New Release Review and Giveaway: HIDDEN SINS by Karice Bolton (Luke Fletcher series #1)

Luke Fletcher asks himself one simple question. Is she worth dying for?

His answer is yes.

When Hannah Walker rolls into her new town on fumes, she doesn’t expect her past to catch up to her so quickly. But the moment her card is declined for a lousy cup of coffee, she realizes nowhere is safe, and her life on the run has just gotten more complex.

Luke Fletcher has made it his mission in life to protect. When he meets Hannah Walker, she makes it clear that his services aren’t needed and neither is he, but there’s something in her eyes that tells another story. Once he begins investigating the woman with many names, he realizes one thing is clear. Whoever, she’s running from won’t stop until she’s dead.

Determined to gain Hannah’s trust and break down her walls, Luke begins to share his own history, but where that leads could cost them more than their hearts as the sins of others threatens to destroy them both.

Review:

Hidden Sins is the first in Karice Bolton’s new Luke Fletcher series, named for its security-specialist hero. It’s a romantic suspense, pairing the man with a tragic past (his parents were murdered in a house fire while he and his little sister Mia were out at DQ) with a woman on the run from hers.

Hannah’s clunker of a truck has made it clear across the country–barely. After it dies outside of a Starbucks, Hannah’s day gets worse when her debit card is declined for a cup of coffee and a pastry. But then her luck starts to improve…

A stranger (our hero, of course) pays for her snack. He gets her a ride to the safehouse she’ll be staying in for the moment, and later sends her a two-hundred dollar Starbucks card. And a phone. While on a trip into town to use the gift card, she encounters a woman who gives her a heads-up about an extremely well-paying job. On her first night at work, she finds a perfect living situation. So–life’s taken a turn for the better, right?

Or has it?

Somehow the people from her past, the people she’s on the run from, find her. Again and again and again. She has to leave–right? Keep running to keep her new friends safe? Except she feels an undeniable pull toward Luke…and it seems like it just might be mutual…

Hidden Sins was my first book by Karice Bolton. It was a decent read, and kept me turning the pages to see what was going to happen–how were Hannah’s creepy pursuers able to find her over and over? How would she get free of them once and for all? Would Luke and Mia be able to convince her to stop running for good? Where would Luke take Hannah for their big date? 😉

Overall, I liked it, though the narrative seemed to get a bit loose toward the end, losing some of its tautness. The writing style–especially in Luke’s sections–tended to depend overmuch at times on short, choppy sentences that didn’t flow as well as in other parts. On the whole, though, it was an entertaining way to spend the time, and I’d pick up another book by the author in the future.

Rating: 3 stars / C

I received a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review.

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