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Tag

Law Enforcement

    Advanced Reader CopyContemporary RomanceReviewsRomantic Suspense

    Cold Cruel Kiss by Toni Anderson

    written by Dísir
    Cold Cruel Kiss by Toni AndersonCold Cruel Kiss by Toni Anderson
    Series: Cold Justice: Crossfire, #4
    Published by Toni Anderson Inc. on 28th January 2021
    Pages: 400
    Buy on Amazon
    Goodreads
    three-half-stars

    When the daughter of the US Ambassador to Argentina is kidnapped in broad daylight on Christmas Eve, the FBI sends one of its best negotiators to investigate.
    Supervisory Special Agent Max Hawthorne arrives at an embassy thrown into chaos as US and local law enforcement hustle to track the young woman. Is this a simple kidnap for ransom, or part of a political agenda? Could it be something more sinister?

    Lucy Aston has something to hide. Preferring to stay in the shadows, the lowly, fashion-challenged office assistant resents being assigned to help Max. But Max can’t resist a puzzle…he’s starting to suspect Lucy Aston is not what she seems.

    When rumors emerge of a suspected Russian spy operating out of the embassy, Lucy’s carefully constructed life begins to crumble. As she and Max race to rescue the ambassador’s daughter, Lucy has to do whatever it takes to keep her cover from being blown—even if that means betraying the man she’s falling for.

    Intricately and expertly-crafted, ‘Cold, Cruel Kiss’ is pretty much a masterful storytelling attempt by Toni Anderson, who dips into the spooks-world of conspiracies, underhanded, traitorous dealings and politics that all come to a head when an ambassador’s daughter is kidnapped in broad daylight.

    Little by little, Anderson reveals the puppetry going on behind the scenes in Argentina…and yes, it’s an engaging but messy as hell state of play that’s bound to make your head spin. Even though it’s classified as romantic suspense, there’s more of the latter than the former here, as SSA Max Hawthorne finds himself deep in the kidnap case and getting some unwitting assistance by a woman so clearly in disguise for reasons he can’t fathom.

    But Lucy Aston herself is hiding something that’s potentially one that end both their careers. How Lucy acted and behaved however, was what made me hesitant about my own rating of this story. I definitely felt for her and the predicament she found herself in, but I was also waiting for her to do the right thing about her situation since there was so much more at stake—which she didn’t. Instead, she sat back, filled with mostly regret and a defeatist attitude of ‘he’ll hate me and it’s best to get what I can for now especially when the truth comes out later’, all of which crossed the line into woe-is-me TSTL.

     

    I simply couldn’t get on with Lucy thinking so admiringly of Max in terms of integrity and honesty while constantly positioning herself as someone who didn’t deserve him, as it made that seem like an excuse not to hold herself to that same standard when she’d already ‘fallen’. Then trying to redeem herself by going rogue later threw her into the stupid, deep end of a pool in which she could barely tread water…trouble of her own making, anyone? Her lack of honesty grated, more so when Max seemed like the upfront on the whole time.

    In other words, even though casual deception is part and parcel of the spy-game, having it as one of the stumbling blocks—particularly when a protagonist is deep in it—in a romantic relationship tends to sour it for me (just a personal pet peeve shining brightly through here).

    ‘Cold Cruel Kiss’ however, is a standout on its own. As much as I didn’t exactly warm to Lucy/Max and their eventual resolution, Anderson’s kidnapped teenagers found a fan in me as they kept their smarts and wits throughout their ordeal; that they fought as hell for each other despite their fear made them the stars of the story for me. Maybe because it’s Anderson’s portrayal of how tenacious and unbelievably brave these girls are that I found myself loving the last few chapters of the book.

    three-half-stars
    Cold Cruel Kiss by Toni Anderson was last modified: January 21st, 2021 by Dísir
    24th January 2021 0 comment
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  • Contemporary RomanceMystery/CrimeReviewsRomantic Suspense

    The Surviving Girls by Katee Robert

    by Dísir 21st November 2020

    The Surviving Girls by Katee Robert Series: Hidden Sins, #3 Published by Montlake Romance on 29th May 2018 Pages: 286 Buy on Amazon Goodreads Twelve years ago, Lei Zhang and…

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  • Action/AdventureAdvanced Reader CopyContemporary RomanceFantasyMagic/ParanormalMystery/CrimeNetgalleyReviewsRomantic SuspenseSpeculative FictionUrban Fantasy

    Wolf Untamed by Paige Tyler

    by Dísir 23rd October 2020

    Wolf Untamed by Paige Tyler Series: SWAT #11 Published by Sourcebooks Casablanca on 24th November 2020 Pages: 320 Buy on Amazon Goodreads SWAT werewolf Diego Martinez has always had a…

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  • Advanced Reader CopyContemporary RomanceMystery/CrimeNetgalleyReviewsRomantic Suspense

    Driven by Rebecca Zanetti

    by Dísir 19th October 2020

    Driven by Rebecca Zanetti Series: Deep Ops #4 Published by Zebra Books on 26th January 2021 Pages: 400 Buy on Amazon Goodreads Unswerving: Angus Force is determined to hunt down…

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  • Contemporary RomanceMilitary/ParamilitaryMystery/CrimeReviewsRomantic Suspense

    Why the Devil Stalks Death by L.J. Hayward

    by Dísir 8th August 2020

    Why the Devil Stalks Death by L.J. Hayward Series: Death and the Devil, #2 Published by Amazon Digital Services, Amazon Publishing on 9th December 2018 Pages: 380 Buy on Amazon…

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  • Advanced Reader CopyMystery/CrimeNetgalleyReviewsRomantic Suspense

    See Her Die by Melinda Leigh

    by Dísir 18th July 2020

    See Her Die by Melinda Leigh Series: Bree Taggert, #2 Published by Montlake Romance on 15th September 2020 Pages: 320 Buy on Amazon Goodreads New sheriff Bree Taggert is called…

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  • Advanced Reader CopyContemporary RomanceMystery/CrimeNetgalleyReviewsRomantic Suspense

    Hidden by Laura Griffin

    by Dísir 2nd July 2020

    Hidden by Laura Griffin Series: The Texas Murder Files #1 Published by Berkley Books on 25th August 2020 Pages: 352 Buy on Amazon Goodreads When a woman is found brutally…

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