Beso: Ella te Roba mas que el Corazon

by Ted Dekker, Erin Healy

Sometimes dying with the truth is better than living with a lie.

After a car accident puts Shauna McAllister in a coma and erases six months of her memory, she returns to her childhood home to recover, but her arrival was filled with confusion. Her distant father, a senator running for the White House, and her abusive stepmother blame Shauna for the tragedy, which has left her beloved brother with a severely damaged brain.

Leaning on Wayne Spade, a forgotten but hopeful lover who stays by her side, Shauna tries to fully understand what happened that night by reviving her memory. Instead, she gains a mysterious mental ability that will lead her to the truth or death at the hands of people trying to hide the truth. In this blind game, Shauna is sure of only one thing: if she remembers, she dies.
​***********************************************************************************
A veces morir con la verdad es mejor que vivir con una mentira.

Despues que un accidente automovilistico pone a Shauna McAllister en coma y borra seis meses de su memoria, ella regresa al hogar de su ninez para recuperarse, pero su llegada estuvo llena de confusion. Su padre distante, un senador postulando a la Casa Blanca, y su madrastra abusiva culpan a Shauna por la tragedia, la cual ha dejado a su amado hermano con el cerebro severamente danado.

Apoyandose en Wayne Spade, un amante olvidado pero esperanzado que se queda a su lado, Shauna trata de entender bien lo que sucedio esa noche avivando su memoria. En cambio, ella adquiere una capacidad mental misteriosa que la llevara a la verdad o a la muerte a manos de gente que trata de ocultar la verdad. En este juego a ciegas, Shauna esta segura solo de una: si ella recuerda, se muere.

Genres: Christian Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Fantasy

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 6, 2009

About the author

Ted Dekker is known for novels that combine adrenaline-laced stories with unexpected plot twists, unforgettable characters, and incredible confrontations between good and evil. Ted lives in Austin with his wife LeeAnn and their four children.

Reviews

[Alp · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh please! What the hell did I just read?

To tell you the truth, this book wasn't totally awful. Almost the whole first half was great that I couldn't stop reading. It kept me guessing and curious what was really going on. I genuinely didn't know who the heroine could trust and it kept me wondering why the bad guys kept her alive.

B U T in the second half…

After things started to fall into place bit by bit, the more I read, the more frustrated I became! Everything in this half was off, far-fetched, implausible, and didn't make any sense to me. Almost every character acted and thought like a total idiot, especially the heroine, Shauna. At first, I tried to make an excuse for her that she lost her memory in a car accident so she couldn’t be sure whether who was telling her the truth or not. But when she began to find the way to steal other people's memories and then realized the serious trouble she was already in, she still made many wrong decisions and did many stupid things that I don't know what to think about this woman anymore. She is one of the stupidest heroines I've ever read!

In my opinion, the only possible thing in this book was the bad guys’ dirty money laundering route. Aside from that, I didn't believe anything that happened in this story! Nothing at all!


**Spoiler alert!

Shauna’s car accident set up was implausible. How could the villains know that she would do as they expected? What if she didn't go straight home? What if she didn't change the lane? What if she slowed down her car?

Miguel, the hero, denied talking to Shauna twice. He thought she would be safe as long as she knew nothing. Seriously? He thought her staying in the same house with a man who tried to kill her was ok? Or her being surrounded by the people whom she believed were her friends, but in fact, wanted her dead, was a good idea too? Nah, I don't think so. What the hell was wrong with this man's brain?!

Arrrgghhhh!

Another thing that pissed me off about this book was Shauna’s father. According to the story, he’d been a good father and loved her until her mother died after giving birth to her brother. He said it was God’s fault but he seemed to blame her for her mother’s death. Was he serious?! And I thought this was stupid enough...but no, I was wrong. It wasn't over yet… Then he took his newborn son home and intentionally left his seven-year-old daughter at the hospital alone. Yes, alone. WTH! At this point, I literally had steam coming out of my ears! And you know what? Since then, he’d poured all his love into his son and stopped caring about Shauna, like she had nothing to do with him and wasn’t his concern anymore. Was this a joke??? Urrrgh!!!

