Into the Fire

An interesting mystery accompanying graphic sex scenes. Not sure which gets more attention.

Since I'm an adult, married, have had two sons, I read through the sexual episodes for one reason: to know what to expect from this author, to realize and confirm the graphic nature of sex in the general market – and from this novel, as explicit as these scenes were, I'm fairly sure there are far worse in both the romance category and other genres. Which, for me, is a sad commentary on the state of literature and the romance-reading world. Because this wasn't romance to me. It was raw lust – and identified as such to Anderson's credit – and if these scenes had been portrayed visually, they would certainly be pornographic which might explain why some women are addicted to secular romance novels.

Included in the story were insults to God, as referenced by a small "g" when mentioned, with "Christ" and "Jesus" basically used as expletives. Lots of other cuss words present too. 

The mystery/suspense tells the story of a murder in a small town on Vancouver Island (west of British Columbia). The lead RCMP investigator, Sergeant Holly Rudd, must find the murderer of a man found in the depths of an old unidentified ship wreckage. The two local divers who discover the corpse, Thomas Edgefield, head of the Marine Lab, and Finn Carver, former Special Forces and self-assigned protector of Thomas Edgefield, recognize the knife stuck through the guy's chest but don't mention it to the Sergeant. Thomas Edgefield with Finn present faints when Holly visits his office to interview him. She learns she presents an amazing resemblance to Edgefield's murdered wife, an old local Cold Case. 

The small town is not receptive to cops, and suspects and leads seem to dissolve. A threat on Holly's life occurs with no real clues as to who's responsible. Until there is another murder.

Now in itself, the mystery is a good one with one hint or clue after another frustrating the investigation but eventually leading to a climactic discovery. But I'm afraid the author seemed more concerned with the physical climaxes shared by the co-protagonists Finn and Holly. And these explicit scenes bog down the story and turn it into a bodice ripping tale that morphs into "love" which I addressed in my post here. 

Here's the thing: after reading one of the sex scenes, the additional ones were boring. As I said, I'm an adult,  wife, and mother. I get it. I'm also a die-hard romantic who doesn't read most CBA – and now for sure not ABA - romances. The CBA hides sexual tension well and mostly fails to address the sexual attraction between male and female protagonists. The ABA takes sexual attraction to another level, acts on it, and leaves zero to the imagination. Both are unsatisfying to this author and reader.

So. I can't recommend Dangerous Waters by Toni Anderson, but I could have if she'd eliminated the graphic sex scenes. She took a good mystery and ruined it with over-the-top lusty components, overshadowing the suspense with raw sex for no good reason.

Father, you're the only source for decency. Left to the world's view of sex, we're all worthless pawns in a satanic vision. Please minister to those to whom you've given the talent to use words. Help them to see what's of true value and what is a waste of time on earth. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.