10 year old little girl see's her mother brutally beaten and as her mother is dying the last words she says are Never let them inside...your heart.

Jasmine "Jazz" Parker takes those words to heart and lets them define who she has become as an adult. She is Jefferson County SWAT's only female sniper and refuses to let anyone get close to her. She is the best shot with the sniper riffle and would protect her team and the innocents with her life but keeps to herself personally.

Luke Montgomery is an ex-Army Ranger, who has now become an investigative reporter. He comes from a large family who are all in one form or another in law enforcement or the military. He also had recently found out he had a daughter when the girl's mother died. He and Jazz had a hot affair for a while until things go to emotional for Jazz and she just walked away.

There are two intersecting suspense stories going on at once - One is someone is out to ruin Jazz's career with SWAT and the other is a corruption story within the mob with possible ties to the police department that Luke is writing. These two things put both Jazz and Luke and his family in danger.

When we first meet Jazz she is a tough as nails SWAT sniper but as the story unfolds we find out about all the horrible things that happened to her as a child and with everything that is going on her wall that she had erected to protect herself comes crumbling down.

I liked all the characters in this book. I hope that the author plans to write about the rest of the Montgomery siblings in the future. ( )

A very good romantic thriller with a believable pair of leads and great supporting cast, a made for TV movie in book form. The romance feels real, and the past that causes the problems is the standard type, a secret that would lose it's sting if it weren't hidden so ardently. A quick read. ( )

Article first published as Book Review: In Her Sights by Robin Perini on Blogcritics.

What happens in our lives often defines us. Whether is it disastrous, or momentous, it gives us a platform to launch the person we want to see. Or we allow ourselves to dwell on the negatives and never really realize who we have become.

In Her Sights by Robin Perini, is a story of strength of character. Jasmine Parker is a SWAT sharpshooter. One of the few females in this line, she is both bold and steady, known as one of the best in the business. There are those in the department who do not agree with the assignment, and are willing to do what it takes to bring her down. It does not help that Jasmine (Jazz) has a secret that is unknown to those she works with. A secret from her past that has the ability to destroy the life she has spent so much time to build. Unable to share her secret with anyone, she even turned away the one man in her life she truly loved.

Luke Montgomery is an ex-Army Ranger, who has now become an investigative reporter. Jazz’s life begins to fall apart when she is credited with saving the governor’s daughter, and Luke splashes her face and the story across the news. Unknowingly he has brought back someone in Jazz’s background that seems to be seeking vengeance. As she works to maintain her distance and fight her feelings for Luke, she struggles to find the answers as those who once relied on her, now begin to turn their back. As bodies begin piling up, can Jazz save herself and her hard fought career? Can she learn to trust Luke with her secrets or will his expose destroy her in this torrid house of cards? When Luke’s brother is injured in a SWAT gone bad, he will stop at nothing to save his family, even at the expense of the woman he loves.

Perini has given us a strong and likable female lead. Stubborn and bold she has been driven by a secret from her youth. Building and defining her abilities, she becomes one of the best at what she does. But the job does not harden her, she still maintains her feelings and flaws, and she is still hurt easily by the things that occur around her. Struggling to find closeness with her team, she is still an unknown and is sometimes rebuffed. When the team turns on her after the injury of a fellow officer, she continues to try and close that gap; they are some of the only family she has.

Luke is a strong and charismatic character. There is a hurt he is trying to overcome after one of his articles created an unexpected death of a friend. He has not been able to get Jazz out of his system and the heat between them is palpable. Trying to find why Jazz is being targeted both by the department, and a killer, he finds himself deep in the middle of a secret he does not know. The more he tries to find the further Jazz pulls away.

Perini has giving us a mix of thriller and romance, one that is hard to put down. Her protagonist is dark and carries a taint of anger and betrayal to the core. The story is well written, and the pace is excellent. The knowledge of the author on both guns and shooting is well defined and creates realism to the piece.

I would recommend this book to both those that enjoy thrillers, as well as the romance buffs. There is strength in both areas of the work that plays together, pulling you into the story. This would be a great book for a reading group, it brings in police procedure, SWAT, romance and how people change and grow as they determine their own fate in life.

This book was received as an ARC. All opinions are my own based off my reading and understanding of the material. ( )