Crossing Danger by Colleen Helmes (thoughts)

Summary from Goodreads:

"Shelby Nichols isn’t your average soccer-mom turned private investigator. She’s more on the quirky side with a little wild thrown in. That’s because a near-fatal gunshot wound to the head left her with the ability to read minds. This lands her in all kinds of trouble, and this time is no exception. Helping a reporter, Billie Jo, get the low-down on a case is just the tip of the iceberg. When her best friend’s niece goes missing, Shelby is pulled into a conspiracy that involves the police and the leader of a violent drug ring. Add to that a stranger in town with ties to the mob-boss she works for, along with a known assassin out to kill him, and Shelby is crossing danger at every turn. Will she find the answers in time? Or will this be her last adventure?"

My Thoughts:

A mystery series based on the fact that the main character can hear what everyone around her is thinking?  How could I possibly resist?  I couldn't and found myself instantly intrigued on how this unique ability would play out.  I love a good mystery series and just knew that I would enjoy this one based off this premise alone.  It was certainly unique and very entertaining! 

Shelby works as a private investigator but also helps out with police investigations when asked.  No one but her husband and a few select others knows about her ability to hear others' thoughts.  This means that she allows for everyone to believe that she has premonitions to help explain her knowing things she shouldn't.  Even though I started mid-series (this is the seventh book) I was easily able to immerse myself within the storyline, and the fact that I hadn't read those previous books really didn't matter a whole lot.  I know there are some details that I am missing but since I enjoyed this one so much I will just go back and start at the beginning.  In this book, Shelby finds herself caught up in a couple of different investigations.  Each one seems to be unrelated to the others and Shelby really has her work cut out for her.  I loved getting the chance to hear the other character's thoughts and really found it interesting as Shelby was constantly working to not give her true abilities away.  It was a balancing scenario and one that she didn't always do well.  It really added to the suspense as I wanted to see if anyone would be able to figure out her secret.

The mystery portion of this book was well done and kept me reading way later than I should have.  I liked that the author also portrayed Shelby's family life and responsibilities throughout the book.  It helped to show the constant balancing act as she tries to juggle her investigations and the needs of her family.  My one and only complaint with the book was that I didn't quite get her attraction to Ramos.  She has a husband that she clearly loves but yet there was some very strong feelings towards Ramos that I just didn't quite understand.  Maybe this comes from me not having read previous books but really that was the only part of the book that didn't work for me.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am eager to read more from this series.  I liked watching Shelby work through investigations while trying not to give her true secrets away to others.  This book was both fast paced and fun to read.  I really just enjoyed this one as a whole and was left very excited about this series.  I can't wait to go back to the beginning and see how everything started very Shelby!  Definitely recommended to other mystery lovers who enjoy some paranormal thrown in.

Bottom Line:  A mystery series that has one of the most unique characters that I have ever had the pleasure to read about!

Disclosure:  I received a copy of this book as part of a Reading Addiction Virtual Blog Tour.  Thoughts are my own!