In an effort to get her security consulting business off the ground, Kelsey Allen has been spending a lot of time up in the air, rappelling down buildings and climbing through windows to show business owners their vulnerabilities to thieves. When she is hired to pose as a conservator at the Pink Palace Museum in order to test their security weaknesses after some artifacts go missing, she’s … ecstatic. But when her investigative focus turns from theft to murder, Kelsey knows she’s out of her league–and possibly in the cross hairs. When blast-from-the-past Detective Brad Hollister is called in to investigate, Kelsey may find that he’s the biggest security threat yet . . . to her heart.
Crackling with romantic tension and laced with intrigue, this suspenseful story from award-winning author Patricia Bradley will keep readers guessing–and looking over their shoulders.
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I really enjoyed the first book in this series; this second book did not disappoint the promise of the first. I did not want to put it down! I love that the book starts with action and suspense and does not let up until the last page. I also enjoyed the interaction between the characters. Having read the first 2 books, I cannot wait to read the newly released third book…Patricia Bradley knows how to write great inspirational romantic suspense!!
What a fantastic novel from Patricia Bradley. I did not read Justice Delayed (first book of series) but didn’t feel that I missed out. Andi and Will from Justice Delayed make several appearances in this book, but Justice Buried can definitely be read as a stand-alone. I love contemporary inspirational romantic suspense/mystery as a genre and Ms. Bradley does an excellent job weaving a bit of romance into an intricately woven plot full of action and suspense (just the way I like it!).
The book is well-written and fast-paced. There is plenty of adrenaline flowing through the plot as Kelsey dodges that mysterious someone intent on killing her and Brad tries to protect her to the best of his ability. The storyline is well-crafted and the details regarding the linked cases expand exponentially and purposefully to keep the reader guessing as to which one of the characters is the perpetrator. Honestly I couldn’t figure it out until the very end when the person was revealed!
The thread of faith and prayer, though not overt, was definitely present in the characters’ lives.
As for the characters, Ms. Bradley has created some awesome ones in this book.
Brad, a detective, is strong, loyal, compassionate, stubborn, and so swoon-worthy. I mean, who could resist a man devoted to protecting the innocent and rendering justice and devoted to his three-legged dog rescued from a shelter and the children/youth in need around him? The only flaw he seems to have is his indecision about his love life and what he truly wants out of his life outside of work.
Kelsey, a security expert and a museum conservator, is fiercely loyal, stubborn, compassionate, strong and super-intelligent but has a huge chip on her shoulder…..or maybe her heart….about getting too close to people. Perhaps that stemmed from her past with her father….maybe not. Ms. Bradley doesn’t delve too deeply into Kelsey’s psyche about her past but all the drama and action surrounding her daily existence probably overshadowed this minor detail. She’s quite prickly but lovable once you see the softer side of her nature.
Now I must go and start reading Justice Delayed. I’m hoping for another book in the series soon….
I received a review copy of the book from Revell via NetGalley. I was not required to write a favorable review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.
Patricia Bradley is in my top five when it comes to romantic suspense writers. Her books crackle with both romantic sparks and intense suspense. Justice Buried, book #2 in the Memphis Cold Case series, begins with security expert Kelsey Allen rappelling down the side of a 14-story building. Tasked with finding the security weaknesses in the building, she swoops in as The Phantom Hawk, and proves that the seemingly unbreachable, is actually vulnerable. As she pulls herself back up the building after leaving her calling card, she stops at a lighted window that was dark on the way down. She can’t see the person in the room – other than that it’s a man – but he sees her, and comes after her with a gun. She gets away, barely, and breathes a sigh of relief, until she learns that a murder was committed in that room, that night, and the Phantom Hawk is being blamed.
When a second murder occurs at The Pink Palace as Kelsey investigates the theft of several artifacts, the Phantom Hawk again catches the blame. She knows she hasn’t killed anyone, but someone – possibly near and dear to her – has. As she works to uncover a killer, can she keep herself out of harm’s way?
Detective Brad Hollister has decided to make the move from Homicide to the Cold Case unit, but on his last night as a homicide detective, a murder occurs that ties into a 25-year-old cold case. The gun used matches one that was stolen from the Pink Palace at the same time Kelsey Allen’s father disappeared, supposedly having stolen a number of other artifacts. When Kelsey approaches him and asks him to look into her father’s disappearance, he’s willing to look but doesn’t expect to find anything. Could it be that the assumption made years ago was wrong? Artifacts are still disappearing from the museum but Kelsey’s dad has been gone a long time.
When the director of security for the Pink Palace Museum, and Kelsey’s new boss, is found murdered at a museum fundraiser, Brad sees Kelsey leaving the building by climbing down the side of it. Is it possible that the Phantom Hawk is a woman? And what possible reason is there for what he just saw?
Can Brad win Kelsey’s trust? Will they be able to find the killer before they are each placed squarely in his crosshairs?
This book was un-put-downable! Once I started it, the action was so fast paced that it felt like a new clue was dropped on every page, and none of those added up to the culprit until the very end. Readers of romantic suspense will love this book. While it is the second book in the series, it can be read as a stand-alone. (I read book 3 first, and still haven’t read book 1, although I will!) I highly recommend!
Buried Justice kept me guessing who the guilty person was. I would think I knew, then change my mind. The main characters were will developed, without confusing the reader with details about other characters. I read it SO quickly (because I kept turning the next page) that I was disappointed as I neared the end. The Christian aspect is what I look for in books I read. In Justice Buried the characters struggle with faith and trust, but look to God for truth and healing.
Kelsey Allen is secretly employed by Walter Rutherford’s security company as the Phantom Hawk. Kelsey’s mission is to find any weakness in the security of a building, the windows, and the computer systems and firewalls. She is a skilled rock climber and anticipates the thrill of scaling buildings and ledges in the dark of night. In the opening scene Kelsey is almost finished with a requested ‘break-in’ and has left her calling card when an unexpected flash of light reveals a partial face through one of the windows. Startled, Kelsey soon hears muffled sounds of gunfire. She knows something in this building has gone very wrong. Her sister Sabra helps her speed from the scene before she is caught. Kelsey’s half-sister Sabra knows of her secret identity and about the commissioned security work.
Kelsey’s mother and father divorced when she was very young and her mother married Sam Allen. Her father disappeared soon after under the humiliating accusations of stealing artifacts from the Pink Palace Museum in Memphis. He has never been heard from or seen again. As the story progresses a body is found in the building where Kelsey left her Phantom Hawk card on the night of the murder. Did the murderer recognize her? Will she be in danger? Later that week Kelsey is given another job, to check the security of areas in The Pink Palace. To do this, she must attend a gala and her mother has a date arranged for her, Sergeant Brad Hollister.
The mystery and suspense deepens when Kelsey attends the Gala at the Pink Palace and later changes into her casual clothes to do a bit of security detail. In horror she is intercepted as she is descending the side of the mansion, by none other than Brad. He is demanding to know what she is doing when they hear a scream…and now Kelsey may be linked to another murder victim, her boss, Walter Rutherford!
A very well written suspense mystery with a wonderful cast of characters. I appreciated the faith based part of Kelsey’s character, and her family, too!