Enjoyed this story, the romance and even the whole serial killer thing while not my favorite subject was done well. ( )

Excellent book with non-stop action. Miles has worked hard to get The Slasher arrested and behind bars. Now he can take some time to spend with his son Timmy. When Timmy's mother is murdered and Timmy is a witness, Miles doesn't know how to help his traumatized son. So he takes Timmy to the Bucking Bronc Lodge where Jordan works to help troubled kids. I loved Jordan, though Miles took a bit longer to grow on me.

Jordan had started working with at risk kids as a way to deal with her own feelings after losing her little brother to gang violence. She is very patient and empathetic with the kids which allows her to reach them when many others cannot. When she meets Timmy and Miles she can feel the pain they are going through. She quickly connects with Timmy and feels sure that she can help him although she feels it will take time. She senses Miles's pain, but also his anger and frustration. She would like to help him too but he is so focused on his goal he can't see anything else. I found her to be an incredibly strong character. Even in the midst of being held hostage she was able to keep her head and use her skills to try to save the situation. Her intense attraction to Miles coupled with her abilities also helped her keep him relatively calm while they were searching for Timmy.

Miles was harder to like at the beginning. He was so obsessed with his case that he had neglected his time with Timmy. When Timmy's mother was murdered and Timmy traumatized by witnessing it, his guilty feelings were multiplied. Though his love for Timmy is obvious in the way he really wants him to have the help he needs, his initial pushing of Jordan to get Timmy to talk and identify the killer made him seem insensitive. He is surprised at how quickly Jordan connects with Timmy and more surprised to find himself attracted to her. He tries to bury those feelings under his need to find the killer, but they keep popping up at inconvenient times. His intense need to find the killer was understandable, but it bothered me that at times it seemed more important than Timmy was. He also seemed prone to expecting the worst with Jordan frequently having to talk him down again. I would have liked a little more of a positive outlook from him, but it certainly showed his increasing feelings for Jordan that she could reach him like that.

Though we knew the bad guy from the beginning the glimpses into his thoughts certainly upped the intensity of the story. There were also a couple twists in it that were unexpected but definitely added to the suspense. ( )

In Herron’s romantic suspense novel, Miles McGregor is a lawman committed to finding justice. Now that his most recent obsession is in prison, he is free to spend more time with his son, Timmy. Unexpectantly, Timmy’s mother is murdered in front of him and Miles resorts to taking him to the Bucking Bronc Lodge, a ranch where troubled young boys get the help they need.

Jordan Keys is a counselor and quickly develops a bond with Timmy as they begin to process his grief. Willing to help anyone, Jordan soon discovers the father is tougher to reach and much less willing to even try. But when a killer comes calling, Miles McGregor goes into action placing his own life on the line for his son and the woman that has breached the wall surrounding him.

Fast-paced, action-packed, great characters—a great installation to the Bucking Bronc Lodge series. ( )

4 STARS
Miles McGregor is a Cop who was working overtime to stop a serial killer. He was convicted and then while he was in jail another victim was killed in exact same way.
Robert Dugan life was ruined by Miles ruining his reputation. Eventhough he got released.
Miles still believes he convicted the Slasher but has some doubts.
Marie Younger became the next victim of the Slasher. Her son maybe saw it.
Timmy McGregor was a small boy who saw his mother dead. He Blames his father for not being thier to save his mommy. Miles is convinced that Robert Dugan targeted his son's mother for revenge on him.
Timmy does not talk after that. Miles knows that he could be killed if he can't get Timmy to talk about what happened that night.
Jordan Keys feels guilt over her younger brothers death. She testified against the gang members. She is volunteering at the ranch to work with troubled children. She will be working with Timmy to get him communicating.
Timmy responds to her and to the horses. Starts being comforting. Then someone starts shooting at Timmy and Jordan. They don't know if its the Slasher or someone from Jordans past that has come for revenge.
the suspense is good for most of the book and thier are surprises that I did not see coming.
Thier was some sex scenes in the book. based on this book I would read more books from Rita.
I was given this ebook to read in exchange for honest review from Netgalley.
11/01/2012 PUB Harlequin Imprint Harlequin Intrigue ( )