Promise Not to Tell by Jayne Ann Krentz

Narrated by Susan Bennett

Promise Not to Tell is a romantic suspense title that continues the story of child cult survivors (now adults and “conspiracy” theorists who believe the cult leader is still alive–though the police have closed the case long ago). The story culminates with the couple’s sleuthing revelations about what really happened at the cult and ultimately in the duo finding love together while on a mission to track the cult leader down. The primary focus of this book is on the suspense angle, but the author also does a compelling job in the character development of this necessarily scarred couple, who, as a result of their time in the cult, have trust and personal relationship issues, but who nonetheless bond and learn to open up to one another on this all-important mission. As if one mystery wasn’t enough, however, Jayne Ann Krentz builds an unexpected mystery within a mystery, involving the hero’s and heroine’s moms (who died at the hands of the cult leader), and then at the end, a stunning revelation that deals one wallop of a surprise.

When Virginia Troy was but a small child, she lost her mother to a fire set by the leader of the cult that they were in. Virginia was lucky enough to have been taken in by her maternal grandparents who raised her, and she moved past it (today being a successful art dealer in Seattle), but she has never forgotten or forgiven Quinton Zane, the infamous cult leader who supposedly died in a boat fire trying to flee after he burned down his commune. The past is brought all too familiarly back to Virginia when she learns that one of her artists who had also been a Quinton Zane cult survivor has committed “suicide.” Virginia scours her friend’s art and discovers a message pointing to the fact that Quinton Zane may very well have been responsible for her friend’s “suicide”, so she enlists the help of fellow Quinton Zane cult survivor, Cabot Sutter, who is now a private detective with the firm of Cuttler, Sutter & Salinas.

Cabot, though fortunate enough to have been adopted by the man who rescued him from the burning fire (and who taught him how to be a PI), has never been able to have satisfying personal relationships (especially of the romantic kind). In fact, his social interactions are a bit stilted as he has an uncanny sense of reading people and doesn’t hold back on his observations. This sense works great for his profession, but not his personal life–that is, until Virginia comes along.

Will Virginia and Cabot be successful in their mission to discover whether Virginia’s friend’s suicide was really murder? Moreover, is Quinton Zane still alive, and, if so, will they be able to bring him to justice? Lastly, is their attraction to one another one fueled by the adrenaline of the chase, or have they truly found a HEA

The narration was for the most part satisfactory. However, it suffered from a general lack of differentiation and emotion. This style worked generally well for Cabot, whose character was penned to be somewhat socially awkward. However, I felt that the narrator could have infused Virginia’s character with more emotion.

One additional issue that I noticed with the narration was a production issue. In at least two points in the story, a sentence was repeated. This didn’t detract much, as it occurred only twice to my observation (once near the beginning of the story and once towards the end). Nonetheless, this is an issue that you don’t expect to find, so I would be remiss not to mention it.

All in all, Promise Not to Tell contained a compelling mystery with well evolved character growth and development. Additionally, the romance, while not necessarily prolonged or the primary focus, was sufficiently present to whet my romance listener appetite.