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Cold Ridge/U.S. Marshals #6
Abandon
ABANDON
Rediscover this thrilling story of action, intrigue and romance from New York Times bestselling author Carla Neggers.
On a quiet long weekend in New Hampshire, Deputy US Marshal Mackenzie Stewart is viciously assaulted at the lakefront cottage of her friend, federal judge Bernadette Peacham. The attacker escapes, and it becomes clear he was more than a deranged drifter when FBI special agent Andrew Rook arrives. Mac knows Rook isn't up from Washington, DC, to set things straight between them after their whirlwind affair. He's on a case. The investigation takes an unexpected turn when they return to Washington to find Bernadette's ex-husband, a powerful attorney, shot to death. Then Bernadette disappears, and Mac and Rook realize the stakes are higher than either had imagined.
Originally published in 2007
Rediscover this thrilling story of action, intrigue and romance from New York Times bestselling author Carla Neggers.
On a quiet long weekend in New Hampshire, Deputy US Marshal Mackenzie Stewart is viciously assaulted at the lakefront cottage of her friend, federal judge Bernadette Peacham. The attacker escapes, and it becomes clear he was more than a deranged drifter when FBI special agent Andrew Rook arrives. Mac knows Rook isn't up from Washington, DC, to set things straight between them after their whirlwind affair. He's on a case. The investigation takes an unexpected turn when they return to Washington to find Bernadette's ex-husband, a powerful attorney, shot to death. Then Bernadette disappears, and Mac and Rook realize the stakes are higher than either had imagined.
Originally published in 2007
329 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 22, 2007
318 people are currently reading
780 people want to read
About the author
Carla Neggers
143 books1,608 followersCarla Neggers is the New York Times bestselling author of the Sharpe & Donovan series featuring Boston-based FBI agents Emma Sharpe and Colin Donovan, and the popular Swift River Valley series set in the small, fictional New England town of Knights Bridge. With many bestsellers to her credit, Carla loves to write now as much as she did when she climbed a tree at age eleven with a pad and pen and spun stories perched on her favorite branch.
A native New Englander, Carla and her husband divide their time between their hilltop home in Vermont, a sofa bed at their kids' places in Boston and various inns, hotels and hideaways on their travels, frequently to Ireland.
Find out more and sign up for Carla's newsletter at CarlaNeggers.com.
A native New Englander, Carla and her husband divide their time between their hilltop home in Vermont, a sofa bed at their kids' places in Boston and various inns, hotels and hideaways on their travels, frequently to Ireland.
Find out more and sign up for Carla's newsletter at CarlaNeggers.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
June 12, 2013
Easy good read. Finally, this is a mystery story without the gore and sexual nonsense.
July 24, 2017
FBI agent Andrew Rook is working with an informant who promises information but is not following through. When the informant makes a connection to a woman Rook has been dating he breaks with her to avoid a conflict of interest. The woman, Mackenzie Stewart, is an assistant deputy with the U.S. Marshall Service and a friend of the Judge being targeted. Then the informant goes missing and Mac is attacked when visiting her friends lake house. Soon both services are involved. I found this plot very convoluted. A lot of law enforcement involved in an issue that hadn't even been determined as unlawful. Everything seemed to be a stretch to make a connection between these people. Definitely a good thing Neggers was ending this series. It has definitely run out of steam.
April 27, 2018
Great read loved the imagination and creativity of Carla Neggers
Wow this series is fantastic keep these stories coming.Please try to make sure L A Library gets all these great reads
Wow this series is fantastic keep these stories coming.Please try to make sure L A Library gets all these great reads
September 2, 2019
I thought this was enjoyable. It just wasn't one of my favorites as far as romantic suspense goes. There's not much romance if that's what you're looking for. Good characters though and nice mystery.
June 5, 2021
I enjoyed this book. It felt like any mystery book, but the characters were developed well! I haven't read any of the others, but it didn't feel like I needed to to follow along. If you like mystery, I'd recommend this book!
