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Tracers #10
Laura Griffin
Releasing May 24th, 2016
Pocket Books
A gripping new romantic thriller
from New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Laura Griffin...
The moment detective Reed Novak
steps onto the crime scene, he knows the case is going to rock his world. A
beautiful young woman murdered at home. No sign of forced entry. No motive.
She’s obviously not the killer’s first victim, and Reed’s instincts tell him
she won’t be his last. Reed’s first clue comes via a mysterious text that links
to a dating profile, but even more intriguing than the clue is the person who
sent it.
As a white-hat hacker in the Delphi
Center’s cyber investigation unit, Laney Knox sneaks into some of the deepest,
darkest corners of the Internet looking for predators. Laney would prefer to
stay away from Austin PD’s most recent murder case, but she can’t ignore the
chilling similarities between that crime and her own brutal attack years ago.
Laney offers to help the sexy lead detective, but he wants more from her than
just a promising tip—Reed wants her trust. Laney resists, but as their
relationship deepens she’s tempted to reveal the closely guarded secrets that
could make her a key witness…or the killer’s next victim.
Excerpt
Reed watched her, and she had that frustrated look in her eyes again. Every time she started to open up to him, he did something to tick her off. She shook her head and glanced away.
“Laney?”
“What?”
“I’m a detective. It’s my job to ask questions. To push.”
She looked at him again and her expression softened. “No, you’re right.” She glanced down at her beer bottle and picked at the label. “I’m glad she has you.”
“Who has me?”
“April. You seem--” She paused, like she was searching for the right word. “--committed.”
He didn’t answer. It wasn’t really a question, but the way she looked at him gave him the feeling she wanted a response.
She drained her beer and plunked down the bottle. “I should get home.” She stood up.
Reed stood, too. He left a tip on the table and followed her through the throng of people. The bar was packed, and the music had gotten louder since they’d first walked in.
They stepped into the warm, muggy air. It was dusk now, and a neon Lone Star Light sign cast a blue-and-red glow over the sidewalk. As they walked in silence, he thought of what she’d said about her job being meaningful. It was refreshing. Maybe he’d been a cop too long, but he didn’t know anyone who talked about things being meaningful anymore. If they thought about work in those terms, they kept it to themselves.
Maybe he was jaded.
No, he definitely was jaded. But it had more to do with his failed marriage than anything he’d seen on the job.
Reed spotted her little white car and felt a twinge of regret. He’d enjoyed talking to her, enjoyed being near her. And he couldn’t remember the last time that had happened with a woman. Having a beer with Laney had been the highlight of his crap week. Hell, the highlight of his month.
She looked around. “Where are you parked?”
“Around back.”
She gazed up at him. He couldn’t read her expression.
“Thanks for the drink,” she said.
“You bought it.”
He couldn’t read her tone either. The thrum of music seeped through the thin walls of the bar as they stood there in the light of the beer sign.
She stepped closer, and a jolt of heat went through him. She looked up at him with those bottomless brown eyes, and he knew he was in trouble. It was a bad idea to involve this girl in his investigation. Whatever useful info she might have was outweighed by the fact that she was young, and edgy, and he wanted her. And she must have seen something in his face because her eyes sparked.
She went up on tiptoes and kissed him.
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New York Times and USA Today
bestselling author LAURA GRIFFIN started her career in journalism before
venturing into the world of romantic suspense. She is a two-time RITA Award
winner (for the books Scorched and Whisper of Warning) as well as the recipient
of the Daphne du Maurier Award (for Untraceable). Laura currently lives in
Austin, where she is working on her next book.
**************************
My review:
4.5 stars
Deep Dark by Laura Griffin is a romantic suspense novel that is part of the ‘Tracers’ series and centers around Laney Knox, a white-hat computer hacker who works at the Delphi Center. Her unconventional investigation techniques bring her to the attention of Detective Reed Novak who is investigating the murder of a friend. The unlikely pair have a common goal but vastly different techniques which bring them into opposition and is further complicated by the unwilling attraction that blossoms between them. Danger escalates and Reed must discover not only what the killer’s motive is, but what secrets Laney is hiding, before it is too late…for the next victim who may be all too familiar.
The action is immediate and draws one into the web that this author weaves. I love that she has capable heroines who are just as active and adept at their jobs as the deliciously hunky males they are attracted to. I found Laney a little irritating, possibly because of her youth and stubborn insistence on doing things her way, and thought her chastened regret to be all too fleeting when things don’t quite pan out for her the way she wanted them to. Despite that, I was delighted with her bravery, intellectual prowess, and deductive abilities although a little dismayed by her blithe disregard of the consequences of her actions on Reed and herself.
The intense heat between the main characters is a little awkward for me at first although I adored Reed’s protective nature, and I wish I had more of a connection to both of these workaholics. Despite this, the rising intensity as the investigation unfolds, the red herrings, and the occasional light moments such as the comments by one character about the shoe print size on the foot that kicked her door in make this another fun and enthralling read and I hope several of the secondary characters show up in a future story. This author always provides an intense and exciting story and this is another enjoyable example of her talent.
A copy of this title was provided for review, which has been submitted to Night Owl Reviews
Lovely review. Thank you for hosting DEEP DARK today!
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Thank you for your review of DEEP DARK!
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