Narrated by Marguerite Gavin
Karen Rose consistently pens engrossing gritty romantic suspense. Watch Your Back is a wonderful example of her talent for deftly combining police procedural with character-driven romance. And the narration by Marguerite Gavin is one breathless thrill ride–even at more than 20 hours! (Breathe out)
Listeners who’ve never tried Karen Rose should be warned that almost all her books take place in the same universe and have many connected characters. Watch Your Back is the fourth, and the conclusion, of the Baltimore series. The interconnections and interwoven plot lines are easy enough to pick up and grasp that this book could stand alone.
Eight years ago, pregnant homicide detective Stevie Mazzetti lost her husband Paul and 5-year-old son in a senseless convenience store robbery. Today Stevie is a survivor—sole parent to daughter Cordelia, still fighting the fight for truth and justice even at great personal cost. What Stevie has not been able to do is properly grieve and move on from her losses.
Meanwhile, ex-Marine PI Clay Maynard is a man with the patience of a saint. Previous books hinted at the attraction and unspoken feelings between Stevie and Clay. Two years ago Clay fell in love with Stevie at first sight, but a year ago Stevie made it clear a relationship between them was not possible. Still, Clay once saved Stevie’s life. A true protector, he now puts aside his hurt and pride to safeguard Stevie and Cordelia.
Stevie has been investigating old cases handled by her corrupt former partner, where poor innocent citizens ended up in jail in place of rich criminals. Her investigation trips alarms, and pretty soon villains go after Stevie. It’s down to a race between Stevie and the killers—she needs to identify the villains before they get to her or someone she loves. Stevie’s friends and Clay and his family rally to protect and help her. The investigation, thrilling chase, and confined quarters finally resolve Stevie and Clay’s romance. There’s no mystery as to the villain’s identity. In fact we get to understand the character’s moral decline. The end is a satisfying wrap-up of the characters and plots in the Baltimore series.
More than the suspense, my favorite element of any Karen Rose is her characters. She writes them unapologetically real. Cops, detectives, prosecutors, lawyers, medical examiners—these people all have demanding jobs. When they come with personal baggage—and in Stevie’s case, a young child, too—it takes two really well adjusted individuals to build a relationship from sexual attraction. And remember, this all happens while they’re dealing with a killer on their tails!
Even better, narrator Marguerite Gavin brings these characters to life. Listeners will have no trouble telling who is talking. I particularly enjoyed Ms. Gavin’s portrayal of male characters. She’s one of very few female narrators who can sound manly, even depicting multiple male voices, and I loved Ms. Gavin’s velvety husk when Clay is speaking. Stevie sounds like the tough cop she is, even when she breaks down to cry about her son.
Other characters are just as realistically portrayed. There’s a secondary romance between Sam and Ruby, who sounds sassy with a Latin-American accent, with Sam the all-American good guy. Ms. Gavin varies her tone and pitch to match their distinct personalities. Her pacing also matches the suspense and brings out characters’ emotions for a listening immersion.
I think Marguerite Gavin owns Karen Rose’s Baltimore series. I can’t picture these characters without hearing her voice(s) in my head! Overall, I’d highly recommend.
Megan
Narration: A-
Book Content: B+
Steam Factor: Glad I had my ear buds in
Violence: Fighting (high body count)
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Watch Your Back was provided to AudioGals for review by Blackstone Audio.
I didn’t realize Watch Your Back was the conclusion of this series. I wonder where Rose will go next.
From her website it looks like Rose is heading to Florida!