Giveaway and Book Review: COLD LIGHT OF DAY

Downtown Skagway, Alaska

Not only does Elizabeth Goddard grab me with this romantic suspense, but she does it in a setting that I absolutely adore - - Alaska! 

Autumn Long is the police chief of a tiny town near Skagway. Her normally quiet town is rocked when bodies begin to appear in and around it. The dead are, for the most part, strangers to her town. And so is the cocky diver, Grier Brenner. He's an anomaly with an obvious law enforcement or military background. She can't seem to get a straight answer from him, but he certainly captures her attention. 

Elizabeth Goddard sweeps her heroine into one emotional and professional challenge after another and took me right along with her. The action takes rare breaks in this riveting book. Just long enough pauses to develop a scintillating romance that charmed me to my toenails. 

And the setting. Oh, wow! Elizabeth Goddard paints an image of this rugged area to perfection. I loved the description of the loamy surface due to the almost constant precipitation in this gigantic rain forest. The crystal night sky when they clouds did decide to part, the whale and dolphin pods, and even the Skagway narrow-rail train. I could almost smell the smoke! It brought back so many memories of our anniversary trip several years ago. Well, except for the rain. We were blessed to have sunshine traveling with us. 

Oh, and there weren't any murders on our trip either. Well, not that we know of! 

This author has a rare quality of taking the confusions on a local level and building them into massive issues that threaten populations. And she eloquently blends in histories and depth to these characters to make me feel not only as though I know them, but also if I could every find Shadow Gap, Alaska, I might actually see them on the street. 

I eagerly await book two in her Missing in Alaska series. 

Here's the back cover copy from COLD LIGHT OF DAY

Police Chief Autumn Long is fighting to keep her job in the quiet Alaska town of Shadow Gap when an unexpected string of criminal activity leaves her with a wounded officer, unexplained murders, and even an attack on her own father. Despite her mistrust of outsiders, she turns to Grier Brenner, a newcomer who seems to have the skills and training Autumn needs to face this threat to her community.

Grier is in Alaska for the same reason so many others are--to disappear--when Chief Long enlists his help. He emerges from the shadows and proves his mettle, but his presence in her life could be a deadly trap for them both. If his secret is exposed, all will be lost. And he's not sure even Autumn could save him.

As the stakes rise and the dangers increase, Autumn and Grier must rely on each other to extinguish the deadly threats.

The setting played a huge role in this story for me. Have you ever read a book where the setting was almost a character in itself? What books stick out in your mind that had settings that touched or intrigued you? Leave your answer and your email address in the comments, and you might win one of my books!