I love books where I don't have to wait for chapter after chapter to get to a good part, and LETHAL LIES definitely delivers to my tastes. Chapter one starts off with a bang, and the action, adventure, suspense, mystery, and passion never slow down after that.

Investigative reporter Chelsea Logan is finally ready to file the story of a lifetime. Life in Serenity, Maine, has always seemed quiet and calm to outsiders, the kind of small town where anyone and everyone would love to raise their family. Hadn't she moved back to accept a job at the local paper, living in the house she'd grown up in, believing that she'd finally found the right place for herself and her fifteen-year-old daughter, Jessie? Chelsea soon learns, though, that all is not what it seems in Serenity, and she's finally ready to go to the Chief of Police, Ty Savage, with her allegations before her story hits the paper.

Her middle-of-the-night trip never reaches fulfillment, however, when Chelsea plunges off of a deserted road and into the river below. All too quickly, Chelsea Logan and her unfiled story are history-just the way that a certain someone has planned it. Since she never got to Ty, never had her story on the front page of the River City Gazette, person or persons unknown in Serenity are now breathing easier.

Easier, that is, until Faith Pelletier returns to town. Chelsea's cousin and best friend, Faith uses the need to take care of Jessie as her reason to return to the hometown that she swore never to step foot in again. But she knows the truth-she doesn't believe that Chelsea's death was a suicide, and there are too many unanswered questions surrounding not only her friend and cousin's death, but the circumstances surrounding it. What exactly was Chelsea doing driving down a dark and deserted road after midnight? Who was she going to see, and why?

As the placid calm of Serenity, Maine, is shattered by a world of violence, drugs, and scrupulous men and women, Faith knows that she's on to something-something, some reason, that contributed to her cousin's death.

With Ty Savage, a man that she's always secretly been a little in love with, the only one to turn to with her suspicions, Faith realizes that she might be in danger, not to mention Chelsea's daughter, Jessie. As secrets are revealed, as passions build, as the danger in this once-peaceful small town comes to a head, LETHAL LIES will have you on the edge of your seat.

Ms. Breton has written a winning romantic suspense story with a twisting, turning story line and truly remarkable characters. With LETHAL LIES, you'll have a hard time guessing what will happen next, and that is one sign of a great mystery story. ( )

This is another romantic suspense set in a small town featuring the hero as the chief of police. Heroine returns home to care for her niece who has been orphaned when her mother is killed. No violence and the story focuses more on the relationships than the mystery. (Grade: B) ( )