HelenKay Dimon

“We need to talk about her. We need to have answers.” She did. Down to her soul. The guilt. The not knowing. Waking up every day thinking Tiffany could be one of those poor women chained to a bed somewhere in some sick bastard’s basement, unable to get out.

This had a bit of a different feel and texture than the usual romantic suspense/mystery, slower because this was about solving a decades old case but I enjoyed it for the most part because of the something new feel.

Our hero is show more quite different from the over-saturated with take control alpha, he was a solid quiet, composed, with some anti-social coloring. I can't say I ever felt like I "knew" him because of this little bit of dry, little bit of aloofness but he was also refreshing. I really liked the heroine and how she meshed with him, they played off each other very well.

“You still scare me a little.” She didn’t know why she admitted that, but it was absolutely true. There was no mistaking his smile now.
“The feeling is mutual.”

They had this slow dry heat thing that really worked but I just didn't get to see or completely feel them together because of the murder mystery components taking control of the story. The heroine is still searching for her cousin that went missing when she was a teenager and recently finding the hero's name in the case files leads her to him and has the hero being captivated against will for her and helping with the case.

“I got the impression you were attracted to me.”
“I’ll rein it in and say simply, yes.”
Her finger pressed into his wrist and his wild heartbeat thumped against her skin. She took that as a very good sign. “And if you didn’t rein it in this time?”
“The need to strip you naked and spread you out on that mattress is kicking my ass.” What was she even saying before that?
“Subtle.”
“There’s nothing subtle about how much I want you.”

They had chemistry but the hero ultimately remained too closed off in some ways for me, I felt walled off from him. The search for what happened to her cousin is crux of the story but it felt a little sluggish in the middle and had an ending that was fairly obvious and a bit announced and abruptly left.

She could fight her own battles, but it was pretty sexy to have a guy who wanted to stand up and help.

Dimon's writing draws me (I like how she writes the dynamics between the hero and heroine) and I like her voice but there also seems to be a feeling of things not quite clicking; her procedural writing is great but maybe some of the emotional aspect is missing for me? Either way, I'll keep reading her and I'll keep going with this series as I've already read one in it and liked it. If you're looking for romantic suspense that has a little bit of a different feel to it, this could be a change of pace.

Her spirit reeled him in and drove him mad.

I had to include this quote because of how deep in my soul I have felt this way before:
Caroline had the whole balanced-life, good-person combination down. By comparison, Emery felt like an unmade bed. show less

3.8 stars

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review

She looked at the suffering passed in silence from generation to generation and said enough.

The Usual Family Mayhem was a rolling offbeat story with tons of heart. Told all from Kasey's point-of-view, a late twenties woman who hasn't quite found her niche in life, when she gets put on the spot at her latest job, she suddenly finds herself pitching her grandmother's bakery as a show more possible business for her company to acquire for investors. Kasey's boss gives her two weeks to travel from D.C. to back home in North Carolina to get her grandmother Mags and Celia, her grandmother's partner, in life and business, to sign a deal with them. Taking the paid trip home, Kasey finds herself dipping and dodging questions from Mags and Celia about why she's really back home and trying not to show those deep feelings she has about Celia's nephew, Jackson, her childhood nemesis. There's also the little issue of Kasey thinking Mags and Celia have set up a side hustle of poisoning abusive husbands and she sets out to investigate.

The two women who'd raised me and who I loved unconditionally were hiding something.

Your enjoyment of this is going to hinge on how much you can tolerate of the left-of-center, slightly unhinged personality Kasey has. As this is all told from her, there's no escape, I found her more charming than exasperating, which worked in my favor. I did think it took way too long for Kasey to come clean (65%) to Mags and Celia about why she was in town and I thought that hurt the pace of the second half; you're going to yell at her to just tell the truth more than once. I was pleasantly surprised at how much the romance (fade-to-black) played a part in this, Jackson shows up early and sticks around to be that grounding, trying to be voice of reason, that Kasey needs. Even without his pov, his actions and words make it clear to readers that he has feelings for Kasey, even if Kasey is oblivious because she can't shake off the shame of when she made a move and Jackson went running (a totally warranted reaction from him at the time!). I greatly enjoyed their dynamic because even though their personalities are opposites, you see how they compliment each other and how they'd work together, he calms her and she lightens him up.

They'd built a community based on the most desperate kind of need.

