This book was just not very good. I tried, I really did.

Emma was kidnapped as a child and when she was rescued her childhood became one of extreme paranoia. As an adult she changes her name to Emma Porter and strives to live a normal life so no one can connect her to her past. To do that she has to live unattached and that means no long term relationships of any kind.

Nathan Bishop has secrets as well. Underneath his play boy image he is a very different man. Nathan's big secret is he lived near Emma as a child and as fate would have it they have been thrust together in a dangerous plot. Their secrets hamper them as they try to work together and form a relationship.

This book was just all over the place and was really hard to follow. I did not think it was well written.

Thanks to#NetGalley for a copy of this book

This was a very good romantic suspense. The plot was very well crafted and adequate paced. I really liked the characters and their wit.
Many thanks to Gatekeeper Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

What's the real truth about who Emma and Nathan are? That's the mystery to uncover in Debbie Baldwin's False Front, the first in a new series.
Emma is a young journalist in New York, but she's also running from a traumatic experience in her youth, back when she was Emily. And then she gets the call to interview millionaire playboy Nathan Bishop. Except this version of Nathan is not the one Emma remembers. What happened to the little boy Emma used to play with as a kid?

Turns out Nathan's not the only one with a secret identity. All of his risk-taking stunts and glam girlfriends are a front for a security and intel company he runs with his military buddies. And it was all inspired by his hope to one day rescue Emily. Little does he know...

Well, he soon does know, and the pair rekindle their childhood relationship and then some. Maybe if they hadn't been so focused on having sex, they would have been able to keep their eyes open and prevent some of what happens next.

I enjoyed the mystery of watching Emma's past unravel, though I could have done with more action and less talking. Still, I'm intrigued about what's to come in future Bishop Security books.

After being kidnapped as a child, Emma lives under a new identity and works a a report for an online news company. Emma is surprised to find out that she will do a series of interviews with her former childhood friend Nathan, who heads up a large defense contracting company. The tabloids describe him as a playboy and an adrenaline junkie, but she hopes there is something of the sweet boy in the grown man. Emma has to interview Nathan while still keep her true identity a secret, because there is still potential danger there. Someone is still searching for Emma. I received a free copy of this ebook from the publisher through Netgallery. This is my honest and voluntarily given review. This is a terrific start to a new suspenseful series. Emma is a terrific heroine who doesn't wait to be rescued. With the strong attraction between Emma and Nathan, there are some steamy scenes, but they are not gratuitous. This is a gripping story, which kept me turning the pages. There are a lot of great secondary characters, which I hope to see later in the series. I loved this book and look forward to the next one in the series.

This book was too much for me. There was just so much going on and it became so far fetched that I just couldn't engage with it.

The premise is so mind boggling that it is not a surprise I couldn't keep up. Emily and Nathan grew up together, then due to the actions of her father Emma is kidnapped. She is secretly rescued and takes on the identity of Emma. Nathan and the rest of the world assume she is gone. Skip forward a few years and Emma dodges the bodyguard looking out for her to go out on a date where her drink is spiked. She is rescued by Nathan. Skip forward again. Emma is a journalist and Nathan is the head of a massive corporation and clandestine security company. Nathan is a womanising, self absorbed prat. He asks Emma to do a deep dive interview of him. He knows she is the girl he rescued from the bar but doesn't know she is Emily. She knows that he is the boy she has been in love with since she was a kid but doesn't know he rescued her that night. Confused yet? There is also another kidnapping threat, a weapon of mass destruction and a line of bitchy women who are jealous that Emma is 'different' and throw road blocks in the way of her and Nathan's true love.

For this reader it was all to much. I might have been more interested is the characters were not so unbearable. Emily/Emma goes between wanting to be a serious journalist smart girl, flirting to get her own way, self centred narcissist who knows how pretty she is, and self destructive idiot who laying in bed for 5 days with no food or drink because she had a flash back.

Nathan is a bit of a dick who treats women like they are disposable because he is damaged and brooding. His personality changes on a dime and he has a habit of muttering under his breath shit like 'perfect' which leads Emily/Emma to breathlessly think 'I know he is talking about me'. Nooooooope.

I didn't like this book one bit. I like a little bit of drama and some angst but not like this.

A fast paced, action packed novel. I found the beginning a little confusing as there was very little background knowledge given re Emily’s/ Emma’s past. I had to refer back to the intro blurb to remind myself as to where the story was going. But the history is fully explained as the story evolves. I liked how the author made Emily a capable young woman instead of a damsel in distress. Mild steam. A lot of characters to keep track of but I’m hoping they also get their story.

This book, which I got from Netgalley, earns a solid 4.5 stars, but since that’s not an option, I’m rounding up to 5. I only have two complaints about this book, which I’ll get to in the end. Overall, I thought it was a great book and I loved it. The book was so good that I didn’t want to put it down. In fact, although I was nearing the end, I needed to get some sleep so I stopped reading. I woke up repeatedly, and finally, after only three hours of sleep, I gave up and allowed myself to read the end.

The characters are likable, the plot is riveting, and the pacing and suspense are just about perfect. Details are revealed a little bit at a time, meaning there’s lots of mystery. The villain is appropriately scary, and a criminal mastermind, which would have made his eventual demise unbelievable if not for his sickness.

I really enjoyed Debbie Baldwin’s writing and her sense of humor. She gave her characters some really amusing lines, and Tox was a fun character (almost a caricature, but not quite). While his friends were barely discussing feelings (peripherally, if at all), he exited the room, saying, “I’m free for hair braiding and a tickle fight later, but right now I need to check in with our resident hacker…” Tox is always eating something, a recurring activity whenever he appears in a scene. Later, while asking for details of a story, the author describes him: “Tox was one bag of popcorn away from looking like he was watching a movie.”

Almost as an aside, but more likely as a way to build up a supporting character for a future book, there’s a scene with Finn in which he tells the “bottle blonde” in his bed to get lost. She asks, “What did I ever do to get hooked up with an asshole like you?” His response floored me, “I’m guessing there’s a long list.” The author also takes the time to give the reader a few details about Ren, and after he meets a woman he finds attractive, this was the author’s take on it: “In his mind, a tiny version of him was waving two red semaphore flags and yelling, get out!” I burst out laughing at the image that conjured.

Since the book is told in the third person, the reader knows who the bad guys are, so I don’t consider my following comments spoilers. These are the things that bothered me. Emma/Emily has violet eyes. In the beginning, the reader is told she is wearing blue contact lenses. Nathan shows up at her apartment unexpectedly, shortly after she has gotten out of bed, and there is no mention of her putting in her contact lenses. If she hadn’t, he would have certainly noticed her eyes and recognized her. This seemed like an important thing to overlook.

The other problem came later. As the team is putting together the pieces of the puzzle to figure out who kidnapped Emily when she was a child, her father mentions someone named Cyril. Ren makes a connection to Savo, but I did a search for the name prior to that in the book, and there was nothing to indicate they should have known he was involved yet. The fact that it made me pause to research it pulled me from the story, so even if it wasn’t a mistake, it wasn’t explained clearly enough to slide into the story seamlessly.

As I mentioned, these are relatively minor complaints and the storytelling was so good that they barely require mentioning. However, since they did snag my attention, it seems important to point them out. Either way, I recommend the book and I’d like to read more from this author.

False Point is a thriller/romance hybrid that makes you wonder who's really wrong, and why is this other person right? Emma is a woman who knows she's pretty, and kind of rich, but wants to make it in the world on her own. The person that she once looked up to when they were kids, is not the person that she thought he'd be, and she needs a bodyguard for... personal reasons. Yes, there is a lot going on, but as a reporter Emma tries to make the best of it all as the world that she didn't even create falls apart all around her. Thankfully, her knight in not-so-shinning armour is there to help keep her safe. Well, perhaps not safe, but at least alive, and that has to count for something. You'll enjoy this book if romantic thrillers with flashbacks, backstories, and on the nose romances are your thing.

Recommended for 18 yrs old and up
Moderate Sex
Moderate Cursing

I like the premise of this book- abduction, rescue, new identity. There were too many loose plot points for me. It was hard to keep up with the characters because they were inserted in the plot without explanation. The explanation eventually found its way but only after more characters and plot. Despite that, I was able to get it as it unfolded. The serendipitous reunion of Emily and Nathan also needed more time. It was not realistic to go from interviews to relationship so quickly. I could ha e done with less military and covert ops talk and more character development. I did like the descriptions of Emily and Nathan at important plot points to move the story. Overall, a good book.

A big thank you to NetGalley and Gatekeeper Press for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. First time reading this author. This is the first in a new series. I found this mystery/romance interesting! Truly enjoyed it. Loved the interaction between Emily/Emma and Nathan. 4 stars. Can't wait to read more by this author.

First, I can't wait to read more of this series and this author. The story was great. Sweet, romantic, suspenseful. Everything rolled into one package. While the plot got a little overwhelming sometimes, whether it was too much details in a more tell than show manner or was just a little scattered, it was an enjoyable read I didn't want to put down.

Excellent mix of romance, and thriller. The characters were easy to like. The plot was a little disjointed, but still entertaining and an excellent start to, what I hope, is a new series.

Good book! I will definitely read more in this series when they come out! But I did take away one star because at times I felt lost?! I had to stop and think about what was being said?! But this book had intrigue, it had suspense, action, drama, some heartbreak and heartache and definitely 🔥🔥🔥! All and all it was a great read! Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for sharing this book with me!