Countdown by Lynette Eason Book Review

About the Book:

Raina Price is living life incognito. In order to protect herself from a dangerous stalker, she had to change her name, her identity, and her home. With the help of her friend from juvie, Raina is able to begin life anew. She has a new job as a flight paramedic that she loves. It feels great to put her energies into saving lives. But it is hard to put aside the fact that her own life may still be in danger.

US Marshal Vincent Corelli’s job is to hunt down fugitives and protect those who are assigned to him. When Raina is almost killed in front of him, he is more determined than ever to save her and to find out who is behind the nefarious act.

Together they must work to solve the mystery of Raina’s past. But someone is determined to make sure that she doesn’t live long enough to uncover the truth. Can she trust Vincent with her past as well as her future? 

You can read an excerpt here.

My Review:

This novel centers around Raina, a woman with a troubled past. She is a survivor, however, and has managed to create a good life for herself. That life is now being threatened. Most of the narrative of this novel deals with the developing romance between her and Vince. There is quite a bit of character thought included so the suspense is periodic.

But there is a good deal of suspense. One of my pet peeves is suspense happening because of unwise action by characters who should know better. Shortly after a failed attempt on Raina's life, Vince takes her to a very vulnerable location, a lake. They go on an open pontoon boat with no additional protection around. They have been followed and, of course, shots are fired and suspense follows. They manage to live through it but then, later, they are on a drive, by themselves with no additional protection, and are rear ended and suspense follows again. I don't like danger resulting because the hero makes such unwise choices. I like it much more when the villain outwits a smart hero.

This is a romantic suspense novel for readers who like an emphasis on potential romance and don't mind suspense generated by bad decisions of the characters. The faith message is subtle, but there is a good exploration of forgiving others who have done great damage to us or those we love. One realizes we have probably all made decisions that have hurt others, suggesting we have a more forgiving attitude.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

You can read my reviews of the earlier books in the series: Life Flight, Crossfire, and Critical Threat.

About the Author:

Lynette Eason is the USA Today bestselling author of Life Flight, Crossfire, and Critical Threat, as well as the Danger Never Sleeps, Blue Justice, Women of Justice, Deadly Reunions, Hidden Identity, and Elite Guardians series. She is the winner of three ACFW Carol Awards, the Selah Award, and the Inspirational Reader's Choice Award, among others. She is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and has a master's degree in education from Converse College. Eason lives in South Carolina with her husband. They have two adult children. Learn more at www.lynetteeason.com.

Revell, 304 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)