Lynette Eason has been one of my favorite suspense authors since I discovered her Deadly Reunions series. I’m sadly behind on reviewing her books but not on reading them since I tend to gobble them up as soon as they release. The last few years have been difficult for me to find time (or mental energy) to review all the books I read, so I’ve taken steps this year to create some margin to better be able to do that. Even though Eason’s Extreme Measures series isn’t finished yet, I didn’t want to wait until August (when Countdown releases) before reviewing the first three.
LIFE FLIGHT by Lynette Eason
SERIES: Extreme Measures #1
GENRE: Inspirational Romantic Suspense
PUBLISHER: Revell
RELEASE DATE: January 4, 2022
PAGES: 332
Life Flight by Lynette Eason starts with a medical helicopter crash. With a critical patient on board. On a mountain. In a nasty storm. With an escaped serial killer on the loose. And it just gets more intense from there. Yep, you read that right. Just expect to sit on the edge of your favorite reading chair from beginning to end with this one.
Penny and Holt already have a history (more on that in a minute), which is good because there isn’t a lot of time to spend getting to know each other. After all, they’re dodging all kinds of crazy twists and turns (a couple of which had me literally gasping out loud like a suspense-reader newbie lol) to find this serial killer and get him back behind bars or more permanently out of commission. While they’re doing that, we as readers are getting to know not only Penny and Holt for ourselves but we also become acquainted with Penny’s friends who share a unique connection with her. Eason excels at building series with characters you care about, and she shines again with these four young women who are the backbone for the Extreme Measures series: Penny, Julianna, Grace, and Raina. I predict you’ll become as attached to them as I am and get just as excited as I do to see which book belongs to which heroine.
My only complaint (besides it… you know… ending when I was having such a good time reading it lol) is that, with Penny and Holt’s history – and their history with the serial killer – so nicely integrated into the novel, I found myself confused as to whether I’d missed an Eason book or novella somewhere along the way. It seemed so layered and well-developed that I actually stopped reading at one point and tried to figure out where I could read about their initial interactions and dates. Sadly, this doesn’t appear to be written anywhere (yet) and while it doesn’t need to be (because Eason explains things so well in the story) I wanted to read it nonetheless lol.
Bottom Line: Whew. Hang on to your hats, dear readers. Life Flight is an intensely good ride from start to finish. The villain is unpredictable and creepy, making you feel a bit topsy-turvy as you follow the path of his evil and even try to figure out WHO the villain actually is. Be careful, because it’s not as clear-cut as it first appears. Or even as it secondly appears lol. The quick pace and spot-on writing had me turning the pages to the exclusion of all other responsibilities, and I had to remind myself to breathe on more than one occasion – for the suspense even more than the romance (although that was pretty swoony). A gentle faith thread doesn’t overpower but instead supports the characters and events organically. Another winner from Lynette Eason!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher. In the interest of full disclosure, the company I freelance for as a blog/review tour coordinator was hired to promote this book with a social media tour in 2022. This in no way affected my review. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)
My Rating: 4 stars / loved it!
KissingBook Level: 3+ / will forget to breathe on occasion
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CROSSFIRE by Lynette Eason
SERIES: Extreme Measures #2
GENRE: Inspirational Romantic Suspense
PUBLISHER: Revell
RELEASE DATE: August 2, 2022
PAGES: 315
FBI special agent Julianna Jameson is a top-notch negotiator who has never lost a hostage. Surely she can manage to take care of her much younger sister, Dottie, who showed up unannounced to live with Julianna while she finished her senior year of high school.
A former sniper with the 75th Ranger Regiment, Clay Fox left the army after a tragic incident that he can’t get past. Now he’s working as a high school resource officer until he can figure out what to do with the rest of his life.
Their paths cross when Julianna is called in to negotiate a courtroom hostage situation involving Clay’s sister. Impressed and a bit intimidated by the calm, capable woman with the dark hair and blue eyes, Clay invites her to speak at his school. Dottie’s school.
But as the anniversary of a school shooting from Julianna’s past approaches, it becomes clear that her perfect record is about to be tested and that Dottie is at risk. If Julianna and Clay can’t figure out who’s behind the attacks, more innocent people will die–and Dottie is next in line.
This intense story of revenge and redemption from bestselling author and master of suspense Lynette Eason will have you up all night as you race toward the explosive finish.
Much like its predecessor, Crossfire starts off with a bang and doesn’t really ease up until the very end. It’s not quite as creepy as Life Flight but it’s no less intense. And how could it be with a hostage negotiator and a former Army ranger as its heroine and hero, respectively? The high-stakes action turns deeply personal for first Clay and then Julianna as their younger sisters are each unwittingly targeted by a villain or villains with some vendettas to settle. I thought Clay’s sister and Julianna’s sister – and the friendship that develops between them – added extra layers and heart to the story, and I enjoyed getting to know them almost as much as I did Clay & Julianna.