Even though there was a happy ending, it was too little too late. I didn't care! This book left me with so many unanswered questions...Such a waste of time!

I wish I never read this book.

Enough said!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dekker is a master at psychological thrillers and this one is no exception. The story flowed well and I liked the result of the Dekker Healy team effort in writing this book. I loved the twists and how I wasn't really sure who was on whose side as the story progressed. The ending was perfect. There was even a touch of romance. This is one of my favorite Dekker reads. Bravo to the authors for writing a fast paced story with believable intrigue and plenty of tricks for the mind's pleasure! The spiritual content was gratifying (though mild) as well.

[Ariannha · Rating 4 out of 5]

“El dolor fue tan profundo y tan crudo. Hubo días en que habría muerto solo para olvidar. El problema era que no sabía cómo sacarla de mi mente. ¿Cómo matas ese tipo de dolor?”

Como Dekker es uno de mis autores favoritos, siempre encuentro fascinantes sus novelas. Pero ¿a quién no le pasaría con ésta en particular después de leer la Sinopsis y la portada que nos presenta?

Con Beso estamos frente a otro thriller psicológico del autor, que a lo largo de su desarrollo te mantiene a la expectativa y tan enfrascado en inquietudes como a la protagonista.

Una novela llena de intriga que se desarrolla a un ritmo frenético, y te engancha por completo, donde nada es lo que parece, y tiene muchísimos momentos de tensión, sobretodo hacia el final.

100% recomendado

[Sarah (Workaday Reads)]

I could not get into this story because I couldn't stand the main character Shauna. She was just too whiny and wimpy. I would have to describe her as the opposite of a strong independent heroine. My main example: after waking up with amnesia, she starts apologizing to everyone for what happened, even though she has no idea what did happen. How can you get behind a character like that?

I can't. And so I can't finish the book.

There does promise to be a lot of action, mystery and intrigue in the story. Shauna is trying to beat her amnesia, which encompasses the last few months of her life. She is obviously the target of a conspiracy, as revealed between the anonymous conversations discussing whether she should be killed or not. If you can accept the main character, this may be a great thriller story.

[Janna Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the things I loved about Erin Healy collaborating with Ted Dekker was that it seemed to take the hard edge (gore) off the thriller aspect of The Kiss and made it a book that engaged me, drew me in, mystified me, thrilled me and I never felt like I had to "close my proverbial eyes". The Kiss has a very strong storyline that made me wonder and kept me guessing. Did Shauna really cause the accident that severely injured her brother? Was there a 3rd person in the car? After her waking up from her coma, why does Shauna keep getting new memories of other people? Why don't they know what she is talking about? If she gets too close to the truth will she be okay? Is her step mother really as mean as Shauna remembers or is it her dad that is bad to the bone?

Deeply riveting, and totally engrossing - if you like Ted Dekker, then do not miss this one with Erin Healy - but if maybe Ted's previous books have been a little hard core scary for you then The Kiss is the book to check out!

[Ashley Bogner · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this one! The premise was interesting and just when I thought I had everything figured out, the authors would throw in an unexpected twist. My main complaint is that the end seemed a bit too rushed which resulted in some too-quickly resolved or not well-explained elements (like I wish Shauna's spiritual growth had been more pronounced). I liked that this wasn't as creepy/dark as some of Dekker's other books.

[Janie Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided on this book to go towards my A-Z challenge. I really enjoyed this one quite a bit. The book was really engaging and had me hooked right from the start. I do think it is more plot driven than anything and has a great plot line with lots of mystery thrown in.

Synopsis
Let me tell you all I know for sure. "My name. Shauna."

I woke up in a hospital bed missing six months of my memory. In the room was my loving boyfriend--how could I have forgotten him?--my uncle and my abusive stepmother. Everyone blames me for the tragic car accident that left me near death and my dear brother brain damaged. But what they say can't be true--can it?

I believe the medicine is doing strange things to my memory. I'm unsure who I can trust and who I should run from. And I'm starting to remember things I've never known. Things not about me. I think I'm going crazy.

