Twelve years ago, Sarah Baker was abducted by the Watt Lake Killer and sexually assaulted for months before managing to escape. The killer was caught, but Sarah lost everything: her marriage, her child, and the life she loved.Struggling with PTSD, Sarah changes her name to Olivia West and finds sanctuary working on Broken Bar Ranch. But as her scars finally begin to heal, a cop involved with her … with her horrific case remains convinced the Watt Lake Killer is still out there. He sets a lure for the murderer, and a fresh body is discovered. Now Olivia must face the impossible—could the butcher be back, this time to finish the job?
As a frigid winter isolates the ranch, only one person can help Olivia: Cole McDonough, a writer, adventurer, and ranch heir who stirs long-dormant feelings in her. But this time, Olivia’s determination to shut out her past may destroy more than her chance at love. It could cost her her life.
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I was hooked from the first page! I was freaking myself out as I continued to read; felt so real and original. This author is amazing and I am reading ALL of her books! She is a #MustRead always, author.
I loved this book. This was the first I’d read from this author and have decided to read her other books too. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy suspenseful thrillers. I’d love it if this book were made into a movie.
Excellent thriller to read. Definite page turner and so interesting
Dark, kept me on my toes with the story line. Excellent for a rainy day…especially if you like thrillers!
3.5 stars rounded to 4. Though I enjoyed this book, it ultimately fell a little short for what I am use to from Ms. White. Definitely worth reading but not my favorite. Love the main characters, the plot and the mystery, but the ending wasn’t what I anticipated which is good most the time but disappointing this time.
Spectacular! What a chilling read! The characters are well written, the plot and narrative gripping. It was very interesting to have “a book” within a book as Tori was reading her mothers manuscript.
I would’ve liked to have an ending to the whole ownership/Forbes story arc. Did Cole follow through? It would have been great for us to know if the housekeeper is tossed out like garbage she is.
I would recommend this novel to others, and may go in search of further books by this writer.
Psychological thriller set in British Columbia
Olivia West is the manager at the Broken Bar Ranch. Before this she was the kidnapping victim of a sadistic serial killer under a different name.
She has physical and emotional scars and suffers from PTSD. Her only friends are her dog and the elderly, dying owner of the ranch.
They caught her attacker. She identified him in a lineup and he killed himself in prison. So why does she suddenly feel like she’s being watched?
Cole, the estranged son of the owner flies in, hoping to make amends with his father before he passes and he and Olivia immediately notice each other.
There are quite a few others involved in this gripping story that definitely help fill out the story. I enjoyed the backstory and the current events move swiftly along with a couple of good twists along the way.
I recommend this psychological thriller highly.
NOTE: There are some scenes featuring rape and abuse that might be triggers.
I don’t know where to even begin with this book. I couldn’t put this book down, I just had to know what happened. The characters were great. Tori with her teenage attitude, Olivia with her strength, Myron and Coles family drama. Gage’s love for his daughter. It was raw and powerful book about strength and surviving. A few things drove me crazy, like Gage’s needing to look for the killer he thinks is still out there and by putting 2 lives in danger by doing it. I get why it had to be part of the story but, good god handle the situation better! Overall though I’d say it’s a great thriller!
4 1/2 stars. Another great book from Loreth Anne White. I’m addicted to her books. I have read 7 of hers. She has such a beautiful writing style and truly knows how to tell a story.
What I admire most about Loreth Anne White’s work is her wordsmithing and her fearlessness. This read isn’t for the timid. It’s dark, dangerous but inspiring. I highly recommend!
Sarah Baker/Olivia West’s story will break your heart.
Second chances is definitely the theme in this serial killer thriller.
Olivia is a survivor and A Dark Lure will have you turning pages late into the night.
White brings readers into the wilds of Canada with a tale of suspense and long held bitterness.
The descriptions of the setting make it as important as the characters themselves. This novel is full of twists, turns and a little romance. A truly enjoyable read.
I highly recommend this book to fans of the romantic suspense genre.
As usual, another amazing book by Loreth Ann White! This book was so hard to put down. It is a follow up story, but is pretty independent in my opinion from the original in a way that you could read this without having to read the first. I love the twists and turns in all of her writing and this book did not let down with the major story line shockers and surprises. Highly recommend everything by Loreth Ann White!
Really good book kept me hooked till the end
An enjoyable, somewhat predictable suspense, set on a ranch with the approach of winter. The foundation is built on the main character, who survived the brutality of a serial killer years earlier. The story is well written and I liked that I found an element of surprise toward the end. A Dark Lure is my favorite of the three books I’ve read by this author.
A Dark Lure was a good story. Started out really well, sort of dragged toward the end. Author had a lot of loose ends she wanted to tie up. I would read another by her.
It’s been a while since I read this author and I had forgotten how she likes to have so many POV’s in her stories. As each of these characters are connected in some way or will be, its like putting a puzzle together wondering what the final picture is going to be. You might thing that with so many POV’s the story would get confusing but its like that puzzle without all the pieces you cant see the full picture.
Each of the main characters had a traumatizing thing happen to them in their past. None more than Sarah Baker who was abducted by a serial killer and abused both physically and sexually before managing to escape. She birthed a child shortly after but gave it up when neither her husband nor her own parents could stand the shame of what happened to her and turned their backs on her. After being deserted by those closest to her Sarah then let and became Olivia West and ended up working on the Broken Bar Ranch.
Cole McDonough lived through two traumatizing things in his life time. Losing his mother and younger brother in a car accident when he was driving and then losing the woman he loved and her son when she walked away from their relationship after a harrowing ordeal almost got them killed in a war torn country. He left his father and the Broken Bar Ranch behind a long time ago and never looked back but once he finds out his father is dying he returns.
Gage Burton and his daughter Tori are still reeling from the loss his wife and her mother. Gage is being forced to retire from the Canadian police due to an illness. He has many regrets in life but the biggest is his fear that they never caught the right man for the Watt Lake killings. He sets up online traps using Sarah’s name to try and lure the real killer out even 12 years later. When he finally gets a hit he heads to the Broken Bar Ranch with his daughter in hopes of finally catching him.
All of these people lives now intersect at the Broken Bar Ranch not realizing that the killer is already among them and Sarah/Olivia life is in grave danger again because the Watt Lake killer has come back to finish what he started.