendation: not worth your time. Drop it before you're sorry.
July 26, 2017
Not quite 4 stars, but rounding up.
I found this very fun! It's lightweight and not something that is going to move your soul or whatever, but it's an enjoyable read. The prose is very smooth, it isn't full of terrible nonsense, and I just... enjoyed it. I find myself typically almost unable to read those "former SEAL and a random lady" suspense things because they are so over the top and trying and failing to be macho.
Heroine is Julia/Sally, who inadvertently witnessed a murder and is now in Witness Protection, relocated from a semi-glamorous life as book editor in Boston to a tiny rural town in Idaho, where she's teaching second grade and feeling grim about things. She meets the hero, large/silent rancher Sam Cooper. Cooper wants to Do It with "Sally". He's befuddled by the intensity of this urge. Cooper doesn't have much of an internal life, he's a guy who works with his hands and his body. (Sometimes this type of hero is such a relief to read about.)
The book felt to me like a small novella about Julia and Coop, with other parts I to be honest skimmed past, about the "suspense". I don't really like suspense in my romance and I typically feel that it is executed in a mediocre way - thriller writers are often not great at writing romance, so I think it's fine for people to specialize, right? Anyway, the suspense here was nothing I found fascinating, but I don't really care about that part of it anyway, I was just in it for "Coop knows how to fix Julia's boiler and install a deadbolt" or "Julia discovers that the owner of the terrible town diner secretly wants to turn it into an 80s fern bar" or "Coop's mighty erection something something something".
There's quite a bit of sex in this, it's the type where the hero is overwhelmed by lust and can't talk or think and just rips the lady's clothes off. I find it simultaneously silly and fun to read - YMMV but I sometimes get sort of tired, I think, of scenes where the hero is like a magical maker of slow love and there is a lot of thinking and carefulness. This is more animalistic. I think I like it when the characters in a romance are both sort of bowled over by the drive to be together, so this worked for me. This isn't a book (in case that's your thing) where there is a lot of banter or sharing of feelings or whatever, Cooper says maybe a couple hundred words in the entire book.
I can't remember if I've tried other Lisa Marie Rice books before, but this was good enough that I'm going to look at her other stuff. It reminded me a little bit of Anne Stuart - not the same, but kind of similar in the smoothness of the prose. (I hate almost all prose and characterization in almost all contemporary romances I try, so this lukewarm praise is a bigger deal than it may sound.)
I found this very fun! It's lightweight and not something that is going to move your soul or whatever, but it's an enjoyable read. The prose is very smooth, it isn't full of terrible nonsense, and I just... enjoyed it. I find myself typically almost unable to read those "former SEAL and a random lady" suspense things because they are so over the top and trying and failing to be macho.
Heroine is Julia/Sally, who inadvertently witnessed a murder and is now in Witness Protection, relocated from a semi-glamorous life as book editor in Boston to a tiny rural town in Idaho, where she's teaching second grade and feeling grim about things. She meets the hero, large/silent rancher Sam Cooper. Cooper wants to Do It with "Sally". He's befuddled by the intensity of this urge. Cooper doesn't have much of an internal life, he's a guy who works with his hands and his body. (Sometimes this type of hero is such a relief to read about.)
The book felt to me like a small novella about Julia and Coop, with other parts I to be honest skimmed past, about the "suspense". I don't really like suspense in my romance and I typically feel that it is executed in a mediocre way - thriller writers are often not great at writing romance, so I think it's fine for people to specialize, right? Anyway, the suspense here was nothing I found fascinating, but I don't really care about that part of it anyway, I was just in it for "Coop knows how to fix Julia's boiler and install a deadbolt" or "Julia discovers that the owner of the terrible town diner secretly wants to turn it into an 80s fern bar" or "Coop's mighty erection something something something".
There's quite a bit of sex in this, it's the type where the hero is overwhelmed by lust and can't talk or think and just rips the lady's clothes off. I find it simultaneously silly and fun to read - YMMV but I sometimes get sort of tired, I think, of scenes where the hero is like a magical maker of slow love and there is a lot of thinking and carefulness. This is more animalistic. I think I like it when the characters in a romance are both sort of bowled over by the drive to be together, so this worked for me. This isn't a book (in case that's your thing) where there is a lot of banter or sharing of feelings or whatever, Cooper says maybe a couple hundred words in the entire book.
