The Crimson Hour

The Timeslip Series #2

by Julie Tetel Andresen

"The Crimson Hour is a remarkable blend of science, reincarnation and intrigue that takes readers from contemporary San Francisco and Bucharest, Romania to Hong Kong of the 1890s and today. Fast-paced and funny, sparkling with energy and exoticism, this is the second in the series of Julie Tetel Andresen's double romances.

360 pages, Hardcover

First published March 30, 2005

About the author

Also known as Julie Tetel and Julia Joyce

Julie Tetel Andresen has always loved history, travel and foreign languages. She has lived for extended periods in Germany, France, Romania and Vietnam. When she is not out of the country, she can be found in Durham, North Carolina or Orlando, Florida, as well as New York City.

She grew up with a passion for playing the piano. As an adult she transferred that passion into writing romance novels and scholarly books about language. She likens writing essays in foreign languages to playing scales and arpeggios as warm-up exercises for writing in English. She also practices yoga on a regular basis and thinks of learning new grammatical forms as trying new mental asanas: can she get her leg behind her head in Romanian or get into full lotus in Vietnamese? No? Well, then, how about triangle pose or half-lotus?

Reviews

[Roxanne Kade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Once again, Andersen did an excellent job of whisking me off on an exciting travel adventure.

This story was well-paced, with a new mix of intriguing characters, fascinating travel destinations and plenty of suspense and action. I'm still in awe of the magical way this story was woven. The unique way in which Andersen's Timeslip Series is written is pure brilliance because it really brings the reader into the story.

I kept looking for the similarities between characters, by their actions and relationships, and I was absolutely delighted each time a puzzle piece fell into place. Although the past life story in The Crimson Hour wasn't as exciting and full of passion as the one in The Blue Hour, I still loved the historical aspects that brought it to life. Andersen's knowledge and thoroughness with which she created the people and places within this book drew me in and I felt like I was literally transported back in time.

One thing that really stood out for me was that the prose was more relaxed and flowed with such ease. I had a better time believing the modern day characters, because their actions and mannerisms were more realistic. This also allowed me to fully submerge myself in the lives of these characters from page one.

Even without the reincarnation angle, this book was enthralling. A murder mystery, chock-full of romance, secrets and lies, I just couldn't get enough.

[Terra Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second novel is the Crimson Hour. Where Eloise Popescu is sent an airplane ticket to see her father. She has gotten into trouble her whole life but now that she has worked so hard to get her life straightened she realizes she has to follow this trail to the father she never met. Unfortunately that fateful decision leads her right into the middle of warring Chinese mafia families. It also leads her to Hanes Reynolds whose life has been destroyed by the same families. As the two join together and run across the globe trying to figure out exactly what's going on they also have to make sure they don't commit the same mistakes as the past which could end in death for one of them.

The Crimson Hour deals with the red tides around the coral reefs. I wish I had learned a bit more about that side of the story besides the fact that this occurrence can not only kill the reef but if ingested by humans it can create poisons. I still learned something though which is always good! I liked this book though I have to admit I kind of liked the supporting cast at times better then the main characters but definitely still a great book