This RITA® Reader Challenge 2015 review was written by Betsy. This story was nominated for the RITA® in the Romantic Suspense category.

Here is Betsy's review:

Romantic suspense is my favorite genre. However, I am usually drawn to books with International Espionage or Military/Black Ops scenarios that are heavy on romance.  That being said, Mary Burton’s You’re Not Safe could be described as suspense with romantic elements.  While I hoped that the relationship between our hero and heroine would be more integral to the story, the author nevertheless kept me engaged and guessing from beginning to end.  The prologue certainly set the chilling tone of the story and I found myself re-reading it after a few chapters as it had more meaning afterwards.  There were many third person POV’s and many characters introduced which effectively kept me from figuring out who the killer was too early.

Our Heroine, Greer/Beth, suffered a great tragedy at age 15 for which she blames herself entirely.  After an attempted suicide, she is committed to a facility for troubled, but privileged youth and becomes part of a small group around whom the murders revolve.  The killer begins to murder the teens, now adults, by recreating their individual suicide attempts as well as granting their last childhood wishes.  The suspense was very well done and the strongest element of the story.  The identity of the killer was definitely not conclusive until late in the book. However, I did figure out very early on that the killer did not have an accomplice as was suggested.  I was not allowed to feel clever for very long.  Every time I had an “aha” moment about who the killer might be, the author sent me on another tangent with another character almost immediately. It was as though she was reading my mind.  By the end, I felt a little misled by the use of so many secondary characters as their story lines were never fully resolved but simply used as a ploy in this way.  Perhaps the epilogue could have taken a moment to mention a few of them and I wouldn’t have felt so manipulated.

What I enjoyed most about the story was the backdrop of the winery and how it became Greer’s purpose and salvation after she survived her suicide attempt and was rescued by her aunt.  I also really admired Greer.  She was strong and made it her mission to help others rather retreat into the darkness of the past.

However, her relationship to our Hero, Texas Ranger Tec Bragg, left a lot to be desired.   Our H/H were both damaged by their painful pasts and suspicious of one another for a long time.  In fact, Bragg, who was investigating the murders, considered Greer a possible suspect for much of the story.  The two of them were connected through the investigation as well as by Bragg’s nephew Mitch, who worked at the vineyard with Greer while working through his own PTSD.  I understand that the romance was not the focal point of the story but there really was a lack of build-up to their relationship.  Then suddenly they had sex, with no discussion of condoms or protection, after barely kissing one another.  They lacked the intimacy that can only occur after getting to know someone both physically and emotionally over time.  While the romance was a bit lacking for me, the suspense was solid, interesting and kept me guessing.