“A playful murder tale that should please longtime fans of this series and seduce new ones…” – Kirkus ReviewA killer plays cat and mouse…But his prey has secrets. Shattered ReflectionsFire and Ice were never meant to coexist.Strong-willed and stubborn, Kathryn Nugle enters a man’s profession, untested, inexperienced, and determined to solve a decade-old puzzle.Intuition flagged her client’s … solve a decade-old puzzle.
Intuition flagged her client’s deception but didn’t explain the mystery of his jacket’s crimson stain. Blood doesn’t lie. When the victim leaves damning evidence behind, fate throws Katt into a cascade of events that will challenge her skills.
Kidnapping leads to murder but doesn’t stop Katt’s investigation. When her technique refocuses the killer’s attention, Katt must stay a step ahead to survive.
Mathew McAllister is the eldest of six siblings, all current or former detectives. Practical jokes and pranks are part and parcel of his daily life. The newest addition to the family fold is a wisecracking hacker who mangles his strained equanimity and tests his patience in Morse code, security breaches, and invasion of his cherished privacy.
When a vicious assassin paints a target on one of their own, the McAllisters close ranks to ferret out the twisted intentions of a serial killer.
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Shattered Reflections is the fifth book in the McAllister Justice series By Reily Garrett. Each book can be read as standalone but I do recommend reading the series, if not before but after. But, I will say if you want the beginning of Katt and Matt’s story I would read Carbon Replacements. I have read the series, Carbon just last week and I knew their story was going to be something else. The banter between these two is pretty funny. I don’t want to spoil the story so I will make this fast.
Katt has a new case. Something about her new client isn’t right. He is hiding something and she intends to find out what it is. Matt doesn’t want her anywhere near this case. She is too young and inexperienced. She is also determined and is stubborn as hell so he knows she won’t walk away from it. So, he won’t let her out of his sight. She is new to his tight-knit family and they watch out for their own. The McAllister way.
Matt and Katt’s relationship is complicated. She wants him but he sees her as only a kid. He wants her but thinks she deserves someone younger and maybe less grouchy. She is almost twenty-two and he just passed his dirty thirty. The attraction is there. Everyone sees it. Feels it. Can he get over the age difference before it’s too late?
Overall…This is definitely a thriller with a twist. Someone is after her. And in the middle of it all there is a love story. I thought it was a perfect blend of it all. I had to know what was going to happen next. I loved the characters even when I wanted to slap them. I don’t know what is up next for the McAllisters but I am excited to find out.
Quotes:
The kid was going to be the death of him. Silent pain she covered with false bravado ripped another layer off his heart.
“Stay away from this damn case, Nugget.”
“I’ve never heard you talk about a guy named Bob.” “Ah, but good girls don’t talk about Bob. He’s a secret.”
Shattered Reflections is the fifth book in Reily Garrett’s McAllister Justice series. This story can be read as a standalone romantic thriller as each book tells the story of a different McAllister brother. Young private investigator Katt is hired to find the thugs who attacked a man called Denny. However, her gut tells her that he’s hiding very vital info so she instead seeks out the help of her good friend and cop Matt McAllister. The sexual tension between Matt and Katt was off the charts! You could tell they both cared for each other, but they had a hard time expressing their feelings out loud to one another. Shattered Reflections has several twists and turns that I most definitely didn’t expect. It’s filled with suspense, angst, drama, tension, sizzle and romantic suspense. This was a good way to end the series for it went out on a awesome note.
My Rating: 4.5 stars *****
It’s so much fun watching this author evolve. I have read all 4 books in the McAllister Justice series so far as well as the prequel novella, and Ms. Garrett continues to up her game. Her writing chops have matured; character development has continued to grow; dialogue, particularly the humor as well as the angst, has really improved, as has her expertise in scene-setting imagery.
All of her books are plot-driven and character-driven in various percentages. This one, though the plot is very good, is highly character-driven, and it works wonderfully.
