The Traitor's Pawn

Author: Lisa Harris
Genre: Romantic Mystery
Release Date: March 31, 2020

When FBI agent Jack Shannon arrives in Corpus Christi, Texas, he is focused on one thing: find the man who has been selling encrypted government secrets to the Chinese through online birding chat rooms. But when a senator is shot during a hunting trip and the woman he was with is abducted, Jack agrees to join the search--especially when he discovers that the kidnapping victim is Aubrey Grayson, a woman he was once in love with.

As the search continues, it becomes clear the senator may not have been the intended victim--and Aubrey may be connected to the other case Jack is supposed to be working on. Can Jack untangle the knots before it's too late? And when he learns the truth, will it be too painful to get past?

Join the hunt for the truth--and a traitor--in this tension-laden story of secrets, betrayal, and second chances.

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Reviewer: Monica Huyser

The Traitor's Pawn is my first book by Lisa Harris. The lead characters in this book are Detective Aubrey Grayson and FBI Agent Jack Shannon. When Aubrey is kidnapped at the start of the book, Jack is on the case to find her, and he does. Then they work to solve the mystery of her kidnapping and two overlapping cases.

The Traitor's Pawn was difficult for me to read at first. I struggled to really like the characters until the middle of the book. Jack and Aubrey had a relationship earlier in their lives and are coming back together after several years of not communicating. At that point, I did pull for them to get together, although the romance in this book is secondary to the crime plot. Communication was an issue throughout the book in their relationship. I think that is actually a problem in many people's relationships, so that part does seem realistic. I guess one thing that bothered me throughout the book was that Audrey was so close to the people they were investigating. I wasn't sure it was realistic that she would be allowed to work that way on the case with her personal connections to it. At the same time, Jack and Audrey had a lot of adventures with the bad guys and worked well together to solve the case. The best part of The Traitor's Pawn for me was the spiritual thread of forgiveness, which I did think was both inspirational and could be helpful to other readers. Also, this gorgeous cover did help to draw me into wanting to read it.

I received this book courtesy of Baker Publishing Group, Revell Division, through Interviews & Reviews. All opinions in this review are my own.

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Reviewer: Melissa Glor

Let me start by saying I devoured this book! It starts off with a bang and the action is nonstop throughout the book. It read quickly and easily and kept me involved until the very end. With all the pieces it was so much fun trying to figure out how they fit and who were the bad guys.

The ending was satisfying and I loved the characters. This was an awesome suspense read. Looking forward to reading more of Lisa's books. 

I received this book courtesy of Baker Publishing Group/Revell through Interviews & Reviews.

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Reviewer: Raechel Kelly

Once again, author Lisa Harris captures her audience with a riveting and meaningful suspense novel! 

It starts with a bang and keeps on moving until the very end, without being too overwhelming, which I appreciated. It was exciting, and the plot draws you in just waiting to see how it will all turn out. And the faith message was very well done. I loved the importance put upon forgiveness at the end, and how it impacted the characters.

The characters were all very well developed, and I had no problem relating to them. 

The plot all wrapped up nicely at the end, though I am curious as to what happened to Rachel that wasn't entirely laid out, I'm guessing I can make my own conclusions based on what did happen.

All in all, an enjoyable novel!

This book was provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group (Revell), through Interviews & Reviews.

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Reviewer: Marie Edwards

Thank you in advance to the publisher, Revell, for providing a complimentary review copy courtesy of Interviews and Reviews. A positive review was not required. All words are my own. 

This is the first book I've read by the author, and I truly wasn't disappointed. I'm definitely interested in more of her novels and will keep her on the "must-read" list.

As a fan of suspense, romance, and Christian fiction – this book covers everything I could ask for. The fact that the story takes place in my home state of Texas is a bonus.

Just the first sentence as the book begins is ominous – "watch your back … this isn't over." The cover looks equally exciting – a woman on the cover, the Corpus Christi landscape in what I thought would be an exciting read. I wasn't wrong. And I'm very glad I got the chance to read this novel.

This non-stop, fast-paced, yet very clean read has a lot of action. By chapter five, there had been shootings, a kidnapping, and a grenade launcher. And, even throughout the book, the action didn't stop. This was a thriller and suspense full of intrigue, treason, as well as murder. It was definitely an edge-of-seat, exciting, heart-pounding read.

