First in a series by Heather Graham, this one is a slow burn with more puzzle pieces (and characters) than I can count. There were a lot of things going on in this book, but it wasn't so action packed that it was a page-turner. The list of characters was long, and there were a lot of sub-plots happening. Kieran is a likeable protagonist, and her close relationships with her brothers and the pub regulars is something to aspire to. Everyone loves her and wants to protect her at all costs. If only all of us had that.

Even with all the activity going on, the book did not move at a fast pace. There was a lot going on, some of which seemed connected to the main story and some that did not. Surprises lurked around every corner, including who was behind everything happening.

All in all, a good book if you like some mystery with your romance. There isn't a lot of blood and gore action, but enough going on to move the story along. The romance isn't over-the-top like some books can be, but was more minimal. If you like relatively strong female protagonists with intelligence as well as street smarts, then there's a good chance that you'll like these books. Robberies, murder, undercover agents...this had it all. If you like novels by Christina Dodd or Karin Slaughter, then you will like this series. ( )

I'll try another one, it might grow on me ( )

Great romantic suspense that leaned more heavily on the suspense than romance. ( )

In what is apparently the first book in a series (New York Confidential), Graham introduces Kieran Finnegan, forensic psychologist and occasional bartender at her family's Irish pub.

Attempting to do a huge favor for her youngest brother and their mutual friend, Kieran finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time and is caught up in a jewel heist. A daring last-minute rescue by a hunky FBI agent sets the stage for this romance / suspense blend as Kieran's involvement makes her a target.

There's nothing really **wrong** with this novel -- Graham keeps things moving nicely and the mystery that unravels of not one, but two gangs of diamond thieves, is satisfyingly spun out. But the circumstances that send her to the jewelry store in the first place are pretty far-fetched, the romance is predictable from moment the two main characters meet, and the notion of the two gangs seems wildly unlikely.

But I probably would have rated it three stars (okay but not terrific) except ... well, it's a huge spoiler. There's no way I can ignore it as a reviewer, and no way to finesse around it. So if you don't want the mystery "spoiled", stop reading now -- because the Reviewer's Code (Don't Spill the Beans) just went out the window.

* * * * SPOILER * * * * *

Okay. Our heroine is in the jewelry store, talking to a clerk. The bad guys come in, demanding the goods. The store's owner and a woman customer emerge from a private showing room. That makes four people, if I'm counting right. Keep that in mind. The robbers have Kieran scoop up the diamonds and take her as a hostage. And as they leave the store ... page 45 ... one gunman "fired a shot as they walked; she felt the pistol's kick shoot through her via his grip on her arm. The sound was deafening."

Page 48, the FBI, having been tipped there's a robbery in progress, shows up and one tells the other "I'm inside. Two people in here, both okay." (Wait a minute -- weren't there FOUR people in there, before one was taken hostage?)

Proceed now to the getaway van and the rescue, and then on page 51, as the dust is beginning to settle, one of the in-custody crooks protests "We don't kill people. We're thieves. We don't even use real guns." And sure enough, they are all armed with water pistols.

There are, it seems, TWO gangs of diamond thieves -- one of which is armed with fake guns and has never harmed anyone, and one that uses real guns, real bullets, and makes real people real dead. And even though this seemed wildly improbable, I kept reading, trying to figure out what had happened to that suddenly-missing robbery victim and whether her disappearance had anything to do with the "water pistol" that could fire a shot and create a recoil.

Never explained. Never referenced again. Apparently just a total blooper.

Did the writer forget where she was going with that scene? Didn't ANYBODY during the editing cycle see this?

Hey, guys, if I'm going to invest eight bucks and a couple days worth of reading time in your product, the least you can do is to TRY to get it right.

I don't think I'll be back for subsequent installments. ( )

This was a very difficult book to get through. Romance? Thriller? I don't think it is really either. It wasn't thrilling and the romance was so generic. I thought if I could just get to the end, it would pick up, but sadly, no. What should have been a quick 2 day read turned into 2 weeks of drudgery. Using this book for the "suspense/thriller" category for my summer reading bingo because it was marketed as such and I need to fill that space. ( )