Literary, etc

Allie Green is a police officer looking to avenge her mother. When the opportunity to join Cross Enterprises comes her way, she knows it means revenge will be at her fingertips. Looking forward to applying for the coveted position she stumbles on the application when she locks eyes with the owner and suddenly she fights the attraction. Tristan Cross has his reasons for recruiting a police officer for undercover work with his security firm. He needs an in to save a woman from his past, but he wasn’t counting on encountering Allie. Together they fight a mutual attraction, but when Tristan helps Allie in her time of need, Allie realizes she needs to return the favor. Will they give into temptation and save the important people in their lives?

As for characterization, we have good character development. Allie is a police officer who lost her father at a young age and witnessed her mother’s rape. She’s tough and protective of those close to her. Then we have Tristan, oh boy! You’ll be smiling when he makes an appearance and of course he keeps his past a secret. We have a few secondary characters that play a role including his brother Julian and Allie’s mother. The real scene stealer? Emma! I adored her and she’s so much fun and I can’t wait to see more of her in the second book.

Narrative is first person via Allie and in many ways, this is her journey. She witnessed a terrible incident that no child should ever watch and she’s blamed herself for not stopping it. As a narrator she’s likable and trustworthy. While I’m not a big fan of first person narrative because it limits what you know, I really did like getting to know Tristan the same way Allie does. The writing is engaging and if you’re one who likes to feel the sexual tension between characters, Tristan and Allie can light a room on fire.

I debated with the rating between a three and four. In the end, I went with a three because LAYERS DEEP ends on a cliffhanger and there are still some unanswered questions mostly regarding Wright and what his fate is. Furthermore, while I really enjoyed LAYERS DEEP, the whole operation regarding saving Kendra happened too fast. We spend so much time leading up to the reason why Tristan wanted to hire Allie and when it finally happens, it was all pretty much over in a blink an eye. Also, I’m wondering about Tristan’s past with Kendra. Mostly, I’d like to know what happened that put her in the situation she was in.

I have several favorite scenes, but I loved the advice Allie’s mother gives her regarding her need for revenge especially when it comes to Tristan. I can’t help, but agree with her mother and for a moment I worried especially when you see what Tristan sets up. I won’t go into detail because I don’t want to spoil things, but all I can say is I breathed a sigh of relief and knew Tristan was worthy of Allie right then and there. I also really enjoyed Allie’s mistaken identity of the Cross brothers! The banter between Julian and Allie was great. My real favorite scene includes Allie arriving at the Cross family residence and the Flintstones references.

Overall, Lacey Silks’ LAYERS DEEP is a satisfactory read and I’m eagerly anticipating the second book in the series.