Bruce Cooke pens a love story with plenty of suspense. There are surprises and some nail biting situations throughout. Alison isn't one of those heroines who we like immediately. She takes some getting used to as her internal whines about being neglected and picked on by her co-workers contrast with her abilities. Then she falls in love with a hardened criminal. Not something to get her a good job evaluation even from a former lover who wants to restart the relationship.

Her character gets better as others are introduced to take some of our attention away from her thoughts and paranoia. Many of the characters shine. Heather, Daniel's accomplice is great as is Daniel and the story itself as it gets more complex. We get lost in the suspense as we try to figure out who the dirty cop is who throws a curve at them all the time. It could be several people but most readers won't guess the real culprit until the very end.

It took a while for Cooke to get the story rolling for me but once he did I was hooked. The ending is everything I want in a great book. Dialogue and scenarios are well done to keep us guessing. This author shows tremendous potential as a writer of romantic suspense.

Overall rating:
Sensuality rating: Very sensual

Reviewer: Dee Dailey
November 17, 2010