July 2, 2017
ABANDON
Very good mystery thriller, I have not read this author before. This book can be read as a stand alone, but I will definitely be checking out others in the series.
Very good mystery thriller, I have not read this author before. This book can be read as a stand alone, but I will definitely be checking out others in the series.
October 29, 2017
Lots of twists & turns - will read more from this author. Part of a series but read as a stand alone.
November 16, 2017
Seemed a bit drawn out, but was interesting enough to continue reading the story. First time reading this author and this is her 6th. book. Will try more of her books in the future.
March 9, 2018
good book
March 15, 2018
Not "great literature," but a fun read, lots of suspense, some plot turns I wasn't expecting. I always know I'll have a good experience with a Carla Neggers book.
April 1, 2018
Great series
September 4, 2019
A good read
A good description of characters and the description makes me long for a vacation. The suspense makes me long for a nap as it kept me up reading long past bedtime.
A good description of characters and the description makes me long for a vacation. The suspense makes me long for a nap as it kept me up reading long past bedtime.
December 8, 2020
Enjoyable read. Good characters and plot. Fast paced and kept reader right there with the agents.
January 20, 2021
Total crap. Why did I waste my time?
May 24, 2021
I liked the dynamic between the two romantic leads. It was interesting. The end felt like it came out of nowhere (in particular the killer, backstory, and motivations) and left me going 'wait, what?'
April 30, 2022
The best Neggers book I've read. I love converging plot lines! Two or three sex scenes, mild swearing.
July 8, 2022
I'll admit that I started this one 3 times before it grabbed me. Sometimes it just works that way. Once it hooked me I liked it and kept going.
December 15, 2023
I just can’t seem to get into these books.
April 8, 2024
Decent.
June 14, 2024
Another marshall story
February 6, 2025
Quick read and great suspense! Also had a bit of spice which was a nice addition
December 9, 2025
MEH- fair thriller
January 29, 2011
Abandon was reminiscent of a typical Carla Neggers novel: great plot and great characters. What I really appreciated the most were the characters whose history and circumstances did carry an emotional depth.
Mackenzie Stewart is an unlikely U.S. Marshall, nonetheless she does the job well showing promise and potential. Unlikely, because to all who know her there is a delicateness about her that is more suited for the college professor she was prior to becoming a Marshall. New to her job, her training and survival instincts immediately kicks in when she is attacked, but not before suffering a serious injury that has those caring about her worried about her new career.
In fact, she carries a community's support with her, both a curse and a blessing that has surrounded her ever since childhood. That is because Mackenzie's childhood has been anything but idyllic, having carried the burden of a difficult and traumatizing childhood after her father is seriously injured. It is a burden she continues to carry with her into adulthood and now into her job.
This is where responsible, reliable, dependable Andrew Rook comes in. Coming from a long line of law enforcement men, his job as FBI special agent comes as no surprise. The instant he meet Mackenzie, sparks fly, but are quick to cool when she becomes the center of his investigation.
They can't help falling for each other all over again, when her past and present collide and it appears a dangerous man is on the loose right under their noses.
Not sappy, and yet still emotional in a way that makes the plot better rather than distract from it.
Mackenzie Stewart is an unlikely U.S. Marshall, nonetheless she does the job well showing promise and potential. Unlikely, because to all who know her there is a delicateness about her that is more suited for the college professor she was prior to becoming a Marshall. New to her job, her training and survival instincts immediately kicks in when she is attacked, but not before suffering a serious injury that has those caring about her worried about her new career.
In fact, she carries a community's support with her, both a curse and a blessing that has surrounded her ever since childhood. That is because Mackenzie's childhood has been anything but idyllic, having carried the burden of a difficult and traumatizing childhood after her father is seriously injured. It is a burden she continues to carry with her into adulthood and now into her job.
This is where responsible, reliable, dependable Andrew Rook comes in. Coming from a long line of law enforcement men, his job as FBI special agent comes as no surprise. The instant he meet Mackenzie, sparks fly, but are quick to cool when she becomes the center of his investigation.
