"DRIVEN obliterates the gap between the science fiction and the romance genre for all time"
A common Enemy .... Opposing Goals .... For a sister lost - and a sister found .... In a post-apocalyptic future, Raina Bowen is an independent
trucker who delivers supplies in a frozen territory now
known as the Northern Waste. Raina has been taught
everything she knows about survival from her father.
Unfortunately, her best had not been enough to save him from
an attack by Siberian Ice Reavers. Before he died Sam Bowen
had informed Raina that she had a younger sister, Beth.
Taking on the reins of that responsibility, in the hope of a
better life for her sister and the dream of finally having a
family, Raina enters a driving contest with impossible odds.
She must race up the ICW and be the first to cross the
finish line at Gladow Station with her load of grain. The
only problem is that the big, bad Janson Trucking Firm and
their powerful, morally corrupt owner, Duncan Bane, dominate
the ICW. As a child Raina had once been at Bane's mercy. She
had bested him then, leaving him scarred and bent on
revenge. She is determined to best him again That's where Wizard comes in. Sam had arranged for the man
to provide Raina with the Janson pass needed in order for
her to drive on the ICW. Unbeknownst to Raina, Wizard has
his own bone to pick with Duncan Bane. He and his genetic
siblings had started life as genetically enhanced test tube
babies. When the new world order had taken over Bane had
left them all for dead. They owed their lives to Sam Bowen,
but eventually they'd been at Bane's mercy once more. Wizard
and his sister Yuriko, like Raina, had been strong and had
escaped the horror. Their gentler sister, Tatiana, had not.
Yuriko now commanded a rebel outpost in the Waste. Wizard,
who Bane had trained to be his assassin, intended to be just
that -- his assassin. He would do anything toward that goal,
even using their savior's own daughter as bait to draw Bane
out. He been expecting to meet with Sam but Raina would
definitely do. Raina's hopes of keeping a low profile are shattered when
Wizard arrives at the designated truck stop and immediately
gets into a brawl with the Janson crew. They haven't even
been formally introduced and she's already bailing his butt
out of trouble. Raina finds her new partner to be a complete
enigma. Different from any man she's ever known, he can see
in the dark and crack her toughest security measures without
batting an eyelash. He's got an answer for everything down
the decimal point, and appears completely devoid of emotion
- except when it comes to a certain tough and gorgeous lady
trucker of course. And just what is it about him that makes
her want to keep him around even after she discovers that
the coveted pass he's brought her is stolen and therefore
useless? Raina is one of the most exceptional heroines I've ever
encountered in a romance novel, not skipping a beat even
when she discovers the load she's carrying is not grain but
guns. Though her fondest dream has been dashed, she takes
this new detour in stride and throws herself into the
Wizard's cause with courage and gusto, knowing that it is
just a matter of time before she'd be facing the final
showdown with her greatest nemesis. Eve Kenin, who also writes Dark Historical Gothic Romances
under the name Eve Silver, is an author to watch. I've read
an enjoyed the first two titles in Dorchester's new Shomi
line but this book is sensational! With DRIVEN, Kenin has
obliterated the gap between the science fiction and the
romance genre for all time. This book is HOT! I simply
couldn't put it down. Look for her next title HIDDEN, coming
from Shomi in July. So far I've been unable to discover any
advance hype on the storyline, but there were a number of
hints throughout DRIVEN that indicate that Wizard's sister
Tatiana may have survived after all. Let's keep our fingers
crossed. For excellent world building, gripping action and
one of the best alpha pairings this reviewer has encountered
in any novel, I highly recommend DRIVEN.
Reviewed by Leslie Tramposch
Posted February 29, 2008
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ROAD WARRIOR
Raina Bowen knows she can handle herself just fine against anything the harsh Northern Waste throws at her. Until it throws her an enigmatic stranger called Wizard. First, she has to haul him out of a brawl he can't hope to win. And next, her libido is shooting into overdrive at the feel of his hard body pressed against hers on the back of her snowscooter. But there's something not quite right about this guy. Before she can strip bare Wizard's secrets, they're lured into a race for their lives, battling rival truckers, ice pirates...and a merciless maniac with a very personal vendetta.
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