Safeguarding the Surrogate is the second book in the Mercy Ridge Lawmakers series. This one is Daniel's story. Daniel and Kara are being hunted by an unknown shooter who has already killed several women. Being a surrogate for Daniel and his late wife has made her a prime target. I really enjoyed this one. There was non-stop action and several suspects. I also loved the tension between Kara and Daniel. I also enjoyed seeing Barrett from the first book show up in this one. He is Daniel's brother. I hope Leo gets a story! It's a quick read and one I highly recommend.

4.5 Stars

Clear your schedule and switch off your phone because once you start reading Delores Fossen’s latest romantic suspense novel, Safeguarding the Surrogate, you won’t be able to put it down.

Rancher Kara Holland is on the trail of a dangerous serial killer who is targeting surrogates and killing them in cold blood. Having acted as a surrogate for her sister and her widowed brother in law Deputy Daniel Logan, Kara will leave no stone unturned until this mercenary killer is behind bars. Kara needs to tread carefully and keep her eyes and ears open because the killer has her firmly in sight and is waiting for just the right moment to punish her for getting far too close to the truth…

Having lost his wife already, further heartache is the last thing Daniel Logan needs! Despite his constant warnings to leave the investigating to the police, Kara refuses to pay him any heed as she vows to keep on investigating until this dangerous criminal is apprehended. Not willing to see any harm come to Kara, Daniel plans to stick closely to her side – even if it means bringing to the fore forbidden feelings which have been buried for so long!

Thrust into each other’s company, Kara and Daniel find themselves getting closer and closer, but will they manage to find the killer in time before more lives are lost? With their future in jeopardy, Kara and Daniel need to stay one step ahead because the consequences do not bear thinking about!

Delores Fossen always delivers an exceptional romantic suspense novel that keeps readers guessing until the very last page and in Safeguarding the Surrogate, she has penned a high stakes tale of jeopardy, emotion and peril that kept me reading all through the night.

With a valiant heroine, a brooding and steadfast hero and plenty of chilling twists and turns, romantic suspense fans will not want to miss Safeguarding the Surrogate.

Safeguarding the Surrogate is a quick, one-sitting read, but what it lacks in pages, it makes up for in story. It's packed full of suspense and action, and of course, romance. Falling in love isn't an easy thing for Kara and Daniel given their connection, but the more I read, the more I was convinced that they belonged together. This is the second book in Delores Fossen's Mercy Ridge Lawmen series, but it is a standalone. That said, I'd still recommend reading the first book as well because it's got an entertaining storyline as well. As for this one, it's a great way to spend an afternoon or evening.

This was a relatively quick read with lots of suspense and action. This is the second book in the Mercy Ridge Lawmen series, but can be read as a standalone. Deputy Daniel Logan's wife died a year ago and he is a single dad raising his young daughter. His sister-in-law Kara, was a surrogate for him and her sister as she was not able to carry a child. The story opens with Kara hiding out in her barn with a gun, waiting for a murderer. Someone has been killing surrogates from the clinic where she had her procedure. The rest of the story has Kara and Daniel running for their lives, hiding out and finding more dead women. Who is killing the surrogates? Why is this happening? Is Daniel also a target?

I read this book in one sitting. I was invested in Kara's story and was rooting for Daniel and his brother's, also lawmen, to figure out what was going on and to catch the crazy killer. There were several suspects, but never enough evidence. I had my suspicions, but I was wrong, as usual. I enjoyed this story and how Delores Fossen developed the plot. There is a slight romance happening, but that is towards the end of the story. I will say that I deducted one star because of who the culprit actually was and the reasoning behind it, it was a bit over the top. Overall, this was a quick, enjoyable story to read on a rainy day.

Kara Holland is determined to find out what is happening to surrogates. In fact, two surrogate mothers have recently been murdered. Kara has a sensitive relationship with her brother-in-law Deputy Daniel Logan. Kara had become a surrogate for Daniel and her sister Maryanne. Kara and Daniel lost Maryanne after her battle with breast cancer. Sadly, Maryanne's situation was just terrible, and she died four months before Kara gave birth to Sadie. Maryanne desperately wanted to be a mother, but she never got the chance.

Kara has no doubt that the recent murders had something to do with a local fertility clinic, and that is the very clinic she used so that she could carry Daniel and Maryanne's baby. Kara wants answers. Daniel wants her to drop it. However, she refuses and before long Daniel is right beside Kara while she searches for the truth about what happened to the two women.

Kara is most certainly onto something. In fact, she has attracted the attention of a dangerous killer. Not only does Kara wants answers, her father Eldon Stroud hasn't accepted Maryanne's death. Another person to consider, and that is Kara's ex-boyfriend, Sean Maynard. His growing jealousy over the time Kara and Daniel are suddenly spending together is more than apparent. Then there is a rancher who is tied to a militia group. Could one of these three men be responsible for the murders and for the danger facing Kara and Daniel?

The deeper Kara and Daniel dig, the more they unearth. Meanwhile, they both have to contend with growing feelings, something that never would have happened if Maryanne hadn't passed away. Then there is the fact that Kara loves baby Sadie with every fiber of her being. If they can survive the unending threats, is there a chance that Kara, Daniel and Sadie could become a family? What about the surrogacy program? Can that thrive despite the current dangers?

Safeguarding the Surrogate might be a quick read, but it is full of action, danger and romance. For a quick one-sitting read, certain to capture the attention of any lover of romantic suspense, then this is the book to read. Although it is the second book in the Mercy Ridge Lawmen series, it would do quite well as a stand-alone. However, for an equally enjoyable story, I definitely recommend the first book in the series, Her Child To Protect.

Many thanks to Harlequin Intrugue and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Kara Holland is a rancher with a dark past. Deputy Daniel Logan, her sister's widower, and Kara come together when her plans to catch a killer backfire. Will they defeat the killer, or will it be too late?

I was very pleased to find Safeguarding the Surrogate in the selection of books in the Harlequin Intrigue Blog Tour. I thoroughly enjoyed Delores Fossen's books His Brand of Justice and Settling an Old Score. Now, I can add Safeguarding the Surrogate to my list of books I love by her.

Safeguarding the Surrogate starts off right in the action and the action does not let up from there. Will sparks fly between Kara and Daniel and how will they separate work from pleasure?

Thanks to Delores Fossen and Harlequin Intrigue for my ARC in exchange for an honest and voluntary review.

4 stars

One of my go to authors when i just want to set down and get lost in a story. And she always seems to make her characters come to life no matter what the story line is