Julie's Review: Die Easy

Summary: In the sweltering heat of New Orleans, former Special Forces soldier-turned-bodyguard Charlie Fox faces her toughest challenge yet. Professionally, she’s at the top of her game, but her personal life is in ruins. Her lover, bodyguard Sean Meyer, has woken from a gunshot-induced coma with his memory in tatters. It seems that piercing back together the relationship they shared is proving harder for him than relearning the intricacies of the bodyguard business. Working with Sean again was never going to be easy for Charlie, but a celebrity fundraising event in aid of still-ravaged areas of New Orleans should have been the ideal opportunity for them both to take things nice and slow. Until, that is, they find themselves thrust into the middle of a war zone. When an ambitious robbery explodes into a deadly hostage situation, the motive may be far more complex than simple greed. Somebody has a major score to settle, and Sean is part of the reason. Only trouble is, he doesn’t remember why. And when Charlie finds herself facing a nightmare from her own past, she realizes she can’t rely on Sean to watch her back. This time, she’s got to fight it out on her own.One thing is for certain, though—no matter how overwhelming the odds stacked against her, or however hopeless the situation may appear—Charlie is never going to die easy. ~amazon.com

Review: Charlie Fox is new to me, even though this is the 10th novel featuring her. She's an amazing, kick-ass female who is at the top of her game professionally but personally her life is in ruins. Sean Meyer and her were more than partners in the field, they were partners in the bedroom until a near death incident changed him. For Charlie, this is the hardest part because the connection that they shared is gone. Not only did this help them personally but often they were on the same wavelength professionally without saying a word.

Die Easy starts off with a bang and it never really gives up. Although, for me there was a part near then end where I wanted it to go ahead and wrap up. Ms. Sharp does an excellent job of throwing a bunch of suspects into the mix but in the end it was the one that I had picked out from the beginning. Not that there's anything wrong with that because she does throw enough red herrings to make you wonder. Plus in the end was I thrilled to see the perpetrator get their just desserts.

I enjoyed how Ms. Sharp brought New Orleans and their continued struggles from Katrina to the forefront again. I really don't think that some parts of that area will ever come back, unfortunately.

Charlie is a complicated character and more than just a kick ass female, she's 3 dimensional. I'm definitely interested in her back story and plan to go back to read some of the early novels featuring her. I also look forward to whatever Ms. Sharp does next, since she did leave us with quite a cliffhanger.

Final Take: 3.75/5

Thanks to Pegasus Crime for a finished copy of the novel.