Shades of Twilight

Family, loyalty, love, sex and revenge steam up the pages in this sometimes frustrating but ultimately satisfying romance set in present-day Alabama. Bestselling author Howard (After the Night) portrays orphan Roanna Davenport, born into a wealthy and aristocratic family. An awkward child, headstrong and generally disliked by her haughty relatives, she is championed by her older cousin Webb Tallant, with whom she falls in love. But he marries another cousin, the beautiful, heartless Jessie. When Jessie is murdered, Webb leaves the ancestral home for 10 years until the family's dying matriarch summons him back, reawakening old passions and reopening old wounds. Unnecessary bouts of crude sex between minor characters may put off some readers, and a good shaking seems in order for both Roanna and Webb, as they misinterpret each other's actions to excess. Howard does manage, however, to maintain tension through a twist-filled plot and the emotional involvement of the main characters. (July)