Our protagonists are Matt and Katt. Katt is not your usual gorgeous, sophisticated, woman. She is definitely tough, but also has a real vulnerable side, and at 21 years old has lots to learn as a novice private investigator. She is intelligent, yet raw, and oh so driven. Matt, on the other hand, is a veteran cop. He has a canine partner, Damien. He is happy to teach Katt the survival skills necessary for her job, but he has no intentions of becoming more personally involved with her. After all he is over 30 and she is just 21 years old. But as advertised, this is a romantic thriller. Ms. Garrett does a wonderful job capturing the budding relationship between these two. The push and the pull, the wisecracking, the hurt, the pain, the incredible angst on both sides, and the tenderness. I loved all of that. I am not an erotica fan, and that is not what this is. It’s an emotional ride with these two dancing around each other, one that I thoroughly enjoyed. And though I’m not a big romance reader, I was really captivated by these two people and their fragile bond. The romantic scenes are high class, nothing smutty or hard-core. There is much tenderness and raw emotion with terrific buildup over the course of the story.
The crime plot involves the attempted sell off of a product that could bring great danger to the United States if it falls into the wrong hands. Murders ensue and Katt and Matt become involved. By definition, the rest of the McAllisters become involved as well. This book earns its billing as a thriller with several superb scenes of high suspense and adventure nicely spread out over the storyline. I was so agitated during these events that I was literally tripping over the words willing my guys to safety.
The scenes with all the McAllisters give a real sense of the family members all taking care of each other. Pranks and wisecracks prevail. And Ms. Garrett’s books always include dogs and usually another animal in minor yet significant roles. Loved, loved, loved Gila the ferret in this tale.
I have to say this book is my favorite of the series, with Digital Velocity a close second. Katt is my new favorite character. One can certainly read this book as a standalone as the plot is brand new in each book. However, I for one would miss the character development and the history of the McAllisters that continues to grow in each novel. Another advantage to reading in order is the fact that all the books are very good. Why miss one? I hope Ms. Garrett keeps this series going for a long long time. McAllister Justice series books are officially preapproved for my TBR list!
Many thanks to Ms. Reily Garrett for having me as a beta reader for this novel and for gifting me an advanced review copy. My opinions are mine alone and are not biased in any way by my working relationship with the author.
I loved Katt. Any lingering doubts or concerned (from Carbon Replacements) were smashed in this book. I saw a different side to Katt than what was shown in the previous book. She was softer in this book. She was more transparent with her feelings. I did think that she was a bit immature. She kept taking off whenever her feelings got hurt. That might be the only thing that I didn’t like about her.
Matt annoyed me for a majority of the book. Before I get into why I will say that I did like him. He was a great brother and he put up with a lot from his younger siblings. Now onto why he annoyed me. He kept denying his feeling for Katt. He kept throwing up excuses about her age. Even when he was confronted by Laredo at the hospital and his brothers later on in the book, he still kept denying. I got so frustrated with him. There was a point in the book where I wanted to jump in, smack him upside the head, and say “Dude, just admit that you love her.“
The main storyline in Shattered Reflections was well written. I liked that I knew who the bad guys were, well for the most part. The author did a great job at keeping the suspense level high in the book. I loved not knowing what was going to happen next. It kept me glued to the book.
The secondary storylines were excellent and added depth to the storyline. The one with Katt’s parents was heartbreaking. It explained a lot. I also thought the backstory on the bad guys were interesting. I did like the turn that Denny’s storyline took. I was not expecting it to end up that way!!
The sexual tension in this book was insane. It drove me nuts. I did like that the author used some raunchy humor to offset some of it. The Bob comments were hilarious. As was Matt’s reaction to it. I was dying laughing.
When Matt and Katt finally did have sex, it intense. What I liked is that there was only one sex scene in the entire book and that it was towards the end. So, I went the entire book with them trading sexual barbs and the occasional Bob comment. It was fantastic.
