DEAD CENTER and DEAD EVEN by Susan Sleeman, Reviewed by Rebecca Maney

DEAD CENTER
"Was she going to die right there? In her place of refuge? As a forensic photographer, she'd shot the aftermath of home invasions, and they'd never ended well. Never!"

Ainslie Duncan was shocked beyond belief when the armed men inside her home identified themselves as US Marshals. . . responding to a tip that an escaped criminal was hiding out at her location. What???!! They had to be kidding; nope, they were dead serious. Somehow they had linked the entire incident back to her younger brother, who was sitting in jail, charged with murder. To make matters worse . . . one of Ainslie's co-workers, Grady Houston showed up to see what he could do to help? 

. . . "They had been dancing around an intense attraction to each other for months". But the timing was all wrong; Ainslie's main goal was to prove her brother's innocence and to establish her credibility in her career. When the entire team at Veritas Center, including Grady, offer their assistance, Ainslie's defenses begin to slip, and it's a good thing . . . the stakes only get higher . . . for both of them.

Well honed plotting skills engulf every scene of this romantic suspense! One step forward, two steps back follow every move that Ainslie and Grady make, pushing the finish line nearly out of reach, especially when a cold blooded killer aims "dead center".
*I purchased this book and was under no obligation to provide a positive review. 3.5 stars

DEAD CENTER BackCover Blurb:
Everyone has a secret…

When forensic photographer Ainsley Duncan’s brother is arrested for murder, she works hard to exonerate him through her contacts, but nothing clears his name until she happens upon a long-buried secret involving Grady Houston—the Veritas Center’s ballistics, firearms, and explosives expert. Grady’s worked hard to keep this secret buried for years and doesn’t want it coming out, so he balks at her request to help find the real killer and free her brother.

But not all secrets lead to murder.

But when someone takes a dead center shot at Ainsley, Grady has no choice but to expose his past and let the consequences fall where they may. Even if he loses the job he loves and even if the woman who is capturing his heart wants nothing to do with him after she learns his secret. He won’t back down from helping Ainsley free her brother, and they find themselves in a race for their lives to solve the murder before the deadly killer strikes again.

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DEAD EVEN
"Maya. It's Fletch. You won't believe what they're planning to do. I don't even believe it, and I need someone to confirm. Someone who knows how to keep their mouth shut and has top-notch scientific skills. That's you. Get here as quickly as you can."

Following her friend's frantic cryptic message, toxicology and controlled substances expert Maya Glass arrives at her friend's private lab. Apparently she's too late; Fletcher is nowhere to be found and his assistant is dead. And now Maya is almost certain that she has been exposed to a deadly toxin. Who can she call to help her? . . .  the man who managed to break her heart, FBI Agent Hunter Lane.

This heart stopping second chance love story is surrounded by a myriad of questions, the foremost being, where is Dr. Fletcher Gilliam? Why was he working with such a dangerous substance? Had Fletcher made enemies and who were they? Or perhaps he had friends who simply seized upon a lucrative opportunity. Meanwhile; Maya and Hunter? . . . "God is the only one who can work this out".

Someone is bound and determined to get "dead even". 

*I purchased this book and was under no obligation to provide a positive review. 3.5 stars

 
DEAD EVEN BackCover Blurb:
When she discovers her worst nightmare…
When Maya Glass—the Veritas Center’s toxicology/controlled substances expert—goes to check on her scientist friend after a cryptic phone message, Maya stumbles upon her worst nightmare. A deadly toxin has been released, her friend’s assistant has died in his secluded island lab, and her friend is missing. Worse yet, Maya is exposed to the deadly botulism toxin and she needs help. Fast. Problem is, the only person she can think of with the right contacts is her former love, FBI Agent Hunter Lane.Will she let him help her or go it alone?
Maya sets out on a hunt to find her friend and Hunter warns the feisty and tantalizing Maya to back down. But when it becomes clear that he needs Maya to locate her missing friend and find the killer, Hunter knows they must work together to stop the killing spree before the killer gets even and ends Maya’s life.

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