Deadly Double-Cross

The Justice Seekers #4

by Lena Diaz

He runs an organization dedicated to pursuing justice for others,
but can he do the same for himself?

Someone is trying to destroy former chief of police Mason Ford, but he won’t go down without a fight. Neither will crime scene analyst Hannah Cantrell, who’s convinced he’s become a killer’s target and will do whatever it takes to help Mason survive. However, that doesn’t mean she’s ready to risk falling in love with him. Can Mason and Hannah discover the truth before a killer strikes again?

Genres: Romantic Suspense, Romance

256 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 13, 2021

About the author

Romantic suspense author, Lena Diaz, is a four time winner of the Daphne du Maurier Award of Excellence in Mystery and Suspense. She's also a former Romance Writers of America Golden Heart® finalist and has won numerous other awards.

Reviews

[Cindy Reifel · Rating 5 out of 5]

First of all, if I could, this would be a 10 STAR REVIEW!!!
What a Freaking Fantastic book!
The action starts from the beginning and doesn't stop 'til the end!
Mason Ford is the head of The Justice Seekers. He started the company after he wasn't fast enough to stop his brother from being murdered after being wrongfully convicted. He's just said goodbye to his friends at dinner when he is attacked, drugged and ends up back home in Beauchamp, Louisiana. He wakes up to find himself in a bedroom he's never seen, his gun on a bedside table, he runs downstairs, and sees his former fiance dead on the floor. When he is arrested, he finds Hannah Cantrell, the new Sheriff's daughter, willing to run with him until he can prove his innocence. That's just the beginning!!!!! You REALLY won't be able to put this book down!!!!!

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic conclusion to the series. This book is about Mason Ford, leader of the Justice Seekers, and how the past is about to repeat itself. Mason is an intriguing character who inspires intense loyalty in the people who work for and with him. Previous books hinted at Mason's backstory, and this one reveals all.

The story opens as Mason deals with the anniversary of his older brother's murder. Landon was wrongly convicted of killing his girlfriend and murdered in prison before Mason could prove his innocence. After exposing the corruption in the police department and winning a lawsuit against the town, Mason moved to Tennessee and began the Justice Seekers. He never gave up his quest to find the true killer. An unexpected visit from his ex-fiancée preceded an attack and kidnapping that left Mason awakening in a house he didn't recognize and his ex dead on the floor. Almost immediately, the police burst through the door and arrest him for murder, and he discovers he's back in his hometown.

This was an attention-grabbing opening, and the intensity never let up. The accusations against Mason eerily mirror those that sent his brother to prison, and Mason has no intention of going down the same path. I loved his presence of mind and steely determination as he found a way to escape custody. Having previously been the town's police chief, Mason has some tricks up his sleeve that he puts to good use. However, he didn't expect to find the chief's office occupied when he burst into it.

Hannah Cantrell is a crime scene analyst, the current chief's daughter, and a cool customer. I loved the conversation between her and Mason as she held him at gunpoint. Though she's never met him before, Mason's sister Olivia is a good friend, and she's heard all about him. It doesn't take long for her to listen to and believe Mason's story and offer to help him. Though reluctant to involve her, she leaves him no choice. The intensity of the escape included a few lighter moments that showed an unexpected connection between Hannah and Mason.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Hannah and Mason. Hannah's hero-worship/crush from Olivia's stories quickly turned into deeper feelings as she got to know the real Mason. At the same time, Hannah's support and understanding filled a hole Mason never realized was there. But even though the desire to be together was there, so were obstacles. I ached for them both when everything was over, and they went their separate ways. All was not lost, though, as Mason discovered that advice once given tends to come home to roost. I loved the impact of (Agent Under Siege) Bryson's words and what Mason did about it. I loved Mason's big moment, his heartfelt words to Hannah, her response, and the (to him) stunning reaction of her family.

The mystery of the murders, the framing, and who is behind them kept me glued to the pages from start to finish. I enjoyed the intensity of Mason's escape from the police station, facilitated by Hannah's level-headed consideration of his story and convincing arguments with her father (which made me laugh, too). Mason's determination to keep her from the consequences set up an interesting "rescue," followed by a meeting at the police station. I cheered that meeting when I saw that ALL of Mason's Justice Seekers came to help clear their boss. There were also quite a few surprises. A near tragedy involving Hannah's father gave further impetus to the search for the truth. I loved watching the Seekers work, their attention to detail, and determined digging unearthing some surprising information. The final confrontation was a nail-biter as the killer faced off against Mason. The complexity of the scheme the killer concocted over the years was mind-boggling. The tension had me on the edge of my seat until it was all over.

[Lynn Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Attention grabbing from start to finish! With book four in her powerful Justice Seekers series Lena Diaz sweeps her reader into the story immediately and doesn't waiver for a minute in DEADLY DOUBLE-CROSS. The pace is fast and intense and the characters are spell-binding. I loved every minute of it!

Mason is an electrifying character. Throughout the series we've known the head of the Justice Seekers had a back story, we just didn't know how intense of a story it was going to be. He's loyal to a fault and definitely won me over quickly.

Hannah is a fun character. Though she's quickly thrust into the middle of Mason's drama, she takes it well and lets her level-headedness lead the way as they go on the run.

