Mercy - B.J. Daniels (HQN - Sept 2014)

Series: Beartooth Montana (Book 5)

The hunt for a killer leads to a battle between justice and desire

For U.S. marshal Rourke Kincaid, there's the law…and then there's his law. When the two don't agree, he always trusts his instincts. A killing spree has gripped the Northwest, showing a strange connection that only he sees, and now the old rules of justice no longer apply. Forced to turn rogue, he goes deep undercover to track his mysterious female suspect to a quiet, unassuming café in the wild, isolated mountains of Beartooth, Montana.

But encountering Callie Westfield complicates his mission in ways he never expected. As suspicious as she seems, her fragile beauty and sexy charm get to Rourke. Then the gory crimes begin anew. With his heart suddenly at war with his instincts, he has only two options. Either turn Callie over to the law, or put everything -- including his badge and his life -- on the line to protect her.

Excellent book that kept me riveted from beginning to end.  It starts out with Rourke fascinated by a cold case he has been working on. With a closer look he sees a connection to two other cases, but no one else believes there's anything to it. So Rourke takes a couple weeks vacation and pursues his suspicions on his own.

Rourke has never had any trouble trusting his instincts, and those are telling him there's more to Callie Westfield than he first suspected. His initial thought had been that she was somehow involved in the murders, but once he met her he had his doubts.  There's something about her that tells him she isn't capable of those gruesome murders, but he also senses that she has secrets that put her in danger. I loved seeing the battle that Rourke fought with himself. His brain was telling him that Callie had motive and opportunity, but his heart says that she is a victim also.  He feels guilty for lying to her about who he is, but he also needs to be sure that she isn't the serial killer herself.

Callie hasn't stayed in one place for very long, but Beartooth has given her a sense of security she hasn't felt in years. For the first time in two years she hasn't suffered from the headaches that were the precursors to visions of murder, and she hopes that they are gone for good. Then a good looking cowboy comes to town and the trouble starts up again. Somehow she knows that he is connected in some way. She's suspicious of him because she can't read him the way she does others, but she's also attracted to him. When she starts seeing more murders Callie has to decide if she can trust him with her secrets.

This book was filled with twists and turns. Rourke notices Callie in three crime scene pictures and goes to his former partner for help in finding out who she is. He discovers that Laura has a connection to one of the cases. She is initially reluctant to help Rourke, but once she does she has a lot to say. As a criminal profiler she has a theory and works hard to convince Rourke that she's right. I have to say that I didn't like Laura from the very beginning. She is in love with Rourke, thought he's never had those feelings for her. I thought she was far too focused on Callie being the killer and didn't leave any room for the idea of it being someone else. The more information that came to light about Callie, the stranger things get.  I did figure out who it was, but there were enough twists that I wasn't sure of the exact details. It ended up being even creepier than I expected.

Atonement - B. J. Daniels (HQN - Feb 2014)

Series: Beartooth Montana (Book 4)

Just how far are people willing to go to keep their secrets?

Protecting the citizens of Beartooth, Montana, is never an easy job. It's been one year, and Sheriff Dillon Lawson still feels guilty that he couldn't save his twin brother, Ethan. But the biggest test of his bravery comes when Tessa Winters arrives, claiming to be pregnant…with Ethan's baby. At first, Dillon can't decide if this beautiful woman is a con artist or a victim. If Ethan didn't die in that car crash, then where is he -- and why is he hiding?

Now, Dillon is prepared to do anything to uncover the truth -- anything except admit his growing feelings for Tessa. But with violence threatening, Tessa and Dillon must trust in each other to save not only themselves…but also Tessa's unborn child.

Good book with two interesting storylines.  The main story is that of Dillon and Tessa. Dillon has been filling in as sheriff while Sheriff Frank Curry has been on a leave of absence.  It's been an eventful year and Dillon is still feeling the loss of his twin brother - until a woman shows up claiming to be pregnant with Ethan's baby.  Now Dillon wants to know why Ethan is pretending to be dead.  

Since she didn't know that Ethan had a twin brother, at first Tessa thought Dillon was Ethan.  Once that confusion is dealt with both Dillon and Tessa want to find Ethan.  As they work together they discover that Ethan had gotten in over his head in a couple of ways and want to find him before he ends up dead for real. Dillon spent a lot of time when he was younger protecting Ethan from their father and getting Ethan out of the trouble he was constantly in. He wants Ethan to have the chance to do the right thing by Tessa.  Meanwhile, Tessa is over Ethan, having put up with enough over his disappearance and his theft of her savings.  She just wants him to sign over custody of their baby to her so she can move on with her life.  Dillon quickly grows attached to Tessa, partly because of the baby she carries but mostly because of the way she makes him feel.  But he feels guilty about those feelings because she is his brother's girl.  Tessa realizes that Dillon is everything that Ethan is not, but doesn't think Dillon would ever see her as anything other than his niece's mother.  I loved the growing relationship between the two of them.  Dillon was such a nice guy that I wondered for a little while how long he would go before letting Tessa know how he felt.  It wasn't too surprising that Tessa seemed to take more initiative, though Dillon wasn't backward once he realized she really did want him.

The mystery that revolves around Ethan, his "death", and the people he got mixed up with was very well done.  There were multiple viewpoints from the various players as the danger to Ethan, Dillon and Tessa grew closer.  There were a couple very interesting twists as the truth came out about who was after Ethan and why.  I loved the final resolution and how Dillon handled it.

The second storyline involved Sheriff Frank Curry and his lady friend Nettie.  In the previous book Forsaken Frank's ex-wife had attempted to kill both him and Nettie.  She got away, and Frank took a leave of absence to try to find her.  At the beginning of this one, he has returned to Beartooth having been unable to find her.  He is ready to go back to work and pick up his romance with Nettie.  Just as things are starting to look up for them, Pam's remains are found on Frank's land and he is suspected of murdering her.  Nettie doesn't believe he had anything to do with it and takes it upon herself to do a little investigating of her own.  Frank is worried about her safety and tries to convince her to stay out of it, but Nettie is just as stubborn as he is.  Her efforts nearly get her killed by a character I never suspected.  I loved seeing Frank and Nettie finally get their happy ending after so many years apart.

As always, I love the vivid descriptions of the Montana landscape.  Sometimes I could swear I felt the cold of the snowstorms or smell the scent of the pines.  Someday I will get there to see it for myself.