Olivia MacBride and her parents, a fairy-tale Hollywood family, had everything--fame, fortune, and love. But when 4-year-old Olivia awakens one night to find her mother brutally murdered and her father, Sam, standing over her corpse, the little girl's dreamland dissolves before her very eyes.

Whisked away to the sanctuary of the Olympic Peninsula by her grandparents, Olivia learns to bury the past deep within her. Determined to protect herself from painful memories, Olivia limits her life to the emerald rain forests and the River's End resort. Years later, when Noah Brady arrives on her doorstop, Olivia allows her defenses to slip and opens herself to the passion that sparks between them.

When she learns that Noah is fascinated with her mother's death and is writing a tell-all novel, Olivia is devastated. But as Noah helps Olivia acknowledge the lingering effects of her painful memories, she learns to trust him again. With careful research and the apparent cooperation of Sam, Noah begins to unravel the mysteries of that night. However, soon after Sam's release from prison, dangerous threats begin to pursue Noah and Olivia. When the killer enters the serenity of their world, Noah and Olivia must face the dark secrets of the past, or fail to secure a safe future.

With the same skills that earned her the 1997 Romance Writers of America Lifetime Achievement Award, Nora Roberts convincingly peers into the complex minds and motivations of her characters. Though Roberts stumbles in her attempt to write with the voice of a 4-year-old child, her luscious descriptions of Hollywood glamour and rain forest wilderness ring realistic and true. Both longtime fans and new readers alike will enjoy the intriguing suspense and electric passion in this romantic thriller. --Nancy R.E. O'Brien


From Publishers Weekly
Her signature florid style again serving a suspenseful mystery combined with a fated romance, bestselling Roberts (Hot Ice) tells a Helter Skelter-type Hollywood horror story lurid with murder, drugs and insanity. One summer night in 1979, four-year-old Olivia Tanner finds her doped-up father, Sam, bloodied shears in hand, poised over the dead body of her movie-star mom. Haunted by the image of "the monster" pursuing her, Olivia is sent to live with her grandparents in the Pacific Northwest, where she is sheltered from her memories by towering Douglas firs. Two decades later, the specter of the "monster" returns. From prison, her father urges young investigative reporter Noah Brady?son of the police detective who discovered Olivia after the murder?to research the crime. Noah accepts this task eagerly, heedless of Olivia's rebuffs and undeterred by violence and danger, especially after Olivia begins to remember the crime. The denouement brings both of them into a bloody confrontation with the past. Roberts's careful research, particularly into the ecosystems of the forests of the Pacific Northwest, makes for vibrant background detail. Her artful manipulation of the plot, contrived so that amour and horror escalate in tandem, reaffirms her ability to deliver entertaining fiction. 275,000 first printing; 300,000 ad/promo; Literary Guild and Doubleday Book Club main selection; author tour. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From School Library Journal
YA-Life changes completely for four-year-old Olivia McBride the night she encounters the monster standing over her mother holding a pair of scissors covered with blood. Until then, she had been the only child of one of Hollywood's most glittering couples, dearly loved by her parents and loving them in return. But the monster, with her father's face, takes away her mother forever. She is whisked away from Hollywood and all the publicity surrounding the murder and her father's subsequent trial and imprisonment to live with her mother's loving and protective family. Growing up in the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest, Olivia's monster is almost forgotten until a young writer, contacted by her father, agrees to write a book about the events of that night so many years ago. Thus, the monster that has been at bay for so long is reawakened. This novel, with elements of suspense and romance, also has vivid and atmospheric geographical descriptions.Pamela B. Rearden, Centreville Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
A classic case of domestic violence or something more sinister? Four-year-old Olivia's testimony put her father behind bars for the murder of her mother. Twenty years later Sam Tanner wants to tell his story, and he wants true-crime writer Noah Brady, the son of the cop who arrested him, to write it. Noah agrees because the story has haunted him all his life. Olivia is first appalled, then curious. Noah is everything she had ever imagined, but he is probing deeply painful memories. Sandra Burr adds her considerable talents to this tightly written romantic thriller from the author of Inner Harbor (Audio Reviews, LJ 4/15/99). Her child's voice is eerily memorable, her teenage Livy aches of womanhood, but she shines with the adult Livy and Noah. Their sexual tension is palpable, and the story's suspense is even more tightly strung. Highly recommended for all fiction collections.AJodi L. Israel, Jamaica Plain, MA Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
Four-year old Olivia's screams are rendered girlish and innocent as she runs from the living room where her father crouches over her mother's body, scissors running with blood. Detective Frank Brady, who speaks in a smoke-laden, gravelly voice, is determined to track down the murderer. Sandra Burr delivers the narration and story in a compelling style, leaving the listener anxious to hear what happens next. While deftly handling the many character changes, she builds the tension to a suspenseful, surprising conclusion. G.D.W. (c) AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
The name Nora Roberts guarantees sales in the hundreds of thousands because she consistently gives her fans what they want--complex characters, snappy dialogue, and an intriguing plot--and her newest is no exception. It revolves around Olivia MacBride who witnessed a murder so horrific her four-year-old mind erased her memories of that night--the night her father murdered her mother with a pair of scissors. Why did Olivia become the object of intense media attention? Because her mother reigned as the hottest female star in Hollywood, while her father's star was falling. In the wake of the trial and the ongoing lack of privacy, Olivia's grandparents took her home to River's End Lodge in the Pacific Northwest. Now, 20 years later, the murder of Olivia's mother still fascinates the merely curious, die-hard fans, journalists, and writer Noah Brady, whose father was the first police officer on the scene. With several best-sellers under his belt ala Ann Rule, Noah decides to pursue his obsession with the unexpected help of Olivia's father, who contacts him from prison with an offer to tell his side of the story. Noah's investigation takes him to River's End, but Olivia wants nothing to do with his research or him, until his persistence has an unexpected side effect--the monster from Olivia's childhood has returned, determined to have her or to make sure no one else does. Even though Noah fails to make some obvious connections, Roberts' suspenseful tale is still a success, and demand will be high given book-club selections and a groundbreaking promotional stunt: the packaging of excerpts in 12-and 24-packs of Diet Coke. Melanie Duncan


