Title: Trigger
Series: Circle of Justice
Author: L.P. Dover
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release Date: February 6, 2017
Blurb
A killer . . . that’s what I am.
It’s what I do.
It’s what I live for.
I’m no longer the Preston Hale everyone knew. I left that life and the people in it a long time ago the second I made my first kill. I wasn’t going to give in, but when I heard the screams there was no going back.
It triggered the pain, the need.
I knew what I had to do, and I did it well. But I never expected for Emma Turner – the only link to my past – to come back into my life.
She triggers a different emotion inside me, something I hadn’t ever felt.
It’s not a want to kill . . . but a need to CLAIM.
PURCHASE LINKS
B&N / KOBO / iBOOKS
SMASHWORDS
SMASHWORDS
Preston Hale’s life changed forever the day his mother and
sister were murdered in cold blood. Finding their killer has become the sole
focus of his existence. Until the day he completes that task, he helps deal
with the guilt of not being able to prevent their death by working for the FBI
ridding the word of criminals that escape the justice system. Recruited by his
father, he focuses on killing mainly rapists and child molesters. Few have a
higher kill count then Preston, because killing is something he craves. It is
more than just his job to him. He enjoys it, and it has become his whole life.
Preston’s boss, Glenn, is concerned about his preoccupation
with murder, and interest in nothing else. He can’t seem to get through to him
no matter how hard he tries. There are no family members to turn to, and Preston
won’t even go visit his father that is paralyzed from the neck down, and extremely
ill. He thinks his father blames him for his mother and sister’s death. Until
he is able to eliminate their killer, he doesn’t want to have any contact with
his dad. Having run out of options, Glenn hires a blast from Preston’s past as
his assistant. Emma Turner has no idea the real reason for her employment until
one day when Preston shows up at dinner.
Acting like he doesn’t know who she is, Preston tries to
appear unaffected by Emma’s presence even though that couldn’t be further from
the truth. She has always been special in his eyes. They were bandmates and
good friends until one day after making his first kill, he disappeared from her
life without a trace. Both of them had feelings for each other that they never
got to express, and as much as he still cares for her, he doesn’t think she can
handle the man he is now.
Emma is not about to let Preston pretend not to know who she
is. She calls him on his bullshit immediately. Later, Emma’s life is threatened,
and all of a sudden Preston won’t leave her side.
Preston learns that a girl they went to high school with was
murdered in the exact same way as his sister. He thinks this might be his first
real chance at catching the killer responsible for murdering two of the most
important people in his life. Emma insists on helping him. After some
reluctance on his part and some persuading on hers, he allows her to do just
that.
Spending all of this time together brings back memories of
happier times. It isn’t long before old feelings come to the surface, and
strengthen with each day that goes by. What happens when the only way for
Preston to avenge his family is to offer up the woman he loves to the killer?
Trigger was a story that took me by surprise. It is romantic
suspense, and though the main character murders people for a living, the book isn’t
really very dark at all. The relationship between Emma and Preston is sweet
which gives the book a totally different feel then I was anticipating.
Preston is a broody, broken hero which is probably why it
was easy for me to warm up to him. My heart broke for him in more ways than
one. He didn’t just lose his mother and sister in a horrific way, he lost his
father, Emma, his passion for music, and himself. I wanted so badly for him to
finally get some peace by murdering the source of all his pain.
Emma is a great
heroine, and the perfect match for Preston. Outspoken, intelligent, caring, brave,
and loyal, she was everything he needed and more. Throughout the book, she stands
by Preston no matter what, and helps him no matter the cost to herself. I loved
that she didn’t let him intimidate her or tell her what to do. When she called
him out for pretending not to know her, I knew right then that I was going to
like her!
Overall, Trigger was a well-paced, gripping story with a decent
amount of suspense and steam. This is the first book in a series, and it was a
good one. It definitely made me interested in reading more about the group of
assassins we were introduced to in this installment. If you like romantic
suspense or just romance period, then I recommend this one to you!
TRAILER
PLAYLIST
EXCERPT
When I got downstairs to the dining room, Glenn and Wade were already there, speaking to each other in hushed tones by the large window. There were shiny plates on the table, with all sorts of silverware around them. Start from the outside and work your way in, was what I was told when it came to using the various forks and spoons. Give me just one of each and I’d be happy.
It wasn’t long before Glenn noticed me at the door and the conversation ceased. “Emma, you look lovely tonight,” he announced.
I smiled. “Thank you.”
He beckoned me over to the table and Wade held out a seat for me. I sat down and he took the one on the right, while Glenn sat on my left at the head of the table. There was only one other place setting and it was across from me.
“Wine?” Glenn asked, holding up the bottle.
I nodded. “Sure.”
He poured me a glass and I took a sip. It tasted like heaven, all fruity and crisp. It was so good I had to take another sip, and another, while we waited on the special guest. Not even a minute later, the dining room door opened and a man walked in. Only, he wasn’t just anyone.
It’d been eight years and he’d surely changed, but there was no mistaking those gray eyes. His hair was the same light brown, and mussed up like all the guys did their hair these days. However, his body looked totally different. His cream colored, long-sleeve sweater hugged a set of muscular arms, and his face was more rugged, covered in a five o’clock shadow.
I almost choked on my wine. “Oh my God.” Is it really him?
