The Red Heart of Jade

A Dirk & Steele Novel, Book 3

By: Marjorie Liu

Narrated by: Emma Lysy

“If you have yet to add Liu to your must-read list, you’re doing yourself a disservice.” (Booklist)

Marjorie M. Lui has created a most unusual investigative organization in the Dirk and Steele Detective Agency - a collection of shape-shifters, psychics, and other uniquely gifted individuals - and in doing so has revitalized the paranormal romance genre. In The Red Heart of Jade, an ex-cop with extraordinarily heightened senses follow a trail of death to Taipei - and finds the woman of his heart there, the childhood love he once believed dead, whom he must now protect from an unspeakable evil.

Thrilling, sensuous, surprising, remarkable...The Red Heart of Jade is all that and more. No wonder Christine Feehan says, “Anyone who loves my work should love hers.”

©2010 Marjorie M. Liu (P)2019 HarperCollins Publishers

The MacGuffin to end all MacGuffins

“You used to love my drool”
My favorite part about this book was the romance. I tend to dislike second chance romances because they rely on a separation caused by the character’s bad decisions.
Here, all the conflict was from external factors.

“It was more than sex; it was history and love and loss”
Those listening for the naughty parts will be disappointed. There’s only one actual scene and it’s mild. Those looking for a charming and heartfelt love story between soulmates will appreciate the unwavering connection between Miri and Dean.

“Do I still have hair?!”
The adventure part of this book was not as great. It’s low on action and high on wandering about with vague hunches about why people are dying. The murder mystery transformed into a hunt for Jade shards with more vague hunches about how they connect to the murders … and to yet another mystery about Miri and Dean’s connection to them.

“You are both: the meaning and the mystery”
I was very disappointed when the final chapter gives answers that amounted to discounting all value to the Jade shards that became the crux of everyone’s hunt, For that matter, I’m not even sure the reveal explained the original string of murders. Miri and Dean’s mystery is explained via one long info dump ,.. and then left hanging wide open for a resolution at some indefinite later book. It was a long haul to trek through just to find out the journey had just begun.

“Given your reputation, I expected you to have rocket launchers tied to your arms
and a bazooka strapped to your D”
Dean: “too much recoil- I love my nuts.”
The other disappointments are the light humor and meager use of the previous couples (mostly just referenced) or the other members of Dirk and Steele (Coney the crow shifter and Rick being the exceptions). There was enough of these to combine with the love story for a solid listen, but a series like this could be so much more with the entire Dirk and Steele team involved in investigating the mysteries. Ah well. Here’s hoping the series arc brings everyone together in later books.

eternal love

this one i absolutely loved. a story written beautifully about two people whose love is only for each other and lasts throughout the ages. cat nip for a true romantic heart