I highly recommend this book and the entire series to anyone who enjoys a powerful bout of intrigue mixed in with a close-knit group of friends and co-workers as each one slowly falls for their forever love in the midst of danger.

[MK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book from beginning to end. Ms. Diaz has done it again. I loved each and every book in this series. The last in the series and it’s the founder of the Justice Seekers, and former chief of police force. He’s being set up and he doesn’t know why, but when he wakes up in an unfamiliar house. More then that something was wrong with his ex-fiancé. That’s when everything hit the fan so to speak. He was taken to the town he was chief of police. He was not got to give in. When he wouldn’t stand down, and in the process got crime scene analyst Hannah Cantrell involved he was sorry about that. But he had to clear his name. He could not believe how fast Hannah stood up for him, and even to the new chief of police which was her daddy.

Buy the book you won’t be disappointed. Twists and turns you don’t see coming. I loved it.

[Valeri Sullivan (vsulvn29) · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘When did my crime analyst turn into a criminal mastermind?’

Right out of the gate the final book in the Justice Seekers is shocking with more twists and turns than you normally expect from any Intrigue. Mason Ford has spent the last eight years trying to find the man who set his brother up for murder only to find himself in the same situation after being kidnapped and returned home to Sabine Pass and the dead body of his long ago girlfriend with cops breaking down the door. Thankfully he has not only the other Justice Seekers that believe in him, but one determined crime analyst and her police chief father. With an ending I didn’t see coming...Wow!

[Toth Jo-Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lena wrote a book worth reading. It has in it a 2 mysteries 1 past and 1 present that were close in what happened. It was interesting to see it unravel and who the players in this mystery. The main characters Mason and Hannah have a depth of character that is fun to get to know. Lena does a excellent job of weaving the story and tying up lose ends. I like the way she mixes the mystery and romance. It makes the story an interesting read. I look forward to the next story in this series. J

[Lisa Dunn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok. Not as food as others in the series.

This book could have been brilliant! But at times it all got a bit too confusing and the ending felt rushed. Also I’m from the uk and we don’t particularly like our politics and romance lumped in together! At times it really felt like this book was a PSA for the second amendment and it just talked about guns far too much and too glib a way. If I wanted politics I’d read some stuffy political newspaper rather than actually just wanting a bit of romantic escapism. Have whatever opinion you like about guns, just keep it away from me.

[sandy moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deadly Double-Cross

My heart is still pounding, what a story! The family relations that are broken, however, out of evil comes good and Lena Diaz weaved a wonderful story that mixed all those elements to a happy conclusion.

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Romantic Suspense, Crime Thriller, Police Procedural Mystery & Detective
Miniseries
The Justice Seekers (Book #4)

[Harlequin Books]

Categories
Romantic Suspense, Crime Thriller, Police Procedural Mystery & Detective
Miniseries
The Justice Seekers (Book #4)

[Kathy B. (NE) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I struggled to finish this one. Maybe if I had read all the other books in this miniseries it would have made more sense. In my opinion this book is not a stand alone.

[Noora Kamar]

🙄

[Colleen Coughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tightly woven plot - much of which I never saw coming or if I thought I saw it I wasn't always on the target in terms of WHY it was happening - but very nicely done.

[Avidreader · Rating 3 out of 5]

After being swept up in a deadly plot Mason, the leader of the Justice Seekers, returns home to clear his brother's name once and for all, whilst finding himself in danger and on the run with an unlikely ally...... will Mason solve the puzzle that has evaded him for so long, and will he find love along the way?

As usual I wish I could give a 1/2 star for 3.5 because the intrigue part of the book was great. Although I figured it out pretty easily, it was fun getting there in spite of some rather gaping plot holes. As with the entire Justice Seeker series the action part is fine, it is the romantic/relationships lacking. I found it rather unbelievable that with some of the "sharpest" minds working for him Mason would not have solved the mystery years earlier by just taking the case to his staff. There was not one thing unearthed that could not have been found sooner.

Unfortunately my biggest issue is with the romantic relationships. Ms. Diaz continues to write them like college, or even high school characters. We already had a WOC rape/kidnap victim acting highly sexualized and "sassy" with an older male stranger with no nod to her trauma, a young girl who takes advantage of an older man not in control of himself who has no memory of the incident as her first "romantic" encounter, and I am not sure what this was. Although Hannah was more evenly matched with Mason, we still got the "hero worshipping" of the male lead , the odd banter that was supposed to be flirty, and the "winking, etc. that has been in the other books. I mean, who really behaves this way and does any grownup past a certain age think it's sexy? In every book the romance pieces have feel flat and seemed rushed. I think Ms. Diaz should stick to the action/mystery. I understand that she is trying to write strong independent women, but adds very infantile behaviors that detract from the best qualities. .
While subtly emphasizing that the Justice Seekers are diverse, the diverse characters (including the female Seekers) are not given any important moments, and worse the minority characters not even a physical description, other to have them say something "sassy" in odd moments.
It will be interesting to see if she continues the series with some of the other Seekers being in the lead.
I will never understand not giving the parents of a lead character a description...or even really the character herself.....