Targeted For Danger by various authors

Targeted For Danger is a compilation of 8 short stories written by 8 different authors. For the most part I enjoyed all of the stories. It is hard to develop characters in such a short amount of words, so I found some of the relationships worked for me and some did not. I found some of the suspense worked for me and some did not. I reviewed each book individually so here are my thoughts:

Crossfire by Susan May Warren

Kade has returned to his family home where his past is catching up with him. Witnesses to a murder, Kade and his best friend Nash have been hiding for years in the hopes that they wouldn’t be found. Circumstances have now brought them back home. Haddie is also home. The girl that Nash was engaged to, but that Kade has loved from the moment he met. Seven years is a long time to be gone, but not long enough to make Kade forget that he still loves Haddie and will do anything to keep her safe.

Talk about a love triangle! Mistakes that ruined friendships. And danger lurking at every turn and you have a wonderfully suspense-filled romantic short story that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat. I also loved the spiritual aspects of the story! Apparently Kade is a character from another series that Susan May Warren has written, The Montana Rescue series, which I haven’t read, but must remedy soon. 

Taken by Dark by Christy Barritt

Declan left his hometown and the girl he loved years ago to pursue a career in the FBI. Willa has stayed in their hometown and had plans to raise her family there. Both Declan and Willa have lost their spouses and now Willa is in danger. At the request of Willa’s brother, Declan returns to investigate and hopefully find out who has targeted Willa.

I liked that Declan and Willa had a past. It helped when things seemed to move along a bit too quickly  in their relationship for me. While there were elements of suspense, it seemed that the majority of excitement happened at the end of the story and then it galloped on to the ending rather quickly after that. I actually would like to go and read the rest of The Carolina Moon series that this novella is a part of.

Lethal Homecoming by Lynette Eason

Callie was sent away from her home and the man she loved 6 years ago. Now she is returning thinking that all danger is now gone. Unfortunately before she even reaches her home her life is threatened and she is once more thrown into danger. Nolan never knew why Callie left, but he does know that he’s never stopped loving her. Can he find out who wants her dead before it is too late?

Honestly, this wasn’t one of my favorite Lynette Eason books. I don’t know if it just felt too rushed or if I didn’t care for the characters or what. I knew who the killer was before the final reveal, but usually that doesn’t detract from the story for me. It did have it’s exciting moments that I did enjoy, I think it just needed to be fleshed out a bit more. The romance felt a little forced even though Callie and Nolan had had a relationship in the past. I really think I enjoy this authors full-length novels much better than the novella’s. 

Treasure by Ginny Aiken

Chloe is an archeological reporter and is sent on assignment to cover the latest findings. When Chloe arrives at the current dig site she is shot at and her bodyguard is almost killed. Ridge arrives on the scene to save both Chloe and her bodyguard. Someone doesn’t want precious ancient manuscripts found and they will do anything to stop Chloe and Ridge from continuing their search.

This one just didn’t work for me. I’m sorry to say, but I think it was too disjointed so I felt like I was missing pieces of the story. I thought the romance was forced and didn’t seem like Chloe and Ridge knew each other long enough to even form an attraction let alone a long term relationship. There was a lot of excitement with people trying to kill Chloe and Ridge, but again the reason was a bit ambiguous to me and left me feeling like I was missing something. 

Deadly Secrets by Margaret Daley

Sarah left home 15 years ago. She left her fiancé, Hunter, at the alter with no explanation. Now Sarah has returned for her niece’s wedding. But her niece has been kidnapped and Sarah and Hunter must work together to find her before it is too late. Can Sarah overcome what happened in her past? Can she learn to forgive? Will Hunter be able to let go of his resentment in order to work this case?

Once again I was glad that this couple had a past in order to forward their relationship in this story. I did feel a bit like we were tossed into the middle of a story without any background, but it was slowly developed and revealed and ended up with a pretty exciting and suspenseful ending. It turns out that there are several books in this series of STRONG WOMEN, EXTRAORDINARY SITUATIONS. 

Double Exposure by Elizabeth Goddard

Tara just witnessed an atrocious crime and now she is hiding away, hoping that the people who were involved in the crime think that she is dead. Grant has found where Tara is hiding and must work to gain her trust. Unfortunately those bent on killing her to silence her have also found her so there is no time for Grant to gain that trust. Will they live long enough to stop a biological terrorist attack?

This was an exciting read as Tara and Grant were pretty much on the run the entire time. Even their rapidly developing relationship seemed to work in this story. The circumstances and Grants background into Tara helped that romance along. There are other books in the Exposure series that I would like to explore. 

Cold Terror by Susan Sleeman

Gage and Hannah were romantically involved many years ago but Gage couldn’t commit. Now both have lost their spouses and each have a child. Hannah is a forensic artist commissioned to reconstruct a skull when she is attacked. Hannah manages to escape with her son and miraculously they are rescued by Gage. Gage now owns his own protection/training facility so he takes Hannah and her son there in order to keep her safe from the man that has tried to kill her more than once. Can Hannah trust Gage to protect she and her son? And what are they to do with the feelings that have seemed to be reignited after all of these years?

Cold Terror starts off exciting and doesn’t stop until the very last page! Since this is a novella the romance happens pretty quickly, but it works because Hannah and Gage have already had a relationship. The suspense is exciting and keeps the reader engaged and wanting more. I especially liked the spiritual scenes. They weren’t preachy, but they were truthful and insightful and not only spoke to the characters, but also spoke to my heart. I definitely recommend. 

Once a Thief by Jan Thompson

Reuben was once an art thief, but he has done his time in prison and paid his dues. He is now helping the good guys find stolen art. Helen owns a private investigation company. She has just discovered that her mother was involved in the theft of some famous eggs(not the Faberge ones), and now her mother has been kidnapped and Helen and Reuben have teemed up to find her.

This had the potential to be a good story, but unfortunately I just found it to be disjointed and hard to follow. It does say that it is a stand-alone, but there are other books in the series. I felt like we were plopped into the middle of something that we were clueless about. And the romance between Helen and Reuben did not ring true to me. It was rushed, and random. 

So there you go, my review of the 8 books in this compilation. I'd give the whole set a 4 out of 5! If you are a fan of short stories then this will probably be right up your alley. If you love suspense and romance then definitely try it out!