He’s fighting for a second chance with his first love…before it’s too late. The last time PI Blaze McClintock was on her family’s ranch, she left in handcuffs. She vowed then to never go home again…until her estranged father is accused of murder. He’s not a good man–this entire Montana town knows that. But Blaze believes her father is innocent and she’ll do anything to prove it, even ask … even ask the one man who broke her heart for help–the only man in town who’s on her side.
No matter how hard he tried, Jake Horn could never forget Blaze. As teenagers, their passion ignited, leaving destruction in their wake. Now, years later, it’s obvious little has changed. But as they work together to unravel what really happened that night, a dangerous secret threatens to separate them for good. This time, though, Jake won’t let Blaze go without a fight–even if it means risking his own life.
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This is my second B.J. Daniels book and it was just as good as the first one I read. Once you start reading these books you are hooked, it’s a suspense book with just enough romance in it. I never saw the ending coming, it kept me guessing all through the story. A must read for sure for anyone that loves good writing!
This author never fails to keep you entranced as you read another of her adventures. There is one mystery after another plus total intrigue in the story-line of this book. I felt breathless but kept on reading. Blaze has tremendous energy and Jake works hard to keep up with her. They are involved in private detective work and their attraction makes everything interesting. Thanks for a great read.
Wonderful writer!
Restless Hearts (Montana Justice #1) by B.J. Daniels This is the first book in this series and I really enjoyed it. Could hardly stop reading to eat or sleep. It has everything…murder, mystery, love lost and found, misunderstandings, renewal, forgiveness and redemption.
Good book. Blaze has not been home in many years thanks to her estrangement from her father. But when she learns he was charged with murdering a neighboring rancher, she heads for home. When she first arrives, Blaze believes that Monte is guilty of the murder, but is determined that he have a fair trial. It isn’t long before Blaze changes her mind about his guilt and turns her efforts to proving his innocence. Though it pains her to do so, she will even accept ex-boyfriend Jake’s help.
Jake hasn’t been able to forget Blaze. He’s more than happy to help her with her investigation as it gives him the chance to spend time with her. He is determined to do everything he can to prove his love to her.
I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Blaze and Jake. Their previous relationship burned hot, disturbing both with the strength of their feelings. Blaze took advantage of an incident with Jake to break off the relationship. She’s not happy at first to discover he was sent by a mutual friend to help her. Though she claims to be over him, there is no doubt about the sparks that still fly between them. But Blaze has trouble trusting Jake’s professed feelings after witnessing the disintegration of her parents’ marriage. She doesn’t believe that love lasts. As they worked together, Blaze’s feelings for Jake grew, but she was afraid to acknowledge them. I loved Jake’s patience and persistence as he showed Blaze how he felt in many different ways. There were some sweet scenes as he took care of her, and some steamy ones as the sparks between them continued to grow. Jake refused to give in to those sparks without Blaze’s admission of her feelings, creating some volatile moments. I liked the conversation between Blaze and Monte that helped put some of her fears to rest, but it was nearly losing each other forever that pushed Blaze past those fears. I liked Jake’s big moment, even though it wasn’t quite what he’d planned.
The suspense of the story was terrific. I was a little surprised that Blaze believed Monte was guilty when she first came back. But it didn’t take long for her to pick up on the clues that Monte was likely protecting someone by pleading guilty. Blaze accepted Jake’s help in investigating after realizing that it wasn’t going to be easy to discover the truth. Monte was not a popular man, and many were more than willing to believe he was guilty. At the top of that list was the sheriff, who had a long-standing grudge against Monte. The deeper that Blaze and Jake delved into the past, the more suspects they found for Frank’s murder. They also stirred up a veritable beehive of trouble, resulting in several attempts on their lives. The tension increased the closer they got to the truth. The final confrontation was intense, with a couple of unexpected revelations. There was also the secondary mystery of what had really happened to Blaze’s mother, which drove the sheriff’s vendetta against Monte. The resolution of that question was very well done.
I loved the depth of characterization of the people of Saddle Butte. It was interesting to see the number of secrets that were present in this small town and how pulling one thread unraveled so many of them.
I liked the story. A mystery of who did it.
Fantastic characters, ggreat story and just enough mystery and suspense.
A second chance romance, mystery and murder, with intriguing characters, a signature of B.J Daniels, make this book a terrific read.
Blaze McClintock swore that she would never return to the family ranch, until her mentor Judge WT Landusky sends her there. She is a PI and her father has been accused of murdering his neighbor. The Judge also sent her former lover, Jake Horn, also a PI to help her. Her father says he is guilty, but both Blaze and Jake, think he is covering up for someone and the sheriff for his own reasons, is trying to railroad him. Attempts on Blaze’s life only convince them more to dig in their heels and find the real murderer and maybe the mystery behind Blaze’s mother disappearance years ago.
