A review by kerosenelit
All the Missing Pieces by Catherine Cowles

4.0

I am incredibly picky when it comes to romantic suspense. Honestly, picking this up was a gamble, but yay, I really enjoyed it! I especially loved the podcast element with Ridley (and her three-legged cat, Tater) as they travel in her VW Kombi van, investigating cold cases for her true crime podcast—partly seeing justice for her twin sister’s mysterious disappearance years prior.

But when she arrives in the sleepy town of Shady Cove to investigate an attempted abduction, the resident sheriff is less than pleased, assuming she’s just sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong. With Colt having a personal connection to the case, it's all snap judgments and bitter assumptions between him and Ridley, and I loved their initial animosity!

I found the nicknames (Law Man and Chaos) extremely corny, but I adored the slow burn of the romance and, of course, the moments where Colt’s protectiveness shined. And the mystery was great! It was suspenseful, interesting, and truly kept me guessing. I did NOT correctly figure out the culprit, and trust me, I analyzed every single character who crossed the page!

(heat level: 3 open-door scenes, explicit details)