Murder Mystery anyone? Our favourite family is back in the Hot Cannolis #3, Hot Pursuit by Eli Easton, shifting slightly to feature Rick Canali, police detective finding love and solving a murder mystery involving one of the Cal Fire Stations....
From the blurb:
Solving the case will be tricky. But keeping their hands off each other will be impossible.
Detective Rick Canali’s life is perfect the way it is. He loves his job with the Chico, CA police. He can get casual sex whenever he wants it, and for family vibes, he has his brother Angelo’s large family of hotheaded firefighters. He’s happy being a “perpetual bachelor.” But when he’s partnered up with a too-attractive newbie detective, all the neat boxes in his life threaten to collapse. Because the one thing this detective never saw coming—falling in love.
John Rivera always wanted to be a detective. He’s determined to succeed despite his ex trying to make his life hell and his new partner—the gorgeous Rick Canali—making it clear he’s not wanted. As a former foster care kid, he’s used to fighting his own battles and depending on no one.
When a firefighter dies under suspicious circumstances, Rick and John’s new partnership is tested. It turns out, they’re a pretty good team. But can they crack the case while dancing around their mutual attraction, dodging John’s ex, and trying to keep the Canali firefighters safe from a potential killer in the Cal Fire ranks?
Hot Pursuit is a murder mystery wrapped in a romance with a big scoop of suspense, hurt-comfort, evil ex, and more Canali family feels.
Jacqueleen The Reading Queen's Review:
Murder Mystery anyone? Hot Pursuit takes teeny bit of a detour from the previous books with our favorite firefighters. I say teeny bit because the Cal Fire dept. is still very much involved in this book, except for the fact neither of our MCs work there. The Cannoli falling in love in this book is Uncle Ricky. Rick just so happens to be the cop investigating the potential murder of one of Donny and Mike's co workers. You can see how we aren't leaving Cal Fire completely behind now right?
The mystery aspect was damn good. It kept me guessing and had my suspicions pinging all over the place. I'd think ok this is definitely the guy who did it. Then I'd change my mind and be certain it was the next suspect. I loved that I couldn't easily pick out the bad guy from the start. It made it so much fun.
As for the romance, I would definitely put this one in the slow burn category. There was plenty of that lovely UST, but nothing physical happened until over halfway through the book. Believe me people I was ready to start chanting Kiss Kiss Kiss! Steam wise this was much less steamy than Donny's book, however it needed to be that way due to certain circumstances of the past I'm not going to spoil. Just know it worked out how it needed to. John needed to learn to trust Rick, and Rick needed to admit to himself the depth of his feelings for John. Rick is a seriously private person, so for this relationship to thrive Rick had to step out of his comfort zone a bit. I swear I smiled every time he gave John a bit of affection in public. Every sweet gesture solidified that Rick was in this with John for the long haul.
As for the next book I have a pretty solid idea of who it's about. As they say, it's always the quiet ones and I cannot wait for more!
Rating: 5 Stars
Heather's Review:
I didn't realize I was diving into a full on romantic suspense novel until I was a few chapters into Hot Pursuit and realized that Rick and his new partner, John were in for some serious detective work to solve a murder mystery involving one of Donny and Mike's colleagues and a terrible fire in Chico, Ca... and the romance was on point too!
I love how John and Rick have strong misconceptions about each other at the beginning of the book and how each of them dispel those misconceptions as they work together and become closer to each other... John's side issue with his previous ex was a complication that kept drawing my attention away from the main story - and the distraction worked... I didn't figure out who dun it until just before the killer was revealed, which makes that part of the book very satisfying...
John and Rick's romance was slow burn, sweet and really built itself on learning and changing their perceptions and it was very comforting and a little different from the steamy fire fighter romances - but it was perfect for this couple!
I do recommend reading the series in order - particularly to get the backstory of the family and an understanding of how Cal Fire works before diving into this book, but I think you could grab it as standalone if romantic suspense is your jam...
I will say there is a trigger warning for discussion of domestic violence, it is brief but recurring.
Rating; 5 Stars
Hot Pursuit is currently available as an e-book and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription
Comments
Post a Comment