REVIEW: Still Life by Dani Pettrey

Still Life (Chesapeake Valor #2)
by Dani Pettrey

Publisher: Bethany House
Release Date: January 31, 2017
Pages: 352
Genres: Christian, Romance, Suspense
Buy at: Amazon, CBD, B&N
Add on: Goodreads
Find the author at: website, Facebook, Twitter

Blacklisted in the photography business when one of her shots causes a scandal, but desperate to somehow continue in the profession, Avery Tate answered an ad for a crime scene photographer. She fully expected to be laughed at, but crime scene analyst Parker Mitchell hired her outright–taking time to teach her the trade. Now she’s half in love with the man, half terrified to even acknowledge her feelings, and completely hooked on the job–until the next crime hits too close to home. Avery attends the gallery opening of a new photography exhibit to support her best friend who modeled for the show. The only image of her, though, is a chilling photo of her posing dead. Only the photographer insists he didn’t take the shot, and Avery’s friend can’t be found. As Avery and Parker, along with Parker’s brilliant friends, begin to dig into the mystery, they find themselves face-to-face with a dangerous, relentless, and deadly threat which could endanger them all.

Rating: ★★★★★ (5 out of 5 stars)

Crime scene photographer Avery Tate has been blacklisted in the art community after catching a senator attacking a woman. For an old friend, she decides to attend an art exhibit in which Skylar is the main model. What Avery finds instead chills her to the bone – Skylar missing and the photographs of her mysteriously replaced with ones where she looks unnervingly lifeless. Teaming with her former boss Parker and his friends, Avery races to discover what happened to her friend while trying to control her ever-growing feelings for Parker.

It’s difficult for me to put into words just how much I love anything written by this author. While I still hold the Alaskan Courage series as my favorite, this new collection is quickly rising to the top. A book from Dani Pettrey promises three things — a swoony love story, palpable emotions, and nail-biting suspense. Still Life is a breathtaking continuation in a series containing all the wonderful elements needed for perfectly-crafted romantic suspense.

Dani pens a compelling character in Avery Tate, a crime scene photographer with a big heart and a tough past she’s struggling to move on from. This brings about an important lesson of forgiving one’s self of past mistakes and dealing with old wounds. Parker’s irresistible Irish charm and sweet protectiveness made them quite the perfect pair, though he too has demons to overcome from his first love’s murder. I loved the way he accepted Avery, scars and all, and how she in turn accepted his grief and uncertainty. Something I really enjoy in a story is when danger and unfortunate circumstances bring two people together in a way that can only be described as fate. Happy sigh.

Speaking of danger, talk about heart pounding action and edge of your seat suspense! Not only do we have the main case, but there is also a couple underlying cases we get a glimpse into. I can’t wait to connect all the missing puzzle pieces in the next book! Though the mystery is a bit dark and creepy (to say the least) I wouldn’t say it was too much as Pettrey is an expert at sharing the bad stuff without getting explicit. All in all, I think what I love most about the series is the group itself. Every single character is intriguing and together they make an adorable, crime-fighting family of sorts.

I enjoyed every single page of this heart pounding read! If you are looking for something to match Pettrey’s Alaskan Courage books, Dee Henderson’s O’Malley series, or Lynette Eason’s Elite Guardians look no further than Still Life, the second in the Chesapeake Valor series.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for my honest review.
**{Content: The story is dark and may be disturbing to some. There are themes of necrophilia and molestation, though nothing is explicit in my opinion.}

GIF THE FEELING:
||This is where I share a GIF that explains my overall feelings for the book. Hope you like! ||

THANK YOU for visiting my blog! Have you read anything from this amazing author? Do you have any romantic suspense books to recommend? ♥