Influenced, no doubt, by the success of her recent Arcane Society books, Jayne Ann Krentz has begun a new series that continues their appealing blend of mystery and paranormal romance. Putnam's plans to release the first of these books, Copper Beach, part of Krentz’s Dark Legacy trilogy, on Jan. 10, 2012.
Copper Beach focuses on Abby Radwell, a rare books expert whose specialty is unlocking psychic encryptions. When a blackmailer threatens to publicize her power, which she has tried to keep secret for the sake of her family, Abby turns to Sam Coppersmith for help.
Sam, who is part of the Coppersmith family's mineralogical empire, works with "hot rocks," crystals containing paranormal energy. He needs Abby’s skill to find and decode a lab notebook that disappeared four decades earlier. That notebook holds the secret to releasing the massive quantity of energy contained in crystals found in a mine Sam’s father, Elias Coppersmith, owned.
When Abby’s mentor, Thaddeus Webber, is murdered, Sam and Abby realize that others share their desire to find the notebook. Among them are Lander Knox, the son of Elias’s former mining partner, and Gideon Barrett, whose father is Coppersmith Inc.'s chief business rival. On a more personal level, Abby discovers that her wealthy but distant stepfamily, the Stricklands, seeks the notebook too.
Set, as are many of Krentz’s works, on one of Washington State’s beautiful San Juan Islands, Copper Beach offers this writer’s usual combination of attractive and clever lead characters and an intriguing plot. Krentz is also skilled in adding humor to her works, as is evidenced in the Copper Beach scene in which a shootout between Sam and Gideon Barrett devolves into a discussion of the competing technologies involved in their crystal powered weapons.
Although research by the Mystery Series Examiner has not revealed any details about the two Dark Legacy trilogy novels that will follow Copper Beach, the book itself suggests that Emma and Justin Coppersmith, Sam’s brother and sister, will be central characters. Gideon Barrett may also reappear, since he played a key role in this first novel. The Dark Legacy trilogy is clearly a series Krentz’s readers will want to follow.
FTC Full Disclosure: A review copy of this work was provided by Penguin Group (USA).
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