Crossfire by Lynette Eason // Revell Reads Review

FBI special agent Julianna James is a top-notch negotiator who has never lost a hostage. Surely, she can manage to take care of her much younger sister, Dottie, who showed up unannounced to live with Julianna while she finished her senior year of high school.

A former sniper with the 75th Ranger Regiment, Clay Snyder left the army after a tragic incident that he can't get past. Now he's working as a high school resource officer until he can figure out what to do with the rest of his life.

Their paths cross when Julianna is called in to negotiate a courtroom hostage situation involving Clay's sister. Impressed and a bit intimidated by the calm, capable woman with the dark hair and blue eyes, Clay invites her to speak at his school. Dottie's school.

But as the anniversary of a school shooting from Julianna's past approaches, it becomes clear that her perfect record is about to be tested and that Dottie is at risk. If Julianna and Clay can't figure out who's behind the attacks, more innocent people will die--and Julianna just might be one of them.

This intense story of revenge and redemption from bestselling author and master of suspense Lynette Eason will have you up all night as you race toward the explosive finish.

 

My Review

I'm so bummed because I swear I wrote a review for this that I really liked, yet it's not here! So I have to try and recreate my first impressions.

Well, the very first impression is that, for some reason, I love books with hostage negotiators. Ever since reading Dee Henderson's The Negotiator, I'm so interested in stories where the MC is a negotiator. I really don't know what it is about that job that fascinates me but there you go.

Also trivial, but I love Julianna's name! I have a friend with the same name and it's just beautiful. But I do have more solid reasons for enjoying this book too :)

I thought that Julianna's past, how it shaped her and formed her present, was really powerful. She is what she is today because of events, rather traumatic events, that she had to live through but she pressed into them and didn't let them defeat her. Or so she thought. As an anniversary comes closer, Julianna realizes that maybe she's giving the past more power over her than she originally thought.

There are some pretty deep realizations that come to Julianna, Clay, and Dottie as the story progresses and there were a few surprises along the way. One interesting thing is that another character's POV is told in first person, though Julianna's is told in third. I don't think I've ever read a story with different POV like that before. It was kind of jolting at first, but then I got used to it.

I wish there had been more of Julianna's friends in the story, but that is my only "complaint" with it. I look forward to the next woman's book!

Many thanks to NetGalley & Revell for a copy of this book. All opinions are my own and a favorable review was not required.