I was sad at the end of Shattered Reflections. Don’t get me wrong, the ending was perfect. The author did a fantastic job at wrapping up all the storylines. What made me sad was that it seems like this is going to be the end of the series. I hope not. But, there are no more siblings. Well, there’s Abby but I think she’s married.
This is the fifth book in this awesome series, and can be read as a standalone, although my personal preference is to read a series in order for a better understanding of the dynamics. Matthew is in law enforcement and is the oldest to the brothers. Kathryn is a private investigator who is new to these uncharted waters and often finds herself in trouble, and Matthew will do whatever he has to in order to protect her. No spoilers; this is an absolute must read, you will not be disappointed. This is a well written story which had twists, suspense, and is a humorous and entertaining read. I was intrigued and captivated throughout and cannot wait to read more from this talented author, whose work I recommend for all.
Katt is a young private investigator just starting her own business. This new client is lying to her about why he wants her to work for him. That should make for an interesting case.
Matt McAllister is the eldest in a family that all work in law enforcement. It makes it difficult to keep them and those they love safe. That includes the feisty little PI that has attached herself to them.
Our heroine has got far more courage than know how. It’s time to fix that.
Our hero is having trouble with the age gap, and is too honourable for his own good.
This is an exciting romantic suspense with lots of danger and quite a few giggles. The villains seem to come from all directions.
It is part of a series but easily read on its own. Be warned once you start this series you will want to read all of them. The McAllisters are a great family of characters.
I loved it.
This series – one of my favorites! It has everything and Reily has quite a way with words. The thing about this series is of course the suspense, but this book has the forbidden love 😉 kept me on the edge of my seat til the very end. I received this ARC for an honest review.
This is book 5 in a series about the McCallister brothers. Each one is somehow involved in law enforcement or private investigations. They each definitely have their own personalities but when danger lurks the McCallister brothers are one family you don’t want to mess with.
In this book the oldest brother Matthew runs into a stubborn young woman who is an inexperienced P.I. While trying to solve a mystery, she stirs up all kinds of trouble instead. Matthew and his brothers try to let her have her independence but when it becomes life or death, they once again close ranks and protect their own. This book not only has suspense, intrigue, mystery and romance but it also has a good dose of humor as well.
Another book on my all time favorite shelf!
Although these books can be read as standalones I highly recommend reading them in order!
Strong-willed and stubborn, Kathryn Nurgle enters a man’s profession, untested, inexperienced, and determined to solve a decades-old puzzle. Intuition flagged her client’s deception but didn’t explain the mystery of his jacket’s crimson stain, yet blood doesn’t lie. When the victim leaves damning evidence behind, fate throws her into a cascade of events that will challenge her survival skills. Mathew McAllister is the eldest of six siblings, all current or former detectives. Practical jokes and pranks are part and parcel of his daily life. The newest addition to the family fold is a wisecracking hacker who mangles his strained equanimity and tests his patience in Morse code, security breaches, and invasion of his cherished privacy. When a vicious assassin paints a target on one of their own, the McAllisters close ranks to ferret out the twisted intentions of a serial killer. For fans of Sandra Brown and Lee Child, Shattered Reflections is an exciting thriller with a romantic twist.
@ddeegott What did I like? Besides the fact that I love the McAllister brothers this book really reached out to me. In my own life, there was an age difference in my marriage, and it took him a little while to accept that I did know my own mind. So, watching/reading about Mathew really brought home the experience that I also went through. Now that aside, WOW what a book!
What will you like? The whole series is very well written, and each book just gets better. The characters are unique, and each grows with the storyline and the on-going series. I love the brotherly affection that plays through each book and as they each bring a mate on board how they are accepted and supported. This is a very wholesome group of boys that seem to attract grownup trouble at each step in their lives. The storylines are so fascinating and enjoyable with the depth and degree of involvement of each brother dominated the storyline. Great books and enjoyable reads. I received this from the author for an honest review with no other compensation.