Book Review: Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz

Promise Not to Tell
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz
Series: Cutler, Sutter & Salinas (Book 2)
Publication: Berkley (January 2, 2018)

Description: A painter of fiery, nightmarish visions throws herself into the sea—but she’ll leave some of her secrets behind...

Seattle gallery owner Virginia Troy has spent years battling the demons that stem from her childhood time in a cult and the night a fire burned through the compound, killing her mother. And now one of her artists has taken her own life, but not before sending Virginia a last picture: a painting that makes Virginia doubt everything about the so-called suicide—and her own past.

Like Virginia, private investigator Cabot Sutter was one of the children in the cult who survived that fire...and only he can help her now. As they struggle to unravel the clues in the painting, it becomes clear that someone thinks Virginia knows more than she does and that she must be stopped. Thrown into an inferno of desire and deception, Virginia and Cabot draw ever closer to the mystery of their shared memories—and the shocking fate of the one man who still wields the power to destroy everything they hold dear.

My Thoughts: Victoria Troy has a problem when an artist she represents has died. Her home has been consumed by fire. Before she died, she sent Victoria a photo of her last painting. She has shared a series of paintings with Victoria all showing what happened the night a cult leader set fire to his compound killing most of the people inside. Victoria and a few other children were survivors when Police Officer Anson Salinas rescued them from the barn in which they were locked.

Victoria lost her mother in the fire and was raised by her grandmother. She still suffers from nightmares and anxiety attacks. She has trouble with relationships and has become a serial dater. She feels that the death was murder and goes to Anson Salinas to investigate.

After the tragedy, Anson took in three of the boys who survived and raised them as his sons. Cabot Sutter is one of the men he raised. Together they have formed a private investigations firm. Anson and his sons are all convinced that the cult leader - Quinton Zane - is still alive despite the rumor that he died at sea in a yacht he had stolen. Victoria's questions about the death of her friend add to their belief. Hannah Brewster was also a survivor of Quinton Zane's cult.

As Victoria and Cabot begin to investigate, they follow clues that might lead them to the elusive Quinton Zane but there might be some other killer involved. They also learn that a group of the women including their mothers and Hannah Brewster had been embezzling money from Quinton and Victoria is supposed to have the key to unlock the money's location. Things get even more complex when a body is found in Victoria's art gallery which leads them to a tech firm which has an embezzling employee.

To add to the drama, all of a sudden after years of no contact, Cabot's family is suddenly interested in connecting with him. His mother was disowned by her grandfather but now it looks like Cabot was mentioned in his will.

I love the quirky characters and witty dialog in this fast-paced romantic suspense title.

Favorite Quote:

Cabot turned very quickly to confront her. Anson stifled a sigh. Confront was the operative word when it came to Cabot. Not that he was confrontational in the sense that he was always looking for a fight. If anything, he usually came across as unnaturally aloof and unemotional. It too a lot to make him lose his temper, and on the rare occasions when that happened, you didn't want to be standing in his vicinity.

The issue was that he regarded anyone or anyting new, unknown or outside his normal routine, as a potential problem at best and, at worst, a threat until proven otherwise. The result was that he confronted situations and people until he could decide what to do about them. 

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.