Actual Rating: 3.5 Stars

A great reread. I read this book when it first came out and just read it again. Definitely worth the time. Ms. Krentz develops her characters so precisely--with unusual names--that I can imagine meeting them in person. The plot begins on with a bang (literally), slows down, then ramps up until I couldn't put the book down.

Sharp Edges

I truly enjoy books by Jayne Ann Krentz, no matter what name or genre she is writing.
Her romances are believable and fun. She can tell a good and sometimes great story. She does here research.
When I pick up one of her stories, regardless of whether or not I have read them before, I know I will be entertained.

Abandoned

Excellent couldn't put it down.

Interesting characters, sharp dialogue, and good descriptions of locations and relationships. Plot kept me involved and moved the action along.

Setting: Leabrook Glass Museum – office and displays; Frog Cove Island (Pugent Sound) – Glass House, art gallery, town;

Theme: What happened to the Hades Cup? What happened to Nellie Grant? Who can be trusted? What role does Damien March play? Falling in love.

Characters:
Hades Cup:2,000 + year Roman class, depicting Persephone and Hades; gorgeous; lost 200 years ago, and presumed destroyed;

Cyrus Chandler Colfax: PI & security; wears Hawaiian shirts – with the layback attitude that implies; no father listed on birth certificate, mother died when he was young, raised by loving, strict, elderly grandparents, and as he grew he took on care of them; married Katie, in hindsight because she was frail and needed him; after Katie’s death, he took on father/uncle duties for Katie’s sister’s son who as a teen was having trouble dealing with divorce; 3 years ago, in a ill-advised partnership with Damien March (who had seduced his wife, so that she advocated for him) – rich, arty, different kinds of high paying clients, they are hired to deliver the Hades Cup; once cup in hand, and on way out, Damien shoots him in the back (he ducks in a nick of time, instinct, and wakes up in hospital with shoulder wound) and his wife is car hijacked and killed the next day (she knew too much and expected to leave with Damien); he has spent 3 years trying to track the cup, and ultimately March to exact justice for his wife;

Eugenia Smith: director of Leasbrook Glass Museum; has a talent/instinct for art, for forgeries, for beauty; introduced a coworker (Nellie) friend to Adam Daventry, and when he died, then Nellie visited her, and then died (swept off boat by wave into ocean – body not found), Eugenia suspects foul play, and decides to vacation at Frog Cove, catalog Daventry’s glass collection, and investigate Nellie’s death;

Katie / Rick / Meredith / Jake Tasker: Cyrus’ wife of a couple years; his brother-in-law/scuz bucket by marriage / his sister-in-law / his nephew by marriage; after Katie’s death, and when Rick divorced Meredith, and teen Jake started acting out, Meredith called Cyrus when the police carted Jake in – and since he has stepped in (they need him) and done father things with him… fishing, ballgames, going to see him in sports… and for his high school graduation, Cyrus ‘blackmailed’ Rick into making time to show up for the graduation;

Fennella Weeks: Art gallery owner on Frog Cove Island; exlover of Daventry; crazy woman;

Damien March (and ex-Damien March): rich, intelligent, moralless; he temporarily pairs up with Cyrus to enhance his attractiveness for art dealership security jobs, seduces and manipulates Cyrus’ wife, and uses him to gain access to the Hade Cup; It is Damien’s plan to kill Cyrus (misses), and to kill his wife (no loose ends) and he retires to an island he rents for 50 years, moving most of the natives to the mainland and paying their rent… he has been keeping an eye on Cyrus, aware Cyrus is looking for him… and now someone has stolen Hade’s Cup; he believes Cyrus will find it, andhe plans tto be there to collect it;

Tabitha Leabrook: 70+ year old owner of the Leabrook Glass Museum, she values Eugenia, and when she goes to Daventry’s home to catalog his glass, she agrees with Cyrus to send Cyrus to the island as Eugenia’s assistant (or boyfriend) so he can protect Eugenia and investigate Adam’s death;

Adam Daventry: rich ‘bastard’; bought house on Frog Island, and his stuck up friends come over to party regularly; he has an art room of sexual art, each from a different girl friend, and his critique of their value and sexual ability – Like a large penis, that says, boring in bed except gave good head; he purchased (and perhaps arranged) the stolen Hades Cup; his most recent girlfriend was Eugenia’s friend/coworker; crazy, jealous Fenella pushes him down the stairs, killing him – and is seen by Nellie;

