Review : Lust, Money & Murder (Lust, Money & Murder #1-3 omnibus) by Mike Wells (Romantic Suspense)

Goodreads

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Book Blurb

Born in the worst suburb in Pittsburgh, Elaine Brogan is bright, beautiful and bold. When her father is falsely arrested for passing counterfeit $100 bills, Elaine vows become a Secret Service agent and track down the man responsible. After barely surviving the arduous Secret Service Training Academy in Laurel, Maryland, she is transferred to bleak and blustery Great Falls, Montana. But things do not go as planned, and Elaine soon finds herself betrayed and thrown into an adventure that takes her halfway around the world, from dark and mysterious Sofia, Bulgaria, to Moscow Russia, and finally, to Milan, Italy. In the end, will Elaine find the love and happiness she truly seeks...or will she turn to a life of obscene wealth, power and corruption?

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Toot's Review

Lust, Money & Murder by Mike Wells is a wonderful mystery, suspense, thriller with a dash of romance thrown in that will keep you on the edge of your seat for the whole ride. I was actually given a review audio copy for my honest review, so I'll make mention to the audio version as well but first, a brief synopsis.

Our heroine is named Elaine Brogan. We follow her life from child to adult. As a child, she had a knack for puzzles. Her father was completely devoted to her and gave her everything he could and couldn't afford. Elaine's life seemed to revolve around money and when a tragedy strikes, she goes into the Secret Service to seek out her own revenge but when that goes awry, she transfers to Bulgaria. While there, she finds herself working closely with her boss, Nick, who's smart, handsome and roguish. By Nick's side, Elaine finds her groove and quickly makes a name for herself as the girl who can spot fake money a mile away and everyone in the agency wants to use her but getting her away from Nick will take an act of God because she's falling in love with him, fast! Ok so maybe not an act of God but how about bad guys whom want to use her for their own nefarious purposes. Soon Elaine is sent on wild goose chases across the globe, no one is to be trusted and survival is the only goal.

I'm personally not usually a mystery type of person. I love my strong heroines', my alpha males and my HEA which usually aren't in mystery books but OMG is it ever in this one. The story is told from Elaine's POV and through her eyes, we see a life of naiveté through rose colored glasses but also someone who's brilliant in her own right. Yes she has her moments of extreme stupid but don't we all? She does definitely learn from those moments and tries not to fall into the same traps. She's also is a survivor. She doesn't rely on the hero to come rescue her. There's moments in the story that she seems backed into a corner with no way out but then she finds the little crack in the window to rescue her own bacon.

If you can't tell, I loved the characters, the action is high and the HEA is wonderful. The audio reader is absolutely brilliant as well. She brings life to the book with each character having a distinct voice and it's delightful to follow along. I honestly think that for this book, I would recommend the audio version over reading it on your own.

Definitely highly recommended!