Dinca’s review of The Sweetheart Racket (Brash & Brazen, Book 1) by Cheryl Ann Smith
Contemporary Romance published by Lyrical Shine 13 Sep 16
With swishing ponytails, pom-poms, and a hero with a bad-boy image, this book is a breath of fresh air. I was surprised when I found myself hooked after just the first few pages. Cheryl Ann Smith has the best sense of humor ever and gives it into her characters with ease. The prologue is a little long, but I kept reading because it was funny. The first chapter explains the tedious process of a stakeout, but it is hilarious and I hadn’t even gotten to the gorgeous hunk yet.
Ejected from the team bus by Alvin the Hulk for macing her boss, Taryn Hall and her friends, Jess and Summer, find themselves stranded. They are…were cheerleaders for a pro football team. Now they are jobless women in tights walking in the middle of nowhere. In comes philanthropist billionaire Irving and rescues them and turns them into Barbie PIs. Hence the series, Brash & Brazen.
Taryn meets the sexy, tattooed, and all things your mother warned you about Rick Silva when he walks into her office. He needs a PI? He looks more like someone she would be hired to spy on than the one hiring. Between the jovial bean sprout and cinnamon sprinkle thoughts, she accepts his case.
Rick Silva needs help finding the con artist who ripped off his mother. Since the case doesn’t fall into DEA guidelines, he is unable to use this own resources. Plus, he is on leave after a long assignment. After convincing Taryn he will not kill his prey after finding him, and that he is part of the chase, he hires Brash & Brazen.
In between a recycle bin romance, bullets and brains, the mystery of Teddy Brinkman goes on. Throw in an ugly dog (their words, not mine), an ex-husband, a horny teen, and a cop with territorial issues and you have everything for a good cozy mystery but a train. Train not really needed, however. This a great story without one. It is a wild chase to the end, with laughter and heartache on every page.
Cheryl Ann Smith’s well-developed characters get an A from me and a plus because I didn’t want to put the book down until the every end. I look forward to the rest of the series.
Grade: A+
Summary:
They used to be on the sidelines. Now they’re out in the field…
Two years ago, Taryn Hall was a pro football cheerleader—until she left her lecherous boss with a bloody nose and a faceful of Mace. Now she’s part of a different kind of squad. An elderly billionaire named Irving has hired and trained Taryn and her two best friends to work as private investigators…
Taryn loves the job, though it sometimes involves boring stakeouts, dog bites—and listening to Irving talk about his golf shoes. Then tattooed, steely-eyed, straight-up gorgeous undercover DEA agent Rick Silva walks into the office and shakes thing up…
Rick needs help finding the con artist who’s taken his lonely mother for all she was worth. With multiple aliases and multiple victims, it will be a challenge to track down the coldhearted gigolo. And Rick insists on accompanying Taryn on the hunt, working closely, day and night.
This could be dangerous. And the case might be kind of risky, too…
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