Nellie Grant: had painted 4 paintings of Adam’s glass, one of the Hades Cup; he had a hidden safe where he kept the cup; after his death, she takes the cup, and places her painting of it with an altered background – Eugenia’s fireplace in the safe, and takes the Hades Cup in Eugenia’s apartment, in the wall that hasn’t been drywalled yet (fireplace being worked on), then took boat back to island, and apparently swept overboard and died - body not found;

Senator Zackery Elland Chandler II: Cyrus’ father – though he doesn’t know he has a son… and a fling with a waitress when in college, left her and did not return to that college… he is in a senate race when starts to get blackmail emails;

Summary:
In beginning Eugenia fights Cyrus… but he calmly takes it in, and after first night he admits what is heis really after (the cup), and though she doesn’t believe the cup exists and believes her friend’s death is just an accident, they partner to solve the other’s mystery; they become lovers, and start to trust and respect each other; her insightful/compassionate perception of Jake and Cyrus’ relationship helps them get on the right road;

They identify Fenelli as the murderer… they find Nellie’s painting in the safe, Eugenia recognizes its clue, they return to her place, and just as he is retrieving the cup, in comes March, a goonie, and her friend (who had been hiding in Las Vegas); in the end the goon is unconscious, March is dead, and the ancient glass is safe;

Memorable scenes:
Jake shows up on island angry at Cyrus for forcing his father into going to his graduation – (really angry that his dad needed to be forced)… Eugenia helps Jake realize he is lucky that his dad showed up no matter what the circumstance (no dad for her)… and a bit later helps Cyrus see that Jake wants and needs his respect as a man, the fathering isn’t necessary anymore… Cyrus engages Jake in helping him investigate – hmmmm

He insists they return the Cup to the gentleman who had hired him 3 years earlier; and Eugenia supports him and convinces Mrs. Leabrook that they should, and it would work to the museum’s advantage… and Cyrus shows up mid opening night to a new exhibit, with the cup, having convinced the owner to lend it to the museum; they finally share the words I love you…

Faced with tasks I hate - cleaning the kitchen especially things like the refrigerator and freezer say - I typically get an audio book to make the task a bit easier to get excited about. Sharp Edges answered the call. Think Perry Mason with a bit of romance. Not a book I’ll remember years, months, or even a few weeks from now. But boy does my kitchen sparkle.

Eugenia and Cyrus are basically the same person; stubborn, unreasonable, and obsessive. In Eugenia's case, add self-important and impatient. Its hard to sell the reader on an HEA for a couple with these combined qualities. Eugenia is referred to as "intelligent" on more than one occasion but i saw no evidence for that unless you count some haughty art comments. She bumbles her way through an investigation into a suspected murder, something that she had originally intended to do on her own despite having no experience in this. She dumps herself into every situation with no grace. Cyrus displays a lack of common sense as well but not quite so frequently as Eugenia. He is a little easier to take. But still, when looking for a safe room, why wouldn't you start in the basement where all of the other valuables are? /sigh

Glass house was pretty cool and the mystery itself grabbed me here and there. But it was hard to get into that when i was constantly rolling my eyes at the idiocy of Eugenia's bumbling around.

This book wasn't for me, but someone who can get past the annoying character traits might like the mystery.

Sharp Edges took me by surprise with the plot because I am not a person who likes adult romances but unexpected I like it maybe because has also mystery and I love a book with mystery and suspense in it.

But what was surprising is that I loved the main two characters and also their relationship. Even if it had some hot scenes, Amanda Quick did not exaggerated like Sarah J. Maas did in A Court of Mist and Fury!!!!

The story follows Cyrus Chandler Colfax, a private detective trying to find a very old piece made from glass named Hades so that he can find the murderer of his wife.

Eugenia Swift is a director on an art museum that has to make the inventory to a very rich man that died and left all of the art pieces to Eugenia's museum. When the sophisticated Eugenia crosses paths with distant and very in control Cyrus they dislike each other on first sight.

Forced to cooperate and live together in the Glass House they start seeing more to the other then the first impressions but in the same time they will discover many secrets that they will shock them.

Intricate plot and endearing characters

OK, 3 stars is high but 2 would have been too low....
Not a very interesting story, but good enough for a vacation book to read on the beach.
I did learn something about Glass Art, and how crazed some artists can be.
The romance side of the story was nice but I did not feel the heat between the characters.