Setting: North Carolina*
Dr. Katherine Gilroy has had a difficult life. Her parents divorced. Her father ended up living on the streets. Her mother remarried and had a son named Noah Bennett who ended up getting in trouble with the law. As an adult, she works as a doctor in a medical clinic. When she is out riding a horse with her friend on her friend’s land, she encounters two U.S. Marshalls engaged in a shooting. One of the officers dies leaving his partner Dominic O’Ryan injured. Katherine brings Domenic to her place to take care of him.
While Dominic is recovering, Katherine finds out that her brother (who she has not seen in three years) is a fugitive who was supposed to be in protective custody in order to testify against a boss of a criminal organization. Dominic thinks Noah is responsible for his partner’s death, but Katherine insists that he is innocent. This, of course, creates tension between them both while they are forming romantic feelings toward one another.
While the romance was sweet, I felt the mystery at the center of this novel was too convoluted. It ended up devolving into a conspiracy that had many parties involved. I am not against complicated mysteries, but they have to make logical sense. There were too many coincidences in this novel. The mystery would have been a lot better if there were not as many criminals (author can still utilize the element of surprise with one or two criminals).
Overall, though, it was an inspiring love story with engrossing suspense, even if the plot had some holes in it.
*I’m developing a 50 state mystery challenge where I try to read a mystery set in each state. So, I will be recording the location of all American mystery novels I read.