Azu is Reading Misdirection (Anderson Security: Alpha Team #1) by J.M. Leigh

Madi Hayes has a lot of secrets. But one she can barely remember has haunted her nightmares for years and left her scarred inside and out. Now, she’s a Seattle SWAT Officer masquerading as a dispatcher for her overprotective family. She tries to make the best of an awkward family vacation, but when Madi finds herself in the middle of the action and old pains flare to life, she, and the mysterious definitely-not-tour-guides, find themselves locked in a struggle of truth and lies that leaves Madi’s life hanging in the balance.

Theo Boudreaux is a former Army canine handler who joined Anderson Security when his dog, Elke, was injured and retired. Now he leads a team of special operators filling the gaps between the law and justice, with a little help from the Anderson’s government connections. But he’s getting restless, and a suspicious freckled blonde with green eyes that don’t miss a thing is exactly what Theo doesn’t need as his team faces their biggest case yet.

As Alpha Team struggles to decide if Madi’s an innocent caught up in their case or the guilty party they’ve been looking for, Madi and Theo discover that a little trust can move even the iciest of mountains.

It’s up to Theo and Alpha Team to uncover the secrets that lie buried beneath the snow.

Review

I’m giving this review because I was blessed enough to be part of J. M. Leigh’s awesome ARC Team; I enjoyed this book and I hope to be able to enjoy many more.

So… secret agents. And spies, uh? My cup of tea even when I know nothing about them and I don’t always understand what they’re doing or how they did what. But is that I just can’t stop! They’re so… interesting. And how things unfold! No one trusts each other and the lack of communication creates unnecessary issues! It drives someone a bit mad when we know they should be talking. But is even worse when the information they need is nowhere to be found, not even in the only person alive involved.

Have you heard about selective memory? How about repressed memory? I know very well the second one, but the trauma that our female protagonist suffered is indescribable, mostly because is nowhere too. It’s a thing of them, the secret agents and spies, their records aren’t easy to reach.

But what is easy is how fast you can love the male protagonist’s team! Maybe not all of them (because what would be the fun in having a whole team of approachable, reachable sex appeals?) but the vast majority… if you have my taste. If not, they’re still pretty diverse.

It doesn’t come without some content warnings… Just think about it, the background of those agents isn’t the prettier. But aside from the bad and the drama (that can be good, but is also bad), there are some spicy, some spy moments and reminiscences, very much some flirting, and a whole lot of action. The action just steps aside a little bit during the whole book, so…

If that’s your thing, why not give it a try? 😉

Phrases that I liked so much that I marked them while reading

«To the storytellers and the dream chasers. If you ever wanted to, you should.»
— Dedication.

«and he’d go through hell and back before he let any one of us down.»
— Chapter Two.

«Obviously she was one of those people who didn’t scream when they were scared, probably taunted by her older brother too much as a kid. That same thing happened to me, it turned out to be pretty useful later on. Tactically speaking.»
— Chapter Four.

«But I loved my job. I loved my work at the Agency, too. The thought was sobering. I spent the rest of the day curled up in Teddy’s bed. I was grateful for the privacy of a door.»
— Chapter Twenty-Two.

«“It’s too much of a coincidence. If I was reading this book, I’d roll my eyes.”»
— Chapter Thirty.