“Emma, are you okay?” Wade asked, his voice low.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “I’m fine.”
I waited for Preston to look at the table, and when his gaze finally caught mine, he paused for a slight second. In his face, I could see the friend I lost so long ago, but it vanished quickly.
Glenn and Wade both stood when Preston approached, and I shot up out of my seat, bumping the table with my jerky movements. Glenn grinned at me and then at Preston. “Preston Hale, I’d like you to meet Emma Turner. She’s my assistant. Emma, this is Preston Hale, a close family friend. His father is one of my dearest friends.”
Preston held out his hand and looked at me as if he’d never laid eyes on me before. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Was he being serious? I shook his hand and made sure to put a little extra squeeze in there for good measure. “Meet me? Surely, you remember who I am.”
Glenn’s eyes went wide. “Wait. You two already know each other?”
I nodded. “From college.” I was about to add before he up and left without a trace, but thought better of it.
Glenn chuckled and smacked a hand on Preston’s shoulder. “Well, isn’t this a small world? You’ll have to tell me some stories on this one.” He nodded my way.
Preston’s jaw clenched. “Can’t. Don’t remember her.”
My mouth dropped open; it was like being punched in the gut and slapped in the face, all at the same time. No words would come out, so I sat there with a lump in my throat. In college, he’d been a close friend. I sang with him in his band, Silent Break. We connected on stage in a way I’d never felt with anyone. I cared about him, and had even been ready to take the next step in our relationship right before he up and disappeared. I never got to tell him how I felt. Now he looked at me as if I was a stranger.
The room fell silent. I wanted to say something, but I bit my tongue. It was going to be the longest dinner of my life.
It wasn’t long before Glenn noticed me at the door and the conversation ceased. “Emma, you look lovely tonight,” he announced.
I smiled. “Thank you.”
He beckoned me over to the table and Wade held out a seat for me. I sat down and he took the one on the right, while Glenn sat on my left at the head of the table. There was only one other place setting and it was across from me.
“Wine?” Glenn asked, holding up the bottle.
I nodded. “Sure.”
He poured me a glass and I took a sip. It tasted like heaven, all fruity and crisp. It was so good I had to take another sip, and another, while we waited on the special guest. Not even a minute later, the dining room door opened and a man walked in. Only, he wasn’t just anyone.
It’d been eight years and he’d surely changed, but there was no mistaking those gray eyes. His hair was the same light brown, and mussed up like all the guys did their hair these days. However, his body looked totally different. His cream colored, long-sleeve sweater hugged a set of muscular arms, and his face was more rugged, covered in a five o’clock shadow.
I almost choked on my wine. “Oh my God.” Is it really him?
“Emma, are you okay?” Wade asked, his voice low.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “I’m fine.”
I waited for Preston to look at the table, and when his gaze finally caught mine, he paused for a slight second. In his face, I could see the friend I lost so long ago, but it vanished quickly.
Glenn and Wade both stood when Preston approached, and I shot up out of my seat, bumping the table with my jerky movements. Glenn grinned at me and then at Preston. “Preston Hale, I’d like you to meet Emma Turner. She’s my assistant. Emma, this is Preston Hale, a close family friend. His father is one of my dearest friends.”
Preston held out his hand and looked at me as if he’d never laid eyes on me before. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Was he being serious? I shook his hand and made sure to put a little extra squeeze in there for good measure. “Meet me? Surely, you remember who I am.”
Glenn’s eyes went wide. “Wait. You two already know each other?”
I nodded. “From college.” I was about to add before he up and left without a trace, but thought better of it.
Glenn chuckled and smacked a hand on Preston’s shoulder. “Well, isn’t this a small world? You’ll have to tell me some stories on this one.” He nodded my way.
Preston’s jaw clenched. “Can’t. Don’t remember her.”
My mouth dropped open; it was like being punched in the gut and slapped in the face, all at the same time. No words would come out, so I sat there with a lump in my throat. In college, he’d been a close friend. I sang with him in his band, Silent Break. We connected on stage in a way I’d never felt with anyone. I cared about him, and had even been ready to take the next step in our relationship right before he up and disappeared. I never got to tell him how I felt. Now he looked at me as if I was a stranger.
The room fell silent. I wanted to say something, but I bit my tongue. It was going to be the longest dinner of my life.
AUTHOR BIO
New York Times and USA Today bestselling author L. P. Dover is a southern belle living in North Carolina with her husband and two beautiful girls. Before she began her literary journey she worked in periodontics, enjoying the wonderment of dental surgeries.
She loves to write, but she also loves to play tennis, go on mountain hikes and white water rafting, and has a passion for singing. Her two youngest fans expect a concert each and every night before bedtime, usually Christmas carols.
Dover has written countless novels, including her Forever Fae series, the Second Chances series, the Gloves Off series, the Armed & Dangerous series, the Royal Shifters series, and her standalone novel Love, Lies, and Deception. Her favorite genre to read and write is romantic suspense, but if she got to choose a setting in which to live, it would be with her faeries in the Land of the Fae.
L.P. Dover is represented by Marisa Corvisiero of Corvisiero Literary Agency and Italia Gandolfo of Gandolfo Helin & Fountain Literary Management for dramatic rights.
AUTHOR LINKS
Post a Comment