I received this book via Lady Amber's Book Tours. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.
Trouble in Mind by Donna Frelick Series: Interstellar Rescue,
Published by INK'd Press on 2016-02-16
Length: 341 pages
Reviewing eARC from Lady Amber's Book Tours
Rating:
She couldn’t get him out of her mind—
and that’s when the trouble started.FBI Special Agent Alana Matheson is good at her job, despite a past that would make even a seasoned agent cringe. She has no time for the outside help the victim’s family has brought in on a kidnapping case, no matter how good-looking he is.
But galactic tracker Gabriel Cruz is no ordinary private investigator, and the skills he brings to the job will save both their lives. Because Lana and Gabriel are not the only ones seeking an unusual little boy and his mother. Their rivals in the chase are not of this world, and only an alliance built on the bonds of love can ensure that Lana and Gabriel beat the alien hunters to their prey.
Praise for the Interstellar Rescue Series
“Part political thriller, part sci-fi, part romance, Unchained Memory is an exciting read full of unexpected twists and turns highlighted by Donna Frelick’s excellent prose.”
– Linnea Sinclair, author of The Dock Five Series
Review
Trouble in Mind by Donna Frelick was an interesting read….to the say the least! It combined all my favorite elements into one book: epic science fiction, multiple character points of view, steamy romance, and amazing world-building. FBI Agent Alana Matheson is at a loss when trying to find the missing/kidnapped Asia and Jack Robertson. Her only lead is the husband who was beaten and left for dead and a private investigator Gabriel Cruz who is more than he seems. Racing to find the missing wife and son, Alana finds everything she’s ever known tested against the truths she uncovers.
I really liked Alana, or Lana as she prefers. She’s snarky, hardcore, and driven. She will find the missing Robertsons, it’s a matter of when not if. That is the way she thinks and I got to love her for it. She follows her gut intuition which gets her in trouble time and time again. And this time she follows her gut by listening to the PI the husband brought in, Gabriel Cruz. He’s in an enigma to her and she can’t decide whether to trust him or ditch him, but he’s her best lead on the case.
Gabriel Cruz *swoon* Gabriel is definitely more than he appears. The first time he appears in the book he is on another planet, extracting a guy from a bad situation. He is part-human, part-Thrane, and he is one of the sons of the deceased and feared Kylan Dar. He fights his killer instinct at every turn, instead choosing to uses his psi powers for good, helping the Interstellar Rescue, an uprising protecting and freeing the slaves in the Consortium.
The plot of this story is focused on finding Asia and Jack, who were taken by men in ski masks while enjoying a day at the park as a family. There are no leads, nothing to go on, except for what is hidden in Ethan Robertson’s mind. With Gabriel’s psi talents he is able to uncover what happened and now he’s on the hunt, but he has to play nice with local law enforcer Alana Matheson. The plot centers on them, their battle of wits and the attraction that is growing between them. Between that and the other plot threads, it makes for a fast-paced read!
Overall I enjoyed the book. I want to note though that I have not read the first book in the series Unchained Memory and while it isn’t required I do think it would clarify some of the questions that I had as I was reading. There were plot holes, I thought, but in reality these were probably explained in the first book so I won’t note them here. If you enjoy epic science fiction with a lot of romance, I highly suggest you grab a copy of this book!
Final Conclusion:
Excerpt
Gabriel Cruz had spent time dirtside on most of the planets clustered around the galaxy’s busier jump nodes. He’d pulled a few tours on some of the worlds of the distant Outer Reaches. His job required plenty of travel and a familiarity with many of the galaxy’s exotic locales and bustling centers of commerce, the slums and the luxury resorts, the slave markets and the sex trade. Gabriel hadn’t seen it all, but he’d seen a lot of it. And he could still find much to admire in a summer morning in a temperate climate zone on the planet its inhabitants called Earth.
