Blind Spot (Dani Pettrey)

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2.5 Stars (Rounded up to 3 because I hate giving bad reviews.)

I loved Dani Pettrey's Alaskan Courage series, but for some reason The Chesepeake Valor series just isn't doing it for me. I think part of it is that they're best read one right after the other. The characters' relationships build and develop throughout the books. And because I'm reading these as they're released, by the time the next book comes out, I've forgotten the details of the last one.

I read Christian fiction mainly for the romance element. I love a good suspense story, and I appreciate learning new things, but if I'm honest, what makes or breaks a book in my opinion is the romance. And romance was sadly lacking from this book. Of course there was an attempt. And maybe if I went back and read book 2 of the series, I'd remember the foundation of Tanner and Declan's relationship. But in this book, it fell totally flat. After apparently loving each other from afar in previous books, they almost immediately fall in love at the beginning of this one. There is little to no tension in their relationship after that. They just go through the motions of the intense storyline with each other by their sides - reveling in their newfound love for each other. It was cheesy and lacked chemistry.

I was also a little bored with Pettrey's writing style - which is ridiculous considering the plot line centers around murders, terrorism, and bombs. I feel like she includes way too many details. Take for instance this little section:

Declan held the door open for Tanner at Frank's coffee shop. "Grab an open table," the brunette waitress walking by said, a coffee pot in one hand, three plates in the other. Declan spotted an open table near the side windows, led Tanner to it, and pulled out the chair for her. "Thank you," she said, taking a seat. . .[long description of the restaurant's atmosphere] . . . The brunette waitress grabbed an order, dropped it off, and then stopped at their table with coffeepot in hand. "I'm Darlene. I'll be your waitress today. Would y'all like coffee?"

I'm all for painting a picture of the scene, but I don't need to be reminded of the waitress's hair color twice, and I don't need details about what she's carrying or how Declan holds the chair and Tanner sits down. Can't you just say, "They got seated at a table and the waitress came over to take their order"? I'm a big fan of succinctness (which is hilarious considering how I'm rambling now to explain myself).

The story itself was interesting, if a little complicated. And of course it ended on a cliffhanger, so I'll have to read the 4th book. But overall, I wasn't terribly impressed with Blind Spot.

(I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review.)