Review by Booklist Review
Mejia's latest takes place where To Catch a Storm (2023) left off, this time focusing on former drug trafficker Kara Johnson, who has a congenital insensitivity to pain (CIP), and Iowa City cop Max Summerlin, who joins a DEA task force and is assigned to "babysit" Kara while she acts as bait to draw out the remaining bad guys from a massive drug bust. But the guilty players--dealers, an air-traffic controller, a chemist--keep turning up dead and, as winter storms lead to COVID-19 lockdowns, it seems that someone doesn't want the remaining stash found. Kara is determined to find justice for Celia, her girlfriend who died taking a bullet for her, and Max is struggling to keep his family intact amid his increasingly dangerous police work. The result is an incredibly humane page-turner that stands on its own from its predecessor, though readers of the first will welcome appearances from psychic PI Jonah Kendrick and physicist Eve Roth. This thoroughly Midwestern thriller features well-drawn characters, a détente in a cornfield, and an ending readers won't see coming.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
For the nerve-shredding sequel to To Catch a Storm, Mejia shifts her focus from psychic PI Jonah Kendrick to his college friend, Iowa City cop Max Summerlin, and Kara Johnson, the lover of Kendrick's late niece, Celina. Summerlin is eager to get back in the field after recovering from gunshot wounds he sustained while breaking up an opioid ring run by Sam Olson. The officer gets his chance when he's tapped to join a task force looking for a hit man who's been killing people connected to Olson's operation. Summerlin is deflated, however, when he learns he's been recruited as a liaison for Johnson, who ran drugs for Olson before becoming an informant. Johnson, who was born with a condition that makes her unable to feel physical pain, is grieving the loss of Celina, whom Olson killed after she took the fall for Johnson's informing. Neither Johnson nor Summerlin is thrilled about their partnership, but each learns from the other as they make a run at Olson and the hit man targeting him. Mejia maintains breathless suspense as she fleshes out the combative dynamic between her captivating leads. For crime fiction fans, it's a must-read. Agent: Stephanie Cabot, Susan Lea Assoc. (Aug.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
In her latest thriller (following To Catch a Storm), Mejia explores the opposite lives of a young woman named Kara and an Iowa cop named Max, who must work together to bring down a criminal enterprise. Kara is battling grief and intent on revenge after her lover died protecting her from a drug kingpin. Max gets an assignment to work with a DEA task force to dismantle a drug ring, and Kara is the key. They are going undercover, and Max needs to become a great babysitter. The circumstances rapidly change, and Kara and Max must rely on each other to complete the mission and survive. Mejia has crafted an intense and emotional novel. Max and Kara's almost paternal relationship is antagonistic but also layered and realistic. It's a terrific scenario as the two are forced to rely on each other as the people they would normally reach out to for support crumble. Paranoia and deceit follow. VERDICT Readers who enjoy crime novels that are gritty and not one-sided will want to add this to their TBR piles.--Jeff Ayers
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