catch a ghostRating: 4.75 stars
Buy Links: 
 Amazon | All Romance
Length: Novel


Prophet is a former CIA agent and Navy SEAL who now works for Extreme Escapes, Ltd., a mercenary group that handles tough assignments the government must stay away from.  He is skilled at his job, but doesn’t exactly play well with others.  So when his boss assigns Prophet a new partner, he definitely is not happy about it.

Tom Boudreaux is a former FBI agent and, like Prophet, carries a lot of baggage behind him.  Extreme Escapes seems like a perfect place to get out of the drudgery of his job as a Louisiana deputy sheriff, but he can tell right away things aren’t going to be easy with his new partner. The two men definitely push each other, both trying to learn about the other while keeping their own secrets close.

The men are assigned to investigate the death of Christopher Morse, a young man found beaten to death.  This isn’t a typical case for their company, but it turns out the Chris is someone Prophet used to know quite well.  The case hits very close to home, digging up ghosts from Prophet’s past that he wants to keep hidden, especially from Tom.  And as they continue to investigate what happened to Chris and how it is all connected, the case also begins haunting Tom as well.  As the men get more involved in the investigation, they find themselves torn between keeping their secrets hidden, and leaning on each other for support.  But the more the men dig, the more dangerous things become, and Prophet and Tom must rely on each other if they hope to survive.

Oh, S.E. Jakes has such a great way with her big strong alpha men and their painful pasts!  This book really captured everything I love about her writing – strong men with a hidden sensitive side, exciting suspense plots, and lots of heat.  First off, I loved Prophet and Tom and think Jakes did a great job creating some really complex characters that can sustain our interest throughout not just this book, but the whole series.  They are layered and complicated, and she reveals just enough about them to keep the story moving along, but also leaves plenty for us to discover moving forward.  Both men are haunted by their pasts, Prophet from an event related to his military experience, and Tom from his time at the FBI as well as his youth.  In this story we learn most about Prophet’s history, as that is most clearly linked with this case.  I felt like a lot of issues were alluded to in Tom’s past that are never really explained, but I assume that will come as the series continues.

We also get a great suspense plot here, and I loved how the story goes in a totally different direction than I first expected.  What seems simple on the surface turns much more complex and the story was exciting and thrilling.  Maybe a tiny bit slow in the middle, but for the most part this book kept up the excitement and suspense throughout.

I will mention that while many of the loose ends are tied up here, this is the first book in the new Hell or High Water series that will all feature Prophet and Tom as the MCs.  It will be four books, plus some shorts, which means there is lots more to come for these guys. So don’t look for a resolution to either their romance or to parts of the investigation from this book.  Still, I definitely didn’t feel like we were left hanging here and the book kept me wanting more, but not feeling frustrated.  Also, Catch a Ghost is part of the larger Extreme Escapes universe (along with the fabulous Free Falling), so there will be other books set in this world that don’t feature Tom and Prophet as the MCs.  While I think Free Falling was excellent and would definitely recommend it, this works just fine as a stand alone.

So I am really excited about this new series and really loved the book.  It has an suspenseful and twisty plot, great characters with lots of depth, and plenty of heat.  I would definitely recommend it and can’t wait until book 2 comes out next month!

Cover Review: Oh, pretty cover! Totally captures Tom with his tattoo and nipple piercings (and too bad we can’t see his other piercings in this one but that would be NSFW…)

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