Becoming a whistleblower against his corrupt boss left Parker Ward homeless and jobless. But when a friend needs help proving a kidnapping, Parker teams up with remarkable dog Cutter and Detective Carly Devon. As Parker and Carly face danger together, their incendiary attraction explodes, but can they get justice while keeping themselves safe?
From Harlequin Romantic Danger. Passion. Drama.
Feel the excitement in these uplifting romances, part of the Cutter's Code
Book 1: Operation Midnight Book 2: Operation Reunion Book 3: Operation Blind Date Book 4: Operation Unleashed Book 5: Operation Power Play Book 6: Operation Homecoming Book 7: Operation Soldier Next Door Book 8: Operation Alpha Book 9: Operation Notorious Book 10: Operation Hero's Watch Book 11: Operation Second Chance Book 12: Operation Mountain Recovery Book 13: Operation Whistleblower
Author biographies are supposed to give you all those statistics, books written, awards won, etc. and I will, I promise...but first let me tell you about this ornery little tomboy (back then, the boys had all the fun...) who was always the one to make up the stories the neighborhood kids would "play". For those who came of age in the computer game era, this is something that was done usually in the backyard, by any number of summer-bored children, with props where appropriate. (Did you know a 55 gallon drum tied to a picnic bench makes a very cool horse?) It wasn't until much later that this tomboy realized two things: A) not everyone made up stories in their heads all the time, and B) in real life, the boys that had already had all the fun now seemed to always be winning.
But I digress. I was born on a farm down in Iowa....well, not quite, but close; Boone, Iowa is in the middle of farm country, but I arrived at a hospital. In a snow storm. Make that a blizzard. My sister tells me she knew my destiny when I was very young, because when I first saw the Disney classic Old Yeller, I was apparently so upset that I promptly went home and rewrote the story. In my version, the dog lived, of course. Should have been a clue.
Possibly in response to that blizzard I was born in, I've been a West Coaster since before I was a year old, and intend to stay that way. I have a history of staying. I started my first full time job right out of school (well, there was a very brief sojourn at a place where they made, among other things, burial vaults, but I prefer not to recall that one...) and stayed for twenty-one years. I've been married to the same wonderful guy for going on two decades now. We lived in our last house for seventeen years. (I won't even mention how many dumpsters we filled moving after that long....)
Readers seem as fascinated by my first career as they are with my writing. My time in law enforcement was many things, exciting, nerve wracking, and irritating, but most importantly never, ever boring. It was fascinating enough that I didn't think about writing seriously for several years. I kept a journal, and wrote long letters, collected quotes, mentally rewrote movies, and still made up those stories in my head, but never dreamed of actually writing for publication. I was having too much fun helping to catch bad guys, and being continually amazed at the situations people get themselves into. And eventually I walked away with a wealth of background and story ideas, and knowing some truly great people who work very hard to keep all of us safe. I'm proud to have been one of them, and I'm very aware that I have had the great good fortune of having had two jobs in my life that I love. Many people don't get even one.
But now that I'm in the delicious position of being able to make a living telling those stories in my head, I promise my readers two things: A) I'm staying--I'll keep writing as long as you keep reading, and B) in my stories, the girl--tomboy or not--always wins!
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And now, the official stats:
Justine Dare Davis sold her first book in 1989, and followed that up with the sale of nineteen novels in less than two years. Her first four books were published in 1991, and she saw all reach the finals for either the Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award or the Romance Writers of America prestigious RITA Award. She has since won the RITA award four times, along with several Reviewer's Choice awards and three Career Achievement awards from Romantic Times. At the 1998 national conference, Justine was inducted into the RWA Hall of Fame, making her one of a very select group of just eight writers. She also had four titles on the Romantic Times "Top 200 of All Time" list. Her sales now total more than 45, and her books have appeared regularly on best seller lists, including the USA Today list. She has been featured in several local newspapers and nationwide by Associated Press, has appeared on CN
Another terrific entry in the Cutter's Code series. The story opens as Parker visits his friend Ray, taking Ray's dog Woof along for a visit. He's stunned when Ray tells him that he witnessed a kidnapping, but no one believes him. I loved that Parker knew Ray well enough to believe him. Unfortunately, the sheriff's deputy who came out to take the report was skeptical. The next morning, while drinking his coffee, Parker saw Woof take off with another dog and ran after them. The dog was Cutter, who led Parker right to Quinn Foxworth with that look that says, "This man has a problem you need to fix." I always enjoy peoples' first impressions of Cutter and his unique abilities, and this was no exception. Quinn's immediate belief in Ray's story surprised Parker, as did his call to the sheriff's office.
Detective Carly Devon works with Detective Brett Dunbar (Operation Power Play) and is familiar with Cutter's reputation. She's a bit skeptical until she meets Cutter and suspects the stories are true. I loved how she listened to her instincts and followed up by talking to Ray and visiting the possible crime scene. Her easy way with Ray was sweet, and I loved their banter.