The yellow sun was shining out of a flawless blue sky as he got out of the car and followed Rayna up the sidewalk toward Ethan’s house. It would be hot soon, but Gabriel didn’t mind the heat. He hated the cold of ships and space stations and dank colonial outposts, always balancing the scarcity of resources against the needs of many. Here he could smell the rich earth, the vegetation growing in it, the asphalt and the car exhaust. He could hear the birds singing, the neighbors mowing lawns and taking out the garbage. For one minute, he could pretend his life was like anyone else’s. Gabriel took that minute. Then he took a deep breath and went up the steps into Ethan’s house.
A young man in the white uniform shirt of a Metro Nashville PD officer stopped them at the front door with the usual bluff and bluster. Gabriel could see Ethan start toward them from the office inside on the right, but FBI Special Agent Alana Matheson was quicker.
She waved them in from a desk in the smaller office to the left, dismissing the uniform. “It’s all right, Officer. They’re friends of the family.” She nodded as she came to join them. “Morning, folks.”
“Agent Matheson.” Gabriel was intrigued by the way her grass-green eyes locked on to his. They studied him, as if they’d never quite encountered anything like him before. He didn’t know whether to be flattered or insulted by the thought, but he recognized he had that much in common with the FBI agent. He’d never seen local law enforcement like her before either.
Slightly unnerved, he said the first thing that came to mind. “Have you been here all night?”
She smiled, her fatigue showing. “No, I did get a little sleep. Don’t think your friend got any at all, though. He’s looking pretty slammed.” She indicated the office where the doctor was talking with Rayna.
Gabriel noted the signs of weariness in Ethan’s body that went beyond the obvious need for sleep and healing, his bone-cracking tension and heart-rending pain, his desperation. He felt his own chest tighten in sympathy. He turned back to Alana to see her watching him.
“How long have you known Ethan Roberts, Mr. Cruz?”
He held her gaze to see what her reaction would be and was delighted to see the color rise in her face in the seconds before he answered her question. “Not long. Sam and Rayna are mutual friends. They asked me to see if I could be of help.”
“In what way?”
“You might say I specialize in recovering what is lost.”
“As in missing persons.” She gave him that thorough once-over again. “I’m aware you’re a private investigator. Has Roberts hired you to find his wife and son?”
Gabriel smiled. It hadn’t taken her long to find his data plant.
“As I said, Sam and Rayna asked me to help. I’m not being paid.”
“Mr. Cruz, I hope I don’t have to tell you that interfering with a Federal investigation is against the law.”
Somehow he found her warning intensely sexy. “I have no intention of interfering. I’m simply here helping a friend recover something he’s lost. In this case, starting with his memory of what happened yesterday at the river.”
Alana’s gaze narrowed. “Are you also a psychiatrist of some sort, sir?”
“No.”
“A hypnotherapist?”
“Not really.”
“Then how do you expect to be able to help?”
He shrugged. “I have my ways. Some people would consider them somewhat . . . unconventional.”
Her lips curved. His breath stopped.
“Really. Okay. Maybe I should sit in on your meeting today, see for myself.”
He almost laughed. He hadn’t planned on this, but he could see no real harm in it. He would leave her behind long before he got to the point where the chase got dangerous.
“Why not?”
Her smile widened, revealing white, even teeth, and she waved a hand toward the office. “After you, Mr. Cruz.”
“Thank you, Agent Matheson. And, please, call me Gabriel.”
“Might as well call me Lana,” she murmured as he passed her. “We’re going to be very close friends from now on.”
About Donna Frelick
Along the way to her science fiction suspense career she’s been married to a wonderful guy since just out of college, been a Peace Corps Volunteer in Africa, raised a family (two girls, two grandkids), tried organic farming, worked as a freelance journalist and editor, been a community activist, and earned black belts in two different styles of martial arts.
Her first two SFR novels finaled in the Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® contest.
She lives on 44 beautiful mountain acres in Marshall, NC, with her husband and two talkative cats.
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