Deep Blue Trouble

 by Steph Broadribb

Orenda Books

Publication Date : January 5, 2018 (UK) May 1, 2018 (US)

Pages: 320

Synopsis from Publisher:

Single-mother Florida bounty hunter Lori Anderson’s got an ocean of trouble on her hands. Her daughter Dakota is safe, but her cancer is threatening a comeback, and Lori needs JT—Dakota’s daddy and the man who taught Lori everything—alive and kicking. Problem is, he’s behind bars, and heading for death row. Desperate to save him, Lori does a deal, taking on off-the-books job from shady FBI agent Alex Monroe. Bring back on-the-run felon, Gibson "The Fish" Fletcher, and JT walks free. Following Fletcher from Florida to California, Lori teams up with local bounty hunter Dez McGregor and his team. But Dez works very differently to Lori, and the tension between them threatens to put the whole job in danger. With Monroe pressuring Lori for results, the clock ticking on JT’s life, and nothing about the Fletcher case adding up, Lori’s hitting walls at every turn. But this is one job she’s got to get right, or she’ll lose everything.

I am beyond excited to be participating in this Blog Tour. Orenda is one of my favorite publishers and I am so honored to be included. Special thanks to Anne Cater and Karen Sullivan for extending the opportunity.

2017 was the year I discovered I love action thrillers, a genre I did not think I would like. Clearly I was wrong. Lori Anderson is one of the reasons I am so glad I stepped out of my comfort zone. Deep Blue Trouble is a thrilling action packed story of a woman driven to extremes by one of the most basic human instincts, protecting her family.

Bounty hunter Lori Anderson has two problems. Her daughter Dakota is in remission from cancer, which could rear its ugly head at any moment. The only possible way to save Dakota’s life should the cancer reemerge would be a bone marrow transfer from her father JT.  JT is in prison and could be facing the death penalty in Florida. In order to save JT and her daughter, Lori makes an unofficial deal with a person she does not fully trust. Lori must find Gibson “The Fish” Fletcher. Lori is familiar with Fletcher, but leads on his location are limited. We join Lori as she tries to hunt down Fletcher in unfamiliar territory and with limited resources.  

Deep Blue Trouble is the follow up story to book one in the series, Deep Down Dead. In Deep Down Dead we read exclusively from Lori’s point of view. In Deep Blue Trouble we get to know JT. In the first book, JT was very elusive. I was not sure I could trust him or if I even liked him. In many ways Lori showed she was unsure of JT as well.  Reading from JT’s perspective allowed me to get to know him and finally find out his true motives.

Lori is not the same person we met in book one. In Deep Down Dead she is focused and calculated. In Deep Blue Trouble, her desperation is showing; she is reckless and scared. While she has every right to be scared and desperate, these feelings are causing her to lose focus. She realizes this is happening but she is unable to regain her focus. Lori tries to reflect on lessons and learned practices (trust no one, work alone) from her mentor JT. These earlier lessons further complicate her situation. When JT was training Lori to become a bounty hunter, the teachings were based on neither of them having anything to lose. To me JT’s earlier lessons did not apply; Lori and JT both have everything to lose. Trying to apply her methods with these new circumstances was the biggest hurdle Lori had to overcome.

Broadribb introduces some new characters in book two. I really enjoyed reading how Lori interacted with other people and how other people reacted to her. In book one, most of the people Lori meets are criminals. In book two she meets people who are not criminals and could become allies. I found it very interesting that her attitude towards both criminals and potential allies were pretty much the same.

All though this is an action thriller, it is loaded with feelings of love and sacrifice. The author perfectly blends a story full of high anxiety with just the right amount of emotion. When you remove all the action and suspense from the story you will find a very basic premise - a woman who loves her family and will to do anything to protect them. I cannot think of anyone who would be unable to relate to Lori.  Deep Blue trouble is action packed, exhilarating, fast paced, and full of heart. Fans of James Patterson’s Alex Cross and Women’s Murder Club series, as well as Dean Koontz’s Jane Hawk series will certainly love Lori Anderson.

**Thanks to Orenda Books for my free copy of Deep Blue Trouble**

Murder and Moore Rating:

4 out of 5 Stars

**CHECK OUT THE REST OF THE BLOG TOUR**

AUTHOR BIO:

Steph Broadribb was born in Birmingham and grew up in Buckinghamshire. Most
of her working life has been spent between the UK and USA. As her alter ego –
Crime Thriller Girl – she indulges her love of all things crime fiction by blogging
at www.crimethrillergirl.com, where she interviews authors and reviews the
latest releases. Steph is an alumni of the MA in Creative Writing (Crime Fiction)
at City University London, and she trained as a bounty hunter in California. She
lives in Buckinghamshire surrounded by horses, cows and chickens. Her debut
thriller, Deep Down Dead, was shortlisted for the Dead Good Reader Awards in
two categories, and hit number one on the UK and AU kindle charts.