Jordan Dane jumps right into the story (leaving, probably some readers in the dark, including myself – I think perhaps some of the characters' information was presented in a previous novel); Charbonneau's kidnapping is the very first scene. Next we skip to Chicago and Jasmine Lee, the bodyguard, breaking into the home of Christian Delacorte to enlist his help in rescuing her employer and lover.

Jasmine, with her mysterious background and deadly career, is by far the most absorbing character of the book. Perpetually amused, happy to use her womanly wiles, and absolutely focused, she is a force to be reckoned with. She and Christian have met before (one of those details that are not hashed out for the reader), and he initially has no qualms about turning down her request, despite the fact that he owes her. When Jasmine tells him that Charbonneau is the leader of a crime syndicate that is the rival to the family into which Christian's mother Fiona was born, he jumps on board.

Christian and Jasmine hop a flight for Brazil, leaving behind Christian's angry girlfriend, Raven Mackenzie, a homicide cop and probably the flattest character in the book. She isn't much missed, and, given their total lack of chemistry, actually detracts from the plot when she shows up in Cuiaba after tracking Christian down. In the meantime, however, Christian and Jasmine trot all over this fabulous city bordering the rainforest, pretty much randomly looking for clues while being followed by crooked cops, receiving threats, and occasionally being physically attacked.

Christian convinces Jasmine, who is more inclined to protect Charbonneau's secrets than reveal them to his son despite their usefulness, to take him to a facility called Genotech.

 There, they are given a tour by the doctor who runs the place and who seems pretty suspicious, just in case Christian wasn't suspicious enough already. A laboratory for genetic experimentation, Genotech is supported by Charbonneau supposedly for the greater good. Christian has a sneaking suspicion its use is actually more for the betterment of the drug trade in which is father is a leading figure. After all, locating and isolating the genes that cause addictions could be used to increase said addictions as easily as curing them.

There is a thread of the plot that weaves around a store that sells occult supplies. Macumba, a native religion not unlike voodoo, crops up here and there, leading Christian and Jasmine on several different tangents and to an old women named Bianca Salvador, who runs the shop. Biana's got a little local fame for being the premier practitioner of Macumba, but when her nephew Hector gets involved with the Charbonneau mess, she comes out of hiding to try aiding Christian.

Then Raven shows up, Jasmine is kidnapped, and a rescue mission goes wrong.  Suddenly, Christian is face-to-face with a father he's never met and totally in the dark about whose side anybody is on.

So, it sounds interesting, right? Dane does a pretty good job of bringing South America to the reader, and thank goodness for that. Without the ambiance the book could double as a sleeping pill. The dialogue is stilted and liberally peppered with ellipses that drag the mind away from the scene. And, though the author does have a keen sense of humor, she tries too hard to be clever, often resulting in cliches and mixed metaphors.

What little chemistry there is between the characters, oddly enough, is primarily apparent between Jasmine and Christian. Raven and Christian are already involved, so there isn't much of interest as far as a romance between the two of them is concerned, especially considering that Raven lets Christian call all the shots. In absentia, there is also some feeling between Christian's imprisoned mother and his errant father that doesn't go too far.

Because the idea behind No One Lives Forever is fairly fresh and exciting, this book will get a rating of two. However, it will take a lot of convincing to induce me to pick up another of Jordan Dane's novels.

--Sarrah Knight