They can't help falling for each other all over again, when her past and present collide and it appears a dangerous man is on the loose right under their noses.
Not sappy, and yet still emotional in a way that makes the plot better rather than distract from it.
January 17, 2014
Abandon - Cold Ridge/U.S. Marshall #6 - (Mack and Andrew Rook) - Mack is a Marshall searching out a killer and an embezzler.
On what is supposed to be a quiet long weekend in New Hampshire, Deputy U.S. Marshal Mackenzie Stewart is viciously attacked at the lakefront cottage of her friend, federal judge Bernadette Peacham. Mac fends off her attacker, but he manages to escape. Everything suggests he's a deranged drifter-until FBI special agent Andrew Rook arrives.
With Rook, Mac broke her own rule not to get involved with anyone in law enforcement, but she knows he isn't up from Washington, D.C., to set things straight between them. He's on a case.
As the hunt for the mysterious attacker continues, the case takes an unexpected turn when Mac and Rook return to Washington and find Bernadette's ex-husband, a powerful attorney, shot to death. Then Bernadette disappears, and Mac and Rook realize the stakes are higher than either had imagined, and a master criminal with nothing left to lose is prepared to gamble everything
On what is supposed to be a quiet long weekend in New Hampshire, Deputy U.S. Marshal Mackenzie Stewart is viciously attacked at the lakefront cottage of her friend, federal judge Bernadette Peacham. Mac fends off her attacker, but he manages to escape. Everything suggests he's a deranged drifter-until FBI special agent Andrew Rook arrives.
With Rook, Mac broke her own rule not to get involved with anyone in law enforcement, but she knows he isn't up from Washington, D.C., to set things straight between them. He's on a case.
As the hunt for the mysterious attacker continues, the case takes an unexpected turn when Mac and Rook return to Washington and find Bernadette's ex-husband, a powerful attorney, shot to death. Then Bernadette disappears, and Mac and Rook realize the stakes are higher than either had imagined, and a master criminal with nothing left to lose is prepared to gamble everything
October 24, 2014
You get almost the entire mystery in the first two chapters. The suspense comes in how this affects new Deputy U.S. Marshal Mackenzie Stewart and FBI Special Agent Andrew Rook. This is the last book in the Cold Ridge/U.S. Marshals series and a lot of the previous characters make appearances, which is nice. I had to read the reviews of the other books to catch myself up on what their stories were.
Mac and Rook meet one stormy summer night running for shelter from a sudden rain storm. It was an instant attraction. They have dated for 3 weeks when Rook is meeting an informant, J. Harris Mayer, at a high end Washington DC hotel and the informant points out to him Federal Judge Bernadette Peacham and her close friend, Mackenzie Stewart who are attending a fund raiser. Dead Stop. What is Mac doing with a judge his informant has information about? Well, his relationship with Mac cannnot continue. So, he calls and basically says "so long, farewell, have a nice life". Except, that is not how the rest of the story goes. True Love always finds a way.
Mac and Rook meet one stormy summer night running for shelter from a sudden rain storm. It was an instant attraction. They have dated for 3 weeks when Rook is meeting an informant, J. Harris Mayer, at a high end Washington DC hotel and the informant points out to him Federal Judge Bernadette Peacham and her close friend, Mackenzie Stewart who are attending a fund raiser. Dead Stop. What is Mac doing with a judge his informant has information about? Well, his relationship with Mac cannnot continue. So, he calls and basically says "so long, farewell, have a nice life". Except, that is not how the rest of the story goes. True Love always finds a way.
March 9, 2013
This is an example of a good romantic suspense novel. With characters that are either FBI or U.S. Marshall, there bound to be some dangerous liaisons going on. Andrew Rook is the FBI agent that on a moment of weakness picks up U.S. Marshall Mackenzie Stewart. They have instant chemistry but they don't know what each other does for a living, and this is a problem. Conflict of interest, she thought he had some boring job like an IRS agent,and she has already vowed to herself not to get involved in anyone in law enforcement. Well that backfired on her. Things get complicated when she goes on a little break at her friend who is a judge lake house. She has a run in with a psycho path that she narrowly avoids death. The story keeps you ensnared, how many people will die before he is caught. It always creeps me out when you have the bad guys voice, but she does a good job of writing both sides.
