Tess O’Rourke dreams of becoming the first female chief of police in Long Beach, California. As commander of the East Division, she is well on her way . . . until the night she responds to an officer-needs-assistance call and fatally shoots an unarmed teenager. Despite being cleared of wrongdoing by a grand jury, Tess is so hounded by the public that she takes a job in Oregon to escape the bad press.
Winning over the residents of Rogue’s Hollow might be more difficult than adjusting to her new role as police chief in the small, backwater town. Especially when her closest friend, the pastor’s wife, goes missing and the woman’s cousin is found shot. Tess finds an ally in sheriff’s deputy Steve Logan, but as they track down Rogue’s Hollow’s first murderer, she worries that she’s breaking one of her rules and getting too close to him. AMAZON 4 STARS
This book had interesting main characters, and interesting challenges. Tess is over-qualified for her job in the small town she goes to. She also isn't welcomed by all. In fact, there is a lot of hostility coming her way.There is also instances of challenges to people's personal faith. The pastor Oliver and his wife Anna welcome Tess but they are facing a very serious almost hopeless health challenge. With more challenges to come. I really liked Oliver and he played a big part in this story as well. I liked the way that he was portrayed. Not a sanctimonious, self righteous wrath of God kind of pastor but someone with a heart for people.
The interaction between Steve and Tess doesn't start to become more of the story until about Chapter 23. He does show up several times before that, just kind of popping into the story until then. If you are looking for a romance in this book, it isn't happening. But what is happening is the promise of one.
The action kept me on the edge of my seat and I didn't stop until I got to The End.
The emotional parts of the story were so well done as well. Gabriel Bender was another person in Tess's department who was not happy about her being chief. And he wasn't shy about letting it be known. He added an interesting edge to the story. It seemed that there were more in law enforcement than just Bender who didn't want to work with her. They were also bold in letting her know it. Sure Tess, was hurt by it but she just kept putting one foot in front of the other and doing what she knew to do. It was easy to pull for her to win; she was a professional to the bone. But someone who was not only smart but with a really big heart too. I also liked that Tess had other supporters of her being Chief of Police and Oliver and Anna were numbered among those.
On a side note, I just want to mention that I read a book some years ago by Janice Cantore and enjoyed it so much that I now keep an eye out for anything else that she writes. This was a good one.
To comply with new regulations introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, I am mentioning that Tyndale House Publishers has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book. And this is my honest opinion of it.
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