Under Cover of Darkness

The Texas Gatekeepers #1

by Elizabeth White

MURDER UNDER THE BRIDGE

On a hot Texas night, border patrol agent Jack Torres watched in horror as his partner was fatally shot. His faith shattered, Jack vowed to take down his friend's killers. His quest for vengeance brought him to lovely landscaper Meg St. John, who hated the border patrol because they hassled her workers, and was too innocent to see the dark truth: men were being sold as cheap labor.

Working for Meg undercover brought unexpected feelings -- and grave danger. Because someone was working against him. Jack had to protect his lady boss and get the job done without getting them killed...or blowing his cover.

Genres: Love Inspired Suspense, Love Inspired, Christian Fiction, Romance, Christian Romance, Romantic Suspense

Paperback

First published July 1, 2005

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Also publishes under the name Beth White

Reviews

[Melissa (Vacation Mode) · Rating 3 out of 5]

LI suspense--Texas border patrol agent goes under cover to solve a mystery.

[Jacquie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great read that had me surprised at the events going on. I thought I had the people figured out of who was who, but once I found out the truth it kind of threw me for a loop. Overall pretty impressed with this one.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars! ~ A year ago, Jack's partner in the Boarder Patrol was fatally shot. Now he's working undercover for a suspect landscape company, in the hopes of catching the killers. He's been assigned to Meg's crew. Meg's been given a very important project; designing and landscaping an historical estate in preparation for a wedding. The estate is in horrible condition and she's going to need all the workers she can get to make the deadline. Meg suspects that something is up with her new assistant Jack; he puts off an air of being dangerous yet she feels that inside he's a man struggling to find his way. When Meg notices that some of the newer workers on her crew have dubious immigrant documents, she becomes involved in more than she bargains for. Now Jack has a doubly hard job to do; break up the illegal immigrant ring and protect Meg.

This was my first Love Inspired, and my first book by Elizabeth White. I will definitely be seeking the next installment in this series. The writing is very well done. We employ 15 immigrant workers from Mexico (legal) and some of the stories they have to tell are so heart wrenching. I'm pleased to see that Ms. White portrayed both sides of the illegal immigrant coin with knowledge and understanding. The love story of Jack and Meg is a tender one. The expressions of faith are well suited.

[Teri-K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely better than expected. This story of human smuggling takes place in the Texas border region, and feels much more realistic than most. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this story of a landscape designer and undercover agent.

There was something that bothered me - the biggest being the time Meg's landscapers have a lot to accomplish and a thunderstorm moves in. She prays, "Help me, Lord," and the storm stops. In the same vein, I felt part of the final showdown implied that really bad things would never happen to good Christians. That's a message that makes me pretty uncomfortable, because, let's face it, it's not true. However, it's only implied so I didn't count it against the book. We need an HEA after all. :)

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it in 2 days ... always a sign of a gripping book.