Heaven and Earth

Author: Nora Roberts
Published: December 1, 2001 (Jove)
Category: Paranormal Romance
Series: Three Sisters Island Trilogy #2
Rating: 8/10

I loved Dance Upon the Air so much that I was upset when I didn't have Heaven and Earth in my TBR, just Face the Fire, which is the last book in the trilogy. I know, there are worse things in life than having to wait a few days for a book to arrive.

But before Ripley and Mac can dream of what lies in the future, they must confront the pain of the past. For Three Sisters shelters centuries of secrets—and a legacy of danger that plagues them still…

Ripley Todd just wants to live a quiet, peaceful kind of life. Her job as a sheriff’s deputy keeps her busy and happy, and she has no trouble finding men when she wants them—which, lately, isn’t all that often. She’s perfectly content, except for one thing: she has special powers that both frighten and confuse her—and though she tries hard to hide them, she can’t get them under control…

Distraction soon arrives in the handsome form of MacAllister Booke—a researcher who’s come to investigate the rumors of witchcraft that haunt Three Sisters Island. Right from the start, he knows there’s something extraordinary about Ripley Todd. It’s not just her blazing green eyes and her sultry smile. There’s something else. Something he can detect, but she’ll never admit. Fascinated by her struggle with her amazing abilities, he becomes determined to help her accept who she is—and find the courage to open her heart.

Riley grated on me a little in Dance Upon the Air, so I was wary of her book. I was amused that Riley's love interest would turn out to be a scientist who couldn't get enough of magic, studying it in the most respectful of ways, unlike the villain. This time it's a reporter looking to get rich exposing Nell's story and the truth of the events on Three Sisters Island. Some evil spirit had been using Nell's ex-husband as a tool to repeat the tragic events that killed the original Three.

Now it's Ripley's turn to face this new incarnation of evil, but she has to get over her fear of repeating Earth's mistakes, giving in to the temptation of using dark magic. Because she's afraid of abusing her power she tried shutting away all magic, but once Nell came to the island and set events in motion, Ripley's power couldn't be held back any longer, or she'd feel awful pain.

Heaven and Earth was good, but I loved Dance Upon the Air a lot more, probably because Nell's story seemed more interesting to me.