Wilmington, North Carolina, has never been the same since gorgeous, sexy Jersey Barnes moved to town and purchased The Barter's Block -- a historic building that houses a pub on the ground floor with apartments for her and her dad upstairs. Located overlooking the Cape Fear River, it's a perfect place for Jersey to retire to now that she's given up her high-risk job as a private security specialist. Her plans to relax and spend more time with good-looking boyfriend Bill don't quite go as anticipated when Bill asks Jersey to help out an old friend with a little problem.

Jersey knew better than to think this favor would be a small one, and she soon realizes that the "retired" part of her life is going to have to be put on hold. What starts out as a routine investigation of a supposedly philandering husband soon involves kidnapping and a high-stakes scheme to bilk taxpayers out of millions of dollars using a nasty computer virus. And then it turns out that no one is really who or what they seem. Is Jersey up to the task of solving the case and staying alive? You better believe it!

With a great cast of characters and a vivid feel for the locale, T. Lynn Ocean has kicked off a promising new mystery series with a smart and sassy heroine you can't help but like. Fast-paced narrative and cleverly written dialogue grab you from the first page and keep your attention to the end, providing quite a few surprises along the way.