Dark Tide by Susan Sleeman

Dark Tide was an impulse grab from NetGalley. I have a horrible habit of judging a book by the cover and I like that this one was a bit atmospheric and didn't have any people on it. 

The Blurb: Gina Evans knows her brother was murdered;even if the police won't believe her. After catching a quick glimpse of the evidence her brother had gathered, the same criminals are after her and her baby niece. And Gina's only hope is the man she left behind. Despite the painful memories, private investigator Derrick Justice won't fail Gina and her baby. Yet now, the woman he never stopped loving and the baby he's come to adore are in a killer's crosshairs. But can Derrick trap the cold-blooded murderer before he strikes again?

The Short of It: Pleasant enough, but probably not memorable for long. Skip it.

All the thoughts: This one had a number of flaws for me. First, the mystery elements of the plot just didn't make a convincing story for me. From the moment the villian is mentioned it is clear who it is, and the red herring switches from "very suspicious" to "completely trustworthy" overnight, literally.  Gina is convinced of a conspiracy but it really didn't feel that way to me.  Both Gina and Derrick are completely likable people, and I wouldn't have minded a bit more of them, and of seeing them fall in love again, but it was almost like it picked up back in the past and their feelings were never gone.  The issues that broke them up just aren't issues any longer, so there's no real conflict. While I expect a suspense book to focus on the actual mystery, I fel tthat it really gave short shift to the romance.   The book is also near the end of a series of the Justice family, and the other family members have much too large of a role in the story. 

Last, I completely missed the Love Inspired label on this one until after I finished it, and that completely colored how I felt about the religious aspects of the book. As I was reading it, I kept thinking that the discussions about God and frequent prayers were pretty heavy-handed. Since this was an e-book, I never flipped back to the cover to see that it was supposed to be this way, and it was jarring and out of place. I suspect if I'd realized that going in that I would still have read it, but I wouldn't have keep pausing to wonder what was going on.  The fault in this situation is all mine.

Overall, it was an ok read, but I probably won't seek out the author again and I have no desire to read the rest of the Justice family's books.

Source: NetGalley