All I can say is that considering her previous books this one seemed like it was written by someone else or by an amateur author...not up to her standards at all. I recommend you skip this book and pick out any of her previous ones which are really good.

Cold Hearted brings us into a world of controversy when a popular elected official commits suicide when it was discovered that he had been stricken by a debilitating disease. The controversy centers around his wife (now widow) Jordan Price who never showed the slightest bit of emotions when she discovered this tragedy or at the funeral. A private investigator (also the late senator's brother) is committed to expose the truth and begins digging up information on his late brother's widow and discovers a sordid list of husbands whom died under suspicious circumstances. The plot thickens when the late senator's first wife threatens Jordan and then is found dead. Beverly Barton has written a inviting tale of intrigue and created the perfect praying mantis in Jordan Price.

Editor of the highly recommended novel: Fates by Georgiou Tino: Best of 2008

Everyone who knew the late Senator Dan Price refuse to believe he committed suicide especially since he seemed to have everything now that he married Jordan. His brother Ryan refuses to accept the official declaration that Dan killed himself. He hires the Powell Private Security to uncover the truth. Rick Carson is assigned to head the investigation.

Rick watches the widow grieve at her husband's grave and can see why she has supporters amongst Dan's family and friends who insists she is a paragon. He wonders if she might be a black widow as he immediately suspects the worst of the twenty-four year old Jordan Price; although he also is mesmerized by her. Everyone in Jordan's tightly knit group insists that is impossible, but Rick remains unconvinced, especially when he learns of the other deaths that surround Jordan's past; her fiancé Robby Joe Wright in a car accident and her first spouse Boyd Bannon in a hunting accident. Despite his distrust, Rick falls under Jordan's spell as well; he becomes her alibi for the murder of the senator's first wife, who he knows was blackmailing his suspect. Rick wonders if he was set up by a brilliant sexy strategist black widow or is there someone even more diabolically clever using her as a victim of sorts.

Rick makes this thriller work as he falls in love even though he increasingly believes his beloved is a COLD HEARTED black widow. The story line is driven by the relationship between the sleuth and the widow as each is attracted to the other, but she senses his doubts. Fans will enjoy this tense suspense tale as Rick knows any man intimately involved with Jordan has a short life span; he hopes his focus is with his upper head, but from the moment he saw her at Dan's funeral, his blood went south.

Harriet Klausner

A senator apparently has committed suicide after learning he has early onset Alzheimer's but in reality, someone close to him helped him pull the trigger. Hired by the senator's brother, PI Rick Carson thinks that the unemotional widow Jordan Price might be the culprit. As Rick delves deeper into Jordan's background, he discovers that many men have met an untimely death after getting involved with Jordan including a fiancé, a first husband, a colleague, and her former boss. After losing the love of her life in a car accident, Jordan gave up ever loving another and entered into a marriage of convenience with the senator and guards his privacy and legacy closely. When the senator's angry first wife blackmails Jordan then ends up dead, suspicion is further cast her way and Rick can't help but wonder whether Jordan will be his lover or his murderer or both.

Barton weaves an intriguing tale of a potential black widow and the gaggle of non-blood related family members that surround her. She effectively has readers pondering over who could be behind the deaths, as well as the motive. Savvy readers may find many plot similarities in common with Sandra Brown's "Where There's Smoke" right down to the senator's "secret" (that many might see coming). Barton manages to create a sympathetic heroine scarred by loss yet who isn't a doormat and pair her with an engaging and charismatic equal in a page-turning romantic mystery.

© Tracy Vest, September 2008

A senator apparently has committed suicide after learning he has early onset Alzheimer's but in reality, someone close to him helped him pull the trigger. Hired by the senator's brother, PI Rick Carson thinks that the unemotional widow Jordan Price might be the culprit. As Rick delves deeper into Jordan's background, he discovers that many men have met an untimely death after getting involved with Jordan including a fiancé, a first husband, a colleague, and her former boss. After losing the love of her life in a car accident, Jordan gave up ever loving another and entered into a marriage of convenience with the senator and guards his privacy and legacy closely. When the senator's angry first wife blackmails Jordan then ends up dead, suspicion is further cast her way and Rick can't help but wonder whether Jordan will be his lover or his murderer or both.

Barton weaves an intriguing tale of a potential black widow and the gaggle of non-blood related family members that surround her. She effectively has readers pondering over who could be behind the deaths, as well as the motive. Savvy readers may find many plot similarities in common with Sandra Brown's "Where There's Smoke" right down to the senator's "secret" (that many might see coming). Barton manages to create a sympathetic heroine scarred by loss yet who isn't a doormat and pair her with an engaging and charismatic equal in a page-turning romantic mystery.

I do not know how this book could have been better. To be fair to the author, I realized that I do not like the bodyguard themed books with the woman seeming so weak yet so strong. The author tried to show that the lead female character was the strong and dependable type, yet she "swooned" and "swayed" at least every other chapter.

It was not a smart read, not like the author's other books. This typically happens when the leads are not people you want to care about. I cared more about Nicole and Grif, than the lead characters here. The lead female character was annoying and it did seem like the lead male character acted on his hormones rather than anything else and I did not know enough about him to like him. He wasnt engaging at all, unlike this author's other male lead characters. I like this author's previous heroines like Nicole, not women whose physical attributes are so amazing men overlook a little thing like murder.

The problem with this book is the overdone formula of an enigmatic/beautiful/young/strong/vunerable/damsel in distress syndrome/married to a closeted and murdered senator/with too many red herrings as suspects. 3/4 of the book was a rehashing of the following themes:
1. she was a beautiful but possible murderess but possible saint
2. there is yet another secret she holds
3. the attraction between the two lead characters was oh so wrong but felt right.
4. somebody else did it.

It is suspected that Senator Price's suicide was actually murder. The most likely suspect is his young widow, Jordan Price. Jordan remained stoic at the funeral and has a past that labels her a black widow: a dead fiancé and the deaths of her first and second husbands.

Rick Carson, investigator for the Powell Agency, takes the case. Everyone around Jordan seems to love her and can't believe she is capable of murder. But Rick has his doubts. Jordan has secrets and it is his job to discover the truth. The more he observes, the more he wonders if Jordan really is innocent. His suspect list is growing. Could it be a jealous family member, a bitter ex-wife, or an admirer who will stop at nothing?

I enjoyed reading this book. Barton does a wonderful job of balancing the romance and the suspense. The plot and pacing are great and the events and dialogue add to the overall tension and suspense. I guessed some of the twists and had to keep reading to find out what happened next. It was fun to guess motive, intentions and the identity of the culprit.

Cold Hearted will appeal to readers who enjoy suspense mixed with some romance. The attraction between the characters doesn't distract from the main story. There are enough clues for readers who want to try to figure out the identity of the murderer. I was three quarters of the way through and had narrowed my suspects down to three people. Reading the killer's creepy thoughts I had to decide if this person was cool and calculated or just plain delusional. This book is also great if you just want to be entertained.

Armchair Interviews says: Cold Hearted is a fast-paced romantic suspense.