This book takes readers on a heart-pounding journey through the world of artifact trafficking and terrorism, seamlessly blending archaeology with espionage in a suspenseful tale that keeps you hooked from start to finish.

Diana Edwards, the determined archaeologist at the center of the story, finds herself entangled in a dangerous web of intrigue when her quest to uncover the connection between artifact trafficking and terrorism takes a perilous turn. The author skillfully crafts a narrative that thrusts Diana into a nightmare scenario where she is kidnapped and forced to work for the very individuals she seeks to thwart. As the layers of deception unfold, the revelation that her captor is a supposedly deceased terrorist adds a thrilling twist to the plot.

Enter Navy SEAL Chris Flyte, tasked with the mission to save Diana and unravel the complex web of terrorism and artifact looting. The tension rises as Diana, initially perceived as a victim, becomes a questionable asset, forcing Chris to navigate a precarious situation where danger lurks at every turn. The author excels in creating a palpable sense of urgency, keeping readers on the edge of their seats as the SEAL team strives to complete their mission against all odds.

The character dynamics in this book are a standout feature. Diana is a resilient and intelligent protagonist whose predicament elicits empathy from readers. Chris Flyte, the stoic Navy SEAL, brings a perfect balance of strength and vulnerability to the story. The evolving relationship between them adds a layer of complexity that enhances the overall reading experience.

The plot unfolds with expert pacing, offering a perfect blend of action, suspense, and unexpected twists. The theme of global terrorism fueled by looted artifacts adds a thought-provoking dimension to the narrative, elevating the story beyond a typical action thriller. The author's attention to detail, particularly in the portrayal of archaeology and military operations, adds authenticity to the storyline.

This is a riveting page-turner that seamlessly combines the worlds of archaeology and espionage. The impossible choices faced by the characters, the ever-present danger, and the web of deception make for a compelling read. Fans of thrillers with a strong dose of suspense, intricate plots, and well-developed characters will find this novel a satisfying and captivating addition to the genre.

Wow! What’s great read, filled with action, suspense and romance! When an archeologist is kidnapped, a Seal team is sent in to rescue her, but what happens when she declines rescue?


I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own

❤️❤️❤️❤️ out of 5
I have been really impressed with the Rachel Grant books that I have read so far. She goes into incredible detail and the plot is just as good if not better than the romance aspects.

Our heroine is an archeologist on a dig in Jordan when she is kidnapped and forced to loot sites to fund terrorism. When she is rescued and returns home she feels like life can finally return to normal…. That is until she starts seeing one of her kidnappers from the Middle East on a train and then no one believes she was forced to loot. She turns to one of the SEALS who rescued her because he believes her and she finally feels safe. But someone is out to ruin her life and she can’t run away fast enough.

I loved the insight into the world of modern archaeology and it was such a novel story line for me that I didn’t want to put the book down. I also loved the hero and heroines burgeoning relationship that felt layered even though they were forced together for what was probably only a couple of days.

Rachel Grant is a gifted author who is able to bring well research history and twist it into a suspenseful romance that will have readers on the edge of their seats, The story is face pace with romance and sexy time throughout the story. The female lead is strong and likeable who is able to take care of herself. Women will connect to her easily.
Thank you Netglley

sexy, suspenseful, and SO good!

This book had it all. I was very surprised by how much I liked this book. I was on the edge of my seat, staying up late because I had to know what happened next.

fast paced, steamy read. Highly recommend!

Trust Me, Rachel Grant’s second book in the Evidence: Under Fire series, will run you through the emotional wringer and spit you out on the other side with a book hangover and hankering for some comfort food and chocolate. It’s intense and passionate and totally enthralling.

Dr. Diana Edwards is an archaeologist and visiting professor leading a dig in Amman, Jordan - and basically living her best adventurous life - when she’s abducted on her way to meet a contact deep in the winding maze of the souk. She’s fortunate to have a side hustle working with the Friday Morning Valkyries (FMV), a group that tracks intel on the sale of artifacts from the Middle East, since the FMV coordinates with the Army’s Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab. That means she’s got an direct line to advanced safety protocols, and with as much trouble as she’s in, she clearly needs it. Diana is intelligent, accomplished, and too headstrong for her own good - especially when she declines rescue to serve as bait to bring down a terrorist. The stakes are high, and the tides inevitably turn against her.

Lieutenant Chris Flyte of the Navy SEALs is on his first op with a new team when he intersects Diana and her captors on the King’s Highway. The rescue attempt quickly slips into FUBAR territory, and it’s clear his team must quickly pivot. Fortunately, pivoting is Chris’ modus operandi, following a year of change in both his personal and professional lives. Despite his failure to complete his first attempt at rescuing Diana, he admires her grit and determination. It’s probably the only thing that keeps him firmly entrenched on her side.

