The Cop Next Door

Jenna Mills writes a great romantic suspense that has Victoria LaFleur, or is that Victoria Bishop, returning to Bon Terre to uncover the secrets from her youth that died with her father. After twenty-five years, she is not welcomed with open arms. Victoria struggles to solve the mysteries of the past while not running scared from those who are now trying to run her out of town. Meanwhile, Sherriff Ian Montigue is messing with her emotions, and she's not exactly sure how she feels about that, either. The characters are tightly drawn - Victoria is trying to break free from the mold her father fit her into for so many years while Ian takes his job as sherriff very, very seriously. The plot is filled with twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the end. On the down side, the author had a tendency to repeat certain descriptions to the nth degree. I finished the book a few weeks ago, and I still remember pecan colored hair, soap and sandstone, and being a doll on a shelf. They were repeated so often they were distracting. Also, there was such a glaring error during the cemetery scene, it made me wonder if I had misunderstood a major plot point during the book. It didn't help that it was in all capital letters at the top of a page. It should have been caught by an editor! All in all, minor things to detract from a great effort. The Cop Next Door is a fast-paced, easy read that expertly weaves together all the necessary elements of a romantic suspense novel.

The Cop Next Door is a keeper for sure. Don't start this one when you're in a rush because it's impossible to put down. When Victoria LaFleur heads to Louisiana she discovers her lost childhood, and enters a world of betrayal, greed and revenge, but she refuses to let the [handsome] cop next door run her out of town. The lines have been drawn and Ian Montague has his hands full of stubborn woman and suspicious townsfolk as he tries to keep a lid on the past before it swallows him whole.

THE COP NEXT DOOR grabbed my attention on page one and didn't let go till I finished the book. Put together a hunky hero cop, a courageous heroine determined to learn the secret of her past, a mystery involving a double homocide and a fortune in diamonds - put them all in a spooky old house and you've got a real page turner. The talented Jenna Mills has done it again!

The contents of safety deposit box send Victoria Blake back to Bon Terre, the home of her roots. She grew up believing a devastating fire twenty-five years ago took her family home and her mother's life, sending her father into a reclusive recovery in Nova Scotia. Her father's dementia has allowed clues to past surface -- a past about which Tori knows nothing. When her father dies, Tori returns to the family home to learn that it had not burned down; instead, it was the site of a double homicide.When the cop next door sees lights in the old house, he assumes teens have slipped in again. He certainly never expects this ghost from the past. When he was eight Ian Montague discovered the bodies, shattering his life forever. The town has not forgotten the Blake family, nor does it offer forgiveness to the daughter of Russell Blake. Nevertheless, Ian had obsessively searched for little Vicky for years and had finally concluded that she was dead. Now her sudden reappearance threatens to resurrect dangerous secrets that could tear their worlds apart.Author Jenna Mill's consummate skill of creating fascinating storylines with memorable characters once again dazzles readers in THE COP NEXT DOOR. As the intricacies of the past meet the passions of the present, the careful complexity of the plot will keep readers guessing until the end. When he looks at Tori, Ian invests the deadly sins of the father on the daughter, unable to separate her from the past. Unfortunately, so does the whole town, casting Tori into an unexpectedly dangerous game. On the other hand, years of an over protective father's care has made Tori fiercely independent and terribly reluctant to rely on the cop next door for safety. Despite their past, however, neither Tori nor Ian can simply ignore the other. The result is an intense, fast-paced and cleverly crafted tale that will appeal to readers who like their romance on the dangerous side. THE COP NEXT DOOR earns the WordWeaving Award for Excellence.