I read this book when it was released as a full book. Apparently, it was released on Kindle Vella first and I cannot attest to how that experience was or how it affected the flow of the story. For my part, I could not tell where it may have been broken up for that other format as the book seemed to have a great rhythm.

Brock and Ophelia have an instant spark, although they both try to tell themselves that spark is dislike for one another. It’s not. As much as Brock doesn’t want a federal agent in his town sticking her nose into things she doesn’t understand, he is intrigued by Ophelia and has an overwhelming need to protect her. On the other side of that coin, Ophelia knows Brock isn’t being fully truthful with her so she tells herself she wants nothing to do with the man, yet the way he admires her tenacity makes it hard for her to ignore him. These two are meant to be. Some people in town, including Brock’s elusive brothers, may not be happy about the connection the pair have, but nobody can deny it’s there.

My favorite books by this author have paranormal elements to them. Of course there is her Dark Protectors series which is full-on paranormal, but I started my journey with this author with the Sin Brothers and Blood Brothers series and they are a fantastic mix of romantic suspense and paranormal mystery. This book held elements of those stories.

There are a few cases to be solved in this book, from who killed Brock’s father to a missing woman to a dead/mauled body that disappears. There is a huge scientific facility just outside of town that holds an air of mystery that I’m sure will play a huge part in this series. There are more questions than answers when it comes to the facility, called EVE, but the other two cases do get solved by the end. And there is an HFN for Ophelia and Brock.

While I greatly enjoyed this story, I was a bit disappointed there wasn’t more character development for Ophelia. There are things from her past that are alluded to without being followed up on. Perhaps they aren’t important or perhaps more will be revealed in future books. I didn’t expect to get all the answers to the Osprey brothers’ past since they are the central family of this series. Yet even with them, I was hoping for a bit more revelation, at least between Brock and Ophelia, than I was given.
Will I continue this series? Absolutely. I am most intrigued by Christian and his friend Amka, but all of the brothers have me curious. Not to mention a few townsfolk who obviously have secrets of their own.