3.75 Stars. As many other readers out there I’m a big Taite fan. While I enjoy all of her books, I was happy to find out this was one of her standalone crime/law books instead of part of her series. These one-off crime books really are my favorites to read. I think Taite fans will have fun with this book.

Catherine is a defense attorney with a secretive past. Due to her past she works hard to make sure that the police and prosecutors follow the letter of the law. Starr is a prosecutor who wants to run for the District Attorney position. The more cases she wins, even if it means bending the rules, the better. Starr seems to be the exact person that Catherine tries to fight against, but the more they are around each other the more feelings start to develop. Can two people on such different sides of the law have a chance together or will Catherine’s secret past stand in the way?

I grabbed this book because it was by Taite. Whatever she writes is automatic for me so I had not read the blurb yet. I would suggest if you have not read the book blurb yet, see if my summary is enough information for you. I think the blurb just gives a little too much away like what Catherine’s secret past is. I found out while reading and I’m glad I didn’t read the blurb ahead of time.

While both main characters are lawyers, there is less time in the court than usually. I would say this book leans more towards the crime category. While no one can write the law like Taite, I enjoyed the more crime angle this time. I found myself on edge most of the book wondering what would happen next. This is the kind of book where characters have to find the bad guy/girl before it is too late so the whole book had undertones of excitement that kept me turning the pages.

My one main complaint was that the book felt a bit short. The main storyline feels plenty complete but the romance was a little rushed in my opinion. The characters both have some walls up so it did take a while for any romance to start, but once things progressed it went a little fast. On the good side the characters are both very likeable and felt well-constructed. I believed them which was nice and I had my fingers crossed for a HEA.

This is not my favorite book by Taite but I was entertained and I thought it was a solid read for sure. I think Taite fans will have fun with this one. I do have to admit her last few books felt a little rushed to me so I do hope that is something that changes soon. I love reading Taite’s books. I’d rather have more pages than less.

Now, if you're a fan of a good thriller, packed with lively criminal defense, court scenes, this is your book. I've always found Carsen Taite to be my to-go writer when I'm in need for a good crime novel. Her portrayal of lawyers, judges, DAs, prosecutors, litigation, is what makes her books attractive not only to lesbian fiction readers, but to crime - thriller genre fans as well.
I'm also a great fan of one particular thing in her books - the women are strong, well developed, eloquent characters, with a very pronounced sense of self-awareness and self-worth. I think it's very empowering for women to identify with these great characters from Carsen Taite's books. Catherine and Starr are no exception to this. Each of these characters brings strength, intensity and their complex story in their own way. I won't talk much about romance part of the book, because, in the midst of the criminal part of the plot, it kind of fell into background, but the plot was so good that I wasn't bothered by it at all.