Midnight Lies
4 Stars

Synopsis:
Exonerated following the murder of his ex-wife, Quinn Braddock travels to Midnight, Alabama to win back the heart of the woman who means everything to him. Yet, a killer is waiting in the wings to destroy all that Quinn holds dear, including his love, Samantha Wilde.

Review:
Similar to the first book in the series, Midnight Lies is more of a contemporary romance than a romantic suspense novel despite the inclusion of a murder mystery.

Unlike the first book in which there are virtually no clues as to the killer's identity, the villain in this one is painfully obvious as there are no other suspects to be had, and the motive is completely transparent. Nevertheless, the build up to the climax is steady and the tension ratchets up a notch or two toward the end with an intense and thrilling resolution.

In terms of the romance Quinn and Sam have palpable chemistry, however, their inability to trust each other or even hold a single conversation without holding themselves in check begins to grate on the nerves. Their lack of communication leads to a tedious on/off relationship and, unfortunately, this makes it difficult to completely enjoy their story.

That said, Quinn is a scrumptious hero and his past family and marital history more than explain his reticence. The same cannot be said of Sam. Yes, she has trust issues with men, however, by acknowledging that Quinn seems too perfect to be true, she sets him up to fail and when Quinn is under suspicion for murder, the inevitable happens, and Sam allows her distrust to manifest itself. Consequently, Sam's betrayal sets the tone for her character throughout the book and she never manages to be as likable as her sister Savvy.

In terms of the setting and secondary characters, the small town nosiness and gossip mongering contributes greatly to the Southern atmosphere and characterization. We get to catch up on Zach and Savvy, as well as Logan and Brody, who are developing into potential heroes for their own books, and Bri's character is particularly intriguing. Looking forward to her book next.

Midnight Lies is scheduled for release on September 24, 2013. An advance copy of the book was provided to me for review by the publisher and NetGalley.com ( )

Confident and capable detective Samantha Wilde is thrown for a loop when her lover, Dr. Quinn Braddock is accused of murdering his ex-wife. Sam takes time off from her job to investigate on Quinn’s behalf, only to have him accuse of her not believing in him and ending the relationship. Devastated, she heads back to Midnight, Alabama and goes to work with her sisters at the newly formed security agency.

The bond that exists between the sisters is one of my favorite parts of this series. They don’t lie to one another, they know each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and they’re wholly supportive of one another even if they’re picking at each other. While the beginning of the book sets up Sam and Quinn’s relationship, in many ways the beginning felt extraneous and cumbersome. The beginning is relevant to what happens at the end of the book, but it could’ve been pared down quite a bit to help with pacing issues.

When Quinn discovers that Sam went to bat for him, he heads straight to Midnight to beg forgiveness from Sam as well as another chance. I have to say, I really didn’t care much for Quinn as a hero. He’s an unbelievable jerk to her in the beginning of the book, and his actions with his ex-wife don’t quite match how his character is constructed. He’s set up as a very controlled and proud man, yet he still answers calls from his ex who jerked him around and cheated on him. When Sam turns him down, he decides to stick around in Midnight and ends up buying a house there in town. As much as Sam is reluctant to give Quinn another chance, they do end up trying to work on things between the two of them.

There are a couple of subplots woven throughout the book that involve a mysterious good looking stranger that gives Sam odd vibes and Quinn is once again a suspect when a woman is found murdered, but these developments are inserted slowly throughout the pages, and are not very suspenseful to boot. When Midnight Lies focuses on the sisters, I found myself more easily engaged with the text as opposed to the mysteries that lie around who murdered Quinn’s ex. In any case, it was a pleasant enough read, but not very memorable or exciting.

Samantha Wilde
Quinn Braddock

MAN That was good! I mean good! Quinn has some issues. I understand, we all have something but man I wanted to slap him a few times. He's lucky to have Samantha and I hope he over his emotional lock downs that require him to push her away. But I digress. His parents were some kind of work! I'm still not over the way things have shaken out at the end. I'm just flabbergasted. I keep wanting to reason it out but you can't, there is just too much crazy. I think a bit too much focus was on Bri's up coming story but I'm still very excited to read it. 4 Stars


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Read With Me: Midnight Lies ( )

This romantic suspense had plenty of action but there were too many ups and downs in the relationship. I'm not convinced they will have a happily ever after. It was also pretty easy to guess who the bad guy was. Dr Quinn's ex-wife is murdered and his cop girlfriend Sam isn't sure he is innocent.
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This was a book that I could not put down. It grabbed me from the beginning and held me the entire time. ( )