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Terry Odell's new romantic suspense Danger in Deer Ridge follows Elizabeth Parker and her son Will as she hides from her abusive husband Victor Vaughan. The security firm of Blackthorne Inc. has helped her morph from Julia Ann Vaughan into a new identify and faked the deaths of her and her son. A Blackthorne operative, Mark Grinciewicz, Grinch for short, on medical leave is assigned to help her settle into the local community of Deer Ridge. Elizabeth failed to tell the Blackthorne people she had taken a ledger from her husband, Victor, that he will do anything to recover.

At first, Elizabeth doesn't like or trust Grinch and considers him an unfit father for his five-year-old son. She doesn't know his ex-wife had kept their baby and remarried, but then the woman and her husband were killed. Grinch is struggling with his new role as a father and when the child becomes ill, he's lost. Elizabeth takes over, but remains determined to keep Grinch at arms length. However, her attraction to him grows.

She doesn't know about Victor's involvement with the Mob or what the ledger contains, but hopes to use it in some way. Desperate to recover the incriminating book, he hires a ruthless private detective to follow Julie Ann's trail. The investigator plays rough and injures the woman who helped her and also makes use of a former Blackthorne op discharged for drinking.

After she learns, he works for Blackthorne, their relationship changes, but remains uneasy. Because of her abusive husband, she finds it difficult to trust any man, even Grinch. She is highly protective of her son and will do anything to keep him safe.

Odell provides plenty of excitement as Victor and his investigator track Elizabeth and the Blackthorne ops work to keep her safe. Grinch is determined to protect her whatever the personal cost. Constant updates by Blackthorne keep Grinch and the reader on edge.

Characters from earlier Blackthorne adventures show up and provide an added bonus for readers of the earlier novels. Her next Blackthorne novel, Rooted in Danger is scheduled for April 2012.