There is a lot going on in this book. Repatriation is important in the world of art, culture, and antiquities, and to an archaeologist like Grant and her characters, not stepping in to prevent the plundering of antiquities is tantamount to participating. Grant’s characters often struggle with the balance of protecting antiquities versus the safety of the human element. They’re as richly developed as usual, but I’ve noticed that the further in her career she gets, the more her protagonists have become ‘characters with purpose.’ Her plots are high concept, and the tension is ratcheted through the roof. You’re going to learn something in a Grant novel, whether it be historic facts about archaeology and antiquities, or cultural responsibility and gender equitability. It’s an interesting conundrum.

My only reservation about Trust Me is that at some point the archaeologist needed to listen to the soldier trying to save her life and trust him to get them both out alive – just like she needed the soldier to rely on her expertise with antiquities and trust her. It’s a two-way street, and Diana’s constant bucking against Chris’ help at the beginning wore thin after a while. There are other ways she could’ve shown her independence without endangering him because she’s headstrong. It made her seem like a reckless, petulant child rather than a seasoned archaeologist accustomed to working in the field in dangerous environments with dangerous people.

As usual, attention to detail is what transports the reader to faraway lands, where Friday mornings ambling through a souk and life-threatening escapes through ancient kingdoms are commonplace. Travel is expensive and so many of the dreamy places Grant writes about are just not easily accessible by regular people like us. It’s like reading National Geographic for the wanderluster, but with romance and emotion and danger.

I’m here for it all, but I’m also here for the romance and the danger.

A romantic thriller with lots of grit and steam. I liked the smart heroine and well crafted plot. After reading Trust Me, I will add Grant's books in this series to my TBR. My thanks to the Publisher and Author for providing a complimentary digital Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of this novel via NetGalley. This is my fair, honest and personal review. All opinions are mine alone and were not biased in any way.

Rachel Grant created a Monuments Women combined with a bit of Indiana Jones and called this group the Friday Morning Valkyries. In book two, an operative named Diana is in Jordan to search for who is after antiquities stolen from Syria. Diana is an archaeologist and FMV undercover agent. She also is emotionally healing from a terrible car crash that left her gravely injured and killed her fiancee.

When Diana is taken in Chapter One (yes, the book gets exciting fast!) rescue is attempted by a team of Navy SEALs. However, in usual Rachel Grant fashion, nothing is ever easy or simple. But, no spoilers!

There are super-villains and regular villains, betrayal and bravery. There are tough women admired for their skills. And since this is a romantic suspense novel, let me assure you, Chris the Navy SEAL and Diana are fun to read.

Dear Rachel Grant,

Trust Me is book two in your Evidence: Under Fire series, which merges the Evidence and Flashpoint series’. I haven’t yet read all of the Evidence books but I loved the Flashpoint novels. It was nice to catch up with some of those familiar characters again.

SEAL Lt Chris Flyte has transferred from the teams in Coronado to Little Creek, Virginia. His soon-to-be-ex-wife was cheating on him with a fellow SEAL and he’s moved so he could get away from the constant reminder of it. His first deployment is on an aircraft carrier in the middle east; his first operation with that team is a rescue mission for an American archaeologist who was taken hostage by Islamic State terrorists.

Dr Diana Edwards is an archaeologist but is also a covert operative with “Friday Morning Valkyries”, a fictional organisation modeled on The Monuments Men. In the real world, the modern-day version of The Monuments Men – the Cultural Heritage Monitoring Lab – monitor important archaeological and cultural sites in war zones. In Trust Me, the Friday Morning Valykyries work alongside the CHML to track (and try and stop) the looting and sale of artefacts to fund terrorism – in an attempt to stifle organisations such as Islamic State and also to protect the artefacts themselves. Working in Jordan as part of a funding arrangement between a US philanthropist and a Jordanian university, Diana has been assisting on a dig with a professor and also furthering her work with FMV. She’s about to leave when she’s abducted by terrorists and taken to a remote slot canyon where she’s forced to evaluate artefacts to be sold to fund the bad guys.

As a member of FMV, Diana has a subdermal tracker implanted into her forearm but it only works for limited time and needs a cellphone signal nearby to piggyback upon. Diana can’t activate it until she knows she’s going to be somewhere for long enough that a rescue party would be able to find her. As it happens, the SEALs are able to track her to the canyon without the device and quickly move in for the rescue.

Diana is all for that plan until she meets the head honcho for the terrorists – a man high up in the “deck of cards” for terrorists and who was believed dead. I won’t spoil how it happens, but Diana ends up “temporarily declining” rescue while she tries to instead lead the SEALs to the terrorist so they can catch him and take down his organisation. Chris is the one to whom Diana tries to communicate during this and he feels a connection to her. However, he also questions himself because his previous two missions had not gone well for various reasons. One of them involved a hostage who did not want to be rescued and he worries he’s failing.

However, once Diana’s coded message is deciphered, FMV and the US Government are on board and hoping she’s able to do what she plans.

When Diana is eventually rescued (again, I won’t go into exactly how that happens), she returns to the US but the authorities are questioning her account of what happened and the Kingdom of Jordan wants her to be extradited to face charges of looting artefacts (something she had been forced to participate in while captive). Her own colleagues are turning on her – her professional reputation is trash now – and most people don’t believe she saw what she saw.

When one of the terrorists apparently turns up at the Metro station where she’s catching a train and makes a threatening gesture, she’s unsure if anyone would even believe her.

Chris is involved in both rescue operations and has developed a very high regard for Diana’s resilience and abilities, as well as an attraction. When they meet up through mutual friends back in Washington DC, all that chemistry combusts.

Diana’s woes with the State Department and the Kingdom of Jordan continue, and the danger level ramps up. Chris, fascinated and deeply smitten, determines to protect her and soon enough he is teamed up with the FMVs and members of Raptor to get to the bottom of everything and keep Diana safe – at home and abroad. The action is pretty much non-stop, lots of people get to be badasses and Diana is a key player in getting justice. The tension of the suspense plot was fantastic. There were a few moments for romance and intimacy though and even though the timeline is quite short, I believed the connection between Diana and Chris and felt confident in their HEA.

I did have a few questions at the end regarding what their life would look like. Was Diana’s professional reputation repaired? Could she work in her chosen field again? Could she continue to work with FMV and if so how? Is Chris staying with the teams? Where will they live? I suspect some of those questions will be answered in the next book which will feature SEAL Lt Cmdr Randall (Rand) Fallon, Chris’s contemporary and a key player in Trust Me. Those questions were more about the tidy up at the end and the mechanics of the HEA but didn’t impact my enjoyment of the story itself.

There was a couple of “reveals” which I picked almost immediately. I thought they were pretty obvious but otherwise the story was tightly plotted and kept me guessing.

I had mixed feelings about the first book, Into the Storm, which I reviewed here. I enjoyed the suspense plot immensely but felt the romance was rushed and there was too much baby in the book (somewhat unusual for me but there you go) and also because of what I referred to as an “oof” moment relating to actions the hero, Xavier, took during a military operation prior to the events of the story. Chris Flyte was involved in that same operation but fortunately here, no significant detail about it was given and it was easier for me to move on/pretend a certain aspect didn’t happen. (It’s fiction I can do that.) Also, there was no baby and the romance felt less rushed and more organic. The suspense plot was as good as, perhaps even better than, the first book.

Trust Me was a better book all round for me. It kept me glued to the pages and well entertained.

Grade: B+

Regards,
Kaetrin

I love Rachel Grant’s series . She always has strong female leads . This one was one of the best. Diana’s courage was great. She is such a strong woman. Chris was so supportive of her . The mystery was not a mystery but the story was still entertaining

5+++ Stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐✨ TRUST ME, I mean really trust me! You are definitely going to want to read this!! You have an anthropologist who breaks every tenet she believes in and places her life in jeopardy to capture a “dead” terrorist and a Navy SEAL who puts his career and his own life on the line starting with the simple phrase “trust me.” Talk about heart-pounding excitement and edge-of-your-seat suspense, not to mention a taste or two of toe-curling romance. There’s enough drama, action, and passion to keep you hooked from start to finish. I promise it’s a thrilling page-turner that will keep you thoroughly entertained and up reading late into the night. I guarantee it!! 😍👌

It felt like I’d found a long buried treasure by getting the opportunity to read this exciting story. I have read several of the author’s books and she quickly became a favorite in the romantic suspense genre. Archeology has fascinated me for a long time, so this plot checks all the boxes! The importance of preserving history and it’s relics is so important. The illegal market for these artifacts is a subject we need to understand better and it is vividly addressed in the plot. This is my favorite of all her series yet.
Archaeologist Diana is at a site in Jordan and is digging for more than antiquities. She’s clandestinely part of an organization monitoring artifact trafficking. She’s suffered heart splitting loss, is a calculated risk taker and the dangers ahead are even greater. Trust is at the center of all the life threatening situations in this plot. The more I read, the less I trusted anyone. There’s the usual alphabet list of government agencies involved, many whose interests don’t align with hers. She could end up in jail or worse – killed, to honor secrets she’s entrusted with.
Chris is part of the SEAL team sent to extract Diana from a very dangerous abduction by a group of artifact thieves. Nothing goes as planned from this point forward. Who can you trust? It will be a non-stop series of cover-ups, attempts on Diana’s life, powerful people intent on shutting her down. When she and Chris first made eye contact there was a spark. Can she survive long enough to see if there might be something worth pursuing? Can she trust him? These are characters I want to read more about and hope they’ll be in the next of this series.
A digital advance reader copy of “Trust Me” Evidence: Under Fire Book 2, by Rachel Grant, Janus Publishing, LLC, was provided by NetGalley. These are all my own honest personal thoughts and opinions given voluntarily without compensation.

Rated 4.5 Stars

Trust Me was such an enjoyable read. There was lots of action, suspense, wonderful characters and tension. One of my fave things about it was the tension. It was palpable. It practically leapt off the pages, a living, breathing entity. It definitely felt like a character in the story, often at the forefront but at times in the background allowing other aspects of the story to shine. This book worked for me on many levels. I loved it and can't wait to read the next book in the series. I definitely recommend it.

Thank you to Rachel Grant, Janus Publishing and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I feel truly lucky and honored to be living a readers dream and receive an ARC of my most anticipated read of 2023 from my FAVORITE author and this did not disappoint. (I may update my review after the publishing date 6/15 to add some spoilers)

Trust Me is archeologist Diana Edwards and Chris Flyte's story. Chris previously appeared in Into the Storm and I really liked him and was excited to get to learn more about him in this book. Chris and Diana are two people who have been through some shit. While working in Amman, Jordan, Diana gets kidnapped and forced to go against archeologist ideals and work doing the very thing she is trying to stop. Chris and his SEAL team gets sent in to extract her, but to their surprise Diana asks for her and the kidnappers to be let go. If you read the previous book you already know why a mission gone bad is not good for Chris. Eventually Diana makes it out of the Middle East, but her troubles don't stop once she is back stateside.

Right off the bat this book was incredibly well researched and you can tell Rachel put her heart and soul into this. She is an absolute powerhouse when it comes to research and plot. The book straps the reader into an emotional roller coaster. One thing that surprised me was how heavy this book was in some parts. I always love when I can learn from a book and I have a lot of respect for archeologists who have gone to great lengths to protect artifacts. Although I didn't always relate with some of the choices Diana made throughout the book, I understood why she made them and felt the way she did. Grant did a great job setting that up.

The middle and end of the book felt like it balanced more of the overall aspects I enjoy of romantic suspense, but the whole book is a page turner. I love how Diana and Chris were well matched for each other. I was happy that they were both capable, intelligent protagonists but also human. I appreciate how Grant's couples are mature and really respect each other.

One of my favorite things about this book was how some of Grant's other characters made appearances in the story. I won't spoil it but I was pretty happy to revisit some old friends.

This book also reveals the couple for the next book and BOY AM I EXCITED! I felt a little sad we didn't see more interaction with them at the end and now I eagerly have to wait for the blurb for the next book to come out.

Overall, this was a great book, Rachel really knocked it out of the park and I am just so excited to see what she comes up with next. I would not hesitate to recommend!

Intense, gripping suspense with a heartstopping romance!

Diana's kidnapping inadvertently gives her the opportunity to make a real difference in her efforts to stop the trafficking of antiquities to fund terrorism, but wow! What a risk she has to take! And her unwitting accomplice is her would-be rescuer, Chris, a Navy SEAL who has seen his last two assignments, also hostage situations, go horribly wrong and he absolutely doesn't want a third. But she begs him to trust her, leaving him no choice.

With absolutely everything on the line, this story is a complex trek through the archaeology community in Jordan then Washington D.C., a journey that very nearly blows up Diana's entire life. Throughout it all, her teammates have to pull favors from some of the same people who know Chris's teammates (characters from previous books) and this gives Diana and Chris all the time they need to act on their undeniable chemistry and learn to trust each other in everything.

During her lengthy captivity it seemed like the story dragged a bit, but really that was a perfect way to convey to the reader how her captivity itself dragged on while she waited for the right opportunity to make her move. I guarantee that the end result is well worth all the trauma she goes through.

This amazing story is chock full of compelling characters, an unexpected betrayal, a sweet introduction to the characters set up for the next book, and an intricately detailed, exhilarating takedown scene. The HEA is followed by an encouraging epilogue that was a wonderful payoff for the entire story. It's exactly what I look for in a romantic suspense story and I highly recommend it. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.

