Relentless
by Vanessa Dare
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GENRE: Romantic Suspense
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BLURB:
A fun weekend at a friend’s wedding in Denver takes a bizarre twist for Anna Scott when her rental car is pulled over due to an “anonymous tip.” In her trunk…a dead man linked to warring crime families in Denver and New York. It should be easy for an innocent woman to be cleared for an simple mix-up. But was it a mistake? The police aren’t so sure, and neither is the crime boss who wants vengeance for his son-in-law’s death. Suddenly appearing on the radar means that now Anna Scott is in real trouble. Two years ago, Anna Scott didn’t exist. The police think she knows way too much about criminal procedures and they’re determined to find out her secret. Their attention forces Anna to play a deadly game of cat and mouse with both the mafia and the police. This twist of fate could not only expose her, but place her, and anyone close to her in jeopardy.
Jake Griffin is playing a deadly game. He’s spent the last few months undercover in the Moretti crime family. The mysterious and beautiful Anna Scott is a big problem. Moretti assigns him to find out who she is and what she’s after, and to kill her if she becomes a problem. Jake needs to focus on taking down Moretti, not risking his life and career protecting a sexy woman who is a complete mystery. Unfortunately, he can’t stop wondering about her. He knows she’s lying, but his gut instincts, and the bone deep desire he feels every time he sees her, won’t allow him to walk away. He discovers that he’s willing to go to war with the whole world for one alluring, yet vulnerable woman. He can’t seem to stop taking desperate gambles where she’s concerned. The most dangerous of all might be trusting her with the truth.
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Excerpt One:
The woman remained by my side while the man went around the car to the driver’s door, leaned in and popped the trunk. At the sound, I turned around. Watched him walk to the back, lift the lid and stood. Staring.
Giving a little shift of his head, the woman joined him. So did I.
“Oh my God,” I whispered, my throat closing up at the sight. There, in the trunk of my full-sized rental, was a dead man. Forty-something, receding hairline, overweight, suit and tie. Glazed eyes stared up at me. There was a bullet hole in his forehead. And he was starting to smell. God, the horrific scent lifted up in the breeze. It wasn’t powerful, yet. I assumed the only way I didn’t notice it was that the windows had been open.
I felt the blood rush out of my head. Little black dots danced in front of eyes, making it look like flies were crawling on the body. I pivoted on my heel as I felt my stomach revolt, vomiting all over the concrete. Once the dry heaves subsided, I stayed bent over, one hand on my knee, trying to catch my breath. I wiped the back of my hand over my mouth, wishing I had some water to wash away the acidic taste in my mouth. All this time neither officer hadn’t moved, the woman’s black work shoes and creased pants in my periphery.
The police probably thought I’d thrown up because of seeing the dead body. I hadn’t. I’d thrown up because I knew I was in big trouble. It was happening again. All my fears, all my worries over the past twelve years had come to life. Or death, like the body in the trunk. God, I knew I shouldn’t have left New York, shouldn’t have left the safe structure I’d made of my life for a little fun. I didn’t do fun. I wasn’t allowed. Because the moment I had some fun, just a tiny lit bit, this was what happened.
Where has this woman been all of my life? A deeply engrossing romantic suspense that has two strong characters and an interesting plot that kept me guessing from the start. Oh yes, its romantic suspense too. 😉 My fave. I will definitely pick up the next book that she writes.
I won’t go into the blurb but what a crazy way to start off a novel. A dead body in a trunk? Mob ties, secrets and a delicious cop to boot. While Jake was alpha, he truly was a teddy bear to me. Going in deep undercover and do that to someone and getting out is even harder. Ms. Dare wrote Jake in a way that I truly adore. Sure its been done before but she had me from the beginnig with him. Her descriptions and especially the character itself is just swoon worthy.
Anna was a breath of fresh air in romantic suspense. Smart, beautiful and a strong character that could hold her own with Jake. Of course, she needed Jake’s care and love in the end. What a journey it was to see her bloom and their love grow in the book. And the sexual tension between them was…! Dang!
The story is fast paced and trust me, you will NOT be able to put it down. You will think, just one more chapter and I will go do something else. Good luck with that. Once you start, you will not be able to put it down. I just had to know what else was going to happen. The suspense and intrigue will keep you going and give up trying to figure anything out. Just sit back, read it and then exhale. Yes, the breath that you’ve been holding throughout the book…you will breath again. 😉
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AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Vanessa Dare does it all: Urban contemporary to time traveling to Scotland and everything in between. Her bestselling alter ego, Vanessa Vale, sticks with steamy Wild West romps.
Social media links:
Email: vanessavaleauthor@gmail.com
Web: http://www.vanessavaleauthor.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/vanessavaleauthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/iamvanessavale
Amazon Author page: http://www.amazon.com/Vanessa-Dare/e/B016YKNBYG
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GIVEAWAY INFORMATION and RAFFLECOPTER CODE
Vanessa Dare will be awarding an ebook of Relentless (international) to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.
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