cover image Trust Me

Trust Me

Claire Lorrimer. Severn, $28.95 hardcover (192p) ISBN 978-0-7278-8499-2

Lorrimer’s (Obsession) romantic thriller is short on romance and weak on suspense. Toni, a magazine editor’s assistant, meets wealthy playboy Justin at a London party, and within a few weeks they decide to marry. Her parents ask them to wait until the end of the year, so they take a trip to Spain in lieu of their planned honeymoon. There Justin flirts with another woman, leading Toni to doubt their relationship. In turn, Toni makes eyes at Aaron, a temporarily paralyzed man who was injured in a skiing accident that killed his wife. When food poisoning lands Toni in the hospital, she gets to know Aaron while Justin flies home for a golfing expedition. Toni constantly mulls over her jealousy toward Justin and friendship with Aaron, which drastically slows the pace, but all this introspection makes her no less naive. Meanwhile, readers know what she doesn’t: Aaron killed his wife in that supposed accident. Endless complications pile up into an untidy heap of an ending. (July)