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Killer Exposure
Toxic chemicals and instant chemistry in this tale of murder, medicine and combustible attraction!
One minute Hannah Baker is a quiet science professor. The next, a possible murder suspect. Six victims, one per week, all poisoned with the same exotic chemical Hannah once worked with. Now she’s wanted by Houston detective Owen Randall—but is it to enlist her help, or arrest her? Owen knows the prim Hannah is hiding something, but he isn’t sure she’s a killer. Especially after some unfortunate incidents. Is she the next victim of the chemical killer? Torn between duty and his growing feelings, Owen only knows he has less than a week to save her…
One minute Hannah Baker is a quiet science professor. The next, a possible murder suspect. Six victims, one per week, all poisoned with the same exotic chemical Hannah once worked with. Now she’s wanted by Houston detective Owen Randall—but is it to enlist her help, or arrest her? Owen knows the prim Hannah is hiding something, but he isn’t sure she’s a killer. Especially after some unfortunate incidents. Is she the next victim of the chemical killer? Torn between duty and his growing feelings, Owen only knows he has less than a week to save her…
288 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 1, 2015
4 people are currently reading
412 people want to read
About the author
Lara Lacombe
74 books171 followersLara Lacombe is a recovering research scientist turned college professor who now spends her days writing and wrangling a toddler. She lives in Texas with her family and two entitled cats, and loves chocolate and her Crock Pot. She uses Facebook to procrastinate--stop by Lara Lacombe Books if you'd like to chat!
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 30, 2015
Two-haiku review:
She used to research
Test drug being used to kill
Can she help cop solve?
Plenty of action
Characters with depth and heart
Well written story
She used to research
Test drug being used to kill
Can she help cop solve?
Plenty of action
Characters with depth and heart
Well written story
April 27, 2017
Had almost read the book that comes after this first but realized halfway thru the first chapter there must be on before! This was fast-past actiony-suspense that starts out with the detectives denial that he likes the pretty scientist! But once her life is put in danger and she's willing to do what it takes to help him work the case, he starts to finally admit he likes her a lot! She's faced trauma but he his so sweet and loving about it. Would love to see more than these two in the series!
May 14, 2015
Good book. Hannah is a chemistry professor at a local university. She took that job after an explosion at the drug company she worked out left her with burn scars. Now a police detective has come to her, asking about the last project she worked on, as there may be a link to a series of recent murders. Owen thinks she's hiding something, but he's pretty sure she's not involved. When she's the victim of a couple attacks, Owen is determined to keep her safe.
I liked Hannah. She's trying to rebuild her life after the terrible injuries she suffered. She's doing pretty well, except in the relationship department. When her fiance left her because of her burns, it caused her to doubt that any man would be able to see past them. When Owen arrives at her office, she is worried that she might be a suspect, because of the way he watches her. But Owen makes her nervous in another way also - she's attracted to him. The knowledge of what they're up against has her determined to overcome her nerves and help Owen find out who is behind the murders.
I liked Owen also. He's trying to get his career back on track after the death of his former partner. He's carrying a lot of guilt over Joe's death, convinced that it is his fault. He's suspicious of Hannah at the beginning because she acts so nervous around him, but is quickly convinced that she is innocent. As they work together, Owen's attraction to her gets stronger. When she's attacked he feels that it is up to him to keep her safe.
The relationship between Hannah and Owen has several issues to overcome. On Hannah's side, she has to learn to trust Owen's feelings, that he can see past her scars to who she is. She wants to be loved for who she is. Owen has to move past his grief for his partner and accept that Joe's death really wasn't his fault. He has to see that protecting Hannah isn't penance for not protecting Joe. And when Hannah confronts him with what he's doing, he doesn't want to believe it. It isn't until he has a long conversation with Joe's widow, that he's able to see what he was doing wrong and take steps to fix it.
The suspense of the story was very good. I liked seeing how Hannah and Owen worked together to figure out who was behind the murders. Hannah's former work at the drug company made her familiar with the chemicals and with the people who were still there. It was interesting to see her interactions with her former coworkers and how they led her to the truth. The finale with the one who almost got away was very intense.
I liked Hannah. She's trying to rebuild her life after the terrible injuries she suffered. She's doing pretty well, except in the relationship department. When her fiance left her because of her burns, it caused her to doubt that any man would be able to see past them. When Owen arrives at her office, she is worried that she might be a suspect, because of the way he watches her. But Owen makes her nervous in another way also - she's attracted to him. The knowledge of what they're up against has her determined to overcome her nerves and help Owen find out who is behind the murders.
I liked Owen also. He's trying to get his career back on track after the death of his former partner. He's carrying a lot of guilt over Joe's death, convinced that it is his fault. He's suspicious of Hannah at the beginning because she acts so nervous around him, but is quickly convinced that she is innocent. As they work together, Owen's attraction to her gets stronger. When she's attacked he feels that it is up to him to keep her safe.
The relationship between Hannah and Owen has several issues to overcome. On Hannah's side, she has to learn to trust Owen's feelings, that he can see past her scars to who she is. She wants to be loved for who she is. Owen has to move past his grief for his partner and accept that Joe's death really wasn't his fault. He has to see that protecting Hannah isn't penance for not protecting Joe. And when Hannah confronts him with what he's doing, he doesn't want to believe it. It isn't until he has a long conversation with Joe's widow, that he's able to see what he was doing wrong and take steps to fix it.
The suspense of the story was very good. I liked seeing how Hannah and Owen worked together to figure out who was behind the murders. Hannah's former work at the drug company made her familiar with the chemicals and with the people who were still there. It was interesting to see her interactions with her former coworkers and how they led her to the truth. The finale with the one who almost got away was very intense.
