Encrypted Emotions: Golden Locke Security Book 1

by B. Lynn Hedge

Charlotte lives her life in her own carefully crafted reality, isolated from the world around her. Taking a chance on her long-time virtual companion, she gets more than she bargained for and finds herself between four men who threaten to shake her whole foundation.

They need her, but she’s made sure to only ever need herself.

Can she push past her own boundaries to help them solve a case? And if she does, is there anything stopping them from decoding the encrypted emotions she keeps hidden?

Follow Charlotte on her mission of self-discovery as she navigates the real world and the complicated relationship she finds herself in.

This is a slow burn, why choose, contemporary romance. It contains tech nerds, suspense, a brooding and grumpy hot boss, twins, foul language, and a lot of inner monologues. This is the first book of the Golden Locke Security series.

***Book is currently going through additional editing to correct some errors throughout the story. Revisions will be coming soon***

Genres: Contemporary, Polyamory, Romance, Why Choose

373 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 30, 2025

Reviews

[Kari · Rating 2 out of 5]

I DNFed with a reason

Think this could have been a great book and probably is but with one glaring problem that bothered me. Charlotte the fmc has Autism but the author referred to it as Aspergers. I know that's not a deal breaker for some but if you know where and how the term came to be it's disturbing. I am sorry every time she used that derogatory term it took me out of the story.

[SnooRegrets]

This one wasn‘t for me. It felt very, very young and desperately needed an editor.
Also there is exactly one other woman in this story besides the heroine‘s mother, who btw is a raging bitch. And guess what? Yes, she is also a raging bitch.

[Daisy Delfin · Rating 4 out of 5]

At the moment I'm listening audiobooks but I always choose a book to read. So four days ago I picked this one.
The cover and the Title intrigued me. But I had nearly no time to really start reading it until yesterday. I was hooked by the story instantly. I like that it is a slow burn why choose romance. Two aspects of the plot is to find people Charlotte only knew virtually. But she helps them and then she is worried, because both don't contact her for several day, where they were so thoughtful about letting her know that they were dealing with irl stuff.

The second part of the plot is that the guys own a security and investigation company. And Charlotte starts working there. We get to see several cases they are working on.

The romance is a very slow burn, but I like the relationship building.

The books ends on a small cliffhanger. We still have the question WHY until the next book comes out but we know things will sort them out eventually.

The author was new to me and I enjoyed this book very much!

[Jorja · Rating 4 out of 5]

First book I’ve read in ages and it was pretty good even though it had some of the common RH contrivances that tend to annoy about me. Eg. Nicknames from each guy - though, the author established relationships in a way that made the nicknames make more sense. The over the top “bad luck” of the FMC since the world (including a crazy mean girl out of nowhere) is out to get her - except the guys. That said, I mostly liked the FMC. I liked how the author found an interesting way to have the relationships not come out of thin air, even though it was far fetched. Spice was super low in this (not that that’s a bad thing). I liked that there was added mystery and suspense in different areas (work and family). Long story short - i was interested enough and liked the characters enough to read the next one.

[Annelie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved it very much. A neuro divergent FMC who's a genious in computer science👏🏻 The guys were interesting characters. Expect the classic asshole who despised the FMC but at the end was full of remorse because of what happened in the cliffhanger...
Next book is announced for April 2026😱😱 I hope it would be push forward!

[Crystal Flanagin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a new to me author and honestly, I decided to read it because of the cover. I read the description and decided I would give it a chance since I LOVE techy nerdy girlies. And let me tell you it didn’t disappoint. Well, I mean I am disappointed that the next book won’t release soon, but the book itself is fan-danged-tastic! I love to see differently abled representation in stories, it makes my heart happy to see these beautiful unique characters lovingly written to display their strength and abilities. Charlotte would have been my BFF back in my youth. She’s got a sweet and quirky personality and I’m here for all the snark she gives to Mav. No shade to him tho, he’s just suffering from oldest child syndrome, it’s amplified by the loss of their parents, so I get it. And I’m very happy that the connection with Eli and Kai was not drawn out and made ridiculous. And it’s cute how they actually ended up meeting. But can someone please show Sasha the freaking door!? I’m really curious who the F she thinks she is. Hopefully she will get her comeuppance in a loud and ugly way! Honestly if you like tech type representation with women holding all the erm, codes? This is the story for you. I wish there was more like this, but this is only the second book I’ve found with this theme. Now ima go and talk the author and see if she’s got more gems for me to devour! Happy reading friends!

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn’t overly sure on whether I’d like this book, but I saw it promoted on a FB group and having hit a reading slump, thought why not. OH MY GOODNESS! I cannot recommend this book enough! Lottie is so relatable, and I got totally lost in the book, meeting the guys and also the background story of the case they are working. The guys are all so different and it works so well. My only gripe… having to wait almost a year to read the next installment… and that’s only because it was SO damn good! Cannot wait to read the next, it’s already added to my TBR list in preparation!