Great book
I love all the books I have read by this author
Restless Hearts by B.J. Daniels kicks off her new Montana Justice series, and what a great way to do so. While I expected this novel to be romantic suspense, it was light on the romance, but what a mystery/suspense/thriller of a whodunit read it was. It gets 4.5 stars from his reader, primarily because I missed the romance.
Blaze McClintock, a private investigator, hasn’t been back to her home at McClintock Ranch in Saddle Butte, Montana, for years, and has barely spoken to her father during that time, but when she learns that her father, Montgomery (Monte) McClintock, is now in jail for murder, is refusing a lawyer, and pleading guilty, after having been found, gun in hand, standing over the dead body of his neighbor, Frank, she has no choice but to return. As if that wasn’t enough, one of the buffalo/bison Monte raises, to the dismay of the cattle ranchers around town, has also broken through 2 fences and trampled the young boy who spotted it while riding the fence line, Blaze has sympathies to offer to the boy’s family, although unwanted, get her father a good lawyer, and since she doesn’t believe her dad killed anyone, she plans on using her investigative skills to find out what actually happened, and clear her father’s name. Also in unwelcome attendance, is Jake Horn, also an investigator with whom Blaze was involved years ago–he too is bent on protecting her, rekindling their romance, and solving the murder.
The sheriff in town, Bud Fraser, is only too eager to see Monte in prison, even though there’s no actual evidence that the gun he was holding was the murder weapon. His son, LJ, is his deputy, and was once engaged to marry Blaze, but his violent temper was one of the many reasons she left town and ended their relationship. LJ is now engaged to another gal in town, Tawny, but his abusive tendencies haven’t changed since Blaze left town.
Once Blaze fails at trying to talk her father out of his guilty plea and finds legal council for him, she and Jake start their own investigation, believing that the reason Monte confessed was to protect someone else, and the two will soon be finding many more suspects, all of whom had good reason to want Frank dead. The sheer number of suspects and their motives for murder is staggering in this small town, which has more scandalous secrets than Peyton Place, but the lies, and the long-held secrets, including why, when Blaze’s mother left her husband 16 years earlier, with the promise to call Blaze the day after she left, and come back for her as soon as she was settled, and then was never heard from again, just added more interest, danger, and complexity to this already intricately plotted novel. It has quite a large cast of characters, all of whom have motives for murdering Frank, but I think the ending will surprise you as much as it surprised me.
If you’re looking for an engrossing mystery/suspense novel, one that will keep you guessing until the very end, look no further. This was one gripping, gritty, page-turner of a novel, and while I’d have liked a little more romance, all-in-all, I couldn’t put this novel down, and am happy to recommend it.
I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel. The opinions mentioned are my own.
B. J. Daniels’ Restless Heart is book One of Montana justice series. It starts with a murder, a town full of suspects, and dangerous twists and turns putting the complex plot on a relentless pace and the adrenaline is practically dripping off the pages, absorbing me into the whodunit mystery. OMG, if you love mystery thrillers, this is the book for you! B.J. Daniels delivers a story that will grab you by the seat of your pants and will not let go. The story begins with Blaze McClintock who returns home after her father is arrested for murder. With Jake Horn’s help, Blaze investigates, unaware that the more they dig up secrets, the more they put themselves in danger. RESTLESS HEARTS is highly flammable that will keep the readers turning the pages to the very end.
I love B. J. Daniels’ books and this is the first in a new series called Montana Justice. It’s always exciting to read a new book especially when it is part of a new series. What I love the most about her novels is not only is it a romance novel; but, mostly a murder mystery with so many intriguing characters and twists and turns. It hooked me from the first page. I know everyone is gonna love this book and look forward to the rest of the Montana Justice series.
When BJ Daniels begins a new series, I am super excited! This one looks like it’ll be another fantastic series that will drawn you in from the beginning because this story did from the first page for me! You think the murder is solved right away because the culprit is standing over the body with the murder weapon right? Ah, not so fast! We have the whole book to find out what really happened and how we get there is so intriguing! Blaze is estranged from her father but she certain isn’t going to let him be put away for murder! She is certain he wouldn’t commit a crime like that and although she said she’d never set foot in Saddle Butte again, she’ll make an exception for this! She’s only surprised when Jake Horn shows up too – her boyfriend that broke her heart. He’s going to set things right and help Blaze exonerate her father. However, they have to deal with a “small town mentality” that has so many secrets, they don’t know where to start! Small towns can be great or they can be…. very difficult to live in! Saddle Butte is the latter! I highly recommend this book but make sure you know that you wont be able to put it down!
