New series! Hidden Truth (Stealth #1) – Danica Winters

Available today!

Wary of each other’s secrets

Neither knows the other is undercover.

Rancher Trevor Martin has as many dangerous secrets as his housekeeper, Sabrina Parker. She’s undercover FBI, investigating whether Trevor is a gunrunning terrorist. She doesn’t know he’s CIA. But living under the same roof and in close proximity becomes a liability. Trust is uncertain, but attraction is undeniable. When they become embroiled in a series of grisly murders, will their secrets cost them their lives in the end?

A big yay for a return to the Montana hamlet of Mystery, the setting of Danica’s previous Intrigue series Mystery Christmas! If you haven’t read those then a. why are you here? and b. WTF have you been doing?? I mean come on, can you name ANY other book in ANY other series by ANY other author that has the main couple shagging on Star Wars sheets?? (Well, I can’t but I’m quite sure even if there is the remotest possibility you can, there won’t be many instances!) All that said, no you do not need to have read that series first but there are references to people and events from them in this book though they are minor and won’t affect your read of this new outing in Mystery.

All kidding aside, as much as I love the touches of humor that are a staple of her books, this is definitely not a comedy. When the story begins we are thrust into the dangerous world of arms trafficking. The Martin siblings run undercover operations out of their private security firm STEALTH under the auspices of the CIA. Their mission is trying to trap a Turkish terrorist group with a fake arms sale that quickly goes bad, and one of their own is killed. The story then picks up back in the US and the ranch the siblings have purchased in Montana. Trevor has taken a break from contacting work after the failure of their last mission, but then he is stuck with the task of kicking a group of squatters off their land. Their shack is where he meets Sabrina, the new housekeeper for the Martins who has a secret of her own. She is an undercover FBI agent investigating the Martins for their gun running activities since as we know from real life, the various clandestine services have issues with sharing information. Her career rides on the outcome of this case and she is determined to keep Trevor at arms length until they discover a dead body and then threats and danger begin to swirl around them.

The story is full of packed full of tension and intrigue and there are quite a few characters that will leave you guessing where their loyalties lie. One thing that isn’t in question is the immediate attraction between Trevor and Sabrina, and I loved their interactions. Once you add another of the Martin brothers (Chad) into the mix, he adds a much-needed comedic element with his gastronomic desires that helps defuse the strained atmosphere on more than one occasion. I can’t wait to read more about him and the other Martin siblings, though we do have to wait until book 4 for his story!

I would definitely recommend this book to fellow romantic suspense devotees, and am looking forward to diving into book 2 ASAP!

Thank you to Danica as always for feeding my book addiction and providing an ARC; however I am completely responsible for my opinons including those on Star Wars sheets!