The Ride of Her Life

Ann Marie Duquette

1/20/2001

Review by Molly

The initial meeting between ride engineer Kelly Lowell and the CEO of Delgardo International ends with the young woman agreeing to check out the Thrill-o-Rama Amusement park. Even Delgado's blunt statement that the park is haunted does little to deter one of the amusement ride industries foremost engineers. As the weeks pass Kelly Lowell comes to understand just what and how the idea that the park is haunted has come about. She finds herself caught up in a terrifying series of situations centering around the scaffolding upon which the park's roller coaster was built. Kelly and Mark's growing affection for one another is nearly lost in the enigma surrounding their determination to uncover the conundrum of the problems man made and what appears to be otherwise which have begun to devastate the run down amusement park.

I was prepared to not care at all for this book. And to my surprise found myself caught up in the story immediately. Each chapter opens with a little history of amusement parks and roller coasters in particular. For a history buff this is a delight! The affectionate involvement of the two main characters is believable and does not rely upon graphic sex in order to forward the romance. A most welcome treat!

Merge the delightful characters found in Ann Bachman's Broken Dreams >with the excitement generated by Michael Marcotte in his Gold in the Shadow for an idea of the gripping tale you will encounter in this work. Writer Duquette has crafted a spell binding tale which draw you in and hold your interest right down to the last page. Her knowledge of the history of amusement parks and roller coasters is skillfully integrated in this 'keep you turning the pages' thriller.

The alarm felt by Lowell is unmistakable and the anxiety driven behavior of her new sweetheart Mark Delgado as they discover more about the Cahokian people who were among the first dwellers of the Illinois region where their amusement park is located is the stuff of fascinating reading. This intricately wrought thriller mixes anthropology, modern menace and obsessive behavior to create a highly entertaining tale.

The Ride of Her Life is a wonderfully captivating narrative that will snatch your interest from the first line and will keep you interested right down to the last page. Excellent tale and hugely recommended.

Writer Duquette is an Air Force Brat, Navy vet and Navy wife who admits to being a 'Disneyland junkie.' Learn more about Ann Marie Duquette by reading her bio at the Starpublications.com site.