Laura Griffin

INNOCENCE ROAD takes place in rural Texas. Leanne Everhart has returned to her small hometown after serving as a police officer in Dallas. She has joined the local police department as the only female officer. Her father who recently died in a car accident was once the chief of police.

When the man convicted of killing a pretty local teenager fifteen years earlier has his conviction overturned because he claimed he was coerced into a confession, the local PD is in an uproar. The current show more chief is more worried about the possible law suit the man is poised to bring than he is about any current crimes.

Leanne has a current crime to investigate. The body of a battered young woman has been discovered. She is unidentified. When Leanne begins to investigate, she learns that this body is not the first to be found in the area. None of the deaths have been sufficiently investigated and Leanne faces pushback from the chief when she wants to dig deeper.

Already feeling isolated in the department, Leanne goes outside it to people she knows in the sheriff's department and a friend in the local FBI to find out more. Her investigation leads her to believe that the old murder was the first of a series of serial killings that have been going on for years. Proving it puts her in danger from unknown enemies.

Meanwhile, Leanne is dealing with family issues. She and her mother have never gotten along, and tensions are building again as Leanne looks into her father's role in the young man's conviction fifteen years earlier. Leanne is also dealing with a younger brother who is dealing with an addiction issue.

This was an engaging mystery. I liked the setting. I wasn't as fond of Leanne though I could see that her personality was a result of the various stresses in her life and job. show less

This romantic suspense title pairs coffee shop owner/caterer Leyla Breda with undercover FBI Agent Sean Moran. Leyla has just finished catering her police officer brother's wedding when she discovers the murdered body of one of her brewistas Amelia in the alley outside her beach shop.

Leyla and Sean met at the wedding. He's one of her brother's friends. They are attracted but she's made it a rule not to get involved with tourists. She has no desire for a short-term romance. It doesn't help show more that lying to her because he's part of an undercover mission.

While they are getting to know each other, Natalie Lswson, the youngest and only woman on the police force, is given charge of investigating the murder. She has to deal with some jealousy from other more experienced officers and her own self-doubts as she tries to figure out who murdered Amelia. It doesn't help that the murder may have ties to the undercover investigation and she keeps getting stone-walled by other agencies.

This was an engaging and action-packed thriller and romance. It is part of a series but stands alone well. show less

Hoping to earn a promotion from receptionist to a PR rep with the private crime lab Delphi Center, Sophie Barrett heads to the local college campus to register for a couple of classes. But once there she steps right into the middle of a madman's rampage. Pinned down by the sniper for what seems like hours Sophie watches a pregnant woman die right in front of her and she is wrecked with survivor's guilt.

Enter homicide detective Jonah Macon. Already attracted to Sophie from an earlier show more encounter the last thing he needs right now is to get involved with one of the witnesses to the horrible crime. But as the investigation continues it quickly becomes apparent the sniper didn't just randomly start shooting students. He had a clear target and Sophie may hold the key to figuring it all out. Can Jonah keep Sophie alive while they follow the leads to the real bad guy?

Laura Griffin sure knows how to weave a perfect romantic suspense. You have a great suspense story with lots of mystery and you have a hot and steamy romance all which is just the thing to keep the pages quickly turning.

Years ago I devoured any romantic suspense book I could get my hands on but over the last few years I've almost stopped reading the genre completely. The stories became too predictable and you always knew there would be a happily ever after. But Laura's books are different. Sure the guy always gets the girl in the end but the story lines are always strong enough with incredibly real characters and filled with enough intrigue to keep her romantic suspense books on my must read list. Snapped is Book 5 in the Tracer series but it definitely stands alone. show less

Let me begin by saying that I have never read anything written by Laura Griffin prior to this. I was going into this story blindly as I had no idea what to expect. When I realised that this was part of a series and book number 10 at that I was a bit concerned that it could not be read as a stand-alone. However, my concerns were short-lived as I discovered that all the books in the series can be read on its own.

I have read several books in the romantic suspense genre and I come to realise show more there are few authors who can provide the right balance of romance and suspense. Laura Griffin has proven to be one of those authors.

The story started out with a bang. This set the pace for the remainder of the story. I knew from the outset that this was going to be an exciting and suspenseful read. I could not wait to see how the story would unfold.

The female protagonist, Delaney Knox, clearly stole the show. She is a cyber-investigator/white hacker who works for the Delphi Cybercrime unit. She is good at what she does. She is a loner by choice. She avoids socializing. She was not keen on law enforcement officers as she thought they were rigid and authoritative. However, she will find herself providing unsolicited assistance to them when a past acquaintance was murdered. This murder hit close to home as such she felt compelled to provide clues via text messages to the lead detective Reed Novak.

Detective Reed Novak has found himself embroiled in a homicide investigation that is proving to be the most challenging case of his career. The killer is sharp and the cops are stunned as he leaves no trace evidence. It was assumed as a result that this was not the killer’s first victim. As the investigation progresses Reed’s theory had been proven and the cops have come to realise that there was a serial killer in their midst. The receipt of text messages from an anonymous source providing him clues about the murder had him intrigued, and so he set out to uncover the identity of the sender. However, he was not prepared for his reaction to the mysterious sender.

It was evident that there was chemistry between the Laney and Reed. Reed, however, was a bit wary due to the 15-year age difference between them, but this did not phase Laney one bit. She knew what she wanted and she was not afraid to go for it. It was this approach, she applied to every aspect of her life. I thought they were worked well together in all areas.

I thought the plot was well researched. The story was detailed and easy to follow. The plot was believable and the pacing was good. "Deep Dark" is the type of story that grabs you from the first page and holds you in its grip until the end. It had me turning the pages as I was eager to discover who the killer was. I thought it had the right blend of romance and suspense. This was one of those times that I had a hard time guessing who it was. Even at the end when all was revealed I was in a state of shock as I never saw it coming.

This story highlighted the inherent danger of dating sites. It also demonstrated how the electronic devices that we have come to rely on daily can be detrimental as such, we need to exercise caution when using them.

Verdict: This was a fun, exciting and suspenseful read which I recommend to fans of this genre. I will be looking to read the other books written by this author. show less