Spotlight & Review: A Thin Disguise by Catherine Bybee

 

A Thin Disguise (Richter #2) by Catherine Bybee

Publication Date: July 6th 2021 by Montlake

Pages: 347

Source: Publisher

Rating: ★★★★

Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books-A-Million | Book Depository | Goodreads

My Thoughts:

FBI agent, Leo Grant, is in Las Vegas to make sure the case against a Russian mobster goes off without a hitch. I was all for that since this mobster was a special kind of dirt bag who specialized in child prostitution/trafficking!   Little does Leo know that the star witness has her own guardian angel, Olivia, an ex-assassin trying to help good prevail. Their paths cross when a shooter takes aim at Olivia and Leo, and she’s shot.

Oliva wakes up injured in the hospital, with no memory of her past or how she got there. This is where Neil MacBain and his security team step in to help both Leo and Olivia get to the bottom of things while keeping everyone safe.  They do this by whisking Olivia out of Las Vegas and holing up in a secluded Colorado vacation home. Leo insists on accompanying the team to help investigate the shooting and help keep Olivia safe.

I don’t know what it is, but I love amnesia stories and the mystery it provides as the memories come back.  Here it was a way for Olivia to live like “normal” woman, unburdened by the memories of her prior dark, lonely life.  From the minute Leo laid eyes on Olivia he was attracted but getting to know her as they’re away from danger allows that attraction to grow into more for both. Catherine Bybee knows how to write chemistry and the right amount of buildup, to lead into some hot scenes! Just the right amount to establish an irresistible, passionate connection between Leo and Olivia! But will that be enough when she regains her memories and real life trickles back in?

I’ve been a fan of Catherine Bybee since reading and loving her First Wives Club series, so I was thrilled to hear about this spinoff series! Leo and Olivia are characters from the previous book, Changing the Rules, but Olivia goes back even further as she was an important character in Say it Again, the last book in the First Wives Club series.  I think it’s best to at least read the previous book in this Richter series, Changing the Rules, before A Thin Disguise, but in a pinch, you could read it as a standalone and still enjoy the story. Both Richter novels are on Kindle Unlimited, read and listen for free if you belong to that program. 

4 Stars

Excerpt:

"Fuck off, Grant," she said the second he got out.

He popped his truck and grabbed his bag. "You know, if you don't stop leaving after we make love, I'm going to start believing you really don't care."

She marched over. "I don't."

He met her between the two cards, reached out, and pulled her close. A quick kiss to her ticked-off lips. "Good morning." He left her staring and headed to the passenger side of her car.

"What are you doing?"

He looked over his shoulder as if the answer were obvious. "Taking two cars is a waste of fuel. And since we're going in the same direction..." He opened the door to the back seat, threw his bag in.

She marched up, grabbed the bag...and tossed it out. "We're not doing this."

He picked it up, tossed it in...pressed one finger to her chest to back her up, and closed the door. "Yes. We are."

She glared. "You're really starting to get on my nerves."

"I know."

He opened the door and encouraged her to get in. "I can drive. You don't look like you got any sleep last night."

She walked around him, her middle finger in the air, and climbed into the driver's side.

Leo laughed and took the passenger seat.

As soon as they were on the road, he texted Jax, told her to come and get the car.

"How did you know where I was?"

Claire!

"I can't tell you all my secrets until you stop running away."

Leo noticed her white knuckles as she gripped the steering wheel. "What did Charlie tell you?"

"Who was the shooter?"

She looked over her shoulder, grunted.

"I took care of you two to one last. You owe me."

"I faked it."

He busted out laughing.

Olivia said something in a language he didn't understand.

"The way a woman moans and cries...that can be faked. But the way your body pulsates around my—"

"Shut up, okay?" She hit the wheel.

Book Description:

A former gun for hire and a federal agent find themselves on the right side of love but the wrong end of a bullet in this Richter installment from New York Times bestselling author Catherine Bybee.

On a fateful night in Las Vegas, FBI agent Leo Grant is working on a critical detail in a high-profile child prostitution trial when a beautiful woman jumps into the path of a bullet meant for him. Little does Leo know that the woman is Olivia, an ex-assassin who is seeking redemption one good deed at a time.

One minute, Olivia is lunging in front of Leo on the Vegas Strip. The next, she’s waking up in the hospital in a haze of pain with no memory of her past, her enemies, or even her own name.

With Olivia suffering from memory loss and completely unaware of the danger she is in, it’s up to Leo and Neil MacBain’s team of operatives to keep her safe. With Olivia and Leo both unaware of her past crimes, the two have little reason to avoid their growing attraction. Slowly her past seeps in through the cracks as she struggles to find the answers of who she is. When the veil is lifted and her dark past is staring her down, Olivia must turn her back on Leo and the love she can never allow herself to have, and race to find her would-be killer.

About the author:

Catherine is a #1 Wall Street Journal, Amazon, and Indie Reader bestselling author. In addition, her books have also graced The New York Times and USA Today bestsellers lists. In total, she has written thirty-six beloved books that have collectively sold more than 10 million copies and have been translated into more than twenty languages.

Raised in Washington State, Bybee moved to Southern California in the hope of becoming a movie star. After growing bored with waiting tables, she returned to school and became a registered nurse, spending most of her career in urban emergency rooms. She now writes full time and has penned The Not Quite series, The Weekday Brides series, The Most Likely To series, and The First Wives series.

Connect with Catherine Bybee:

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