Mr. Serious

Warning, this review contains spoilers about Ms. Calculation, book one of the Mystery Christmas Series by Danica Winters. Mr. Serious, book two in the Harlequin Intrigue Mystery Christmas Series by Danica Winters, continues where Ms. Calculation left off, on the search for Alli Fitzgerald, wanted for the murder of Bianca and Monica. In the small town of Mystery, Montana, everyone seems to pretty well know everyone else’s business, except the fairly well concealed infidelities of the shady William Poe. That is, until Bianca showed up dead at the Dunrovin Ranch and pictures of William’s lovers were found in his wife Monica’s store, who also turned up brutally murdered. Revealing pictures of Alli, posing for William, in the sole attire of red boots, were a “dead” give away, implicating her as the jealous other woman. Detective Fitzgerald corroborated his suspicions with a sober Carla, Gwen’s mom, who had been detoxing in the hospital after almost being collateral damage when Alli tried poisoning her to cover her tracks before skipping town. Now it was up to Detective Fitzgerald and his brother Waylon, to track down Alli, Waylon’s ex-wife, before someone else gets hurt, or worse. Alli leaves her daughter Winnie in her sister, Christina’s, care, who along with Waylon’s mother and brother, had promised to keep the father’s identity a secret. When Waylon, the sexy military police officer that is Detective Fitzgerald’s foster brother, and Winnie’s father, lands back at the ranch, Christina has nothing but animosity for him for leaving her sister in the lurch with a kid, or so that was the story Alli had given her. She would just have to ignore the sizzling attraction she feels brewing between them, they could never work out. As Christina and Waylon team up to help Detective Wyatt Fitzgerald on his search gone cold, things begin to heat up, and not just on Alli’s trail. That is until the big secret is revealed and threatens to destroy the passion that had been building. Will they find Alli, and her now missing daughter? Will Waylon return to his life in the Army, or start a new one as a new dad? To find out, read Ms. Winter’s second book, which delivers edge of your seat suspense and a well-spun mystery with the steamy building of a relationship Harlequin Intrigue romance fans live for.

Loved this book! This a quick moving story that has Waylon returning home to the ranch for a visit after his ex-wife was implicated in murder, when he realizes that everyone is keeping a secret from him....that he has a daughter that he never knew about. His ex had made her sister, Christina, his daughter's guardian. While searing for his ex-wife, other secrets are revealed and the possibility of a new romance tantalizes him, without knowing if Christina reciprocates his attraction. Add in the sexual proclivities of some of the community members and you have all the components for an engaging romantic suspense novel. Fans of the genre will love this book and want to put it at the top of their TBR list.

I enjoyed this book, the second in the series. Mystery, Montana, is the setting. Interesting name! When they talked about the killer, the phrase "psycho killer" came to mind. Having a kid in the book, Winnie, made it stand out from other books of this type. I liked Winnie. Since it's a romance, there is some conflict between Waylon and Christina, especially since she thinks he doesn't want to stick around; he's used to a more exciting life as a military policeman. Would ranch life offer him anything? Lots of suspense in the book, especially near the end, where it got exciting. I will look for more books by this author.