Karen Rose was one of the most impressive new authors I discovered last year. There’s a confidence and polish to her writing that’s surprising for an author with only a handful of releases to her credit. Evidently I’m not the only one who thinks so, since she won a RITA last night and was nominated for a second. Her latest, Nothing to Fear, is another good read from an author who continues to impress.

After ten years in prison, Sue Conaway reenters society seeking revenge on those she believes wronged her. She soon puts an elaborate scheme into play, one which begins with more than one grisly murder and the kidnapping of a twelve-year-old deaf boy. But one of the people she tried to kill turns up alive and comes after her, forcing her to amend her plans. She needs a place where she and her kidnapping victim can hide from her pursuer while she puts the rest of her plan in motion. Then she remembers a place her old cellmate told her about that would be perfect.

In Chicago, Dana Dupinsky operates Hanover House, a women’s shelter that secretly helps abused women and their children escape violent situations and begin new lives. Only a select few know about Hanover House, enough to help women on the run find it when they need to. When she receives a call from a woman named Jane Smith asking for a place to hide, she thinks nothing of it. Obviously the woman’s name is an alias, something that’s not unexpected for a woman running from abuse. Dana meets Jane and her quiet son at the bus station, takes one look at their battered faces, and quickly accepts them at Hanover House. But Jane’s strange behavior soon makes Dana suspect there’s more to the woman and her child than it appears.

Meanwhile, security consultant Ethan Buchanan receives a call from his childhood friend Stan Vaughn begging for his help. Stan’s son Alec, Ethan’s godson, has been kidnapped. Stan refuses to call the police or the FBI, citing a warning from the kidnapper that Alec will be harmed if they do. Instead, Stan demands that Ethan help him recover his son, playing on his guilt over the death of Stan’s brother Richard. Ethan and Richard were best friends and fellow Marines who served together in Afghanistan. Richard was killed because of his loyalty to Ethan, something Stan has never let him forget. For his godson’s sake, Ethan picks up the kidnapper’s trail, following them to Chicago. There, he happens to meet Dana, a woman with whom he shares an immediate attraction. As he works to find out where Alec and the kidnapper went after leaving the bus station, he gradually gets to know Dana, never imagining that the answer he’s looking for is right in front of his face.

As the synopsis hopefully indicates, this is a very complicated and intricately constructed storyline (and I haven’t even mentioned half the characters or some of the subplots). Rose deftly handles all the various plot threads, keeping the story flowing at a fast clip without ever becoming confusing. The book gets off to a fast start, wasting no time jumping into the action. The author’s prose is crisp and tight, which helps keep the pages turning. Meanwhile, fans of some of the author’s previous books may welcome the return of several characters in this one.

Ethan and Dana are both sympathetic, well-drawn characters with tortured pasts that are gradually revealed. Sue is one of the more chilling villains I’ve come across in some time. She’s very evil, but not in an over-the-top way. The author spends as much time developing her as much as the rest of the characters, if not more. Because of this, she’s all too believable, which makes her that much more frightening. For the most part, the secondary characters are well-done. Standouts are Alec, the kidnap victim, and Evie, one of the women at Hanover House, who survived a horrific experience in the past that left her scarred inside and out. Her strength in the face of what she has to deal with here is admirable, if not surprising. After what she’s been through, it’s going to take more than Sue to scare her.

The story has a more developed romance than many romantic suspense books. The main characters really get a chance to talk to each other and get to know each other over the course of the story. At the same time, it’s kind of a mixed bag, because the love story doesn’t always gel with the suspense plot. The book falls prey to the usual weakness of romantic suspense novels built around kidnappings. For someone supposedly desperate to find his godson, Ethan forgets about his mission all too easily whenever Dana’s around. There are several times when Ethan takes a break from his investigation to go out to dinner with Dana, allowing their relationship to develop. It’s nice for a romance, but most of the time I couldn’t help thinking Ethan really should be focusing on tracking down Alec instead of dating Dana, especially when he knows the kidnapper has already killed several people. It sometimes seems like he should be more concerned about his godson’s fate than he is.

As a result, the book’s second quarter is the weakest section. Besides the somewhat contrived love story, Sue/Jane runs around killing numerous people pretty much unhindered since the main characters have no idea what’s going on. While not overly gory, the death scenes are bleak and unsparing, and some readers may find it difficult to observe several innocent people falling victim to Sue’s reign of terror. It does start to get depressing after a while.

Fortunately, just when I was growing frustrated with the main characters’ cluelessness and Sue’s endless killing spree, the author twists the plot and the story kicks into a higher gear. From then on, it doesn’t disappoint. The author has some surprises up her sleeve. The plot moves quickly, with fast action and intense sequences. Meanwhile, the love story continues to develop in a more believable way.

There are a few more minor weaknesses along the way, but nothing serious enough to warrant mentioning. Overall, this is a strong, solid romantic suspense read. The book is more than 500 pages long, and I tore through it in a brisk three hours. The plot is complex and involving, the characters are empathetic and the suspense is well done. Readers who enjoy romantic suspense and haven’t yet discovered Karen Rose are missing out on some good reading. Meanwhile, the author’s fans won’t be disappointed by latest from this rising star. Nothing to Fear is a fast, compelling read.