"And even worse, I think they want to kill me."

But who? And for what? Is dying for the truth really better than living with a lie?

I found this plotline to be very exciting and also addicting. I could not put the book down. Is was very fluid and easy to follow. There was so much mystery in this story and I felt like I was Shauna trying to figure out exactly who to trust. It certainly did keep me glued to the pages. I did find though that it lacked the usual adrenalin pumping action that most of his other books have. I missed that in this one, but I think the mystery aspect is enough to make it a great story.

The characters were great. I loved Shauna and her drive, even at her lowest point she refused to give up and kept pushing forward. There are a lot of different characters to figure out in the story and plenty to both love and hate. I think they were developed well and I loved the mystery that surrounded them especially Shauna. When we go into this story we know nothing about her, then gradually we see who she is and who she becomes.

I recommend this to anyone who is a fan of Ted Dekker, likes Christian fiction (Not a 'shoved down your throat' kind of Christian fiction.), or anyone who likes Mystery like I do. Those readers are sure to enjoy this book. I look forward to more of Ted Dekker's work.

[Nora St Laurent · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to say I was intimidated by the cover of this book. I
didn't want to read a blood and guts kind of story, or one so scary I
wouldn't be able to sleep at night. Don't judge this book by it's
cover.This is one exciting, action-filled story that doesn't dwell on
the gruesome. For that I'm thankful. It made the book so much more
enjoyable for me because it wasn't gorey. This novel reminds me of Ted
Dekker's books in his early years. I loved them. This story is
intriguing and fascinating as the plot unfolds on every page. There
are some surprising turns that made this suspenseful journey all
worthwhile.

I loved Shauna's discovery about the painful parts of life - the ones
that most of us would like to forget. Most of the characters in this
story want Shauna to stop trying to recover her memory loss. They want
the six months she has lost, to stay lost, but Shauna can't live like
that. She knew someone wanted to kill her,
but why? What did she know? They tell her she should be thankful to be
able to forget all the pain. They say,"Why remember that?". She
doesn't want a clean slate - she wants to remember who she is! She
wants to know what happened that lead up to the accident! One of the
characters tells Shauna "Then you will have to work harder than the
average person to hold on to what is true. If you forget, Shauna, your
suffering will rule you instead of free you."

Deal with the past, get justice, and make the pain go away -- that's
what Shauna thought would help. Isn't that what the world tells you to
do? Her doctor tells her something different, "...your plan will only
root you more deeply in the pain of your past, not separate you from
it. Pain was not God's plan for this life. It is a reality, but it is
not part of the plan." - Shauna would have to think about that one.
But, the process of getting well was made more difficult because of
who her father is. Landon, her father, is running for President. It's
bad enough that he doesn't have time for a relationship with his
family, but he has blamed her for this accident!! Her father's
advisor, Trent, has filled him in on all the details while he was on
the road. Landon thought, how could Shauna be so reckless so close to
the election. Doesn't she know what's at stake?

The pain of life. The wrongs done to the innocent. How do we really
get "free" from that kind of pain? This book explores many aspects of
this question amidst the suspense and murder plots, that's what I
loved about this story. This is the main reason I started to read Ted
Dekker's books in the first place. I love to read about real people
struggling with different aspects of the Christian life. I felt that
Dekker and Healy were able to bring scripture to life throughout this
book. Ted Dekker and Erin Healy -- a winning combination and an
exciting team. I look forward to reading "Burn" in 2010.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”

Nora St.Laurent
The Book Club Network www.bookfun.org
The Book Club Network blog www.psalm516.blogspot.com
Book Fun Magazine www.bookfunmagazine.com

[Deb Omnivorous Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is not %100 dreadful but it is pretty bad in a lot of ways and I found it utterly unenjoyable. I did finish it, for what that is worth, but I had to skim read and skip a lot of embarrassingly stupid parts to do it.

The plot is leaky as a sieve; our heroine Shauna wakes up after an accident with no memory of the last six months - that was the hook that drew me in, but from the start I was disappointed. The journey of discovering her memory and that things are not as they seem is denied to the reader, since the book starts of with sections showing someone wants to kill her. They are meant to be teasers, I guess, but really they are just annoying. In fact, at no time does the plot really come together, rarely in the first half of the book do anybodies actions or motivations come across as logical or likely. The last part is even worse.