The characters of Jack and Aubrey were thoroughly fleshed out and very realistic, given the situation. Each one had their own doubts about the relationship – or what could've been. And, I loved how protective Jack was of Bree, yet he didn't smother or suffocate her – he treated her as an equal. I would've liked to have seen more of Papps though and would've enjoyed his take on Jack and Bree's relationship. By chapters eight and nine, it was easy to see how the title played into it.

Harris definitely kept my interest with this one. I had no idea what to expect, or even what was going on. By the end, I was still trying to piece it all together. There were twists I didn't see coming and some of the characters I had some doubts about, and despite my guesses, I was wrong on all counts. This is one of those suspense novels that hooked me right away and kept me engaged throughout.

With regard to the faith element, there are some noticeable traces of faith in it – references to God and Jesus, with the characters looking to them for guidance. There are no sermons, no biblical quotes, and it doesn't come off as preachy. The faith elements are minor.

This is also a clean read by definition of – no sex scenes and no foul or questionable language."

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Reviewer: Mindy Houng

Lisa Harris never fails to bring an action-packed, adrenaline-filled romantic suspense to her readers. The Traitor's Pawn takes two estranged childhood best friends Jack and Aubrey, and puts them smack in the middle of treason, espionage, and betrayal. Jack is the fierce protector of FBI agents and Aubrey is a police detective and they join forces to untangle a web of threats, murders, and stolen secrets. The plot moves at a brisk pace and it has plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader guessing at the identity of the real  villain.

If you enjoy romantic suspense, you will enjoy this book and the author's writing style.

I received a copy of the book from Revell and was under no obligation to post a positive review. All comments and opinions are solely my own.

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Reviewer: Abigail Harris

What better way to amp up the suspense than to start out with a shooting and a kidnapping. Lisa does it again with a story that twists and turns like a mountain road.

When FBI agent Jack Shannon returns home while working on a case he suddenly finds it entwined with the kidnapping of his high school best friend—the girl who got away.

After she’s rescued he finds it hard to keep things in the friend zone, but as things are heating up he better keep his head in the game. Her life could depend on it.

Full of relatable characters and multiple suspects that kept me guessing this book is another winner. I recommend it.

I was given a copy of this book courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and this is my honest review.

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Reviewer: Rebecca Maney

"Seeing him again reminded her of the things she missed about him."

Being abducted wasn't exactly what Aubrey Grayson had in mind on that beautiful predawn morning, neither was watching the man she considered her surrogate father get shot . . . but both happened so quickly. In the blink of an eye, her life hung in the balance before her law enforcement training had time to kick in. Equally impossible to believe, was that when she did manage to gain the upper hand, that it was F. B. I. Agent Jack Shannon who came to her rescue. Jack . . . just the sound of his name brought back a multitude of wonderful childhood memories; so, what in the world had happened to "them?"

Agent Jack Shannon is stunned to come face to face with Bree Grayson again. Not only is she as beautiful, or even more beautiful than he remembered, she has become caught in the middle of a dangerous situation. Until he can unravel the details, his protective instincts kick into high gear. As the situation begins to play itself out, a name rises to the surface, one that neither of them ever expected to be relevant to the case; it's none other than Charles Ramsey.

As Bree fights the demons of her past and Jack struggles with similar regrets, they have an international spy ring to shut down; but unfortunately for both of them, it's Bree who becomes "the traitor's pawn."

This book is such a nice blend of character and story; two childhood friends whose love for each other became misunderstood and then neglected among the challenges of adulthood, only to be given a second chance. Sometimes forgiveness is the key, the only key needed to unlock the future. Is it easy? Absolutely not.

I received a copy of this book from Baker Publishing through Interviews and Reviews. The opinions stated above are entirely my own.

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Reviewer: Abigail Harris

I read three of Lisa Harris’ novels back to back.

A lot of suspenseful, fun, intriguing, and sometimes sweet books in a few days. The Traitor's Pawn has had me on the edge of my seat to read since I first heard about it a while ago, and that cover! Wow! So perfect for the story with the model, the background, and the colors.

I could already tell that there was a red herring as I started the book and the suspense came up, but I wasn't completely sure where it was coming from … I almost expected it to be different than it did end and was glad it hadn't gone the way I expected though it was not the happiest ending suspense wise. I thought the romance side was sweet and it had a good ending.

Content wise this was a pretty good suspense, though I thought it was a bit violent for me at times but I don't love the violence often found in suspense. An interesting read that will leave you wanting more from the author.

I'm struggling to remember the Christian content since I read it with Lisa Harris’ other books but from what I know was part of The Traitor's Pawn it was all right.

This book was provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group/Revell, through Interviews & Reviews.

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