J.D. Robb discussion

Navy men don’t come tougher than Lieutenant Peter Greene. Every day he whips hotshot SEAL wannabes into elite fighters. So why can’t he handle one fifteen-year-old girl? His ex’s death left him a single dad overnight, and very unprepared. Though he can’t relate to an angsty teen, he can at least keep Maddie safe—until the day she disappears. Though Pete’s lacking in fatherly intuition, his instinct for detecting danger is razor sharp. Maddie’s in trouble. Now he needs the Troubleshooters team at his back, along with an unconventional ally.

Romance writer Shayla Whitman never expected to be drawn into a real-world thriller—or to meet a hero who makes her pulse pound. Action on the page is one thing. Actually living it is another story. Shay’s not as bold as her heroines, but she’s a mother. She sees the panic in her new neighbor’s usually fearless blue eyes—and knows there’s no greater terror for a parent than having a child at risk. It’s an ordeal Shay won’t let Pete face alone. She’s no highly trained operative, but she’s smart, resourceful, and knows what makes teenagers tick.

Still, working alongside Pete has its own perils—like letting the heat between them rise out of control. Intimate emotions could mean dangerous, even deadly, consequences for their mission. No matter what, they must be on top of their game, and playing for keeps . . . or else Pete’s daughter may be gone for good.

Setting
San Diego, California

25 Chapters
Epilogue

Character List
(view spoiler)[
Peter (Pete) Greene: aka Grunge. Lieutenant and Navy SEAL. He's also a BUD/S instructor. He has golden brown hair and blue eyes.
Shayla (Shay) Whitman: Romance writer and Pete's neighbor. She's a 40-year old divorced mother of two teenaged sons. She has short, curly black hair and brown eyes.
Irving (Izzy) Zanella: Navy SEAL, Team Sixteen. He's married to Eden.
Eden Gillman Zanella: Izzy's wife, Danny and Ben's sister. She runs the on-site daycare at Troubleshooters, Inc.
Ben Gillman: Eden and Danny's 16-year old brother. He splits his time between Izzy & Eden's home and Danny & Jenn's. He has red hair and is openly gay.
Dan (Danny) Gillman: Navy SEAL, Team Sixteen. Ben and Eden's older brother. He's married to Jenn and father of their newborn son, Colin.
Jennilyn (Jenn) LeMay Gillman: Danny's wife, chief of staff to Assemblywoman Bonavita. She just gave birth to son Colin.
Colin Gillman: Danny and Jenn's newborn son.
Adam Wyndham: Actor, engaged to Tony.
Lindsey Jenkins: Mark's wife who is a Troubleshooters, Inc. operative. She's very pregnant.
Mark (Jenk) Jenkins: Navy SEAL, Team Sixteen. He's a corpsman (medic). Izzy's friend and he's married to Lindsey.
John (Seagull) Livingston: SEAL candidate who completed Phase I BUD/S training. Leader of Boat Squad John.
Jon (Timebomb) Jackson: SEAL candidate who completed Phase I BUD/S training, Boat Squad John. He was John Seagull's swim partner.
John (Hans) Schlossman: SEAL candidate who completed Phase I BUD/S training, Boat Squad John.
Tevin DeSoto: Shayla's 17-year old son.
Frankie DeSoto: Shayla's 14-year old son.
Carter DeSoto: Shayla's ex-husband.
Tiffany: Carter's live-in girlfriend.
Maddie Nakamura: Pete's 15-year old daughter.
Lisa Nakamura: Maddie's mother.
Kiyo Nakamura: Maddie's great grandmother.
Hiroko Nakamura: Maddie's great aunt.
Ricky (Dingo) Dingler: Maddie's friend.
Daryl Middleton: Dingo's friend.
Fiona (Fee) Fiera: Dingo's ex-girlfriend, Maddie's former friend.
Susan Smith: Fiona's aunt, an attorney.
Maisy Clark: Fiona's mother.
Douglas Clark: Maisy's husband, Fiona's stepfather.
Bob Nelson: Drug lord.
Cody O'Keefe: Associate of Dingo's who works for Nelson.
Eddie Facciolo: Nelson's muscle.
Stank Stedman: Nelson's muscle.
Brad: Lisa's high school boyfriend.
Harry Parker: Shayla's fictional character. (hide spoiler)]

Ooops, I got ahead of myself. Read this one in July. Will join discussion when it appears. I liked the book, btw.

I've read it too. Not as good as some of her others but hey it's a Troubleshooters so still a 4.5 star read for me.

I don't have this one. I'll have to check and see if it is available at my library.

I finished this, too! Really enjoyed it.

Ready to discuss after the 8th.

I am hoping to get this one soon. I had to recommend it on Overdrive because they did not have it. Hopefully they will get it soon.

Checked both of my libraries and neither one has this book. I'll have to wait for the paperback, or hope the price comes down for the kindle version.

It's the 8th! We can get started.

Those who've read the book...did you enjoy?

I did read it and enjoyed it. I read it in July, thinking it was that month's read, so I'm a bit fuzzy with recall.

I look forward to reading your opinions. They will jog my memory.

Okay. Why don't I start with an easy one.

Throughout the story, Shayla is having an inner dialogue with her fictional character, Harry Parker. Was that helpful to the story or a distraction?

Jonetta wrote: "Okay. Why don't I start with an easy one.

Throughout the story, Shayla is having an inner dialogue with her fictional character, Harry Parker. Was that helpful to the story or a distraction?"

I thought it was distracting at first. It usually takes a chapter or two to get into the story. Too much inner dialogue by a fictional character was throwing me out of the story a little bit. But when Harry "appears" later in the book, I liked his little quips.

I had the same reactions, Robin. I wasn't sure this device would work for me at all.

At first, I found Harry annoying but as the story progressed, the device worked as I gained insight about Shayla that I would have normally figured out. Later, he was just funny!

Shayla and Pete are sort of thrown together as they search for Maddie. What did you think of how their relationship evolved and developed?

I liked the way their relationship developed. Shayla realized that Pete was in over his head with suddenly having a teenage girl in his life. She knew he loved his daughter, but didn't know how to handle his relationship with her. Shayla was the perfect person to step in and help Pete show Maddie how much he cared.

A few months later, but I finally got this from the overdrive and read it! I also wasn't sure about Harry in her head as a writing device. I did find it initially amusing but a little distracting, and I was waiting for Pete to say something about all her shushing, but he never did! I do think it made it kind of a realistic character though, since writers always seem to have their imaginary friends in their heads! Though I had been used to the timewarp style of writing, I think it would have been too much in this one. Though there was mention of a WWII time with the "camps".
I liked how the relationship developed, it didn't seem cheesy or forced. I liked it overall.

Yeah, Harry took some getting used to but in the end it worked. Glad you enjoyed.

I really hate it when something throws me out of the story, but Harry didn't bother me at all. I just thought is was wonderful to get an insight into a writers mind.