I enjoy a good mystery and Hostile Intent does not disappoint. In Hostile Intent, Lynette Eason gives you a mysterious psychopath bent on revenge, two likeable protagonists, clues, twists and turns, close calls, and sexual tension.
Summary
Just before Ava Jackson returns home after retiring from the military, her father ends up missing and presumed dead and her mom falls ill in the last stages of Alzheimers. Ava finds herself in a time of mourning, transition, and seeking answers. One evening, Ava is attacked by a stranger while on her way to her car. Ava successfully defends herself as her friend shows up to scare the intruder away.
Her friend is FBI special agent Caden Denning. Caden discovers her attack is connected to the murders of three families he is investigating. He suspects the connection to the cases may be related to her father. Ava has been hiding her father’s secret and wants to help. Caden and Ava set out to solve the murders and save Ava from further harm.
Pace, Storyline, Characters
In Hostile Intent, author Lynette Eason skillfully balances excitement, danger, and mystery with romance. There is enough electricity between the two protagonists to light up a football stadium, yet she flirts with it throughout the story not succumbing to gratuitous sex scenes. It gently teases and leaves us rooting for the two to end up together if they survive the dangers throughout.
Speaking of danger, Eason does not hold back. With a maniacal murderer bent on revenge on their heels, danger is at every turn. Eason deftly uses the element of surprise and the story pace is swift enough to keep you on the edge of your seat telling your spouse, “just one more chapter and then I’ll make dinner.”
Eason does a good job with internal and external dialogue to develop each character’s intent and backstory. You feel like you are part of Ava and Caden’s circle of friends.
Summary
While, like a Hallmark movie, these stories are formulaic. Yet, even though you guess at how the whole story arch will end, you enjoy where she takes you along the way. Hostile Intent, published by Revell, is the fourth book in Eason’s Danger Never Sleeps series.
DISCLOSURE OF MATERIAL CONNECTION:
I received this book free as part of a Book Review program. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”