An exciting addition to the Where Secrets Are Safe series! With her signature style of writing, Tara Taylor Quinn always enchants her reader with an in depth characterization that has us quickly hooked into the story line. This book is no different. The first chapter reveals the clincher of what the book is about and throughout various ups and downs, we follow along trying to figure out if he's truly guilty or not. The romance wasn't the key aspect of this book, but the mystery kept me hooked. I enjoyed it!

Head of security at The Lemonade Stand, Harper Davidson never expected someone she knew to come through the doors as their newest victim, much less that the accused would be her ex-husband! When Harper gets the info that her ex's grandmother was admitted overnight and that his brother has listed her ex as the person that injured her, she can't believe it. She's never known that side of Bruce ... but she also knows that Mason is a stand-up guy and would never accuse him if he didn't truly think it was true. She's not sure what to think!

Mason Thomas will do anything to protect his grandmother, even if it's his own brother who is hurting her! He hasn't seen Harper in several years, but he knows she will help him get to the bottom of keeping his grandmother safe while he investigates to find out what truly happened. Along the way, the feelings they have both kept hidden over the years come back to the surface and make for an interesting situation!

I really wanted to love this one...I've really liked other books in the series...but it just didn't work for me. Both Harper and Mason's motivations were a bit problematic throughout, and their internal struggles seemed over the top much of the time. (Example, one of so many: she's torn over the loyalty she still feels for her ex, lectures his brother on how "long term relationships" work, yet she left and divorced Bruce before they'd been married even a year...at least that particular example gets pointed out to her--so many other examples don't) And don't even get me started on the resolution of the "who's abusing grandma?" plot and its eventual outcome...abrupt (and convenient, for the latter) doesn't even begin to describe it. The ending for Mason, Harper, and Brie (Harper's daughter) was absolutely adorable and beyond sweet, but it's a toss-up if a lovely ending makes up for all of the complete wait, whaaaaaat????? that came before it.

Keeping my fingers crossed for the next one...

Rating: 2 1/2 stars / C-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Harper is head of security to The Lemonade Stand shelter for battered women and imagine her surprise when her ex's grand mother comes in. Then shes ends up finding out that her ex is the abuser and his brother Mason is working on the case to seeing what was really going on before things get bigger.



I thought that this was a pretty good drama filled contemporary romance with a mystery in it. I loved seeing the connection between Harper and Mason and it was pretty obvious that attraction they once had hasn't really gone away. I loved seeing them working together and seeing things progress as they try to figure out what was going on and who really was hurting the grandmother. I thought that this book was pretty sweet and I really enjoyed it.