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Incognito
by V.K. Powell
If you’re in the mood for a fast paced romantic intrigue novel with action, romance and humour, this might be one for you.
A team of US Marshals, led by Evan Spears, have been hot on the heels of a dangerously smart fugitive when their latest operation goes off the rails in such a way that the fugitive escapes and the team is sidelined due to a serious injury of one of the members and the departure of another. Despite the setbacks, they are determined to get their man – even if it means having to work with a liaison from the DEA, Frankie Strong, who may have critical information to share. From that point, its a fast paced investigation as they track the bad guys down.
I found myself rooting for Frankie throughout the story – she’s a bit of a rebel with a rather irreverent sense of humour and a tendency to strip naked at the drop of a hat and engage in serious discussions. When she joins the team, she’s at the point of nearly being burned out – living undercover on a string of operations and having had to shoot a fugitive has taken a toll and she’s wondering if it is time to come in our of the cold and settle into a “normal” kind of job. Despite this, she jumps in feet first and is pretty much running circles around the established team, using her unorthodox methods to move the case forward. Her skills at uncover work have come at a price and Frankie struggles with the morality of what she’s done in her past and how to make amends.
Evan, on the other hand, I had a harder time rooting for. Opposite of Frankie, she’s buttoned up and a bit of a control freak. Oddly enough, she’s the angsty one as she’s carrying a fair bit of guilt and regret over the last mission that landed one team mate in a wheelchair and how she got played by an informant. Based on the events of that mission, I had a hard time she’d be allowed to remain on the case due to conflict of interest. Obviously, she isn’t immune to Frankie’s charm – hell, how do you maintain eye contact when someone’s dropped a towel – and softens up as she sees the results that Frankie’s street smarts and methods are achieving and how vital she is to the team tracking down the bad guys.
This is more of a light intrigue/action novel with a bit of smolder and spark added to keep the momentum going. The investigation rolls along at a good pace and the characters get plenty of action as they close in on the bad guy and his partners. As a romance, this is almost too fast paced and is built on the old adage that opposites attract – the two meet, antagonize one another (aka foreplay), have a strained discussion or two while one is in the nude, kiss a few times, sleep together and are in love. If the story line hadn’t been so compressed (l think it was spaced over a week or ten days), the intrigue and romance could have more time to grow and develop. As it is, everything moves at a lightening pace – which is great for an action oriented book, but an be a bit of a detriment to building a romance plot line.
A team of US Marshals, led by Evan Spears, have been hot on the heels of a dangerously smart fugitive when their latest operation goes off the rails in such a way that the fugitive escapes and the team is sidelined due to a serious injury of one of the members and the departure of another. Despite the setbacks, they are determined to get their man – even if it means having to work with a liaison from the DEA, Frankie Strong, who may have critical information to share. From that point, its a fast paced investigation as they track the bad guys down.
I found myself rooting for Frankie throughout the story – she’s a bit of a rebel with a rather irreverent sense of humour and a tendency to strip naked at the drop of a hat and engage in serious discussions. When she joins the team, she’s at the point of nearly being burned out – living undercover on a string of operations and having had to shoot a fugitive has taken a toll and she’s wondering if it is time to come in our of the cold and settle into a “normal” kind of job. Despite this, she jumps in feet first and is pretty much running circles around the established team, using her unorthodox methods to move the case forward. Her skills at uncover work have come at a price and Frankie struggles with the morality of what she’s done in her past and how to make amends.
Evan, on the other hand, I had a harder time rooting for. Opposite of Frankie, she’s buttoned up and a bit of a control freak. Oddly enough, she’s the angsty one as she’s carrying a fair bit of guilt and regret over the last mission that landed one team mate in a wheelchair and how she got played by an informant. Based on the events of that mission, I had a hard time she’d be allowed to remain on the case due to conflict of interest. Obviously, she isn’t immune to Frankie’s charm – hell, how do you maintain eye contact when someone’s dropped a towel – and softens up as she sees the results that Frankie’s street smarts and methods are achieving and how vital she is to the team tracking down the bad guys.
This is more of a light intrigue/action novel with a bit of smolder and spark added to keep the momentum going. The investigation rolls along at a good pace and the characters get plenty of action as they close in on the bad guy and his partners. As a romance, this is almost too fast paced and is built on the old adage that opposites attract – the two meet, antagonize one another (aka foreplay), have a strained discussion or two while one is in the nude, kiss a few times, sleep together and are in love. If the story line hadn’t been so compressed (l think it was spaced over a week or ten days), the intrigue and romance could have more time to grow and develop. As it is, everything moves at a lightening pace – which is great for an action oriented book, but an be a bit of a detriment to building a romance plot line.