A Guarded Heart.

A Guarded Heart

Jennifer Fulton

Yellow Rose Books

PMB 210, 8691 9th Avenue, Port Arthur, TX 77642-8025

ISBN: 1932300376; $16.95; 194 pages

Jennifer Fulton's fourth and thoroughly enjoyable entry in her Moon Island Series is entitled A Guarded Heart. Lauren Douglas, a closeted lesbian, plays the starring role in the hit daytime soap opera, Dr. Kate. The twenty-eight year-old actress is also the daughter of a powerful politician, Congressman Wendall Douglas III. When Lauren is publicly outed by a spurned unfaithful former lover, her acting career and the public reputation of her father are placed at risk. Making this awkward situation even more troublesome is a devoted fan of Dr. Kate, a fanatical young man who feels personally betrayed by the revelation of Lauren's sexual identity. So offended is he that he tracks Lauren to a parking garage, and there, after an irrational rant, he shoots her and flees the scene. While the gunman is still at large, Congressman Douglas decides to take no further chances with his daughter's safety. He hires a female bodyguard, FBI Special Agent Pat Rousell, who is currently on leave from a harrowing serial murder case, and dispatches them to a remote island in the South Pacific, called Moon Island, where they will remain until the gunman is apprehended. Lauren and Pat could not be any more dissimilar, but they must now forge some kind of tenable relationship for the duration of Lauren's exile. These two captivating and competent women will now face challenges which will forever change their lives.

Jennifer Fulton begins her novel with an amusing scene on the set of Dr. Kate. "Lauren ripped off her mask and gloves and tossed them on the operating floor. 'Am I removing a kidney or a leg?' "(p. 1) The strong opening immediately engages the reader and creates that essential appeal for continuing reading. In many instances, if an author has not hooked the audience in those first few pages or even by the end of chapter one, the magic is not going to occur. Fulton manages to achieve this with humor and an unconventional setting. The storyline flows effortlessly; one scene segues consistently into the next. This thorough development of plot is enhanced by the author's skill in blending the narrative portion with the dialogue. Tension and conflict are created and sustained with a tightly controlled technique, suspense is gradually intensified, and the resolutions for the various conflicts are presented in credible prose, realistic dialogue, and viable action scenes. Fulton skillfully executes that primary requisite of successful writing, the suspension of disbelief.

Lauren and Pat are two engaging women; they are protagonists with whom the reader can empathize and connect. They are tenacious, capable, assertive women who have both experienced painful past relationships. Pat comes equipped with the necessary FBI fire power, but more importantly and detrimentally, with emotional barriers she has developed over a lifetime. On the other hand, Lauren, despite her bravado and immaturity, is a woman who desperately wants to find the path that will enable her to feel that she has a contribution to make beyond her television role. She possesses the wherewithal to make that difference, if she only knew what it was she wanted to do with her life. These two women would seem to be an odd couple, but their passionate encounters reveal something beneath the surface for both of them. As the action escalates toward the climax, the dangers become more blatant and the shared misinterpretations and preconceptions of intent become more perplexing. It has become increasingly more obvious that Lauren and Pat each must make crucial life-altering decisions and each must live with the consequences and possible repercussions.

A Guarded Heart is a story with several themes, and it is a novel which can be interpreted on several levels. However, it is, first and foremost, an excellent example of the romance genre. Substantial and realistic characters with problematic situations create an intense and dramatic story. Fluid and believable dialogue strengthens the development of the characterization. Obstacles, both tangible and intangible, provide the necessary impetus for the characters to change, grow, and hopefully succeed. As important as the setting is in a novel, it isn't the lush tropical paradise surrounding Lauren and Pat that enthralls and satisfies the reader. It is the wondrous metamorphosis each woman experiences which this reader found often poignant and heartbreaking, but more importantly, emphatically and profoundly reaffirming.