“Stolen Fury”
Dorchester/Love Spell
$6.99 (336p)
ISBN 978-0-505-52793-6
Publisher’s Weekly (November 3, 2008)
“In Naughton's rock-solid debut, the first of a trilogy, a duo searching for three magnificent bas-reliefs of the Greek Furies find romance and danger as well. For 15 years, since the death of her lover, Dr. Lisa Maxwell has been obsessed with reuniting the sculptures of Alecto, Megaera and Tisiphone. She's furious when art thief Rafe Sullivan drugs her, almost seduces her and steals Alecto from her hotel room safe. With the help of her twin brother, Chicago detective Shane Maxwell, Lisa locates Rafe in Key West, Fla., where he has a line on Megaera. They reluctantly join forces and race to find Tisiphone before another treasure hunter picks them off. Naughton's intelligent adventure plot is intensified by the blazing heat that builds from Lisa and Rafe's first erotic encounter.” (Jan.)
Romantic Times
“When a tough-as-nails and slightly repressed archeologist meets a charming bad-boy thief, they test each other’s limits, narrowly escape danger and fall in love. While it’s a familiar plot (think Romancing the Stone), Naughton creates an action-packed and satisfying storyline. She also delivers one very charming and sexy hero — with a heart of gold.
Summary: Seeking satisfaction both personal and professional, Dr Lisa Maxwell is on the hunt for the Three Furies, a series of ancient Greek reliefs only rumored to exist. She’s been looking for them for 15 years, since the death of her lover, and successfully uncovers the first one, only to have it stolen by a seductive and handsome stranger, art thief Rafe Sullivan.
Her twin brother, Chicago detective Shane Maxwell, helps her find Rafe in Key West, Fla., where he has a line on the second Fury. They reluctantly join forces and race to complete the set before another treasure hunter takes them both out of the game.”
Romance Junkies
“In her debut novel, Elisabeth Naughton weaves a complicated tale around the Furies, three Goddesses of revenge from Greek Mythology. Many players seek the three marble reliefs of Alecto, Magera and Tisiphone, three sister goddesses who seek revenge for ill doers of murder, jealousy and anger. An archaeologist, Dr. Lisa Maxwell feels she deserves the Furies to make up for past suffering; Rafael (Rafe) Sullivan searches for the works to fulfill a promise and others have more selfish reasons for their goals
Naughton moves seamlessly from scene to scene and viewpoint to viewpoint in this story, foreshadowing bits and pieces of a puzzle but leaving enough details for surprises you won’t expect. Well-drawn and realistic, her characters almost leap from the pages. The stubborn, smart and beautiful Lisa represents characteristics many women would envy, and Rafe has a bad-boy exterior we all secretly crave. And, there might just be a softer interior there like the gooey center of a truffle.
Naughton has clearly done her research on both mythology and archaeology and the details all ring true. Descriptions of the Furies will make you want to look up pictures, and you can almost feel the dampness surround you during the scenes in underwater caves. Naught has included a strong lineup of secondary characters, some of whom we may well meet again in the second and third books in the series. STOLEN FURY is a must-read for all fans of romantic suspense. I can’t wait to read STOLEN HEAT, the next in the series due out in summer 2009.”
.
Night Owl Romance
“Dr. Lisa Maxwell is an archaeologist in Italy looking for three ancient Greek artifacts called the Furies. For years, she has been obsessed about finding the sculptures of Alecto, Megaera and Tisiphone. Finally, she finds Alecto. But then it's stolen from her hotel room safe by a sexy art thief named Rafe Sullivan who drugs her, and almost seduces her. Lisa is furious but definitely will not give up. With the help of her brother Chicago detective Shane Maxwell, she locates Rafe in Florida and demands that he gives her Alecto back. But he has Magaera and she has an idea where Tisiphone is so they end up reluctantly joining forces to reunite all three Furies.
What they soon find out is that they're not the only ones looking for the Furies, there's someone else looking too and they're willing to do anything to find it - even murder. Rafe and Lisa are unmistakenly attracted to each other but they're in the middle of a race to find a treasure that is worth millions.
Will Lisa and Rafe be able to find the Furies before the other mystery treasure hunter finds them? Or worse, before they tried to take them off the race. Permanently.
Stolen Fury is a great debut novel in a trilogy. It's fast-paced and intensely suspenseful. It definitely had me on the egde of my seat waiting to see what would happened next. The chemistry between Lisa and Rafe was scorching hot and I enjoyed their getting to know each other. They disliked yet were attracted to each other and it was fun to see them fight it. I thoroughly enjoyed Stolen Fury and look forward to reading the next in the trilogy.”, Stolen Heat, coming Summer 2009.
