Audiobook Review: The Ties that Bind by Jayne Ann Krentz

The Ties That Bind
Author: Jayne Ann Krentz
Narrator: Laural Merlington
Publication: Dreamscape Media (October 27, 2014)
Length: 6 hours and 15 minutes

Description: Finally Shannon Raine decides to stop speculating about her dark, brooding neighbor on California's rugged Mendocino coastline - and just introduce herself. But the last thing she expects to find in this enclave of artists and writers is a Silicon Valley mogul. Garth Sheridan is cool, sensual and intriguing. And immediately Shannon knows the passion that flares between them will become intense and all-consuming. But the more intimate their desire becomes, the more Garth's life seems hidden from Shannon. She longs to understand this man and the other life he leads, far from the scenic haven they share. Somehow she has to convince Garth that he can trust her with the part of him that rules the ruthless, high-stakes arena of big money and corporate power. For only then can their two worlds become one.

My Thoughts: First published in 1986 and an audiobook in 2015, this classic Krentz is engaging romantic suspense. Shannon Raine is an artist who specializes in screen-printing. Garth Sheridan is a Silicon Valley businessman. When he comes for a vacation on the Mendocino coastline, Shannon decides that he must be a poet or brooding novelist and decides to get to know him. She's a little disappointed to find that he isn't an artist but the chemistry between is strong.

She seduces him and he decides to keep her as a weekend lover and respite from the fast-paced life he lives and no longer enjoys in Silicon Valley. Shannon isn't content to be only a weekend fling and makes an unexpected visit to his workplace. He's very busy preparing a big bid for a project with another company and paranoid about keeping it secret.

When a copy of the bid is found in Shannon's bag after a party, Garth suspects her of betraying him which breaks Shannon's heart. But someone planted that bid in Shannon's bag and the villain will do anything to recover it. Shannon is in danger and Garth is four hours away.

Shannon's danger convinces Garth of something he was already coming to realize. He wants more of Shannon than a weekend romance and he wants to live a different life.

While a little more chauvinistic than later works by this author, the romance is the strong point. Shannon and Garth need to learn to trust each other and realize that each needs to protect the other, They need to build a relationship of equals.

I bought this one October 31, 2021. You can buy your copy here.