Jade Island audiobook

I love all the research--not only into Jade but into Chinese culture. I'm glad Kyle got to be the hero. I was so-so about Lianne I wish she would have stuck up for herself.

Every time I come back to a book I've read in the 90's I'm overwhelmed by the feeling that there are no popular romance's authors like these. Lowell has a certain style of writing that can be found in all of her books. Of course, those of us who bought this kind of books were expecting this. Maybe it was the familiarity we found in the writing and characters of an author that made us come back, even if it felt like the books were all the same. We kept buying and reading till we couldn't stand it anymore. Then the years pass, and we think about the books that entertained us a long time ago, we find them again in a sale, and they are available for a good price in a new format - ebooks. There are those who still stand, even if we consider the dated facts and start to pay more attention to plot fails. Anyway, they can be read again with pleasure. This is one of those books. Even then I had my favorites. This is a series involving the Donovan family. They dealed with precious stones and similar. As usual, there's a couple that has to get together after eliminating the obstacles the author invents to mess with them, till the happy ending. There's also some villain or other to be dealt with. We'll find the rest of the family and some near friends running around in all four books, but not all of them are equally likable. My favorite is exactly this second book. There's drama but it's in some way tempered. I like that. Too much suffering, internal or external, is boring.I know it costs me buying twice the same book, but I'm happy I met this old friend again.

One of my favorite LowellsI have become primarily an audiobook reader. I bought the Donovan books on "bookcasette" when they were new and transcribed them to mp3 disks to make them easier to listen to. Unfortunately my copy of Jade Island was corrupted. The audio books were re-released but with a new and, to my mind, inferior narrator. So I read this book and listen to the other 3. If the series, Jade Island and Pearl Cove are my favorites. The characters are all well rounded and the research outstanding, something I expect of Lowell. I just prefer these two story lines slightly over the other two but the entire series is well worth the time to read and re-read. A nice balance between suspense and romance. Stories worth owning rather than borrowing.

Kyle Donovan has become very interested in Jade and one of the most prominent jade families in Seattle/Vancouver are the Tang's. Lianne Blakely is the illegitimate daughter of Tang son #3. Never acknowledged, she's worked hard learning the jade trade. When fakes start appearing in the Tang Vaults, Lianne is arrested and Kyle rescues and falls for her. The Donovan's uncover the behind the scenes machinations and exonerate Lianne. Suspenseful, good writing. some sex. Helpful to have read Amber Beach but not necessary.

I read this ages ago and liked it.

Am enjoying the series.

After reading all 4 books in the entire series, this one is my ultimate favorite. Lianne and Kyle make a compatible and wonderful couple. Lianne is independent, beautiful, smart, and only weak in trying to get her dad's family to accept her and nothing wrong with that when she has no other family. Kyle is fun, good-looking, strong and a great man for Lianne. I have read this story over 10 times and still love it. The story is fast-paced with lots of action, steamy sex scenes, cultural background on family/jade.

2nd of the Donovan series. Have read a few times, but still enjoyed the intrigue and romance.

** spoiler alert ** 3.5/5 (B-)Review: The story was quite interesting, although very complicated and confusing. It was also very technical about the jade and so, it lost me a bit. Although the story was interesting, I have to admit I was more interested in the relationships between Lianne and her family as well as Lianne and Kyle. Even so, I had difficulty to get involved in the story and care because I found the writing a bit cold as I mentionned earlier.Characters - I loved Lianne's character. A really complex character in a very complex situation. The woman is strong, has guts and courage and should be admired. First, her birth... Lianne's mother and father love each other and have been together for more than 30 years... and everyone is aware of it. Anna has taken care to always remain out of sight, but there's no doubt that both loves each other. Still, what does it say about a woman who is willing to be someone's mistress for so long? No matter how much her parents love each other, Lianne remains an illegitimate child and in addition, she's mixed. She tries hard to be part of a family who doesn't want her AT ALL. If her father won't acknowledged her, then it's hard for the other to accept her... Plus, she has a myriad of half-siblings and cousins who are probably jealous of her relationship with her grandfather (master and apprentice). She also hasn't been lucky in love. Her only serious relationship was with a Chinese man who got married to Lianne's distant cousin to enter the Tan's family and expected Lianne to be his mistress. Basically, the man has never loved her, just saw her as his entry ticket to the Tan's family and when he saw it wouldn't work, he found another ticket. Then, in the story, Lianne is accused by the Tans of stealing jade, which in that family, must be the worst crime ever. All in all, I really liked Lianne's character, because she's not just a feisty and strong and tough heroine, she's actually very sensible and vulnerable. Complex character who's weakness is not just a weakness the author tackle on to make her weak.As for Kyle, I liked him better than his older brother, that I have to admit. I guess Kyle used to be the happy-go-lucky sibling, till some event that happened in Amber Beach. Basically, Kyle was used by a woman during that book and this left him a bit cynic. Okay, try very cynic. Still, I think he was a good match for Lianne... my only problem though is that he's very similar to all the other male heroes in the Donovans series, except he lacks a military background. I think that if Ms. Lowell was going to write a series, to try to make different kind of characters would be a priority... because it gets boring to read. Still, Kyle was my still my favorite, but probably because he was paired with Lianne.Story & Writing - The story was well written, but as I said, too clinical. There's something missing in Ms. Lowell writing that'll make readers get completely absorbed and captivated. Or maybe, maybe the story is too intense. A lot is happening, plus add all the technical terms and possibilities of conspiracy and it's too much for the readers. The result is that I had to skip a couple of pages, find another interesting passage and resume reading.As for the story, as I said earlier, complex. Also, I can't help but wonder if this kind of story is real... is there so much conspiracy in the gem trading business :P Still I have to admire Ms. Lowell for not taking the easy way - choosing between romance or suspense. She made both the romance and suspense complex, perhaps a bit too much, but it sure made it more interesting than if she'd had made the suspense or the romance too easy and stupid.The Cover - I like it. Black is a classic color and it fit the mood of the series. I also liked it that you only see the silhouette, makes it more intriguing. However, why is it a woman on every cover? Why not a man, when the Donovan character is a man?Am I keeping the book? Yeah. (what a surprise). I guess this book is my favorite Ms. Lowell book so far.Anything else? I'll probably read Amber Beach at one point. I did read Pearl Cove, but skipped the beginning ^^; It's interesting, but I don't like the heroine in Pearl Cover as much... However, I was quite glad to see that Lianne was pregnant with twins :P Anywa, all I can say is that Amber Beach and Pearl Cove are both as complex as Jade Island, that's for sure.