The beautiful Rachel Grant put her heart and memories in cold storage following the disappearance of her fiancé. Her parents' sudden death 10 years later forces her to return home to settle their estate, but she finds that more awaits her than selling off furniture and signing papers. Dealing with her past is made more complicated by the appearance of the mysterious Adam Delafield. He claims to owe the estate several million dollars, but there is no mention of him or of such a large transaction in her father's papers. That would be odd enough, but Delafield is also the spitting image of Rachel's missing fiancé, long presumed dead. Rachel is naturally troubled by his looks, and further bothered by a series of accidents that are too close for comfort. Then suddenly, even her father's business associates and old friends seem to have something to hide.

Fantastic coincidences are central in Kay Hooper's previous--and most popular--novels After Caroline and Amanda. She has put her skills to good use in Haunting Rachel, despite a sometimes awkward style. Dreams, doppelgängers, and dark dealings do make for delightful reading and Hooper seems to have found her niche with this brand of romantic thriller.


From Publishers Weekly
In Hooper's fiction (Finding Laura), death is a permeable membrane, not a brick wall. The ghost of Rachel Grant's fiance of 10 years past returns to sentimental effect in the author's pale new novel of romantic suspense. Rachel was 19 when silver-haired cargo pilot Thomas Sheridan disappeared on a mysterious flight to South America. Yet a decade later, when family estate matters bring Rachel back to Virginia from her life as a designer in New York, she starts catching glimpses of a fair-haired man who has just got to be Tom. Then Rachel's car goes out of control because somebody has cut her brake line. Is the man, who calls himself Adam Delafield, the culprit or Rachel's guardian angel?or both? Adam says he has come to town to repay the $3 million Rachel's late father, Duncan Grant, lent him on a handshake, but she doesn't know whether to trust him. Ultimately, trust provides the subtext for the novel. Rachel is flanked by tough-talking men with hard-voweled names, attorney Graham Becket and businessman Nick Ross, each with his own mysterious agenda that may imperil Rachel or save her life. Unfortunately, Hooper's heroine is too vague a character to compel the reader's concern, and her story is not so much enriched by plot threads as freighted with them?hints at CIA escapades, South American dictatorships and judge-fixing are left dangling. Most of the sex, tenderness and humor are allocated to Tom's sister, Mercy, and Ross, moreover, draining the novel of much-needed emotional tension. Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Rachel Grant's fiance, Thomas, was lost in the jungles of South America ten years ago, just before their wedding, and she has never found another man to replace him. After her parents die in a plane crash, Rachel begins to catch glimpses of a man who looks very much like Thomas, always right before suspicious accidents threaten her life. As the threats become more deadly and Rachel comes to know the mysterious stranger who resembles her dead lover, messages that seem to come from beyond the grave warn her away. Fans of Barbara Michaels will enjoy Hooper's latest Gothic mystery (which follows Finding Laura, Bantam, 1997), though the touches of the supernatural here are not as integral to the plot.-?Kim Uden Rutter, Lake Villa District Lib., ILCopyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From AudioFile
Rachel Grant knows her fiancé died ten years ago, but the new man in her life could be his twin. Dreams of both of them, combined with mysterious attacks on her life, haunt her days and nights in the aftermath of her parents' recent tragic death. Kate Fleming presents a spirited performance of this light thriller; her enthusiasm moves the story quickly from one tape to the next. Her male characters have a deepened, somewhat overperformed quality, but not so much as to distract the listener from the plot. Fleming's women, with the exception of one insignificant Irish housekeeper, sound identical, but as they rarely interact, the story is easy enough follow. R.P.L. © AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine


From Booklist
Hooper continues her skilled use of gothic elements in this winning modern romance. Rachel Ames' fiancetakes a trip before their wedding, disappears in a South American jungle and is presumed dead. Ten years pass, and Rachel returns to Richmond, Virginia, to sort through her parents' estate. While confronting her past, bizarre things begin to happen. First she is plagued by accidents, then she notices a stranger who is disturbingly similar to her long-lost fiance. Just when she starts to question her sanity, the man knocks on her door and introduces himself as Adam Delafield, a friend of her father's, who wants to reassure her that he will repay a loan from him. Rachel is immediately drawn to the handsome stranger, but she questions his motives because of his eerie resemblance to her fianceand the timing of his arrival. The book keeps you on your toes with plenty of suspects and motives to choose from as well as a ghostly intervention or two. Fans of Victoria Holt should enjoy this book. Patty Engelmann