April 28, 2013
Occasionally, I suffer from insomnia and lie awake in bed, trying to return to sleep. Last night, I awoke at 12:10 am and decided that if I couldn’t sleep, I would read. I picked up this book, having never read one of Carla Neggers’s books before. I finished it at 1:27 am. And barely remembered who the main characters were.
The book is classified as romantic suspense, and there is romance between US Marshal Mackenzie Stewart and FBI agent Andrew Rook; they share a couple of hot nights together. But there’s no suspense here, only a lackluster story about two men, one of whom is newly divorced from a Federal judge, trying to blackmail a violent sociopath named Jesse, who does add some tension to the book but not enough to save it.
I probably won’t seek out any more of her books if this is any indication of how she writes. I’d rather re-read Patricia Cornwell’s Scarpetta series.
The book is classified as romantic suspense, and there is romance between US Marshal Mackenzie Stewart and FBI agent Andrew Rook; they share a couple of hot nights together. But there’s no suspense here, only a lackluster story about two men, one of whom is newly divorced from a Federal judge, trying to blackmail a violent sociopath named Jesse, who does add some tension to the book but not enough to save it.
I probably won’t seek out any more of her books if this is any indication of how she writes. I’d rather re-read Patricia Cornwell’s Scarpetta series.
June 29, 2013
Before picking up this book I'd only read the first in this series, and that was quite some time ago. I do think this series would be more enjoyable if read from start to finish. That being said, it does work fine as a stand-alone.
Mackenzie's quick wit, along with the combination of toughness and insecurity, made for a standout heroine. While I liked Andrew Rook's character, I didn't feel much of a connection to him. This is one of the instances in which I think reading the prior books first would have made for a better experience here.
The plot held my interest and moved at a good pace. I thought the ending was a little too convenient. An intelligent criminal who has gone undetected for decades would, in my opinion, be a bit more difficult to catch. Aside from that small matter, I enjoyed the overall story.
Mackenzie's quick wit, along with the combination of toughness and insecurity, made for a standout heroine. While I liked Andrew Rook's character, I didn't feel much of a connection to him. This is one of the instances in which I think reading the prior books first would have made for a better experience here.
The plot held my interest and moved at a good pace. I thought the ending was a little too convenient. An intelligent criminal who has gone undetected for decades would, in my opinion, be a bit more difficult to catch. Aside from that small matter, I enjoyed the overall story.
December 3, 2010
Something about this just didn’t work for me. It started out with some promise, and I thought we were heading into some big conspiracy story. Instead, we get a mostly crazy guy who conveniently has past ties to our main character. A master criminal, he definitely was not. Also, since Mac and Rook already know each other when the story opens, we miss out on the chase that is often the best part of a romantic suspense. It’s only a matter of time before they fall together again, especially since the reason why they were apart isn’t particularly harsh. And to add insult to injury, their reunion happens way too soon. Took all the fun out of the suspense. I’m starting to think that maybe Neggers isn’t my cup of tea.
October 24, 2014
My first Neggars book but definitely not the last!
This novel captured my attention from the first page and held it. The characters are intricately crafted as is the plot. I never suspected the content of that last puzzle piece, that why behind the series of events that kept the reader involved and feeling like a participant rather than an onlooker. Very well written...adult mystery/crime/suspense with a few romantic scenes that were not excessively explicit, but a seamless part of the whole. Bravo!
This novel captured my attention from the first page and held it. The characters are intricately crafted as is the plot. I never suspected the content of that last puzzle piece, that why behind the series of events that kept the reader involved and feeling like a participant rather than an onlooker. Very well written...adult mystery/crime/suspense with a few romantic scenes that were not excessively explicit, but a seamless part of the whole. Bravo!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews