A Review

I have to say, by and large, that I’ve been pretty disappointed in the Blaze line this year. Six books come out each month, that’s 36 books this year so far, and I can count on one hand (maybe) the ones that I’ve actually liked. One, of course, was The Shalvis’ Room Service; I’m not going to mention the other two. But I will tell you, today and tomorrow about the last two that I’ve read. They show promise for the line this month and next. I’m going to review them in alphabetical order, which means that Closer … by Jo Leigh is first.

I’ll start by saying that I loved this book. In fact, I just finished reading it a few minutes ago. It’s a July release and I urge you to go to eharlequin.com and pre-order it now.

This is the first in a series about a group of people who know something they shouldn’t, who are running for their lives while trying to get those lives back. They live “just below the surface” of society, shifting from identity to identity, one step ahead of the enemy. They can only rely on each other, they can’t make friends or fall in love – it isn’t an option. Closer … is the story of Christie Pratchett whose brother Nate had been one of those people and had died because of it. Christie has a stalker who has effectively shut down her life; taken away her job, her friends, and isolating her from everything that she knew. Out of desperation she dialed a number on the back of a picture, a number that her brother had told her to call if she ever needed help. That help turned out to be ex-Delta Force member Boone Ferguson, a friend of her brother’s, who sets out to get Christie back everything that she lost. Boone can’t help but become more involved than he should, to care for Christie far beyond what is required to protect her. And as it becomes more evident that this stalker is more dangerous than imagined, falling in love can become more a liability than blessing, a distraction that could get them both killed.

If I were to put this on an Amazon scale of stars – it would get 5. I loved both Christie and Boone. The chemistry between them is palpable, the tension not only sexual but heightened by the danger surrounding them. The storyline is believable, engrossing and kept me totally absorbed in the story. Once again, I highly recommend this book.

I was also going to post the beautiful cover, but blogger isn't letting me. In fact, I haven't been able to post any pictures since their software problem last week. And if the blogger help page is any indication, I'm not the only one.

Oh, and the winners of Let's Pretend are Dennie and Trace. I need your addresses. I have more new book giveaways coming up.

And what the heck. Whenever an author sends me a copy of their book, I still buy one - so I have a copy of Closer ... on order. If you want it, just tell me and I'll draw a name Tuesday night.