Amazing story, sweet second-chance romance!
If you’ve never lived in a small town where everyone knows everyone else’s business, then this book will feel like a visit to a foreign country. However, I grew up in such a town, and could easily identify with every little bit of this intricately-layered small town mystery.
Blaze is called back to her hometown to help her father, who stands accused of murder. Already suspected in the decades-old disappearance of his wife, Monte is believed by all to be guilty this time too and when he pleads guilty in court, it looks like an open and shut case. Until Blaze insists on hiring a lawyer, who insists on actual evidence being presented.
Blaze’s ex-boyfriend, Jake, was also asked back to help Blaze, and he’s not going to let this chance go by without doing everything he can to prove his love to Blaze. Their romance is almost a back-seat story to the murder investigation, but the emotional depth of their interactions affects their every move as their investigation uncovers many long-buried secrets one by one.
Told in multiple third person POV, we’re treated to insights from not just Blaze and Jake, but also from Sheriff Bud, Allie, and others involved in this case. This is one of the most invigorating, complex romantic suspense books I’ve read in a very long time, and the eventual unveiling of all the secrets and unmasking the killers is shocking yet provides all the necessary closure. The HEA was sweetly triumphant and very satisfying.
This book kept me guessing, kept me thoroughly captivated, and kept me glued to my kindle from the first page to the last. I highly recommend it. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
Another hit right out of the gate with this new series by B.J. Daniels. I could not put the book down. The further you read the more her writing sucks you in. You are continously turning the next page to see what is going to happen to next. As you read the store of Jake and Blaze you are wrapped up in their story. You are rooting them on to find a happy ending. But first they have to deal with getting Blaze’s dad out of jail and trying to clear his name. There are so many clues as to who has done the killing that happened in the book but it is the least likely suspect that will shock you! That is one of the many reasons I love B.J. Daniel’s book. You think you have it all figured out and she throws you for a delightful loop! You have to give this book a chance. You will not be in the least disappointed. This is the beginning of a brand new series, that I now can’t wait to read the second book!
B.J. Daniels has a new series and readers are going to love it!
PI Blaze McClintock is returning to her hometown and family ranch for the first time in years. Not that she really wants to but her estranged father, Montgomery “Monte” McClintock is in jail charged with murdering fellow rancher Frank Anson. The judge who set Blaze on her reformed life’s path, after her wild ways got her into enough trouble that she had to face Judge JT Landusky, has sent her home to help her father. Monte wants to plead guilty to the murder but Blaze believes he is trying to protect someone else. The judge also sends bounty hunter Jake Horn to assist Blaze. Oh no! Not Jake Horn! Blaze and Jake had a thing going the previous year until Jake took off to help a “friend.” Blaze’s heart was broken and she is not real inclined to give Jake a second chance. Then again she never let Jake explain his actions and Jake is determined to make her listen because he loves her. He is also determined to keep her safe. That’s a difficult, dangerous job. Arson, buffalo stampedes, break-ins and all kinds of danger.
Restless Hearts by B.J. Daniels is the first book in her Montana Justice series. This book is a super beginning to the series. B.J. Daniels is very talented when it comes to mystery, suspense and romance. This comes through quite clearly in this story. The suspects in the murder case are numerous. Blaze and Jake have so many people to question. This author has really outdone herself with the characters in this story, especially the main ones, Blaze and Jake. The chemistry between Blaze and Jake is off-the-charts. Their ability to get answers is outstanding. I love these two characters. And I loved the suspense of this story. Thrills and chills are awaiting readers of this book.
I received a complimentary copy of this book from Harlequin via NetGalley and I am voluntarily reviewing it.
This was a wonderful read. I just love Ms. Daniels’ story-telling. Her stories just draw me into the action right from the beginning. I adore the characters and the web of intrigue that she weaves. This story just had me guessing all the way throughout. Ultimately I was incorrect as to who the murderer was. I never would have guessed that person.
Blaze McClintock returns to the family homestead as her father has been accused of murdering his neighbor. Blaze hasn’t gone home in years as she doesn’t get along with her father since her mother vanished 16 years ago. Jake Horn following her as he hasn’t gotten over her. He is in love with her and wants to protect her. The tale of these two former lovers have quite a task ahead of them especially since her father wants to plead guilty.
I adored the multiply POVs that this story is written in. The story evolved so beautifully getting all of the different characters’ thoughts.
I highly recommend this story to anyone!