A review by ashleyfuhr
Standoff by Patricia Bradley

4.0

Bradley continues to grow in her craft and I like each new book better than the last. I definitely enjoyed this first installment of the Natchez Trace Park Rangers series. All of the suspense of an award-winning mystery with just the right amount of romance to keep the story moving. Bradley does a delightful job of placing you in the scene and describing the delightful sights in and around Natchez.

Brooke is changing to the investigative division of the rangers, when her father is murdered in the very park she’s hoping to protect. Ruled a suicide, Brooke knows her father would never kill himself. The farther she digs, the more she suspects, but she isn’t sure who she can trust.
Luke (Brooke’s high school boyfriend) is living next door and keeps conveniently showing up close to suspicious happenings. Brooke is cautious, despite her attraction to Luke. He hurt her when he left, and she doesn’t know who he has become since then. She soon finds out Luke is working undercover to bring down a local drug ring, and her dad’s death could be a piece in his puzzle. Working together, they find that there must be a bad cop on the payroll, but who could it be?

With all of the possibilities, you’ll never see this one coming. While it takes a bit of time to absorb all of the different characters, I think the effort is worth it. Hopefully they will set the following books up in this series nicely.
I was given an early copy of this manuscript through NetGalley for my honest review. I enjoyed it enough that I purchased it, as well. All opinions expressed are my own.