I so enjoyed this hybrid novel - it's a thriller with a cast of villains, kidnapping, archaeological details, artefact looting, danger and suspense. But it's also a well crafted love story between Diana, a grieving but determined archaeologist who puts herself in danger to work for the greater good, and Chris a Navy SEAL who is looking for a new direction for his life. It's steamy and the author does well to combine the action of a thriller, the character development of Chris and Diana and create a plausible HEA for this two very different people. These changes of mood weren't always seamless, with time speeding up and slowing down throughout but I can recommend this if you love a thriller with a side of romance.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for this ARC. I'll be reading many more from Rachel Grant!

I really enjoyed this book, once it got going. I did find the opening a little slow and it did affect my initial enjoyment of the book; the opening is very complicated with a lot of set up. I completely understood why this was necessary – as with all of Rachel Grant’s books, there is a lot going on – but it took a while for the main characters, Chris and Diana, to actually meet properly in person.

That said, the plot itself is very interesting. It was very much up my street. It covers some complex, heartbreaking topics: the ethical and moral issues at hand regarding historical and archaeological preservation and so on were, in my opinion, explored well. There were some good twists and turns. As I said earlier in the review, a lot happens in Rachel Grant novels, and this is no exception – you’re never going to be bored reading one because there’s always something happening.

This is a fine line to tread, and there were times when the suspense plotline felt a bit heavy and overwhelming. Thankfully, the romance was a good contrast to it. The chemistry between Chris and Diana is good, and they were really sweet together. The romance is definitely more low-conflict than the rest of the book, which made a nice change of pace. There were some really steamy moments in it too and I can’t fault the romance aspect of this book at all; there was a bit of an instalove aspect to it which I really enjoyed.

Once this book got going I found it hard to put down. Rachel Grant is so talented at writing exciting page-turners and this is a good example of that, and it had a great romance to boot. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a romantic suspense novel with a sweet but steamy romance, especially if you’re interested in history and archaeology. I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy of this book.

Content Notes: Violence, murder, threat of sexual violence, attempted rape (on-page), knife violence, gun violence, serious and mild injuries (on-page), surgery (off-page), blood, death of a romantic partner (in past), fatal traffic collision (in past), sexual harassment, references throughout to terrorism and terrorist attacks, references to public executions, references to decapitation, torture, on-page sex.

She was abducted while in Jordan, a Navy Seal team is sent in to rescue her.
The plot is well written, a tough journey for this couple in letting go of their past.
Given ARC for my voluntary review by Net Galley and Janus Publishing.

Trust me. It's seriously good reading!

Book 2 in the Evidence: Under Fire series brings Archaeologist Diana Edwards and Navy SEAL Chris Flyte together in a fast love, plenty of action page turner.

If you are new to books by Rachel Grant, she teams smart, strong, archaeologists with special ops men, blending rich history with a burning love story to give you a HEA ending.

You can read this book as a stand-alone as each book across the various series have a different couple taking the lead and any reference or background to other characters and how they connect are given in the book. Saying that, I love having read all the books across each series, having greater context/background on the characters in this book adding an extra richness.

Rachel will have you turning the pages to find out just how far the looting, terrorist, and money hungry villains will go to get what they want, and exactly how they get what is coming to them. The women shine in their gutsiness and determination to do what is right, for the cause they believe in and the men, no matter how much they want to be the protector, do not smother or overpower, they are there as back-up and support, each key character playing a role to save the day.

Be prepared, there is also a sneak peek at a new book that will be out later in the year, The Buried Hours, writing under R. S. Grant, that will have you hoping the wait is not too long!

Trust Me, part of the Evidence-Under Fire Series, is one nail-biting, must-keep-reading novel by Rachel Grant. Archaeologist Diana Edwards is at the forefront of this story getting in way over her head while working in Jordan on an archeological dig. Navy SEAL Chris Flyte is part of the team sent to rescue her. However, there is much more at stake than a kidnapped American.

A twisty story with villains on two continents and heroes that rise to the needed occasion his is one psychological, adventurous thriller. Such superb writing that I felt the need to get water while reading of Diana’s days in the desert. So realistic that this story read like the morning news, though after reading this I have my doubts if today’s news is to be trusted. What can be trusted is that this story will keep you on the edge of your seat, have you cheering for the good guys, anxious to see if they stop the bad ones and giving a huge sigh of relief when they do.

Characters from previous books have supporting roles because let’s face it, no one can do it all alone. Diana and Chris become a couple so expect some wide-open bedroom door scenes too. Everything is hot in this story.

4.5 Stars
An ARC of the book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley which I voluntarily chose to read and review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.