cover image Degrees of Wrong

Degrees of Wrong

Anna Scarlett. Samhain (www.samhainpublishing.com), $5.50 e-book (266p) ISBN 978-1-61921-042-4

In this lively but flawed SF romance debut, Scarlett delivers what could have been a solid story set in the war-torn year 2053. Dr. Elyse Morgan is kidnapped by the United Nations for her own good, so her work on curing the virus known as the Black Death won’t fall into the hands of terrorists using the virus as a weapon. Stashed aboard a giant undersea vessel, Morgan clashes with authority figures, including the sexy Capt. Nicoli Marek. As she desperately tries to find the cure that could have saved her family, she reluctantly falls for Marek, unwilling to give in to her feelings as long as he’s engaged to another woman and unable to relax as long as the terrorists are searching for her. The engaging characters and flashes of humor are substantially undermined by the inexorable romance, lack of tension, and shaky pacing, leading to a hasty wrapup. (Sept.)