Review: Beg for Mercy by Jami Alden

Beg for Mercy
~Jami Alden

Mass Market Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Forever
Publish Date: May 31, 2011
ISBN-10: 0446572802
ISBN-13: 978-0446572804
ASIN: B00495ZE5S

From Goodreads:
Megan Flynn thought she was falling in love. Cole Williams wasn't just handsome and passionate, he was one of the good guys. Or so she thought, until he arrested her brother-the only family she has left-for a murder she knows he couldn't have possibly committed. Now, with her heart broken and her brother's life hanging in the balance, Megan will risk everything to prove his innocence. Even if that means throwing herself into the path of a sadistic killer with a hauntingly familiar MO.

Seattle Detective Cole Williams had given up on making Megan see reason where her brother is concerned. But when she insinuates herself into the most shockingly brutal case Cole has ever worked, he can't stand idly by. Plunged into a secret world where the city's elite indulge their darkest desires, Cole will do whatever it takes to bring down a madman who has made Megan his most coveted prey.

Megan Flynn's brother Sean has been convicted of a horrible murder.  She knows he's innocent, but can't prove it.  He's been sentenced to death and is done appealing his sentence.  Megan can't accept that her brother is going to die for a crime he didn't commit, and is determined to save him.

Cole Williams is a cop - the cop who arrested Megan's brother for murder.  He and Megan had been dating at the time, and after the arrest their relationship ended after it was made public.  He's been called out to investigate a brutal rape and murder.  He's surprised when he gets to the crime scene and Megan is there - she's the teenage witness' legal advocate.

After Megan notices  a similarity in the current murder and the murder her brother was convicted of, she asks Cole for his help.  He doesn't want to help, but once Megan starts uncovering clues, he's not only helping her find the truth, he's helping her stay alive.

My thoughts:
Megan is a likable heroine, even with her single-minded determination to free her brother. Cole is a by-the-book cop; noble and courageous, if lonely.  Even though he believes Sean is guilty, he agrees to help Megan, if only to help her accept the truth. I liked Cole and his ability to admit to himself that this might be his second chance at happiness, however briefly.  We don't really get an in-depth look at either the hero or heroines pasts though, only that Megan and Sean's parents died when they were young.

The killer was cold and calculating, and entirely insane.  At first I wondered how Megan was connected, but as we are given glimpses of his history, we see his path to insanity and why he does what he does.  I pegged who the killer was early on, but there were a few spots in the story where I second-guessed myself.


I like Jami Alden's writing style, she has an ability to pull the reader into the scene without being overly descriptive.  For example, during scenes in a trailer park, I could picture it in my head, the dirt, the desperation, the hopelessness of the residents.  

The climax was fast-paced and full of suspense. Beg for Mercy was a quick and entertaining read.

My Rating:

This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Review and Giveaway: White Heat by Brenda Novak

From the author's website:
White Heat is the first book in Brenda Novak’s new Department 6 Hired Guns trilogy.

Nate Ferrentino and Rachel Jessop are operatives for Department 6, a private security company, and they’re going undercover to expose a new and dangerous cult.

This group has taken up residence in the Arizona desert, in a ghost town called Paradise. Members worship at the feet—and in the bed--of its charismatic leader, Ethan Wycliff. On his orders, they tried to stone a woman to death. And they’re implicated in the disappearance of a teenage girl.

To expose the Church of the Covenant, with its arcane rituals and debauched practices, Nate and Rachel must pretend to be married. That’s the only way they can get in—but being Nate’s “wife” is the last thing Rachel wants. She and Nate have a one-night history that’s just an embarrassment to her now. But they don’t have a choice. Wycliff has to be stopped.

_____________________________________

My thoughts:
The storyline of White Heat caught and kept my attention: Private investigators infiltrating a religous cult (the "Covenanteers") to find missing women and bring the cult down if indeed there are shenanigans afoot (and you just know there are!). The investigators who are playing husband/wife, Nate and Rachel, have a weird history both apart and together. I'm not sure how to go into it without spoilers but here goes:

Rachel's father was a religious zealot/cult leader and she left when she was 17. She eventually would up woking for Deartment 6 after a stint in the police force. Nate had a previous relationship that went badly at the end and therefore refuses to get emotionally close to another woman. Approximately six months before the events in this story, Rachel "surprised" Nate by being naked in his bed when he got home from work; their differing reactions the next day have left both Rachel and Nate embarassed and distant. Because of this, they're both uncomfortable about posing as husband and wife in the deserted town the Covenenteers call home.

The Covenenteers were all I knew they'd be: Crazy leader, subjugation of women, bizarre sexual practices, weapon stockpiling, "blind" followers. Ethan, the cult's leader, was so good as a bad guy...and he was a bad guy, no matter how he tried to spin it. His assistant, Bart was equally creepy. I followed the cult storyline to the end, watching it play out to the final showown. (The only weird thing was that the author stressed that Bart was impotent, which I thought was weird in a cult that centered around sexual practices as rituals.)

The Rachel/Nate storyline was not as strong. It was hot and cold and for me didn't make a lot of sense - Rachel and Nate were attracted to each other but because of their previous "incident" didn't act on it. Except that when Nate did try to act on it, I kept thinking why now? I didn't see where it was imperitave to their investigation. Rachel's actions in response to his romantic attempts were not consistent, in my opinion. By the end of the story I think their actions were a bit more believable, but it was a strange journey to get there.

This was my first read by Brenda Novak and therefore I wasn't sure what to expect. Although I had a few little niggles about this book, overall I enjoyed it and am looking forward to the next two books in the series: Body Heat (September 2010) and Killer Heat (October 2010).

WHITE HEAT Book Trailer:

My Rating:


______________________________

And now for the giveaway:
One lucky commenter will win a White Heat prize pack including:
~Tote bag~
~3D viewer bookmark~
~White Heat lip gloss – made especially for the book!~
~A copy of White Heat~


To enter, leave a comment telling me you'd like to win this prize pack. This giveaway is open to U.S. and Canadian addresses and is sponsored by MIRA Books. Contest ends Saturday, August 21. Please check back to see if you've won.

Also from the author's website: If you'd like a pair of Brenda Novak 3D glasses (which double as a bookmark), send a self-addressed stamped envelope to: Brenda Novak P.O. Box 3781 Citrus Heights, CA 95611

About Brenda Novak:
New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Brenda Novak has three novels coming out this summer - WHITE HEAT, BODY HEAT & KILLER HEAT. She also runs an annual on-line auction for diabetes research every May at www.brendanovak.com. To date, she’s raised over $1,072,000. Brenda considers herself lucky to be a mother of five and married to the love of her life.

This book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.