[Vix · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay so i know that this is the author’s first book so i considered that before writing this review.

the story has potential but it has some problems in my opinion:

• lack of family’s history from charlotte and the mmcs — not only that, but the characters in general lack depth… who are they individually? what do they want in life? what about their past? family? etc.

• the fact that there needs to be a “rival” female which also needs to be a bitch towards the fmc 😔 pls we need to stop this immediately cause it doesnt even make sense to put it in the story.

• the pace is weird in a sense.. it’s too descriptive, telling time has passed and the relationships have progressed some but we don’t get to see it — why not detail some of the progress since intimacy is so difficult for her? detailing makes me feel more connected to these characters and to her especifically.

• it needs editing and formatting whenever possible (i know this is probably expensive)


this feels similar to witsec in a way because of the brothers setting and their behaviors… which i’m not that big of a fan, especially the twins. why do we always have to put twins in reverse harem?

anyway…

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book follows Charlotte, a college senior with ASD. A computer programmer and hacker, she is roped in to help work for a security company run by 4 brothers, when it’s revealed two of the four are her longtime online friends. Here, she begins to come out her shell and develop relationships with the men.

I wasn’t convinced by the relationships in this book, although we are told that two of the men have previous online relationships with the FMC, all of the connections felt very ‘insta love’ on the men’s behalf. I also didnt like how the only other female character was written to instantly hate the FMC and to be an enemy plot device.

[Lauren Sowerby · Rating 3 out of 5]

entertaining, an ok read

Lots of grammar, spelling, editing errors. Needs more proofreading, and overall editing for tone and character. There are a lot of times that the dialogue feels basic, like the usual tropes. The story was entertaining, and I did finish it and I’m looking forward to the next book to find out what happens, but I hope that the next book has improvements. I’d rather wait longer for a book to come out and have it be better than read it sooner with a lot of errors and flat writing.

[Alix Bliffen · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a story!

I stumbled on this book and I am so glad I took the chance and read it. I love how the author shows what having a mental illness can do to someone and how beneficial it is to have the right support group around them to make them adjust to things better. I love all of the quirks for the characters I was laughing and getting annoyed right along with them. I cannot wait until the second book comes out. Bummed that it says 2026 but I will be waiting to jump right back in.

[ChristinaReads5 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have to wait til next year??

Charlotte is in college and very good with programming. She meets her only two friends and finds out they are twins and they have two brother’s they work for. She gets hired and finds she is getting closer to them while trying to help them find a missing girl.

The whole story was great, but the next one won’t be out til next year so please excuse me while I impatiently wait for the next one.

[Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely addicted!!!

Honestly I dont leave alot of reviews and this is definitely a slow burn and I was skeptical going into this book but honestly I was addicted from the start I devoured this in A DAY! and im so sad the 2nd book isn't out until next year if your thinking of reading this do it trust me you dont wanna miss out on this amazing book! The plot, the characters *chefs kiss*, im so excited for the next one!!! Amazing amazing amazing!! 😍😍😍😍😍😍😍😍

[Addicted2Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spectrum

The story centers around the MFC being on the Spectrum. However, the story reads and feels as if minimal research was done on how her type of Spectrum would manifest itself. Also, there were parts of the story that came across as very trite? Or should I say common? All of this combined with the fact I could have skipped multiple chapters and not missed a step as to where the story was going is why the 2 stars. Now the pertinent question: would I read Book 2? Yes.

[Lori Potter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Greta storyline and characters. Loved the presentation of a main character on the spectrum and her struggles to overcome. She helps the people around her learn to work with her boundaries. This is also a good mystery with intense energy. Lots of tension building and progression. Excited for the next book just hate that it’s so far away!

[Jasmine Falk-Wright · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good!

Beyond a brutal cliffhanger, this is the best RH book I have read in a while.

This book has perfect pacing, character development, and a great plot, definitely recommend to anyone looking for their next read!

[Mel · Rating 5 out of 5]

That Cliffhanger?!?!

Omg. What a great book. I mean-just fantastic. I can’t say enough great things about Charlotte and the guys. I will say that the cliffhanger is kind of killing me. A bit? A smidge? A lot?!?!

[Hannah Beasley · Rating 4 out of 5]

The suspense is intriguing

I really enjoyed this first book and am looking forward to the release of the next instalment. Interesting plot with some suspense and some funny comedy remarks.

[Bella Suarez-Ramirez · Rating 5 out of 5]

can’t wait for next book

Loved the story line and characters. Enjoyed it all. I can’t wait for next book in series. I hope we don’t have to wait too long. Great read!

[amina mohamed · Rating 5 out of 5]

In a chokehold

I stayed up and read this book in a day...I'm hooked. I need book 2 asap. I'm in loveeeeee. All of it. Give me all of them and more.

[Melissa Hickman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!!!

Love Charlotte and the guys! Great storyline! I can’t wait to see what happens next! April can’t come soon enough!!

[✨ Lauren ✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading time: 4 hours, 26 minutes
The writing was a bit simple but okay. Will read the next one when it comes out

[avis03]

Autistic FMC

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it

I can't wait to read more on Charlotte and her guys as we learn more about her! I loved this book

[Nicola · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75⭐️