My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The Catch is the exciting and oh-so-satisfying conclusion to author Lisa Harris's US Marshals series.
When the judge set to preside over the arraignment of the dangerous drug lord Maxim Cervantes receives threats to his life if he doesn't rule the right way, the US Marshals Service, including partners Madison James and Jonas Quinn, are sent to protect the officers of the court. No sooner are they on-site when masked and armed men attack the courthouse. Madison and Jonas get the judge safely out of harm's way, but Cervantes' men are able to free their boss and escape.
Reporting back to their Seattle headquarters, the two partners are quickly dispatched to the judge's home, where he'd arrived to find his wife murdered. Believing this is linked to the morning's attack, they coordinate with the detective assigned to the case, but they soon discover that the shooter they're looking for is a young woman - the judge's mistress and mother of his infant son. To make matters worse, when Madison and Jonas track Becca Lambert down, they learn that baby Easton and his sitter, Becca's trusted friend, Ava, have gone missing, and all indications are that they have been kidnapped! Madison and Jonas must pull out all the stops trying to find Easton and Ava before it's too late.This third book in the US Marshals trilogy kept me glued to its pages as federal marshals Madison James and Jonas Quinn search for a missing baby and sitter. The story reveals the truth about the murder of Madison's husband five years earlier, the series' major plotline. But will the resolution release the main character from her single-minded mission and allow her to find peace and a new life with Jonas?
I particularly liked Harris's choice to feature the US Marshal Service in this series. Growing up, a friend of my parents was a marshal, and I always enjoyed his stories and company. And, other than movies like The Fugitive, this law enforcement branch seems infrequently used in the mystery genre, except for minor, minor roles. Of course, that thought sent me down a rabbit hole of research looking for other main role books!Another aspect I enjoyed was that the action traversed the Pacific Northwest. Readers are treated to the area's broad variety of settings, including the vibrant city of Seattle, forestland, mountains, wilderness, the coast, its water and beaches. The changing venues energized an already exciting story that, once it started, never let up. There was so much unseen danger constantly looming over the characters, not only the two marshals but the missing woman and baby Easton.
The story also incorporated what looked like a simple mistake of communication between two federal agencies. This lapse led to unexpected collateral consequences that truthfully had me wondering how law enforcement can possibly coordinate all the things they do in reality. In this instance in the book, it seemed like their hands would have been tied no matter what.But The Catch is not just a mystery. The book beautifully weaves together a puzzling mystery, heart-thumping suspense as well as a second chance romance. The emerging feelings between Madison and Jonas and their circumstances were heart-aching and, at all times, clean and honest. The series targets the Christian fiction market, and this author's ability to deftly reveal her characters' faith-filled lives and thoughts felt natural and genuine. The story warrants a broader audience, and readers who think they are not Christian fiction readers should definitely try this one.
I recommend THE CATCH to fans of the first two books in the trilogy and readers who enjoy exciting, suspense-filled mysteries with a clean and poignant underlying romance.