Nighttime Guardian by Amanda Stevens
Intrigue No. 607
Harlequin - March 2001
ISBN: 0373226071 - Mass Market Paperback
Romantic Suspense

Reviewed by Jen Oliver, MyShelf.Com
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What a great suspenseful story! It is an exciting story that deals with childhood friends, Nathan and Shelby, in a small river town with its own legend, the Pearl River Monster. Several years ago, Shelby claimed that she saw the monster and Nathan stood by her side and defended her. Shelby was brought back to the small town where she grew up when her grandmother ended up in the hospital and asked Shelby to take care of her freshwater pearl store.

Many strange things started happening when Shelby came back home. Her maternal uncle attempted to break into the store. The young girl who helps out at the store was found at night near Shelby's home. A diver was found murdered in the river that went by Shelby's home. Nathan, throughout everything, stood by her side. Nathan and Shelby were able to solve the town's problems and realized that they loved each other.

The romance in the book was excellent. It was very realistic since it dealt with childhood friends and it did not seem rushed in any way. Having a river monster did take away from the reality of the story. Luckily, the story was not fully centered on the monster. This book is very well written and reads very quickly.