A hair-raising night is in progress in a Washington suburb in PROTECTION DETAIL. A well-liked lawyer and his son are shot on the street. Close by is a children's home, and Cassie Danvers the housemother, hearing a noise, gets up to check only to find a man with gasoline and a knife on the porch. She screams and runs, hoping to lead him away; she's found by a police K9 unit working the shooting.

Captain Gavin McCord and his shepherd dog Glory are swiftly tracking the prowler, while more police help Cassie with the nervous kids - who may include a witness to crime. If so, they're not talking. The strange man reappears, this time firing a gun. Only Gavin and Glory save Cassie from abduction. But what exactly is behind all this, and are any more local deaths implicated in the case?

Wow, talk about action and danger! Even lovely big dog Glory is at risk as she confronts an armed criminal. This dog is trained for protection, not search and rescue, but she can still track a prowler through the neighbourhood and she trusts her handler absolutely. Her handler Gavin himself came from a children's home so he has more insight than most into the difficulties Cassie faces every day. Cassie's a strong lady though, and she definitely doesn't panic. With eight unruly kids dependent on her for shelter, love and a good example, she's going to hold it together no matter what happens.

If you previously read any of the Texas K9 linked series, you will love the fact that Shirlee McCoy's book PROTECTION DETAIL is the first in another such series called Capitol K9 Unit set in Washington. Authors to come will include Terri Reed, Lynnette Eason, Margaret Daley and Lenora Worth. I don't think it gets much better for romantic suspense with highly trained dogs and their police partners. This is going to be a series worth watching for. Each book will be complete but leave loose ends to be tied up in the last. While the Washington setting is more urban than Texas I am looking forward to patrolling the neighbourhoods and meeting the characters. PROTECTION DETAIL is a great start to a highly promising linked series.