HARD EVIDENCE

Author: Pamela Clare ISBN: 0425212602 10/2006 SUSPENSE Publisher: BERKLEY SENSATION

They are hunting for the truth—and hungry for each other's touch... After the murder of a teenage girl, a mysterious man in a black leather jacket was seen lurking near the crime scene. Investigative reporter Tessa Novak has him in her sights as the culprit... That man was Julian Darcangelo, an undercover FBI agent working with the Denver police. He’s closing in on the trail of a human trafficker and killer. Tessa’s accusations could blow his cover, and he wants her off the investigation. But just as Tessa has made Julian a target of interest, she is now a target of the killer. And as they are forced to trust each other, their physical attraction escalates as intensely as the threat from a ruthless murderer who wants to see both of them dead...

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

Hot digging dog...

With a really hot (as in HOT) male lead, a spectacular romance and a perfectly executed gritty, realistic thriller, HARD EVIDENCE is a practically flawless, exciting piece of work.

Oh, and the love scenes are searing enough to scorch the sheets, too...

Ms. Clare cleverly pits two unlikely lead characters in macho bad boy hero, Julian Darcangelo, and girly girl, inexperienced Tessa Novak. The hard-as-nails, world-weary Darcangelo is boiled over by the super feminine Tessa, and their almost instant attraction blazes throughout the pages of HARD EVIDENCE.

Their romance is not only one of the best I've read in a long, long time, but manages to heat to the point of combustible and to be touching at the same time. These two fill all of those hollows and grooves. In other words, Julian and Tessa are perfect together. More than perfect, in fact. Their love story is the stuff fairy tales are made of.

And balances perfectly with the dynamite, creepy suspense. The glimpse into the world of human trafficking and the chilling monsters who prey on the innocent is fascinating.

Ms. Clare managed to score big with HARD EVIDENCE. Julian Darcangelo is the type of naughty, devilishly delicious hunk of male meat who can make a woman drool. His spunky heroine is more than a match for a man scarred by a sordid past.

Add an intriguing suspense and HARD EVIDENCE is hard to resist.

Thank you, Ms. Clare. HARD EVIDENCE is breathtaking...

Debbie Jett

Sue Cloud's additional review of HARD EVIDENCE