Reviewing: Buried Secrets

Buried Secrets
by Irene Hannon

Buried Secrets is the first in Irene Hannon’s new series about the three McGregor brothers, all members of elite military branches.  Mac McGregor, the oldest brother, has stepped down from life as a Navy SEAL and is easing into a new role as a county detective.  Similarly, Lisa Grant is ready for a quieter existence than what she experienced as a detective in Chicago’s homicide division.  She is now the chief of police in a small town in Missouri.  When human bones are unearthed, Lisa’s and Mac’s paths cross as they partner to solve the decades-old mystery.

The premise of Buried Secrets was very promising to me.  I enjoy detective stories—I like to see how the detectives interact with each other, how the evidence is discovered and the clues are planted, and how the good guys take down the bad guys.  This is a romantic suspense, however, so the crime and its solving take a backseat to the romantic sparks flying between Mac and Lisa.  As each chapter unfolds, Hannon moves from a third person focus on Mac to a third person focus on Lisa.  This allows a glimpse inside Mac’s head and Lisa’s—the dual focus can be appealing to people who enjoy romances and like to see how men think (though, written by a woman it’s hard to know if this is actually how men think). 

It was entertaining enough.  Since I prefer my mysteries with a side of romance rather than the other way around, it took me a while to get into the book.  I had to slog through the mutual attraction and the “we can’t be together because we work together” until I got to the meat of the mystery.  Once I was there, I really enjoyed the way Hannon broke it down.  Because of the prologue, we never truly wonder who buried the bones.  In a way that made the story interesting—instead of trying to guess who did it, I got to wonder how they would be caught, and I got to enjoy that process.  For lovers of romantic suspense, I can see that this is a well-written book and would recommend it for them.  For lovers of crime fiction, it’s probably worth the read as long as you don’t mind romance in the form of lingering looks, fingers accidentally brushing, and racing hearts.

Disclosure: I received this book free from Revell through the Revell Reads (http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/revell/revell-reads) program. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html.