Washington Post Book World
A page-turner.


Book Description
Olivia's parents were one of Hollywood's golden couples-until the night her father destroyed their home and took her mother away forever. Now, years later, Olivia is forced to recall those horrifying events and discover the truth about her childhood.


Download Description
Olivia's parents were among Hollywood's golden couples…until the night a monster came and took her mother away forever. A monster with the face of her father. Sheltered from the truth Olivia only dimly recalls her night of terror--but her recurring nightmares make her realize she must piece together the real story.

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Olivia Tanner was born into a family of Hollywood royalty, but when she was a child, something terrifying changed her life forever. When she was just a toddler, her mother was brutally murdered by a very human monster. The man who came after little Olivia was her own father, movie star and sometime coke addict Sam Tanner. In his hands, scissors bloodied from the murder of Julie McBride, Olivia's mother.

Frank Brady is the cop who shows up at the scene and protects Olivia. He is thrilled to put the murderous Sam into prison for the rest of his life, as is Olivia's aunt. But is the case closed?

Another thread enters this wonderful novel and lightens the darkness. Noah Brady, Frank's son, is a kid at the time of the murder but even then is aware of the powerful effect it had on his dad. As he grows up, he becomes curious about Olivia. When he reaches adolescence, Noah and his parents take a trip up to the Pacific Northwest, where Olivia and her grandparents now live. Even as youngsters, it's nearly love at first sight. Later, when he's a reporter for the Los Angeles Times, Noah makes a trip to Olivia's college dorm. When he sees her, he knows it's all over for him: Cupid has struck. The only problem is, he's really there to reopen the case so that he can write about it — and Olivia sees right through him.

As they both grow to adulthood in their very separate lives, Olivia is still haunted by fears and doubts about that fateful night. Noah, now a successful true-crime writer, is virtually obsessed with it. When Sam Tanner contacts him and tells him that he wants totellthe whole story, Noah hopes that he can somehow heal the past for himself and for Olivia.

But perhaps the most terrifying days are yet to come — for Sam Tanner is out.

And he wants to see Olivia more than anything in the world, to finish the business that began that night so many years earlier.

Do not miss River's End. It is a truly thrilling romantic novel, part terrifying and part exultant, and all Nora. Nora Roberts has become a master storyteller in any and all genres, but she's showing her loyalty to her huge romance audience with one of her most profound stories of true love, which shares space with a thrill ride in this surefire bestseller.

—Jessi Rose Lucas

ANNOTATION

Traumatized by the events surrounding the breakup of her parent's marriage years ago, a young woman seeks to confront her past and know the truth about the infamous night in her life that has become a part of Hollywood history.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

A thrilling "page-turner"* from the #1 New York Times bestselling author

The author of Dance Upon the Air presents her most seductively suspenseful tale-a story of one woman's shattered innocence, a terrifying search for truth, and a heart's journey toward healing.

SYNOPSIS

Olivia's parents had been one of Hollywood's glittering golden couples...until the night the monster came. The monster who destroyed their beautiful home and took Olivia's mother away fom her forever. The monster with the face of her father.... Now a young woman, Olivia finds her memory of that night faded. But despite the terror, and the years that have passed, a part of her still yearns to recall those horrifying events, to know the truth about her childhood. With the help of a young writer named Noah Brady, she could have the chance. Noah wants to reconstruct that famous night — and tell the story that has become a part of Hollywood history. But before she can confront her past, Olivia must safeguard her future. For the monster walks again....