February 14, 2016
Top marks for giving us a heroine who is not only a professor but has worked in the chemical industry overseeing a project.
When you read 'nitrogen mustard compounds' you're immediately thinking dangerous gases. You're right. While the initial aspiration of the pharmaceutical firm was to create chemotherapy medicine, the project was abandoned and Dr Hannah Baker left with a silence agreement after her lab blew up, injuring her. She'd just found that the compounds were too destructive in lab tests so she wasn't surprised that the project was closed. But the police have now been finding bodies dumped and a chemical signature leads them to question Hannah about her former work. This will endanger her all over again.
The male detectives who work with Hannah come across as fairly standard, but sometimes people just are who and what they seem to be. Because this is a romance, we get a few paragraphs of wishful thinking here and there on the part of Hannah and one detective, who becomes protective but who ultimately ends up in greater peril. The romance can be read by any age and is well thought out.
The author makes it clear at the start that she has worked in the chemical industry but all the adventures are entirely imaginary. This means that the descriptions are good and the possibilities realistic. The book is not a lengthy read and should be enjoyed by fans of romantic suspense, or just plain suspense.
When you read 'nitrogen mustard compounds' you're immediately thinking dangerous gases. You're right. While the initial aspiration of the pharmaceutical firm was to create chemotherapy medicine, the project was abandoned and Dr Hannah Baker left with a silence agreement after her lab blew up, injuring her. She'd just found that the compounds were too destructive in lab tests so she wasn't surprised that the project was closed. But the police have now been finding bodies dumped and a chemical signature leads them to question Hannah about her former work. This will endanger her all over again.
The male detectives who work with Hannah come across as fairly standard, but sometimes people just are who and what they seem to be. Because this is a romance, we get a few paragraphs of wishful thinking here and there on the part of Hannah and one detective, who becomes protective but who ultimately ends up in greater peril. The romance can be read by any age and is well thought out.
The author makes it clear at the start that she has worked in the chemical industry but all the adventures are entirely imaginary. This means that the descriptions are good and the possibilities realistic. The book is not a lengthy read and should be enjoyed by fans of romantic suspense, or just plain suspense.
April 4, 2015
This started out really great, then tumbled into a mess of cliche-ridden predictability, and ended - at a pivotal moment - with a suddenly-enlightened heroine telling the hero in a rather self-righteous fashion that he should not be with her out of a sense of duty when it had been painstakingly shown throughout that he was doing anything but. Their HEA comes only after he grovels and supposedly 'sees the light' - an apparently wonderful action after he has been grieving deeply for a lost partner at work.
Some Harlequins work out great for me...this, sadly, just didn't.
Some Harlequins work out great for me...this, sadly, just didn't.
July 24, 2015
The instant chemistry between Owen and Hannah was my first choice why I chose this book, since I love many Romantic Suspense and Intrigue Series from Harlequin, beside Romance, Special Edition, and to be honest, I can pick any series any time as soon as if I start from the very first page and I cannot stop.
And how immediately Owen was drawn to Hannah's shyness and fear covering her wounds and burns from her accident and Hannah's quiet and inner braveness inside her that just want to be set free was keeping me to keep on reading and just want to keep going.
My most touching part was when Hannah was hospitalized and Owen was nursing her burns and wounds that she has hide from him from the very beginning, that was beautifully described and well written by the writer.
And also close to the end part when Hannah said goodbye to Owen even after Owen asked her to stay with him until the bad guy get caught because Hannah did not want to become a burden to Owen because of her injuries, she wanted Owen to love her as herself not as a wounded witness to a horrible crime.
And how immediately Owen was drawn to Hannah's shyness and fear covering her wounds and burns from her accident and Hannah's quiet and inner braveness inside her that just want to be set free was keeping me to keep on reading and just want to keep going.
My most touching part was when Hannah was hospitalized and Owen was nursing her burns and wounds that she has hide from him from the very beginning, that was beautifully described and well written by the writer.
And also close to the end part when Hannah said goodbye to Owen even after Owen asked her to stay with him until the bad guy get caught because Hannah did not want to become a burden to Owen because of her injuries, she wanted Owen to love her as herself not as a wounded witness to a horrible crime.
July 21, 2015
I won this in a goodreads giveaway. I entered the giveaway with the intention of giving this to my aunt, who is a fan of romance novels. She read this and said it was pretty good, a little different than the Harlequins that she reads because of its mystery element. That piqued my curiosity, as mysteries are what I prefer, but when she said it was about chemicals and stuff like that, I passed. Still though, she thought it was a good book, so that's what counted.
May 14, 2015
I could not put this book down. It was fast-paced and I thoroughly enjoyed the extremely clever plot and believable characters. The fact that the author comes from scientific background makes the premise of book believable, if not a little alarming. A good read.
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January 12, 2016"With smart dialogue and a solid, intriguing mystery at its center, this story will draw readers in. Add two vulnerable characters with great, electric chemistry, and this story is one fantastic read" (RT Book Reviews, 4 stars).
November 2, 2015
As a science nerd myself I was hoping for a bit more from this book. It was well written enough and Hannah and Owen were good enough characters, but I felt it was ... not developed fully, or something. I just was left feeling a bit let down.
August 5, 2015
I loved that both characters were awesomely flawed in this and the plot kept me blowing through pages. FYI, this was not a graphic book and I'd probably call it a PG-13. Sexy and steamy, but with a lower overall heat.
July 23, 2018
thriller ....!!! to begin
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews