Cold Pursuit
by Carla Neggers
Published by MIRA Publishing
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Reviewed by Sara Porter
Cold Pursuit is mostly a ho-hum effort at suspense. Every once in a while a spark comes through to give the book real potential, but mostly it’s an average story with all the typical chills, thrills, and kisses between protagonists.
An ambassador is run down in Washington D.C., the victim of an assassination attempt. Days later, his stepdaughter, Nora disappears in the mountains of Black Falls, Vermont. Trailing after her are former lovers reunited Elijah Cameron, a Special Forces soldier and Jo Harper, a Secret Services agent on suspension after a mistake landed her on the Internet.
Cold Pursuit plays out like many other suspense novels. There is the frantic chase in rural areas. The bucolic locals who may know more than they are letting on. The politician whose death means that “more is at stake than just a random accident,” and of course there are the star crossed lovers separated as teens reunited in their pursuit of the young girl. These clichés give the reader a sense of “been there, read that” too many times.
There are some unique touches to the story that make it slightly above-the-average suspense thriller. Elijah and Jo have some cute scenes together where they tease one another about Jo’s misfortune. However, the teasing makes them seem more like friends or surrogate siblings so their romantic scenes seem forced and tacked on.
The two assassins are very unique, particularly Melanie, a seductive and violent woman with more motives than cold-blooded murder. There are also a couple of supporting characters that give Neggers a sense of originality: Grit, Elijah’s friend, who is haunted by ghosts in his past, literally, and Myrtle, a reporter who is older and more involved in the story than Grit is aware.
Armchair Interviews says: Heed this reviewer’s comments on this 3-star read.
Author’s Web site: http://www.CarlaNeggers.com