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Her signature florid style again serving a suspenseful mystery combined with a fated romance, bestselling Roberts (Hot Ice) tells a Helter Skelter-type Hollywood horror story lurid with murder, drugs and insanity. One summer night in 1979, four-year-old Olivia Tanner finds her doped-up father, Sam, bloodied shears in hand, poised over the dead body of her movie-star mom. Haunted by the image of "the monster" pursuing her, Olivia is sent to live with her grandparents in the Pacific Northwest, where she is sheltered from her memories by towering Douglas firs. Two decades later, the specter of the "monster" returns. From prison, her father urges young investigative reporter Noah Brady — son of the police detective who discovered Olivia after the murder — to research the crime. Noah accepts this task eagerly, heedless of Olivia's rebuffs and undeterred by violence and danger, especially after Olivia begins to remember the crime. The denouement brings both of them into a bloody confrontation with the past. Roberts's careful research, particularly into the ecosystems of the forests of the Pacific Northwest, makes for vibrant background detail. Her artful manipulation of the plot, contrived so that amour and horror escalate in tandem, reaffirms her ability to deliver entertaining fiction.

Library Journal

A classic case of domestic violence or something more sinister? Four-year-old Olivia's testimony put her father behind bars for the murder of her mother. Twenty years later Sam Tanner wants to tell his story, and he wants true-crime writer Noah Brady, the son of the cop who arrested him, to write it. Noah agrees because the story has haunted him all his life. Olivia is first appalled, then curious. Noah is everything she had ever imagined, but he is probing deeply painful memories. Sandra Burr adds her considerable talents to this tightly written romantic thriller from the author of Inner Harbor (Audio Reviews, LJ 4/15/99). Her child's voice is eerily memorable, her teenage Livy aches of womanhood, but she shines with the adult Livy and Noah. Their sexual tension is palpable, and the story's suspense is even more tightly strung. Highly recommended for all fiction collections.--Jodi L. Israel, Jamaica Plain, MA Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

School Library Journal

YA-Life changes completely for four-year-old Olivia McBride the night she encounters the monster standing over her mother holding a pair of scissors covered with blood. Until then, she had been the only child of one of Hollywood's most glittering couples, dearly loved by her parents and loving them in return. But the monster, with her father's face, takes away her mother forever. She is whisked away from Hollywood and all the publicity surrounding the murder and her father's subsequent trial and imprisonment to live with her mother's loving and protective family. Growing up in the natural beauty of the Pacific Northwest, Olivia's monster is almost forgotten until a young writer, contacted by her father, agrees to write a book about the events of that night so many years ago. Thus, the monster that has been at bay for so long is reawakened. This novel, with elements of suspense and romance, also has vivid and atmospheric geographical descriptions.-Pamela B. Rearden, Centreville Regional Library, Fairfax County, VA Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information.

AudioFile

Four-year old Olivia's screams are rendered girlish and innocent as she runs from the living room where her father crouches over her mother's body, scissors running with blood. Detective Frank Brady, who speaks in a smoke-laden, gravelly voice, is determined to track down the murderer. Sandra Burr delivers the narration and story in a compelling style, leaving the listener anxious to hear what happens next. While deftly handling the many character changes, she builds the tension to a suspenseful, surprising conclusion. G.D.W. ￯﾿ﾽ AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

Though Roberts (The Reef, 1998, etc.) never writes badly, her newest mystery romance is more inconsistent than most.

Little Olivia MacBride, daughter of two golden Hollywood superstars, wakes up one night to see her coked-up father holding her mother's bloody body, a scissors in his hand. After her dad is led off to prison, Liv is sent to live with her grandparents, who run a successful lodge in the Olympic rain forest on the Washington coast-a location far across the continent from the Maryland shores of Roberts's Quinn trilogy, but one that allows her to explore another place of life-giving scenic wonder. And when Liv grows up and becomes a naturalist/guide, she gets to take us on lots of eye-dazzling tours. Into her sheltered paradise comes Noah Brady, the son of the police detective who arrested Liv's father and has been her friend since childhood. Noah has grown up to be a bestselling true-crime writer, and, against Liv's will, he wants to write his next book about the MacBride murder case. (Liv's dad, about to be released from San Quentin, is dying of brain cancer.) Though Liv fights her attraction to Noah, he's a persistent boy, and on an extended and very sexy camping trip, the two become lovers. Meanwhile, the real murderer, whose identity will probably be obvious to most readers, leaves his own trail of violence up to Washington and a final prime-evil shoot-out.

Added to Roberts's poorly drawn mystery and her interlude of swell lusty love is her usual theme of how wounded children and inner children are healed and nurtured by good nuclear families.