I had to laugh when the group that went to visit Ray got back in the car to visit the crime scene. The two Foxworth people, Teague and Laney, were in the front seat, with Parker and Carly in the backseat. Rather than ride in the back, as usual, Cutter got on the back seat, too, pushing Carly up against Parker. Teague and Laney (Operation Blind Date) looked at each other with raised brows because they also have personal experience with Cutter's other talent - he has a 100% success rate as a matchmaker.
As is usual with a Cutter's Code book, I was sucked into the story and couldn't put it down until I was finished. Carly is a by-the-book detective and is very good at what she does. But without actual evidence of kidnapping, there isn't anything she can do officially. With the help of Cutter and the Foxworth Foundation, they begin to piece together the clues until they get enough information to go official. There are some interesting twists as they delve further into what happened, and I enjoyed following their investigation. The final confrontation and resolution kept me glued to the pages. The danger created a nail-biting intensity that didn't let up until it was all over.
I loved watching the development of the relationship between Parker and Carly. Parker has had a rough go of it lately. The son of self-centered and uncaring parents, he found himself in a tough spot when he took a job they recommended him for. He blew the whistle on the company owner who was running a Ponzi scheme. He also refused to keep any of his earnings, leaving him jobless and homeless. He's very down on himself for not seeing what was happening sooner and depressed over his prospects. Looking after Woof for Ray came at the perfect time. When Parker met Carly, he was immediately attracted to her but felt unworthy of doing anything about it. Carly was just as attracted to him and very impressed when she learned who he was.
I loved Carly's support of Parker as she learned more about him and his past. There were quite a few times I wanted to shake him for constantly putting himself down. Even though many people told him what a great thing he did and called him a hero, he refused to see it. One of the things I loved about Carly was the way she'd call him out when he started wallowing in his past. I loved how Parker realized that being around Carly made him happy in ways he'd never felt before. It was entertaining to see Cutter assist in pushing Carly and Parker together. Everyone around them can see what is happening, though Parker is oblivious until Carly fills him in. Once he realizes his feelings, Parker's self-doubts keep holding him back until he gets some good advice from Ray. As the resolution of the kidnapping grew closer, I loved the shifting dynamics as Carly's professional abilities took precedence over Parker's protectiveness. Teamwork won the day though not without consequences.
I loved the ending. It was a great wrap-up to the book. I felt for Parker as he faced another trial and loved his realization that this one would be different, thanks to Gavin de Marco (Operation Notorious). The new dynamic of Carly, Parker, and Ray (and Woof) as a family was fantastic, though Parker's future was still a dark spot in his attitude. I loved Cutter's assistance in taking care of that issue. Haley put it best: "You see, Cutter doesn't just demand we fix things. He sometimes shows us how to fix things." "Are you sure that's just a dog?" Ray asked. "Nope," Haley said. "Not at all."
Fantastic. This is one of my favorites from the series. It was great to have so many characters from previous stories. I am looking forward to the next one. Parker and Carly were both strong characters. I hope they are in future stories.
Not a bad book, but the hero's constant "I'm no hero" (especially juxtaposed with every single person associated with the Foxworth Group going on and on about what a hero he is, seriously it was OTT) combined with his "I can't get a job" whining (especially when the solution to that one was so darn easy ) was beyond annoying. Ultimately I think this book is best for people who're already invested in the series; I can't see this as the book that will make you want to go back and binge.
Still not 100% sure how I feel about instalove being justified by Cutter's amazing abilities, though. I mean...okay?
I'm a big fan of Justine Davis's Cutter series. Cutter is always important in the books, but it seems like he played a larger part in Operation Whistleblower. Parker is a hero who doesn't believe he's a hero. Boy, is he wrong! I really liked Carly too. She was a great heroine and match for Parker. I enjoyed the secondary characters too, especially Ray and Woof. It was fun to see Cutter being "just a dog" when he was with Woof. Loved this book!
Parker was courageous to tell the world that his boss was bilking people out of their money and making millions for himself. I admired him for doing the right thing even knowing he would be out of a job. Without an income, he lost his home and all his possessions. I felt terrible for him because he thought he should have realized what his boss was doing sooner - never accepting he was a hero.
I loved the relationship between Ray and Parker. Parker looked at Ray as a father figure, and Ray thought of Parker as a son. They would do anything for each other. Ray told Parker that he saw a kid (meaning anybody under 40) kidnapped and put in the trunk of a car in an alley. Parker believed him and called the police who didn't do much about it. Then Cutter (the wonder dog) stepped in and found Quinn who called the Sheriff's office and got some action.
This was a great book. There was a dog with unique abilities, romance, mystery and a great ending. What more could you want?
Another great story by Justine Davis. I love her Cutter's Code series. Like all of her stories there are wonderful three dimensional characters and a great plot.