Speaking of our fearless protagonists, Eason does a fabulous job of teasing out their respective backstories and the painful secrets each one has been carrying protectively for much too long. She also keeps just out of reach the information readers need to determine if either – or both – of these secrets are the motives behind the murders and whomever seems to be stalking Julianna. Or maybe it’s Clay’s sister that’s being stalked. Or maybe it’s Julianna’s sister. All I knew for sure was that it wasn’t Clay on the other end of the vengeance motive. Maybe. (lol) Just when you think you’ve figured it out, I can promise you that you don’t. Or maybe you do. Honestly, I gave up trying to stay a step ahead of Clay & Julianna about halfway through Crossfire and just went wherever the author took them… and I enjoyed every bit of the expert storytelling, especially the moment when all the pieces finally fell into place!
Bottom Line: Faith, friendship, and falling in love – along with a hefty dose of deliciously creepy & masterfully drawn suspense – are the hallmarks of Lynette Eason’s books in general and the Extreme Measures series specifically, and Crossfire fits the bill perfectly. Clay and Julianna, and their respective sisters, are easily likeable and even relatable, despite the constant danger in which they find themselves. Appearances from Julianna’s best friends (whom we met in book 1) and the quickly-developing romance between Clay & Julianna add warmth to the eerie cold chills that envelop this read, as does the underlying theme of forgiveness. Another book that will keep you on your toes and frantically turning the pages as you get ever closer to the final showdown!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher. In the interest of full disclosure, the company I freelance for as a blog/review tour coordinator was hired to promote this book with a social media tour in 2022. This in no way affected my review. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)
My Rating: 4.5 stars / loved it!
KissingBook Level: 3+ / will forget to breathe on occasion
affiliate links used
CRITICAL THREAT by Lynette Eason
SERIES: Extreme Measures #3
GENRE: Inspirational Romantic Suspense
PUBLISHER: Revell
RELEASE DATE: January 3, 2023
PAGES: 322
Ok y’all. I loved Life Flight and I loved Crossfire, but Critical Threat is my hands-down favorite of the Extreme Measures series so far! Everything about it is just perfection. Deep layers, masterful suspense, swoony romance, great characters, and lots of grace (no pun intended).
Psychiatrist & behavioral analyst Grace Billingsley has intrigued me since I first ‘met’ her on the pages of Life Flight, so I was eager to read her story. And let me tell you – it did not disappoint in the least. Her family layers add some extra tension to her character’s journey, causing her to juggle a heavy weight of guilt over her brother’s addiction (and the boundaries she’s had to set) even as she races against time to stop a serial killer. Grace is such a great character – smart, savvy and strong – who had me solidly in her corner from the get-go.
Family layers are something that prison psychiatrist Sam Monroe knows a great deal about too. For starters, his dad is a convicted & imprisoned serial killer whose past crimes bear a marked similarity to the disturbing murders that have been ramping up in the area. The fallout of his dad’s identity destroyed Sam’s marriage (though his former mother-in-law lives with Sam so that should tell you something about his ex-wife lol) so he’s hesitant to get involved with Grace even though his heart definitely pulls that direction. I really loved Sam and Grace – individually and together – and their swoony romance gave me all the feels.
Romance doesn’t dominate the story though because, you know, they’re kinda tied up with this serial killer and time is running out to figure out who’s behind the gruesome killings. I have to admit here that I was COMPLETELY taken off guard when they started to figure it out. I caught up quickly but there was an audible gasp coming from my direction when clues started clicking into place. I adore suspense reads that surprise me so fully, and Critical Threat did just that.
Bottom Line: Serial killers are piling up almost as quickly as bodies in Critical Threat and Lynette Eason does a stellar job once again of creating a riveting read that you won’t be able to put down. Sam and Grace make a formidable team in the FBI task force’s high-stakes mission to catch the killer – or killers – before more bodies taunt them, and I loved watching them work together and, of course, fall in love. Their romance is just as sweet as it is swoony, and they equally support the other in their respective struggles. All of the books in this series are outstanding, but this one quickly became my favorite. Looking forward to book four and Raina’s story next!
(I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the publisher. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.)
My Rating: 5 stars / fantastic!
KissingBook Level: 3+ / will forget to breathe on occasion
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Lynette Eason is the USA Today bestselling author of Life Flight, Crossfire, and Critical Threat, as well as the Danger Never Sleeps, Blue Justice, Women of Justice, Deadly Reunions, Hidden Identity, and Elite Guardians series. She is the winner of three ACFW Carol Awards, the Selah Award, and the Inspirational Reader’s Choice Award, among others. She is a graduate of the University of South Carolina and has a master’s degree in education from Converse College. Eason lives in South Carolina with her husband. They have two adult children. Learn more at www.lynetteeason.com.
What about you? What makes you want to read the Extreme Measures series by Lynette Eason?
Great author.
yes!
All it takes is to see Lynette Eason’s name on a book and I have to read it, and do! They are all outstanding!