Crossfire

Author: Lynette Eason

Series: Extreme Measures #2

Publisher: Revell

Release Date; August 2, 2022

The second book in the Extreme Measures series is just as intense and action packed as the first! Lynette Eason is at her best with this series!

Julianna Jameson works for the FBI as a negotiator and has never lost a hostage. When her younger sister, Dottie, shows up to live with her for her last year of high school it may prove to be the hardest job she’s had yet. Julianna crosses paths with Clay Fox who works as security at the school Dottie attends. Julianna saves Clay’s sister who is being held hostage with others inside a courtroom. Clay asks her to come speak, but ghosts from Julianna’s past come back to haunt them putting everyone she cares about at risk. Together they will have to do all they can to save their loved ones and stop those out to hurt them.

Lynette Eason blew me away with the first in this series and Crossfire came out in the first chapter with all the action and suspense. While Crossfire was fantastic it ranks just a notch below the first in the series for me. I really loved Julianna and the chemistry between her and Clay but more so the way she was with trying to help and protect her sister. The way the story unfolded with her having to do her best as a negotiator with the FBI while also trying to protect her sister really helped make it a real page-turner. The baggage that both Julianna and Clay had from their past really made it more relatable characters, not perfect or with nothing weighing them down to make them more realistic.

The characters in these books go through a lot, but with all they go through, it helps them to show growth and real character development. There is a good element of faith throughout, but I never felt as if I was being preached at or annoyed by it, which does sometimes happen with Christian fiction books. Of all the romantic suspense authors I read, Lynette Eason is one of my very favorites for how realistic she makes the stories and is able to get me invested in the characters. I recommend this book to fans that love romantic suspense novels. While this is the second in a series, it could be read without having read the first and still enjoy.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Deception

Author: Patricia Bradley

Series: Natchez Trace Park Rangers #4

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: August 2, 2022

The fourth book in the Natchez Trace series has Bradley at her very best with non-stop action and thrills from the first page!

Madison Thorn has tried to put the night she had to kill an FBI agent out of her mind while working for the Investigative Services Branch and has moved to the fraud and cyber division. She is good at her job and able to see things in the numbers most can’t. She is sent to Natchez, Mississippi to investigate a white color crime that turns very violent quickly. She must work with Clayton Bradshaw, an enemy from when she was a child that is now a park ranger. It doesn’t take long for both of them to realize things in Natchez Trace are not what they seem, and Madison has a target on her back.

Deception finishes up the Natchez Trace series and it is not to be missed. This novel is multi-layered deeper with the layers of family dynamics. When Madison returns home, she is hoping to help solve a white-colored crime and move on; what she doesn’t expect to find is a deep dark secret involving her family and others in town. The depth of this secret and the lengths so many are willing to go to in order to keep it hidden drives the story forward at an incredible pace. These characters and what they go through make for a nail-biting suspense novel. I loved the way the adoption scandal played into Madison and her family along with others in town. A lot of romantic suspense novels read the same and can be skimmed without missing a lot, but this is probably my favorite of all the Natchez Trace novels. I recommend this to readers that love romantic suspense novels.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Out of the Night

Author: Susan May Warren

Series: The Epic Story of RJ and York #1

Publisher: SDG Publishing

Release Date: August 9, 2022

The first book in the RJ and York series gives fans of the Montana Marshalls family just what they have been longing for with this amazing couple!

York Newgate has one thing on his mind, proposing to the love of his life, RJ Marshall, but nothing in his proposal is going as planned. Trouble seems to follow them wherever they go making it difficult to get down on one knee. As they are in Paris. RJ spots a terrorist they helped put away out in the open. If it really is Alan Martin, what is he doing out and what will it mean for the happy ending RJ and York?

If you have been a fan of Susan May Warren’s Montana Marshall series, you are familiar with RJ and York and their relationship. This series is going to make readers very happy seeing this fun couple go through all kinds of obstacles just to be together. In this first book in the series, the action starts right off the bat with RJ and York trying to track down escaped criminal Alan Martin and stop whatever evil he is up to. I really enjoyed the dynamic between RJ and York, she is used to her brothers trying to protect her and now York is doing the same. She wants to prove that she is fully capable of doing all that they can do but doesn’t have the same training causing her to end up needing saving frequently. This book has non-stop action with tension in all the right places and the right amount of humor between the characters to keep the story moving along. Fans of the Marshalls will not want to miss out on this one. An easy day read for fans of romantic suspense.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

The Element of Love

Author: Mary Connealy

Series: Lumber Barons Daughters #1

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: March 1, 2022

New historical, western series will be a fit for genre lovers.

Laura Stiles and her two sisters have learned to handle their mother’s new husband without much of a problem until they learn he is planning to marry them off to his friends. Their father had a lumber dynasty that is supposed to be theirs, but now they must run away to find their own man to marry and be able to have legal claim to what their father left them. In their rush to get away, Laura brings her and her sisters into a mission group heading to California. They find themselves a perfect fit for the group with a skillset needed to help. The mission parson, Caleb has secrets in his past that he does not want to come to light, but he could be just the person to help Laura get her inheritance.

Let me start this review by saying this book is written for a specific audience, if you are not that specific audience you will not enjoy reading this. There are some books you can pick up and even if it is not what you would normally read you can still enjoy reading the story. Not here, I am not normally a fan of historical romance, but I grabbed this one for a quick read, it was quick but not very engaging. Lots of characters with not much development over the course of the 300 pages, especially when it came to our hero/heroine in the story. The plot was nothing deep that required special attention; something simple to breeze through pretty much sums up what this story was. Again, if the historical, western romance is your genre this will probably be one you love, if not maybe move on to something else.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Code of Courage

Author: Janice Cantore

Publisher: Tyndale House

Release Date: July 19, 2022

Another fantastic police procedural from one of the best is completely satisfying and downright enjoyable!

Detective Danni Grace has been on the job a long time and never expected to want to do anything else. After being injured during a riot, she takes a leave and almost never comes back to the job she loved. When the riots increase with a police officer involved shooting in her hometown, Danni returns to try and save the career of her fellow officers. She is going to have to work hard to overcome the doubts she has about staying on the force she lost her passion for. She also must put aside her past and work with her ex-husband, Gabriel Fox, an investigator for the city prosecutor’s office. Together they work to preserve justice and protect those they have made an oath to serve and protect.

I always love getting a new Janice Cantore book. I know that no matter what the story is I’m going to enjoy it. Her knowledge being a 22-year veteran of the Long Beach police force shows in every book that she writes. Every character in her books is believable and engaging, which is so rare. Not only are her characters as officers written real and believable, but anyone else that shows up on the page pulls me in and makes me want to know more about their backstory and all that they are going through. Danni Grace was a great protagonist; she is strong, but also vulnerable and even though it takes a while, she is willing to accept the help she needs from Gabriel, which brings their relationship into an interesting dynamic. For being just under four hundred pages there is a lot of story here but it is told well and flows at a great pace. This is a great book for fans of Romantic suspense to pick up. If you have never read anything by Janice Cantore, I would recommend this one along with all of her books.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Deadly Shallows

Author: Dani Pettrey

Series: Coastal Guardians #3

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: July 5, 2022

The final installment in the Coastal Guardians series is packed with more action and drama than a romantic suspense should be allowed to have!

When a deadly attack occurs affecting members of the Coast Guard Investigative Services, Agent Noah Rowley and his team race to stop the attack and save as many lives as possible. During the attack, Brooke Kesler, a flight medic for the Coast Guard, helps take one of the gun man that was wounded to the hospital and ends up on the radar of the bad guys when they think she knows something she shouldn’t. With each new clue they uncover about the deadly plot affecting their city and friends, they realize more lives could be at stake. Noah, Brooke and the team must work together to stop the plan of truly evil men.

If you have read any of the Coastal Guardians books, or are a fan of romantic suspense, this is one you will not want to miss. I have always loved the way Dani Pettrey crafts novels that are rich in drama, suspense, tension, romance and so much more. This novel and the way she put Brooke in dangerous situations and how it affected the other team members was written beautifully. There was no trouble relating to Brooke as the main female lead in this book and all that she goes through, I found myself on the edge of the seat several times hoping everything would turn out alright. My only complaint about this book would be at times it got a little preachy with how much the different characters were praying in different situations. This is a Christian fiction book and as such it is to be expected, but for readers that are turned off by too much of that this will take them out of the story, not something that needs to happen. I’m all for praying in all situations, good and bad, but when reading a story like this I just felt it took me away from the tension and what I needed to be focused on in the story. This was a good wrap up to the series and I can’t wait to see what stories come next from Pettrey.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Critical Alliance

Author: Elizabeth Goddard

Series: Rocky Mountain Courage #3

Publisher: Revell

Release Date: July 5, 2022

The third book in the Rocky Mountain Courage series is a nonstop action ride that will pull readers in and keep them glued to their seats.

It’s been a long time since Mackenzie Hanson used her hacking skills for evil. When things went too far, she went to the authorities herself and now has a career as a professor of cybersecurity at Michigan University using her skills to help others. A blast from her past comes back to warn her about a danger to her and her family leading her to return home to try and save her father’s tech company from a cyberattack. Alex Knight has been working for the Diplomatic Security Services and needs time to recover after a mission that ended badly. He returns home to Montana and runs into Mackenzie, a girl from his past he has never forgotten. He is pulled into her mystery and together they work to try and save lives and the company her family has poured so much into before it is too late.

This is the last book in the Rocky Mountain Courage series and readers get Mackenzie and Alex’s story along with some answers tying up the rest of the series. I love how this series can be read in order or even as stand-alone novels if a reader happened to pick one up without realizing it was in a series. Even so, the reader might enjoy going back and reading the others to catch up on the story. Mackenzie is a great character for this story, and I loved the way her past was brought back in and showed how much she has grown as a person. Alex was a good male lead but had a few moments that I felt disconnected from him, I can’t say for sure what it was exactly that made me feel that way about him as a character except I found him a tad annoying. None of that was enough to turn me off the story though, the action was top-notch and the romance between the two worked really well, especially towards the end of the story. I think fans of romantic suspense will definitely want to add this one to their collection!

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Beyond the Desert Sands

Author: Tracie Peterson

Series: Love on the Santa Fe #2

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: July 5, 2022

Great redemption story set along the New Mexico rail lines!

Isabella Garcia has hated her life since she was ten years old when her parents tore her away from the family and estate that she loved in California and moved to New Mexico to start up the town of Silver Veil. She has gone back to stay with her aunt many times, but always loathes to return. Now at twenty-five, she feels that she is entitled to remain in California and marry her childhood crush Diego, who can manage her inheritance from her grandparents. But once again, she must make the trip to Silver Veil to spend time with her parents for Christmas. The only thing worse is that she must be accompanied by Aaron Bailey, who she has been at odds with for five years when he called her out for her selfish behavior.

Upon arriving in Silver Veil, she sees that the town has grown and learns that her father’s true reasons to leaving California were due to his health. Several days later, she also learns that her beloved aunt has died, and the estate was sold over a year ago. Now she must truly look at herself and behavior and decide if what she has really wanted all those years mean anything or if there is something more on the horizon.

I didn’t think that Peterson could write a character that would be more self-centered and annoying than she had in the first book in this series, but oh did she prove me wrong. Isabella is the most entitled, selfish character I have ever encountered in a book. She rubbed me the wrong way from the beginning and just kept on rubbing. Maybe it’s because I’m a parent of a preteen, but I was ready to lay down the law to her. But everyone is truly entitled to redemption, and I must say that her character’s turnaround was astonishing. How is it possible that a character you just love to hate can become one that you want to love? Truly a showing of how God’s love can impact people.

There is plenty of suspense, intrigue, and deception throughout these pages, so don’t think this is going to be some sappy historical romance. It’s exciting and will keep you on the edge of your seat while you enjoy learning part of the history of New Mexico.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Impending Strike

Authors: Lynette Eason & Sami A. Abrams

Series: Elite Guardians Novel #2

Publisher: Sunrise Publishing

Release Date: June 28, 2022

Another fantastic Elite Guardians novel that fans of the series will not want to miss!

Charlie Lee is a member of the Elite Guardians; he is the only male member. He has tried to put his feelings for fellow Guardian Lizzie Tremaine aside as he knows a relationship with her would be beyond complicated. Lizzie is a single mom whose main goal is to protect her daughter while doing her job protecting others. Charlie goes undercover on a project and winds up hurt with memory loss for the last four years of his life. With no memory of why he shouldn’t try to make things work with Lizzie, he tries to get her to see him as more than a friend. The closer they get, the harder it is to do their jobs without the risk of one or both of their hearts getting hurt.

This is the second book in the second installment of the Elite Guardians collection and the collaboration of seasoned author Lynette Eason with Sami Abrams, an up-and-coming author. I don’t feel like this one was as great as the first in this new series but still a great addition to the overall Elite Guardians collection. Lizzie and Charlie had a past that wasn’t explored as much causing a few head scratching moments. The moments of Charlie losing his memory and trying to recall what he couldn’t remember and how that affected his relationships with all around him helped to move the story along. When it comes to romantic suspense, these books read quickly and are a great companion for a rainy day or relaxing day reading without worrying about much else. I thought for her first book, Sami Abrams did a great job diving into this series with a world already built and established adding a great story and characters we hadn’t read much about before. This book was still fast paced and enjoyable, and I am curious to see what is going to come next with the series. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves romantic suspense and has been a fan of the Elite Guardians series. Readers wouldn’t have to read the rest of the series’ first to enjoy but I do think it would help readers to get the most out of the book.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.

Unfailing Love

Authors: Janette Oke and Laurel Oke Logan

Series: When Hope Calls #3

Publisher: Bethany House

Release Date: June 7, 2022

A wonderful companion for anyone that enjoys the Hallmark Channel’s When Hope Calls.

It is a hard job, but someone must care for the children in distress and Lillian Walsh and Grace Bennett have it placed upon their hearts to be there and help the children. When they hear of three children that have run away and need help, they do all they can to find them before it is too late. They have worked at creating a safe place for children and now Lillian must choose between her commitment to her sister and the life she has wanted to build with her fiancé. With all the trouble they encounter, it is hard to know who to trust and if they can’t trust their family and those they love, it makes their lives so much more difficult.

Unfailing Love is the third book in the When Hope Calls series and unlike some, I would say this is a series that needs to be read in order for the readers to get the most out of each book and follow the story. There is a lot to unbox within this story and the plethora of characters brings a dynamic to the story that can be hard to follow if readers aren’t careful. The writing is well done even if the pacing of the story is a tad on the slow side. I found the characters of Lillian and Grace to be good leads for this book but wished for a little more character development on a deeper level. The setting of the story really drew me in and kept the story what I wanted from it. I recommend this book to fans of historical fiction and those that love the Hallmark type movies of this nature.

I received a complimentary copy of this title from the publisher. The views and opinions expressed within are my own.