Gunpowder Tea

October 28th, 2013. Filed under: This & That.

Gunpowder-Tea-Brownley

By Margaret Brownley

In a case that could change her career, Miranda uncovers a love that will change her life.

When Miranda Hunt sees the classified ad for an heiress to the legendary Last Chance Ranch, she knows assuming the identity of Annie Beckman is the perfect cover. As one of the finest agents for the Pinkerton Detective Agency, Miranda has been tasked with apprehending the Phantom—an elusive and notorious train robber thought to be hiding on the sprawling ranch.

But she isn’t the only one at the ranch with something to hide. Wells Fargo detective

Jeremy Taggart is working undercover as well. Their true identities may be a secret, but it is impossible for Jeremy and Miranda to hide the sparks flaring between them.

Neither is about to let romance interfere with such a huge case. Besides, Miranda hasn’t removed Jeremy from her list of suspects yet. The closer they get to uncovering the identity of the Phantom, the more dangerous he gets—and no one on the ranch is safe.

The longer Miranda and Jeremy spend working together, the harder it becomes to keep their feelings in check. Their careers-and their lives-depend on solving this case. Love will just have to wait.

ISLAND BREEZES

Knocking your new “employer” down the stairs and breaking her leg is not the best way to start a new job. But as Miranda found out if she’s a grouchy old woman and no one wants to take care of her, you’re guaranteed to be hanging around for awhile.

Miranda, aka Annie, is there working undercover as a “Pink” while she’s trying to find the Phantom. One of her chief suspects is actually an undercover detective for Wells Fargo. Guess who is his chief suspect.

While Miranda and Jeremy are busy wasting their time suspecting each other, the Phantom continues his crime spree. Eventually they accidentally discover one anothers real identities and gradually begin to work together to nab the outlaw.

Miranda knows that she might lose her job for revealing her identity to anyone other than the local marshal. She also knows that she must guard her heart. Romance has no business in the life of a Pinkerton agent. If Miranda has to choose between the two, romance is the one that will lose.

Although I’ve read a novella by Ms Brownley, this is the first full length novel I’ve read by her. It won’t be the last. Be sure to check the back of the book for a recipe for Gunpowder Tea Bread. It sounds scrumptious.

***A special thank you to litfuse for providing a review copy.***

MBrownley-176  Thrills, mystery, suspense, romance: Margaret penned it all. Nothing wrong with this—except Margaret happened to be writing for the church newsletter at the time. After making the church picnic read like a Grisham novel, her former pastor took her aside and said, “Maybe God’s calling you to write fiction.” So that’s what Margaret did. She’s now a New York Times bestselling author and a Romance Writers of America RITA finalist with more than 25 novels to her credit. Her first non-fiction book Grieving God’s Way: the Lasting Path to Hope and Healing has won much critical acclaim. She is currently working on the third book in her Brides of Last Chance Ranch series. Not bad for someone who flunked 8th grade English. Just don’t ask her to diagram a sentence.

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