From Literary Times
American contemporary gothic! Kay Hooper has found the way! In her latest book, Haunting Rachel, she combines traditional gothic ghost story elements with modern world mystery and suspense. If your idea of a great romance includes finding a terrific plot filled with intrigue, this is the book for you. Rachel Grant returns to her family home to bury her parents who have died tragically in a plane crash. It seems a recurring theme in her life for she had already buried her childhood sweetheart and fiancé ten years before when he died in a plane crash in South America. Now, as she tries diligently to tie up all the loose ends of the estate, she begins seeing Thomas Sheridan. At least, she thinks it's him. Or maybe his ghost? No, this is a flesh and blood man who could be Thomas Sheridan's twin. His name is Adam Delafield, and he claims to be a business partner of her father's. Unclear of her feelings for this man who looks so like a dead man, Rachel's emotions are in deep turmoil. Adam's convenient appearance is troublesome, and his past is dark. Accidents seem to happen whenever he is around, and Rachel's life seems to be in danger. But where does the real danger lie? Shady dealings with underworld criminals and businessmen who carry guns; an overly suspicious lawyer and a lying uncle. Rachel Grant has more than her fair share of puzzle pieces. And when trust doesn't come easy for anyone involved, the plot thickens even more. In true gothic tradition, there are more to the shadows than you can possibly realize. Kay Hooper does a wonderful job of shielding you from the truth, only to let you put it together one piece at a time. The romantic attraction between Adam and Rachel is tempered beautifully with passion and desire. This is one story that clings to the heart all the way down to the soul. Kay Hooper's Haunting Rachel is tempered with classic gothic, but it blazes with contemporary intrigue and passion! Haunting Rachel will rock your senses and reel your mind! A romantic plot with fantastic mystery interwoven. Incredibly well devised! A strength in character that few authors provide. Karen Ellington -- Copyright © 030199 Literary Times, Inc. All rights reserved


Review
"Warning: This novel is hair-raising."
--Catherine Coulter

"A master storyteller."
--Tami Hoag

"She keeps me guessing until the very end."
--Linda Howard

"A multitalented author whose stories always pack a tremendous punch."
--Iris Johansen

"Kay Hooper is a master storyteller."
--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel


Review
"Warning: This novel is hair-raising."
--Catherine Coulter

"A master storyteller."
--Tami Hoag

"She keeps me guessing until the very end."
--Linda Howard

"A multitalented author whose stories always pack a tremendous punch."
--Iris Johansen

"Kay Hooper is a master storyteller."
--Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Danger wears many faces....

Ten years ago Rachel Grant's fiancé, Thomas, disappeared. His body was never found. Now there's a stranger in town, a man who could be Thomas's twin—or his ghost.

His name is Adam Delafield. He's been watching Rachel for days. He has the locket she gave Thomas before he vanished. And he says he owed her father three million dollars.

But there's no record of the loan—or a shred of proof that Adam is who he claims to be. And he's always nearby as accidents begin to threaten Rachel's life.

Is he an innocent man who only wants to repay a debt? Or a figure from the past with a score to settle? Rachel must expose lies and unravel stories, find out who wants her dead and why...before the next attempt to kill her succeeds.

SYNOPSIS

Has anyone noticed that author Kay Hooper's work has become increasingly dark? Not that we would have it any other way. With Hunting Rachel, Hooper once again serves up a deliciously gothic suspense tale. Rachel Grant's fianc￯﾿ﾽ, Thomas, vanished before their wedding day, and has long been presumed dead. Now, ten years later, a series of suspicious accidents threaten to send Rachel to the grave as well -- and, not so coincidentally, a new man has entered Rachel's life, one who looks exactly like her long-lost lover.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal

Rachel Grant's fiance, Thomas, was lost in the jungles of South America ten years ago, just before their wedding, and she has never found another man to replace him. After her parents die in a plane crash, Rachel begins to catch glimpses of a man who looks very much like Thomas, always right before suspicious accidents threaten her life. As the threats become more deadly and Rachel comes to know the mysterious stranger who resembles her dead lover, messages that seem to come from beyond the grave warn her away. Fans of Barbara Michaels will enjoy Hooper's latest Gothic mystery (which follows Finding Laura, Bantam, 1997), though the touches of the supernatural here are not as integral to the plot. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 9/1/98.]--Kim Uden Rutter, Lake Villa District Lib., IL

AudioFile