Hidden Agenda

A Thrilling, Chilling, Maze of a Read...

A very satisfying romantic suspense by Lisa Harris, Hidden Agenda zigged and zagged as Olivia, Ivan, and Michael rush headlong to escape the cartel. Indeed, it is hard to run in a straight line when the enemy can be anyone around you. Harris does a wonderful job of setting up a dangerous situation and then throwing the reader into doubt about just who the enemy is. I kept guessing and re-guessing!

This book is also about learning to trust when the going gets tough. NOT only does Olivia have to decide to trust Michael or not, but she must choose whether she can trust God, as well."Michael," says Olivia, "What do you do when something horrible happens, when fear takes hold so hard you can hardly show more breathe?" "All I know to do is to dig deeper until you remember that God knows exactly what's happening at this very moment. He cares, and no matter what happens, He will never leave you..." Trust. Will we trust or will we freeze when the hard times come? That said, in a sinful world, trusting God does not guarantee safety. Who makes it out of this terror alive, and who becomes collateral damage? A thrilling, chilling read!!

I gratefully received this book from the author for an honest review. show less

I'm not remotely religious so this was never going to be a total win for me. But I read a bit of everything and if it sounds good I'm willing to give it a shot. That being said I do usually find Christian fiction a little preachy - it's just so wholesome - but then it's also precisely what you would expect a Christian book to be - so I shouldn't rate it down but I kind of do. So Lisa Harris - it's not you, it's me.

This was an enjoyable read. It was nice to see the story line wrap up. I liked Olivia and Ivan (her brother) and Michael. All the previous characters make an appearance and help Michael sort things out. The relationship between Michael and Olivia is pretty instalove - a lot of telling me how much they liked each other when show more they'd barely spoken two words. But what romance isn't these days. There wasn't a whole lot of detective work, this book focused more on the suspense and action aspects of the plot. Overall, quick easy read. 3.5 stars. show less

From the first pages of Lisa Harris’ Southern Crimes series, I have been anxiously waiting on any information on the death of Michael Hunt. His story line has been an integral part of the series begining with Dangerous Passage and continuing in the second book, Fatal Exchange. Finally my wait was over as I dug into the final installment in the series, Hidden Agenda. Michael is very much alive and working to blow the lid off a drug cartel. But his cover is blown and he is running for his life with the help of the two grown children of his money-laundering boss.

Lisa Harris creates page-turning romantic suspense with relatable characters who find a place in the reader’s heart. I especially liked that though the main characters were show more Christians, they struggled with trust, feelings of loss and betrayal. And God’s presence is central to the action. The many escapes from dangerous situations were treated as His intervention rather than coincidence or the characters’ efforts. Themes include the consequences of secrets and the struggle to know what is true. Being a Georgia gal, I also appreciated the setting of the novel — from the Golden Isles through the streets of Atlanta and up to the North Georgia mountains.

A good ending to a great series, I recommend Hidden Agenda. And though it could be read as a standalone, you really should read books 1 and 2 first.

Recommended.

Audience: adults.

(Thanks to Revell for a review copy. The opinions expressed are mine alone.) show less

This is the second book in this series that I have read, as with the first book you will not know whom to trust. Even the crooks can’t trust the crooks, bad cops, where can you find help, and as we put the first book away we meet Michael who is dead, well not really but he is on paper.
Your heart will be in your throat, there is so much action from the first page on, you never know what will be next. Just when things begin to look safe, and the characters are able to rest, boom not so safe after all, which way do you turn?
Caught up in this suspense are the children of one of the major cartels in this country. When we meet them I had the feeling they were innocent, and knew nothing of what their father was involved in. As we travel show more along in the story we meet other friends of this young man and young woman, can we trust their friends? Can we trust Michaels? I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop, and occasionally it fell with a loud thud.
There are murders, explosions, hit and runs, torture, all in the name of greed, and power. How is in charge of all of this? We also end up with a bit of romance between Michael and Olivia, the daughter of the Cartel leader, and we have to think how much of a chance do they have?
I so enjoyed this fast paced great read and want to read a lot more by this author Lisa Harris. Enjoy!

I received this book through Revell Blogger’s Tour and was not required to give a positive review. show less

Hidden Agenda is most definitely a thrill ride from beginning to end. I loved the first two books in the Southern Crimes series and this third and final installment did not disappoint. I could not put it down because I wanted to know what was going to happen with Michael and Olivia. I really appreciated how their faith in God kept them going in the midst of many horrifying situations. If you are looking for a romantic suspense novel that forces the reader to constantly question who can be trusted, what secrets are going to be revealed, etc. then Hidden Agenda is the book for you!

If you have not read the first two in the series yet, I would definitely recommend you start with those first since this book does provide updates on characters show more from the first two books. This story picks up right where Fatal Exchange left off.

I was given a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. show less

Hidden Agenda by Lisa Harris
4 stars (a bit more than 4, but not 4.5 so naturally rounded to 4)

Spoiler for the first one, but NOT major.

Michael Hunt, thought to have died in a fiery car crash eight months ago, is being beaten in the opening scene, as he has finally been uncovered as a cop by the drug cartel he had so successfully infiltrated. Olivia Hamilton is the daughter of a business man but has come to the island to see if the anonymous texts she has received alleging that her distant father is actually high up in an infamous drug cartel. When her deaf younger brother, Ivan, witnesses a murder, she is caught in a dilemma involving the fate of Michael Hunt, who is awaiting the return of the infamous Valez.

This is the third show more installment of the Southern Crimes Fiction, and I was hooked from the first line. This is absolutely a thriller from the start (and of course is a romantic thriller, but that's not from the start), nothing dragged for me, etc. Once again, just the stipulation that if you don't like anything remotely Christian, this isn't for you, but this is no cozy mystery, either. show less

This book by Christy Award-winning Lisa Harris (author of more than 20 novels) is the third in the “Southern Crimes” series. Each book in the series follows one of the three Hunt family siblings. This book follows Michael who has been undercover for eight months when his cover is blown. He is rescued by Olivia Hamilton and her brother, Ivan, and all three of them trying to escape the bad guys chasing them. But who ARE the bad guys and who can they trust? And this is where the nail-biting adventure begins.

Even though I haven’t read the first two books in the series yet (but I will soon!), I think this book can stand alone without missing a beat.

It was a hard book for me to put down. There were a couple of twists that surprised me, show more and I couldn’t wait to see how the author was going to get them out of the mess they were in. I thought the characters were believable and likeable. But best of all (for me) was how the love of family and faith in God was at the center of the book.

If you love Christian fiction with contemporary suspense and a little romance, then you’ll enjoy this book.

I received a free book from Revell Publishing (a division of Baker Publishing Group) in exchange for an unbiased review. show less