This title may be purchased from Amazon
Seven years ago, Hope Harper was a star defense attorney with a great life—until she got the wrong defendant released, and he turned around and viciously slaughtered her family. Since then, the only thing Hope cares about is locking bad guys behind bars where they can’t hurt anyone else. When the killer escapes from a maximum security prison during a winter storm, Hope refuses to run and hide.
The FBI’s Hostage Rescue Team is called in to protect the handful of public figures the notorious serial killer threatened. Operator Aaron Nash draws the short straw—he’ll be heading up Assistant District Attorney Hope Harper’s close protection detail.
Much to Aaron’s frustration, the cool blonde refuses to go into protective custody. As the hours and days wear on, Aaron and Hope manage a fragile truce. He begins to understand and admire the tenacious prosecutor, and the two of them begin to work together.
As the escaped serial killer’s rampage spins on, Hope knows it’s just a matter of time until he comes for her. Except something’s changed. For the first time since losing her family, she has something to live for. But is history doomed to repeat itself?
Rating: B+
Toni Anderson continues her long-running Cold Justice series with Cold Fury, the fourth book in the spin-off Cold Justice: Most Wanted series. There are mentions of and cameos by some of the characters who have appeared in earlier instalments, and it’s clear that some of the secondary cast in this book will eventually be the heroes of their own stories – but each of the novels in the series works as a standalone. (And honestly, I’ve read at least nine or ten of the previous books and even then, I can’t always remember who did what in which one!)
When Cold Fury opens, we meet dedicated defence attorney Hope Harper. Her star is on the rise, she’s happily married with a beautiful daughter, and life is good – until it isn’t. She’s just doing her job when she gets Julius Leech, accused of the brutal murders of several women, acquitted after she discovers that the police planted evidence designed to ensure a conviction. She doesn’t like it – but rules are rules, and she has to make sure that the letter of the law is upheld. She returns home later that evening to find her husband and daughter have been killed – and then Leech appears on the doorstep, telling her he wants to thank her for doing a good job today. It takes a devastated and distraught Hope a few moments to join the dots, and by that time, the emergency services have arrived, including Hope’s brother-in-law, Brendan, a cop on the local force, who proceeds to beat Leech to within an inch of his life.
Leech is convicted this time, and goes to prison for life.
Seven years later, and Hope is now a highly successful prosecutor with the DA’s office. She’s cultivated a reputation as a “queen bitch attorney”, a strong, confident and powerful woman who is absolutely ruthless in her quest to put away as many killers as she possibly can. Since the deaths of her husband and daughter, she’s locked away the softer emotions and runs mostly on determination and controlled anger at the injustices she sees day after day. She has no personal life and lives with her cat, her entire existence focused around her job.
When an accident on icy roads leads to Leech’s escape from custody, the elite FBI HRT (Hostage Rescue Team) is put on alert and sent to provide protection to anyone who could be targeted by the serial killer. At the top of that list is Hope Harper, but when operative Aaron Nash and his team arrive, he quickly realises that convincing the fiercely independent attorney to accept their protection is the first hurdle to be overcome. Even though Hope realises she has no alternative but to accept the HRT’s protection (the order has come directly from the Attorney General), she doesn’t have to like it and is adamant that under no circumstances will she be prevented from doing her job. Aaron can respect her dedication, but not her somewhat cavalier attitude towards her own safety, and makes very clear that while he’s prepared to work with her when it comes to enabling her to function as normally as possible, there are some boundaries and ground-rules that are non-negotiable.
You can read the rest of this review at All About Romance.
Caz's Reading Room 