April 1, 2003
The characters and plot twists in Only by Your Touch, Catherine Anderson's newest contemporary romance (after Always in My Heart), may feel familiar to the author's fans, but this by-the-numbers tale still possesses poignancy and charm. Determined to keep her sickly son safe, Chloe Evans divorces her abusive husband and moves to Jack Pine, Ore., where she meets the enigmatic Ben Longtree, a part-Indian veterinarian once arrested for murder. Chloe is struck by the man's kindness to animals and is deeply attracted to him, but at the same time, she must fend off a police deputy who tries to assert his claim over her in an ever more ominous fashion. The once-abused heroine, too-good-to-be-true hero and too-evil-to-be-believed villain are character types that Anderson's fans know well, but that won't stop readers (both old and new) from savoring the book's tender moments.
March 15, 2003
Leaving an abusive marriage, Chloe moves with her young son, Jeremy, to Jack Pine, Oregon, to start over. Hoping that it will help him adjust to his new home, Chloe lets Jeremy have a puppy, but when the puppy gets sick and the local vet is unwilling and unable to treat it, Jeremy turns to Ben Longtree for help. Once a veterinarian, Ben, who has long been ostracized, still treats wounded animals at his isolated home on a ridge outside the town. Afraid that Jeremy may be in danger, Chloe arrives at Ben's home determined to save him only to find that Ben is nothing like the rumors she has been hearing. A hero struggling with secrets from his past and a heroine determined to put her past behind her find another chance at romance in Anderson's latest contemporary, which includes a touch of magic as Ben, with Chloe's help, struggles with and comes to accept his special talent for healing in this beautifully written, emotionally satisfying story.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)