Shauna is... not convincing at best, acutely annoying at worst she was in fact the one thing that really turned this book into an unpleasant chore. This chick is dumb as a doorpost, if her brains had been scooped out and replaced with candyfloss she might have been smarter, and at least she would not have appologised every paragraph.

Now I don't actually mind stupid characters, providing they are well written; not everyone needs to be smart to be interesting. Not everyone even needs to be interesting to do well as a protagonist, to fit into a plot. BUT if you keep TELLING me this character is smart you also need to SHOW her behaving smart, not like a moron. The 'tell not show' style of writing is a pet peeve of mine and I think it is one of the worst examples of sloppy writing skills around.

Also, since Shauna is %90 of the reading, of the plot and of the action the fact that she is too dumb to like, too randomly idiotic follow her reasoning or to care about what happens to her is a serious problem.

Some books can make it back from having an unlikable or poorly written main character, this one can't. You might like this story if you like Shauna, (though I personally can't imagine how anyone would). The plot is fast paced, especially toward the end although none of the decisions that Shauna makes seem reasonable so the action is kind of meaningless as well, it does have a couple of ok scenes.

[Lorie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Exciting, tense, interesting premise and gripping writing, which could have been fabulous. BUT the heroine is so incredibly STUPID! Every time she has a chance to act intelligently she chooses to be independent or angry instead, and gets herself and those she loves in trouble.

Premise: The daughter of a presidential candidate discovers a horrible truth about her cold and distant father, and confronts him with it. He made his money owning a huge pharmaceutical company. Immediately after the confrontation her car is run off the road into a river and she nearly drowns, but ends up instead in a coma in the hospital. When she wakes up, she can't remember anything about the last 6 months, especially the charges against her father. It turns out some of her father's scheming friends have used designer drugs to both induce the coma and the amnesia. But though she can't remember her own past, she discovers accidentally that when she touches another person in certain emotionally charged circumstances (like a kiss -- thus the title), she can steal their memories into her own brain, leaving them with forgetfulness of those memories.

So she runs around stealing memories, trying to reconstruct her past, and finding out that many of the people she has trusted are trying to kill her so she won't remember their crimes.

If this had hinted at the girl's dumbness earlier, I would have skipped to read the last chapter and then tossed it.

[Dana · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had never read anything by either of thsee authors before and so I really had no idea what to expect. Overall it was a decent book. Sort of like sushi: good and hard to put down, but you don't really remember eating it when you're done and are still hungry for something more.

Kiss is about a young woman, Shauna, who is the daughter of a man running for President of the United States. At the very beginning of the book Shauna is talking to her brother and phsychiatrist about confronting her father. We don't know what she is confronting him with, but it sounds serious. Next the reader knows, Shauna is in a coma, her brother is a parapalygic and all hell has broken loose. Shauna doesn't remember the car accident, or the six months previous. Gradually she begins to uncover part of her story and realizes that she had blown the cover off of an accounting scandal that financed her father's campaign. Her father knew nothing of it, but his business partners were behind her accident and drugged her afterward to try to erase her memory. The drugs however, had an odd side effect: Shauna can now steal other people's memories. Shauna uses this new power to recreate her accident and confronts her father, who for the first time in her life, stands by her side.

I surprisingly liked this book. It was a really quick read, very hard to put down. Within the first fifty pages I thought I had everything figuered out. It seemed like it was going to be really predictable, but it wasn't at all, which was a nice surprise. The characters were a little flat, and at times the paranormal got difficult to swallow, but overall it was a decent read. I'm not usually one to pick up a paranormal thriller, but I would definitely try another one after reading this. It was interesting and easy enough that I really didn't have to think too much about it. Overall, it was worth reading and I would recommend it to others.

