Dead Ringer

GIVEAWAY
RANDOM RETRO READ!

SLEEMAN, SUSAN

DEAD RINGER

She was hiding from her past...

Wen a local woman goes missing and Sheriff Blake Jenkins delivers her blood sample to DNA expert Emory Steele for analysis, Blake discovers Emory is a dead ringer for the missing woman. Blake's gut says the woman is related to Emory. But Emory rejects the notion, requiring a DNA test before she'll concede that she does indeed have a twin sister she never knew about.

Now she'll do anything to see it come to light. Emory joins Blake in a search for her missing sister, but when an attempt is made to abduct Emory as well, they begin to think the abduction is related to Emory's birth parents. Blake vows to keep her under his watch until they discover what this maniac is looking for and bring him to justice. But Emory balks at him wanting to keep her under constant surveillance as she's struggling to come to grips with a former brutal attack, ad she wants nothing to dow with a man who might want to get close to her. When it becomes clear that Blake is the only one who can keep her safe, will she let him get close enough to do so?

My Review:

published in 2019

Eeeep, picture me hopping up and down doing my version of a bibliophile happy dance as I not only embark on a Susan Sleeman new-to-me series adventure but come closer to achieving my goal of reading all her books by the end of the year. Skip. Hop. Twirl. And repeat. :-)

This series features the brightest scientific and investigative minds at the famed Veritas Center -- I say famed because I've been reading about this place and these characters as they crossover into other Sleeman series like Nighthawk Security and Steele Guardians. Cold Harbor too, if I'm remembering correctly.  So it's going to be really fun to get the inside scoop on folks I feel like I already know a wee bit. All kinds of book nerdy fun for me!

Having said that, all of this author's series can be read independent of each other so no worries about having to start back with Cold Harbor. I actually realize I still have two books left in that series. Yikes, but I'm getting side tracked and likely confusing you. All you need to know is that the Veritas Center has all kinds of state of the art equipment and the keenest minds working independently and for various law enforcement entities on all the crime solving techie/lab stuff. Think a private CSI.

Emory is one of the partners and a DNA expert and when Blake brings a highly time-sensitive sample to her well....let's just say surprise would be an understatement. And he's a whole lot steamed because he thinks he's being played and their 'meet-cute' doesn't turn out to be all that cute. :-) Because, unknown to Emory, she has a twin...a twin who has been abducted. Cue the creepy music because...

The opening scene -- the only one in the book not from either Blake's or Emory's POV -- is extremely intense and gritty. Rest assured, the whole book isn't like that, but, wowzers, Susan Sleeman sure got my attention!

And then the race is on as Blake and Emory join forces to find her sister. Expect emotional angst, toe-curling fireworks, and lots of uber cool (and often painstaking) investigative work. A consume-in-one-gulp kind of read.

I listened to the audible edition narrated by Whitney Dykhouse and loved every minute of my 'read'. I've come to associate this narrator with Susan Sleeman's novels and I always get revved up the second I hear her voice. (Yes, I know that's weird, but I can't help myself.)

Goal Update: #1 Read more indie authors, #2 Catch up on series I'm behind in, #7 Start new-to-me series, #8 Play author catch-up

GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY:

This giveaway is for a paperback or ebook copy. Winner's choice.

If you would like a chance to win a copy of Dead Ringer, leave a comment below or email me at kavluvstoreadATyahooDOTca. If you add an email to your comment, remember to use AT and DOT instead of @ and . in order to protect yourself from spammers. If you enter the draw via email, please add the title to the subject line so it's easy to spot your entry. Draw will be held and winner announced on Saturday September 10 2022 . Offer open to