During the 1980s I was addicted to TV family sagas – Dynasty, Dallas, Knots Landing – you name it, I watched it, entranced by the concept of families keeping secrets that impacted younger generations. The premise here reminded me of my old favorites, but, unfortunately, so did the cliched, familiar characters.

Third in the A Place Called Home series, Hidden in a Heartbeat follows the story of Rebecca Dahlgren and Luke Chandler, two polar opposites whose interest in the Far Hills Ranch stems from very different reasons. Rebecca has been hired to implement a new computer system at the ranch, but her first task, enlisting the help of foreman Luke Chandler, is a near disaster, as Luke is totally uncooperative, telling her he just has too much work to do and warning her of the curse that looms over the ranch.

Rebecca and Luke are attracted to each other, but their attraction is of the “I don’t like you but damn, you’re hot!” variety. One moment they’re being hostile, and the next they’re appraising how each other’s clothes fit them so well. While Rebecca fights to implement the new system, she also has a more secret agenda – looking for the father she never knew, someone who might have worked at the ranch years ago. Luke also keeps a secret of his own, which could potentially undermine their nascent relationship.

While two parts of the curse have been lifted with the two previous books, there is the last part to be resolved here, the part that says: “You turn away from me, so your blood will be lost. Only when someone loves enough to undo your wrongs will the laughter of children live beyond its echo in Far Hills.” At the ranch, Rebecca finds clues that point her to her true identity, and continues to struggle with the two worlds that beckon her: her grandmother’s icy domain and the happiness that she sees in some of the people at the ranch.

The most damaging aspect to this potentially engaging story is just how unromantic Rebecca and Luke’s relationship is. Even after kisses and lovemaking, there is no true intimacy and the distant feeling continues. The book also feels awkwardly old-fashioned in two respects: Rebecca believes she must be nearly wooden to gain any respect, and Rebecca’s “grand dame” grandmother exerts too much control over Rebecca throughout her her. We’re also reminded of this frequently – too frequently – via Rebecca’s thoughts.

Much is made of the fact that Rebecca is a Delaware Dahlgren although she doesn’t know who her father is. She stands by while two gossips crucify a woman (within hearing distance) for bearing a child, out of wedlock, out of politeness. As a heroine, she should have risked being called impolite and left those two stewing in their own venom. All in all, Rebecca is nearly humorless and prissy, which amuses Luke to no end in the first part of the book. As prissy as she is, however, she does seem unable to take her eyes off Luke’s bod when he’s near.

Luke, meanwhile, is her complete opposite, and I’m not exactly being complimentary here. By the middle of the book I began wondering if he could speak in complete sentences, and his rudeness to Rebecca – especially the first time they meet, when he pretty much just tells her to get lost – is not alluring or mysterious, it’s just plain insulting.

Hidden in a Heartbeat was a disappointing read with one especially bizarre scene in which Luke and Rebecca are being driven in a truck. A wild ride ensues and, to keep hold of her so that she doesn’t fly around in the cabin, Luke’s hand ends up right between her legs. And stays there while the truck rocks and rolls. Not exactly how I would like my mangled corpse to be found if that truck ride had ended fatally. Wouldn’t grabbing her almost anywhere else have made more sense?

It all centers on the hero and heroine for me when I read a romance, and an unlikable pair like Luke and Rebecca makes this a book I cannot recommend.