Trigger by L.P. Dover Pages: 217
Series: Circle of Justice #1
Genres: Romantic Suspense
Source: ARC
Also in this series: Target, Aim
Also by this author: Turn of the Moon, Roped In, Resisting the Moon, Catching Summer, Defending Hayden, Intended for Bristol, Target, Hard Stick, Aim, Christmas With You: an anthology, Claimed by the Moon, Craving the Fight
Goodreads
*~* STANDALONE NOVEL *~*
A killer . . . that's what I am.
It's what I do.
It's what I live for.
I'm no longer the Preston Hale everyone knew. I left that life and the people in it a long time ago the second I made my first kill. I wasn't going to give in, but when I heard the screams there was no going back.
It triggered the pain, the need.
I knew what I had to do, and I did it well. But I never expected for Emma Turner - the only link to my past - to come back into my life.
She triggers a different emotion inside me, something I hadn't ever felt.
It's not a want to kill . . . but a need to CLAIM.
Trigger by L.P. Dover is a romantic suspense with an interesting bent. Preston, the hero, is a killer. He does it for a secret faction of the FBI, but he ENJOYS killing. There is a dark side to him because he simply can’t NOT kill. He has found a legal way to meet his dark desire, but its still haunting to know he likes killing. He specifically kills men that are rapists or molesters who escaped justice in an effort to avenge his family. Before he unleashed the beast and became a killer, he was a college student in a band. How normal, right!
Emma had a crush on Preston in college and she was in the band with him. Then Preston disappears to never return. Emma finishes college with a degree in creative writing and eventually ends up as an assistant to a business mogul, writing grants and such for him. Preston knows Emma’s boss through HIS job, and when the two of them cross paths and are forced to work together, Preston is furious. The job? Glenn (Emma and Preston’s boss) wants to move into the music industry and they are assigned to vet some talent. I’m not going to lie, at this point in the story I was like “wtf”? How do you go from being a killer to a talent scout? This is just bizarre. The stuff Glenn does to get get Emma and Preston back around each other was pretty ridiculous.
However, once they are back together, the story focuses on the mystery of finding out who killed Preston’s sister and mother. From this point on, I was totally hooked into the story and finished it in one sitting! You get a bit of a who-dun-it with all the clues and sleuthing plus the hot sex of 2 people in love!
Aside from what I felt was an awkward set up, I enjoyed Trigger! I am looking forward to Wade’s story as he was an interesting character in this book I want to know more about. Frankly, I am curious about all the Chandler boys!
- POV: 1st dual
- Tears: no
- Trope: secret identity, second chance
- Triggers: none
- Series/Standalone: stand alone
- Cliffhanger: View Spoiler »
- HEA: View Spoiler »
Taking Care of the Target by Cindi Madsen, Satisfaction by Lexi Blake, Taken by Cynthia Eden…then you will probably like Trigger!
Trigger
From Trigger:
When I got downstairs to the dining room, Glenn and Wade were already there, speaking to each other in hushed tones by the large window. There were shiny plates on the table, with all sorts of silverware around them. Start from the outside and work your way in, was what I was told when it came to using the various forks and spoons. Give me just one of each and I’d be happy.
It wasn’t long before Glenn noticed me at the door and the conversation ceased. “Emma, you look lovely tonight,” he announced.
I smiled. “Thank you.”
He beckoned me over to the table and Wade held out a seat for me. I sat down and he took the one on the right, while Glenn sat on my left at the head of the table. There was only one other place setting and it was across from me.
“Wine?” Glenn asked, holding up the bottle.
I nodded. “Sure.”
He poured me a glass and I took a sip. It tasted like heaven, all fruity and crisp. It was so good I had to take another sip, and another, while we waited on the special guest. Not even a minute later, the dining room door opened and a man walked in. Only, he wasn’t just anyone.
It’d been eight years and he’d surely changed, but there was no mistaking those gray eyes. His hair was the same light brown, and mussed up like all the guys did their hair these days. However, his body looked totally different. His cream colored, long-sleeve sweater hugged a set of muscular arms, and his face was more rugged, covered in a five o’clock shadow.
I almost choked on my wine. “Oh my God.” Is it really him?
“Emma, are you okay?” Wade asked, his voice low.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “I’m fine.”
I waited for Preston to look at the table, and when his gaze finally caught mine, he paused for a slight second. In his face, I could see the friend I lost so long ago, but it vanished quickly.
Glenn and Wade both stood when Preston approached, and I shot up out of my seat, bumping the table with my jerky movements. Glenn grinned at me and then at Preston. “Preston Hale, I’d like you to meet Emma Turner. She’s my assistant. Emma, this is Preston Hale, a close family friend. His father is one of my dearest friends.”
Preston held out his hand and looked at me as if he’d never laid eyes on me before. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Was he being serious? I shook his hand and made sure to put a little extra squeeze in there for good measure. “Meet me? Surely, you remember who I am.”
Glenn’s eyes went wide. “Wait. You two already know each other?”
I nodded. “From college.” I was about to add before he up and left without a trace, but thought better of it.
Glenn chuckled and smacked a hand on Preston’s shoulder. “Well, isn’t this a small world? You’ll have to tell me some stories on this one.” He nodded my way.
Preston’s jaw clenched. “Can’t. Don’t remember her.”
My mouth dropped open; it was like being punched in the gut and slapped in the face, all at the same time. No words would come out, so I sat there with a lump in my throat. In college, he’d been a close friend. I sang with him in his band, Silent Break. We connected on stage in a way I’d never felt with anyone. I cared about him, and had even been ready to take the next step in our relationship right before he up and disappeared. I never got to tell him how I felt. Now he looked at me as if I was a stranger.
The room fell silent. I wanted to say something, but I bit my tongue. It was going to be the longest dinner of my life.
Wow.. anti hero, bad boy and second chances are my favorite kinds of reads. This one interests me. Never read a book by this author before. So I’m in.
Great review, Samantha. Love it.
Oh I have read several books by Dover and she is a great author! I think you will enjoy her style!
I love second chance romances! Definitely sounds like we have a broody hero here. lol! I’ve only read a couple books by LP Dover but I enjoyed them. I may have to check this one out