Sworn to Protect / No Good Deed by Susanne Matthews -reviews

SWORN TO PROTECT
by Susanne Matthews
Release Date: June 10, 2017
Genre: adult, contemporary, romantic, suspsense

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 10, 2017

Four years ago, a car accident robbed Nancy Frost of her child and her mother, taking what was left of her marriage with it in the process. A forensic accountant, she agrees to look at a company’s books in a divorce case, trying to find hidden assets, but her meeting with the lawyer goes terribly wrong when the restaurant is attacked.

The moment US Marshal Neil Copeland discovers his wife has been shot in a Baltimore restaurant, he rushes to her side, determined not to let her down again. As the police investigate, evidence suggests the attack was a ploy to hide a specific hit. When a professional assassin tries to kill Nancy a second time, it’s clear that she was the target and whatever’s going on is a lot more complicated than they think.

When Nancy awakes after a month in an induced coma, not only does she not remember the attack on the restaurant, she doesn’t remember marrying Neil.

Faced with the challenge of protecting his wife from a powerful, faceless enemy, Neil must bring her up to date, dredging up all the sorrow that tore them apart in the first place, hoping something will jar her memory.

As he races against time, can he save her from an unknown assassin and convince her to give the love they once had a second chance?

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REVIEW: Sworn to Protect is a Romance/Suspense novel. If you like romance and suspense with a good bit of danger in your stories…this one’s for you. It’s well paced, action and emotion packed drama.

Nancy Frost (Copeland)is a tax specialist and incredibly good at her job. However, she inadvertently opens the wrong file and life goes downhill really fast from there. Nancy is beginning divorce procedures after a bad car accident and she loses both her mother and her unborn son. It’s been four years and she just can’t get past it. Her best friend and divorce lawyer, Meredith, tries to talk her out of filing, but she seems decided. Meredith also asks for a tax review for a client, complicating the plot further.

Neil Copeland and his partner Todd Higgins are U.S. Marshalls whose job it is to protect and hide witnesses until they can testify for the Justice Department, then put them into the program with a whole new identity and life. Neil was on assignment four years earlier when his wife had a bad car accident. Unfortunately, his boss didn’t reach him for five days after the accident to let him know.

That’s the basic set up. This is a marvelously and cleverly twisted story of broken love, dangerous people, and second chances. It’s full of danger, great secondary characters, and of course more than a few scumbags. Domestic terrorism and betrayal of country are also featured.

I loved the couple. I loved the stoic man who loves his wife with all his heart. Many regrets and what he considers failures are his devils, but his love is always strong and unshakable. His wife only blames him for not being there for her…that his job came first. Her father put job before family and for her it’s a deal breaker, but did he?

When Nancy is attacked and almost killed because of her job, he’s assigned to take care of her and protect her. Like he wouldn’t have on his own…but his boss knows he owes him.

I’m not going to do any spoiling of this incredible story. You really have to read it for yourself. It should be a movie. If it was, it’s one of those I’d watch again and again. Author Susanne Matthews has put together a believable and complicated story with so much heart as well as real danger. It’s woven with realism and heartbreak that needs healing. If romantic suspense is a theme you like, do yourself a favor and don’t miss this one.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Georgianna S.

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NO GOOD DEED
by Susanne Matthews

Release Date: July 31, 2017
Genre: adult, contemporary, mystery, romantic suspense

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 31, 2017

Psychological chills and thrills are woven around a heartwarming love story in this action-packed romantic suspense novel.

Escaping from her abusive fiancé, Alexa O’Brien pulls into a gas station only to walk in on an execution. She’s in protective custody until she can identify Nicoli Zabat, Montreal’s mob boss, at his trial. But her safe house has been compromised, setting in motion a dangerous cat-and-mouse game.

Lieutenant Mike Delorme on the Sûreté Du Québec has spent the last eighteen months undercover in narcotics to take down Zabat, the man he blames for the death of his wife and unborn child. He doesn’t have the interest or patience to babysit a woman whose memory isn’t clear—but he’ll carry out his assignment to show the brass he’s a team player.

As Mike and Alexa dodge danger, it appears she’s in deeper than merely being in the wrong place at the wrong time. When the mafia hit she witnessed is revealed to be just the tip of an international terrorist’s plot, they must rely on each other to survive—but only if they can learn to trust their instincts and let love map out their next move.

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REVIEW: No Good Deed is a Romance/Mystery/Suspense novel. This exciting story is fast-paced, twisty, and features a feisty romance. Author Susanne Matthews is excellent at twisting plots and adding surprises, this one exceeds the rules.

The main characters are believable and damaged but lovable, both of them. The secondary characters are both interesting and unique. The bad guys are malevolent, greedy, and generally evil. However, the main bad guy is exceptional. He’s intelligent and talented and gives Hannibal Lechter a run for his money.

The plot is simple but with all the twists and turns I expect from this author. I was not disappointed in the least. I swear I could watch this one on the movie screen in my mind.

Okay, here’s the set-up.

Alexa O’Brien is escaping. She’s planned well…she thinks. She’s going to make it this time…she thinks. When she tries do one good deed on her way, all hell breaks loose and she’s going to die…she thinks. But fate intervenes and she’s put in protective custody…she thinks.

Mike Delorme is a lieutenant, a member of the Sûreté du Québec, the province’s provincial police force for the last fifteen years. He’s not quite recovered from a beating while on assignment, but is reassigned to a joint task force to protect a woman…he thinks. Her safe house and protection are a botched job…he thinks. He’ll protect her and keep her alive like he failed to do for his wife…he thinks. He doesn’t need romance or a family anymore…he thinks. The task force has his back…he thinks.

Okay, that’s the set-up. You can find the answers to these little teasers and more by reading this marvelous adventure for yourself. It’s a great story with lots of excitement and adventure and you’ll find yourself falling in love with these two…I don’t think it…I know it!

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Georgianna S.