HOT PURSUIT (A Troubleshooters Novel) by Suzanne Brockmann

HOT PURSUIT

A Troubleshooters Novel

by
Suzanne Brockmann

Ballantine Books
Hardcover
Release July 2009

Alyssa Locke left the Navy as a trained sniper. She would have liked to have become a Navy Seal, but that was a world closed to women. So she left the Navy to join the FBI's anti-terrorism squad. Eventually she left the FBI to join Troubleshooters when Former Navy Commander Tom Paoletti left the Navy and opened up shop as a private security firm.

Several years later Alyssa is happily married to cowboy/ex-Seal Sam Starrett and they have a cute baby son. They both work for Troubleshooters. (They had their own Romance recorded in Gone Too Far.) Now Alyssa is once again featured in Hot Pursuit. Her nemesis a serial killer caller {shiver, shiver} "The Dentist". The Dentist will not be satisfied until he has Alyssa.

As usual Suzanne Brockmann has several other storylines intersecting and/or running concurrently with the main storyline. (One of Lady Mischief's loved ones likes to tease her because once she lost the dust jacket to a Brockmann Troubleshooters' book and the Lady was half way through the book before she knew who the "main" characters of the book were. Brockmann is a genuis at making you care for all her characters.) Jules, the FBI agent extrodinaire, and his husband Robin, the movie star, come to New York to help. Irving "Izzy" Zanella is still in limbo over his runaway wife Eden, but he receives an offer you have to read to believe. Danny "Gilligan" Gillman is assigned to keep Jennilyn LeMay safe. This is his two week liberty after being in combat in Afghanistan. Gillman wants to get laid.

Ms. Brockmann writes complex stories that cannot be put down until it has been devoured. There are no red herrings. No wasted words. No wasted characters.

Lady Mischief has been known to get bored with series and continuing characters after several books. Ms. Brockmann's Troubleshooters is not one of those series. Perhaps it is because each book has a new hero/heroine and a new hero and perhaps heroine in training. Each plot has been different. Each villian also has been different. And although there are new "H/h" in each book the characters you grew to love in previous books visit often and the reader can rejoice in their ongoing growth.

Nothing is ever stagnant in a Brockmann book.

Now Lady Mischief must divulge some bad news from the author's note at the end of the book. Ms. Brockmann said the next book, Troubleshooters #16 will be the final Troubleshooters, "at least for a little while."

Lady Mischief has enjoyed many of Ms. Brockmann's non-Troubleshooters' books, but ummm, there is something about the ultimate alpha Seal hero, and wishes her much good luck with all that she writes. Lady Mischief will happily read anything with the Brockmann name on it. But, the Lady will still be hoping for another Seal or Troubleshooter to show up.

Remember, this book is currently out in Hardcover. Brockmann is on Lady Mischief's exclusive list of authors she will buy in hardcover. The authors on that list are authors the Lady knows she will read again and again. It is unfortunate for the Lady's purse that so many of them are coming out over the summer. If it were one per month rather than one per week it would be easier to spend the money.

This book rates:

five (5)

Yours forever between the covers of a book,

Lady Mischief

Dark of Night (Troubleshooters)

Dark of Night
A Troubleshooters Novel
by Suzanne Brockmann

Paperbook release June 23, 2009
Ballantine Books

Also Available in:
Hardcover
Kindle
Audio

The phenomena of Suzanne Brockmann's Troubleshooters novels continue with Book 14 Dark of Night. If you haven't read a Troubleshooter's book, you can pick one up and start reading. Although there is a continuing story arc and continuing characters in each book, each book centers on different characters. It can and does stand alone. Although, I must warn you, after you read one Troubleshooters book it just is not enough, you will rush right out to find more.

Now, with that in mind let's talk about Dark of Night.

Sophia and Dave began as minor characters in previous Troubleshooters novels. I really didn't care for them. They were bland. Milktoasty. They didn't present as the strong characters you'd expect Brockmann to provide. Certainly not Hero/Heroine material. Where was the Alpha Seal we so look forward to?

Tess and Nash were also in other books. Nash "died" in the last book. They are more interesting and you have been left to wonder what secret Nash has been hiding. Is this the book where we find out? I may be full of Mischief, but I'm not a spoiler. I'm not going to tell.

Decker, the dark, the deadly, the silent, and the mysterious. Does he love harbor an unrequited love for Sophia or is it the newly widowed Tess he really wants? And what about this electrical connection he feels when he suddenly finds himself face-to-face with the too-hot-for-words Tracy.

Tracy the woman who couldn't even make coffee when she first started working in the office catches Decker doing what he shouldn't be doing. Decker coudn't believe an airhead like her was putting the truth together. He had to put her out of commission for awhile. And maybe he could sink his battleship into her at the same time.

From the time Tracy first appeared on the page she has been a scene stealer. Sometimes even more interesting then the main characters. Now is her time and she does more then carry the book. If the book were a movie you would be hard up to remember who else was in it. From the time the reader and the other Troubleshooters were first introduced to Tracy's large green shower friend you know she was a woman with a lot of ballast to add.

Ms. Brockmann is a genius at taking characters that hover in the background and turning them into people we care about.

Alyssa and Sam Starrett appear in supporting roles. The scenes when Sam is giving Jimmy Nash marriage advise and instructions on how to change young Starrett's diapers are priceless.

It wouldn't be a Troubleshooter's novel without the yummy Jules Cassidy and his movie star husband. Jules is always the heart of the book.

Tracy and Decker are so engaging I could have read another 1,000 pages of just the two of them, but when you add the other supporting cast members I would have been happy with at least another 2-3,000 pages.

Suzanne Brockmann is a top notch writer that goes beyond genre. Her new book is due out on June 1, 2009 in hardcover and I am drooling at the thought of it. As soon as I get it I will let y'all know if it lives up to the Brockmann heretage.

As with all Troubleshooter novels, there is a complex story, complicated characters, and a story arc that covers many books into the future. I am rating this book on three sub-categories and then the over-all rating.

The suspense in this book rates a .

The romance portion of the book rates .

The Sensuality levels between Tracy and Decker are off the scales, but Lady Mischief has hindered herself by putting a five ice treat limit on her rating system. But then again, if you average in the other characters the limit will still hold. Courtesy of Tracy and Decker the rating is .

The over-all rating for this book is .

If you love action heroes, breathless romance, mind blowing sex, and things blowing up this is the book for you.

This book is a gender buster.

For more information about Suzanne Brockmann's books go to her website at http://www.suzannebrockmann.com

Yours forever between the covers of a book,

Lady Mischief