The Romance Readers Connection
“Dr. Lisa Maxwell is not the type to fall into bed with someone she has just met. But Rafe Sullivan is so sexy that she can’t seem to help herself. This one fateful move will come back to haunt her though when she finds one of the Furies she has staked her career as an archaeologist gone. But Lisa is not one that just gets mad, she gets even. After tracking Rafe to Florida, she finds the sparks that fly between them were not just from an almost one night stand. He may have her relic, but he cannot get his hands on all three without her. To beat the other treasure seekers, they must pair of up together. Only now they are not in a race to see who can best the other, they are in a race to stay alive.
Get ready! When you read STOLEN FURY you will have to hold on for your life. The romance between Lisa and Rafe is hot, hot, hot! And the story line will keep your head spinning and your heart racing! Lisa is searching for an archaeological find called the Furies. No one believes they exist but her ex-lover who is now deceased. When she runs across one, she cannot wait to get it authenticated and move on to finding the next one. Enter the ravishingly handsome gentleman Rafe Sullivan who sweeps Lisa off her feet, and then robs her blind. The road to get her great find back is tricky and full of surprises. Will Lisa be able to have the proof that the Furies exist? Or will Rafe rob her again and leave not only her career empty, but also her arms? This is one book you will not be able to put down. From page one, Elisabeth Naughton keeps the sex spicy and the scenery changing. Who knew cave digging with a thief and an archaeologist could be so sexy? If you love romantic suspense novels, you will want to snatch this one up. Keep Ms. Naughton’s name on your short list too, I hope we see more from her!”
Coffee Time Romance
“Dr. Lisa Maxwell wants to close the book on a painful chapter in her life but in order to do so she must locate the three Furies. Lisa discovered the first marble relief of the Greek goddess Alecto on a dig in Jamaica. Thanks to a thief in Milan, she is on a wild goose chase to recover Alecto and to locate the other two Furies.
The thief, Rafe Sullivan, is on a personal mission to collect all three marble reliefs and the clock is ticking. Rafe found it difficult to steal Alecto from the pretty Doctor, but vowed to recover all three reliefs no matter what it took.
Lisa and Rafe soon discover, two minds are better than one especially when the two minds are too hard headed to walk away. A bargain is struck and both parties are willing to appear to compromise at least until all three Furies are located and then the gloves are off. The Doctor and the thief must learn the ultimate lesson of love and money; love will conquer all.
Elisabeth Naughton can spin a tale to captivate the reader and take them for a ride. The locations in this book are some of the most exotic but are still just a backdrop to the main characters. The hero and heroine are both flawed but still loveable and therefore believable. The author really took the time to look into the Puerto Rican and Greek cultures to make the story authentic. Rafe has a sexy Spanish accent with which he says the sweetest things every woman would love to hear. Ms. Naughton skillfully kept the identity of the villain a secret to the very last chapter and I was shocked upon the revelation.”
Harriet Klausner, independent reviewer
“In Italy archeologist Dr. Lisa Maxwell puts aside her life goal of uniting the three statues of the Furies, dedicated fifteen years ago when her lover died, for the night. She celebrates her finding her first ancient Greek Furies statue, Alecto, by having a tryst with Rafe Sullivan. However, he seduces and then drugs her. The next morning she is furious and frustrated with herself for letting her hair down and irate with her one night stand lover who turns out to be an art thief. He stole Alecto from her.
She vows to find him and take back what is rightfully her discovery. Her twin brother Chicago detective Shane Maxwell traces Rafe to Key West where he believes he will locate Megaera. Lisa arrives shocking him while making it clear to him that without her he will not have more than the one he took from her. Feeling some guilt, but plotting to abscond with Megaera and Tisiphone when she finds them, Rafe cuts a deal with Lisa. However, other treasure hunters, a lot more dangerous than either Lisa or Rafe combined are on the prowl and willing to kill anyone who possesses any of the Furies. To stay alive and to find the Furies, they need each other; and to fall in love, they need each other.
This is an exciting romantic suspense thriller that starts off hot with the sexual encounter and from there turns up the heart and the action. Rafe is sort of a modern day Hans Solo-Indiana Jones rogue while Lisa is more of the by the book professional. To find the statues and survive, they each need to adapt some of the other’s core values; love complicates the already difficult task. Elisabeth Naughton provides readers with a stirring archeological thriller.”
Allison Brennan , New York Times bestselling author
"If you like Indiana Jones and Romancing the Stone, you'll love Naughton's dazzling romantic adventure STOLEN FURY. Put smart and sassy archeologist Dr. Lisa Maxwell with fun and sexy thief Rafe Sullivan and watch the fireworks. From Jamaica to Italy to the high seas, this debut sizzles. A fun, sexy, page-turning romantic adventure."
Karin Tabke, author of “Jaded”
"Wow, what a roller coaster ride! Naughton nails her debut with a hot hero, a sassy heroine and a plot with more twists than a pretzel!"