Review from
Mayra Calvani on The Red Room Book Reviews:
"Jennifer Conner’s latest romantic suspense is a thrilling, steaming read that will be enjoyed by fans of the genre.
Handsome, sharp-witted, and smartass Devan Burke is a detective
working for the LAPD. In the evenings, he likes to keep himself wired up
by ordering double espressos from the Naughty Latte stand’s
drive-through, especially because of the
pretty blond working there. Dev is a loner and blames himself for the
death of a kid during a store shootout, during which he was also shot in
the leg and, as a result, has been limping and using a cane since then.
Beautiful and just as sharp-witted and smartass as Dev, Luci Lombard
is working at the Naughty Latte stand in order to support herself
through school at the University of Chinese Culture and Health Studies.
One night, only a few minutes after Dev leaves the coffee stand, he
receives a message that the place has just been robbed. Back at the
stand, he finds a very distraught Luci lying on the floor with her hands
tied behind her back. Fortunately, the assailant didn’t have enough
time to rape her. Although the robber was wearing a mask, she remembers
he was wearing cowboy boots and tattoos on his arm: strange octagon
symbols mixed into a vine. Dev offers to bring her to the hospital and
then home.
Since she doesn’t have medical insurance, he very generously pays for
her medical bills. To show her appreciation, Luci decides to help Dev
with his leg problem so he can get back in active duty. She believes his
pain and limp could be improved with the aid of a chiropractor and
holistic medicine. Though Dev is skeptical at first, he decides to let
Luci help him. Thus, their relationship begins to evolve, rising in
intensity as their feelings for each other deepen.
But the man with the tattoos isn’t a simple robber. In fact, he’s a
member of the Mafia. And he hasn’t forgotten Luci and is intent on
finishing what he started…
Shot in the Dark is a light, quick, very entertaining read
filled with lots of romance and lots of suspense. Having read Conner’s
work before, I know she has a soft spot for tortured, imperfect heroes
with big hearts who at times suffer a disability. In this case, it’s
Dev’s leg and how it affects his self image and self esteem, and how,
with a smart and kind heroine, he outgrows those feelings of insecurity.
Her heroines are intelligent and independent, yet feminine enough to
turn to their heroes for protection when needed. A very nice
combination. The story, which moves at a good pace, is mainly told from
both from Dev’s and Luci’s points of view, separated by chapters, so the
readers get to know the feelings and motivations of both characters.
Some chapters are also told from the robber’s point of view. If you’re a
fan of romantic suspense, you’ll want to pick this one up.
You can find more about bestselling author Jennifer Conner and her romantic suspense novels from her website at
http://www.jenniferconnerbooks.com
Read more reviews and purchase the book from
Amazon.
My review was first published in
Blogcritics.