[Monique · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yup I had to give this book the dreaded one star..I hated it. I thought the premise: a girl in an accident who falls in a coma, cant remember a thing and regains her memories and others when she kisses them was kinda cool but thinking again it did sound cheesy..I found this book totally unbelievable, slow and surprisingly badly written considering it was a collabo with an editor. The only plus is that I now realize I do not like reading about amnesia patients..I found the entire book to revolve around her questioning the same thing on every page..we get it you dont know well guess what we the reader dont either..It was like she asks a question, finds out some information then asks the same question again and so on and so..it is redundant to read and the ending totally wasnt worth the time spent with this trash..I went to the library looking for his book Obsessed which I heard was good and found this instead and sincerely regret deciding to try it..Maybe Obsessed will be read when the horrible aftertaste of this book is done..into my Tudor dynasty phase again..

[Ferree · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was shocked!
Why does Ted Dekker need a co-author? I loved "Three," and I thought "White" was unforgetable. I really respected Dekker and appreciated what he was doing for the Christian writing industry. I'm really sorry if something terrible happened to him and he needs someone to help him write a book, but these two authors did not click. They did not work well together. I really don't understand why they even tried. Why was this book published? Did the rough draft of the book get sent to the printer by mistake? The dialogue is stiff, choppy, and hard to follow; I often had to go back and study it to figure out who was saying what. The actions are unbelieveable --- Shauna's been in a coma for 6 weeks but manages to run, fight, get beat up and keep on running, not to mention scrambling other's memories . . . ? The only reason I kept reading this was because I couldn't believe it was so awful. I'm not giving up on Dekker. Yet. If I find a book with his name alone on it, I'll crack it open. But if the first two pages are anything like this one, forget it.

[Nicole · Rating 1 out of 5]

Half way through the book, I just gave up. Maybe I want it all too fast, too soon, but I hate being a reader left in the dark waiting for the very end to spotlight the plot twists and angles.

I couldn't feel for the main female character because I got tired of her vacillating. "Do I want to know?" "Do I want to forget?" If what happened to her happened to me, I'd want to remember. Far far away from the scene of the crime, but still.

[Ilsse M · Rating 3 out of 5]

No puedo creer que no había leído este.

No tengo palabras sólo. LEANLO.

[Kerry]

A young woman wakes in a hospital. Apparently she’s the cause of a terrible car accident, but she remembers nothing. Nothing of the event that led to her hospitalization and gravely injured her brother. Nothing of the events that preceded the accident. Nothing of the six weeks she spent in a coma.

In Kiss, Ted Dekker and Erin Healy join forces to explore a mystery and introduce an element of the supernatural. The lead character, Shauna, can learn secrets through physical touch, and she can use this newly formed power to scramble people’s minds.

This story started stronger than it concluded. For instance, it was interesting how pharmaceutical science seemed to cause the lead character’s new power. The lead character, described as intelligent, made questionable decisions throughout the novel which made me as a reader want to shake her beleaguered self, which frustrated me. The plot remained quickly paced. The stakes came across as real enough, but the characters themselves could have been better fleshed out. However, with its pacing and premise, this thriller is sure to win admirers.

[Becky Fleming · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh. My. Goodness.
This book….
Incredible!

[Lovely Day · Rating 2 out of 5]

2⭐️

[Bethany · Rating 1 out of 5]

I would hope that a book co-written by a prolific author and a fiction editor would be better written and edited. The first missing word happened on page 6 of the book! This was not an auspicious beginning.

It also bothered me that despite its setting in Austin, the authors didn't do their research very well. They repeatedly referred to the area of Austin known as Westlake as "West Lake," and they said Barton Springs was somewhere other than Zilker Park. Oops.

I get that Ted Dekker writes a million or so books a year, but I keep getting my hopes up that one of them will be well-written. No such luck here. The plot was interesting, I guess, but the tagline ("She'll steal more than your heart") was misleading and downright dumb. I must say this for him, though - I will pick up his next book to read; so he must be doing something right, even if it's not immediately obvious.

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book about redemption, truth, and letting go of the past is one of my favorite books EVER.

It's very different from many of Dekker's other books, and though I've not read Erin Healy's other books (they're on my list!), I feel like they made an awesome team.