Kasey's investigating of her grandmother's business and what she thinks they're involved in started off haphazard fun for me, but, like Kasey dodging the truth and not just coming out and explaining why she was there, she dragged it on a bit too long. In the latter second half when all four sit down to finally talk and explain, I think the emotions are going to hit some unexpectedly, I found myself tearing up when Mags and Celia finally had their say on how their lives went and what they chose to do about it from points on. For most of the book, the tone is kept light and goofy because of Kasey's personality beat, but the hints of deeper are there worked in. A lot of the women in this are survivors of domestic violence, a heavy topic, but while we get no flinching away stories of it, it's how it's told from the women's perspectives, their stories coming from their voices is what kept the mood from dragging down darkness to instead comforting strength uplifting.

“No one tried to rescue us. We want better for other women.” Celia reached out and took Gram's hand. “Even women we don't know.”

While Kasey could be her own worst enemy at times, Jackson's father makes a good bid for being the villain of the piece by trying to impose his will, wants, and needs on everyone in his orbit. This drags Kasey and her work and her relationship with Jackson into contention with what the dad wants and leads up to a confrontation that ultimately helps to wrap up Kasey's work and romantic issues, so a needed villain. The lead up to the HEA gives normally in control Jackson vulnerability and Kasey found strength to deliver two sweet declarations. This was off-beat fun with heart, go find this one and pick it up.
(Not me wishing Mags and Celia had a blog for me to comfort read) show less

Reviewed on my blog, Becky on Books, on 8/9/18.

I loved Cate and Damon! They're the perfect blend of sweet and snark, and both their internal and external dialogue had me LOL-ing more than once. Their relationship was obviously a quickly-developing one, but somehow it didn't feel at all rushed--I'm not sure how Ms. Dimon managed it, but I totally believed in its feasibility, despite the shortened timeline. The suspense was decent--Cate's super sense of smell was a neat twist--but it's the show more relationships here that really made this one shine.

The Protector, like the other two series books I've read so far ( The Negotiator and The Pretender ), works just fine as a standalone, but be warned--you're going to want to know more about this group of guys than just a book or two can give you.

Rating: 4 stars / A-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book. show less

Fun book that started out with a bang and kept right on going. Caleb arrived in Hawaii to see his Air Force buddy, Dan, after receiving a puzzling letter asking for his help. After unsuccessfully trying to find his friend, Cal showed up at Dan's house in the middle of the night and tried to let himself in a window, only to find himself facing a woman with a gun. After an amusingly confrontational encounter, Cal was stunned to find out the woman is Dan's sister and that Dan is dead. Just as show more Cal begins to get some of the details, someone shoots into the house.

Cal and Cassie strike sparks off each other from the beginning. Much of it is antagonistic, with an undercurrent of attraction. Cassie has a very confrontational personality, aggravated by the runaround she has been getting from the local cops. She is convinced that Dan's death was no accident and has made no secret of that fact. Cal is inclined to believe her, as he is well aware of Dan's flying ability. That belief is reinforced by whoever shot at them. The two of them agree to work together to search out the truth, but it's an uneasy partnership. Both Cassie and Cal are strong personalities, and each wants to be in charge. The bickering between them was pretty funny.

I liked the development of Cal and Cassie's relationship. The bickering remains pretty constant, but it doesn't take too long before they are leaning on each other for support when grief hits them. I liked Cal's protectiveness toward Cassie. He also experiences some unexpected jealousy when other men pay attention to her, which surprises him and freaks him out. He has quite a talent for making her mad, but he doesn't learn his lesson about when to keep his thoughts to himself. He's also keeping some secrets about Dan's past that he knows will create more trouble with her when they come out. Cassie is drawn to Cal and isn't happy about it. She thinks he's too cocky for his own good, and his take-charge attitude pisses her off. He also reminds her of her ex, which put him at more of a disadvantage. When the sparks between them burst into flame, the results are inevitable, as is Cal's rapid retreat. He deserved every bit of the anger she threw at him. The intensifying danger also boosted the feelings that grew between them, though neither was quite ready to admit it. It took nearly losing each other for them both to realize that they belonged together. I liked their big moment at the end, as well as Cassie's plan for their future.

The suspense of the story was good. It started with the first page and never let up until the end. The big question was whether Dan's crash was an accident or something else. If it wasn't an accident, what really happened? Cassie's certainty that local law enforcement was jerking her around appeared to be the truth, as both Ted and Josh appeared to blow off all of her concerns. Once Cal arrived and got involved, he agreed that they were hiding something. As Cal and Cassie continued their attempts to investigate, Josh's frequent appearances were very suspicious. As the attacks escalated, Cal and Cassie were determined to get to the bottom of everything they had discovered. Cassie pulled a really stupid trick that put her in extreme danger. The final confrontation was intense, and I was on the edge of my seat until it was all over. I wasn't too surprised at who was behind it all, as I had my suspicions from their first appearance. show less