Knowing Vera by Rachelle Ayala

Vera is closed off.  She doesn't want anything serious when it comes to relationships.  She and Zach have been on again off again for quite some time, but when a secret from her past slaps her in the face, she realizes she and Zach can never have a relationship.  With a large black hole in her memory, she can't remember what happened, but she knows there's been a murder, and Zack was the one that had to pay the price. 

Recently, Zach lost his leg in an accident, ending his triathlon career and throwing his life off balance.  The one constant he's had is Vera, but she's become a bit hard to understand.  One minute she's on fire, and the next she's pushing him away.  What's a guy to do? 

As Vera does her best to unravel the mystery and find out exactly what happened in the past, she finds herself deeper and deeper in danger.  Will Zach be able to save her?  Or will she have to save herself?

After reading Hidden Under Her Heart, I couldn't wait to start Knowing Vera.  Rachelle warned me that it was written differently, but I was still anxious.  Even though it was quite a bit different, I still loved it!  Let me tell you why!

We start off with the same characters as Hidden, so we already know Vera.  We know she has a sweet heart but she's rough on the outside and not into a committed relationship.  We know Zach is a pushy player, but a mushy guy when you get down to the center.  This provided a great basis for the book.  Where Hidden was sweet and romantic and very Christian, Vera took a different turn.  Instead of dealing with sweet and Christian characters, we're dealing with sexual and wild characters and the book reflects this.

The sex is a big thing for me.  There are some pretty serious steamy scenes in here, but they don't last too incredibly long and they're tied into the passion and romance.  Instead of using sex to replace those things, she tied them all together, so it has my seal of approval.

What I loved most about the book is that it's such a thrilling ride!  I couldn't figure out the murderer until I read in the epilogue who it was!  Don't cheat and read that first, you Cheater McCheatersons out there!  It'll give away the entire book!  Not only that, from page to page, I had no clue what was going to happen next.  Several times I found myself saying 'Whaaaat?'  because it was such a wonderful shock.  Everyone seems to have a hint of 'bad guy' in them and the way they turn on each other it's nearly impossible to tell who to trust.  Poor Vera!  If I can't figure it out, how can she?!

If you're more into a thrilling read, this is just right for you.  There's plenty of action and surprise.  If you read Hidden, you really have to read this and see where the story continues.  I strongly suggest you read Hidden first because you really fall in love with the characters there. 

Well done, Rachelle!  I can't wait to read more!