With a slight touch of something special (I won't call it supernatural because it's got an explainable cause), it goes just beyond the normalcy of the typical thriller with this twist: the girl who has lost her memories can steal those of others.

Read it. It's just simply amazing.

[Steve Pillinger · Rating 5 out of 5]

An intriguing, well-written book. Erin Healy definitely works well with Ted! The two keep you wondering all the way through what really happened in the accident that robbed Shauna of her full identity. The restrained sci-fi (or fantasy) elements never go far beyond present-day reality, but add to the fascination of the book.

[Cece (ProblemsOfaBookNerd) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Krita · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weird and choppy. Couldn't connect w characters.

[Kav · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again I'm wrestling for ways to define Ted Dekker's work. This time he is paired up with Erin Healy (Kiss is her debut!) Both authors are known for their edgy thriller style suspense with hints of supernatural elements -- which is what makes this book so indescribable. Absolutely riveting though.

Shauna's story is edge-of-your-seat compelling. So many twists and turns and puzzle pieces to try to put together! I binged listen to Pam Turlow's narration, my heart racing as each new scene unfolded. Loved the deep characterization, the subtle inspirational threads nimbly woven throughout the chaos.and the way these authors kept me guessing about most everything right to the end.

I'm the reader book blurbs are written for. I cannot start reading until I've studied that description. I might even read it a couple of times to absorb it (yes, I know that's weird) before starting in on the story. And sometimes I flip back and study that book blurb again during my read. I don't know what that says about me -- but I really can't read a book without knowing something about it.

That's why tackling a Ted Dekker novel is so bookishly brave of me. :-) Because no matter which book description I read it will never fully prepare me for the adventure I'm about to embark upon. It's like reading blind. Just letting go and allowing the story to take me places I've never dreamed of. And I always come away soul-searching some aspect of my faith. That's what happened when I read Kiss. I've been challenged and encouraged and highly entertained. A breath-snatching thrill of a read!

[Jennifer Robb · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read this author before. I found it interesting that the message of this novel was very similar to several of the points from Scott Hamilton's book "The Great Eight" which I read just prior to reading this:
*everyone has things in their lives that they don't like or that cause them pain
*putting that pain in perspective is the secret--finding out what it was supposed to teach you
*remember who got you through the pain (God)

Though, quite honestly, through the first half of the book or so, I felt like I'd read this story before. I can't remember which book or author it was that seems so similar. As a result, it took me a very long time before I started to care about the characters and what happened to them. This is partly why it only got a 3 (average) rating from me.

[Zoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book, but also didn’t??

The idea of the book was good, I was just kinda confused by some of plots points. Also her magical kiss powers??? I don’t know…it’s just so unrealistic, I wasn’t expecting something like that in this kind of book.

Also I’m not sure how to feel about Miguel? He and Shauna’s relationship was just odd, and seemed to come out of nowhere.

So not my fav Ted Dekker for sure.

[Christy Foss · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gripping suspense, had me guessing most of the way through, and in usual Dekker style, fantastic writing. As a native Houstonian, I did have to laugh at his obvious lack of knowledge of what we call our freeways. It’s not “the 10” or “the 610”... it’s I10 and the Loop. Little thing, but funny to me. Glad to have finally gotten to read this one. It’s been on my shelf for quite some time 😉

[Bonnie Glaze · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would have liked it better if I'd not audiobooked it. The reader makes the main character sound like a whiny 15 year old child, she's a 28 year old adult.

Also, the bad guys could have gotten away with it if they would have treated her 'accident' like an accident instead of pitting mystery crimes on her that made her question everything that eventually lead her to the truth.

[Steph's Romance Book Talk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really all over the place for me. I was drawn in but then it just moved super slow. Not really my cup of tea.

This specific video review will be included in the March 2018 Wrap-up.

For other video book reviews check out my YouTube Channel: Steph's Rom Book Talk.

[R.K. Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember reading and liking this as a kid and I think it still holds up. However it does date itself as an early-mid 2000s novel with some of the references to cell phones and the internet. But those don't detract from the overall story.