I can't remember if I've tried other Lisa Marie Rice books before, but this was good enough that I'm going to look at her other stuff. It reminded me a little bit of Anne Stuart - not the same, but kind of similar in the smoothness of the prose. (I hate almost all prose and characterization in almost all contemporary romances I try, so this lukewarm praise is a bigger deal than it may sound.)
Shelved as 'did-not-finish'
January 23, 2024CURRENTLY READING
December 9, 2015
A great read. I think I liked it almost as much as Rice's Midnight Angel. Cultured, east-coaster Julia, after witnessing a mob murder, enters the witness protection plan and ends up as Sally Anderson, a grade school teacher in a dying town in the midwest. Cooper is a former SEAL who now runs a very successful ranch just out of town.
They had chemistry and I really enjoyed their interactions, but I didn't quite feel that sparks were flying. I love dialogue between characters, and Cooper was extremely taciturn. Also, and this was worse, I felt that his inner monologues weren't focused enough on Julia. Even though he was obsessed with her, he really didn't seem to give much thought to her random terrors. I felt that it was inconsistent.
Also, I found the scenes that didn't involve Cooper and/or Julia, like those regarding the assassin and those involving her witness protection plan contact, extremely boring. I basically had to skim them.
They had chemistry and I really enjoyed their interactions, but I didn't quite feel that sparks were flying. I love dialogue between characters, and Cooper was extremely taciturn. Also, and this was worse, I felt that his inner monologues weren't focused enough on Julia. Even though he was obsessed with her, he really didn't seem to give much thought to her random terrors. I felt that it was inconsistent.
Also, I found the scenes that didn't involve Cooper and/or Julia, like those regarding the assassin and those involving her witness protection plan contact, extremely boring. I basically had to skim them.
September 21, 2009
I'm posting my review from Amazon from last year:
The plot is excellent and the characters sound like real people not stock cardboard cutouts. Julia is spirited but not dumb. Cooper is hot. There is less sex than you might expect from an erotic romance (some of them seem to be nothing but sex scenes strung together) and that's ok. The identity of the Professional took me by surprise and I had to reread the earlier scenes to make sure I hadn't missed anything. Clever! Lisa Marie Rice is fantastic, one of my favorite authors now.
The plot is excellent and the characters sound like real people not stock cardboard cutouts. Julia is spirited but not dumb. Cooper is hot. There is less sex than you might expect from an erotic romance (some of them seem to be nothing but sex scenes strung together) and that's ok. The identity of the Professional took me by surprise and I had to reread the earlier scenes to make sure I hadn't missed anything. Clever! Lisa Marie Rice is fantastic, one of my favorite authors now.
May 9, 2015
My first book from Lisa Marie Rice. i really enjoyed the book when I first got started. I liked LMR's style, I liked her humor. I thought that it would be a nail biting, heart stopping action story. But the book just dragged on. Everything is so predictable that there is essentially no plot, no twist, and the characters are all one dimensional. Not even half way into the book i started skipping and scanning. The sex was hot in the beginning; then it became more of the same and a little gratuitous.
May 17, 2015
3.5 Star
March 31, 2022
Hermoso libro de 351 páginas, tiene romance instalove, misterio y un seal hiper protector.
Me gustaron ambos protagonistas, los dos son muy fuertes, Sam es genial, protector pero justo, aunque Julia quisiera golpearlo por sobreprotector, es muy dulce.
Julia cada vez que le decían Sally no sabía que le hablaban a ella, me divertía mucho cada vez que pasaba.
Me gustaron ambos protagonistas, los dos son muy fuertes, Sam es genial, protector pero justo, aunque Julia quisiera golpearlo por sobreprotector, es muy dulce.
Julia cada vez que le decían Sally no sabía que le hablaban a ella, me divertía mucho cada vez que pasaba.
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