Riding with Heaven by LC Chase is a romantic suspense thriller that features a strongly drawn pair of opposites. Evan is a sensitive college student, majoring in art. He is also struggling with guilt and a sense of rootlessness stemming from a past family tragedy. The story unfolds in his third-person viewpoint as he struggles to piece together clues about his enigmatic traveling companion.

Lucas, a brooding alpha male, is so handsome that he is the “Heaven” of the title. Though he refuses to volunteer much information about himself, everything about him from his vehicle to his demeanor of terse super-competence suggests a man of action.

However, Lucas’s admittedly “twisted” sense of humor manifests in cryptic remarks that leave Evan uncertain of whether Lucas is good or evil. Meanwhile, the radio keeps broadcasting reports of a serial killer on the loose, a situation in which Lucas has an unusually high level of interest. Evan, who has already been made paranoid by the warnings of his overly protective roommate, starts to wonder if his and Lucas’s mutual attraction might be too good to be true.

The story opens with Evan needing a ride from Denver, Colorado to Charleston, South Carolina. He places an ad on Craigslist and receives Lucas as his rideshare. Lucas arrives in an intimidating, but very cool-looking Chevy Tahoe sports utility vehicle and keeps the wheel through their road-trip, relegating Evan to nervous but appreciative passenger.

As they travel, they negotiate the pitfalls of sexual tension, mutual distrust, and amusing attempts to elicit and to hide their personal information. Meanwhile, reports of that serial killer on the loose keep Evan’s paranoia galloping along in this light-hearted thriller that evolves to include some suspenseful action scenes.

Val for AReCafe ( )

3 - 3.5 ( )