ABOVE 'N' BEYOND by Tee O'Fallon

Sometimes going undercover takes a lot out of a person, but K-9 Sergeant Jamie Pataglio is prepared for the job. He has infiltrated the Mancusco crime family and is free to be one of them. The biggest problem he finds is Bella Bianco.

Bella doesn’t want to be involved with anything to do with the crime world, but her little Italian bistro is being used by her criminal family as a base. She doesn’t want them there and she certainly doesn’t want to be interested in the new associate. Though he is someone she strongly considers breaking her "no mobsters" rule for, Bella must be strong. The last thing she wants to do is fall for a mob guy while trying to get out from under her aunt, the local “Godmother” who is using her bistro to launder money. Who would believe she is innocent – that she didn’t know what was going on in her restaurant – if things were to go south? She would be the one in deep trouble, not the family.

Bella and Jamie can’t trust each other but they must because for either of them to survive the family must be brought down. And they can only do that together.

ABOVE ‘N’ BEYOND, the latest book in the Federal K-9 series, is a fast-paced, highly emotional read. The characters are all realistic and believable as are the worries, fears, and emotions that they go through. Both are strong and stand up for what they believe. Author Tee O’Fallon isn’t afraid to give her hero and heroine fears that can be recognized by readers, yet she also gives them the strength needed to stand by those they love.

And, of course, this is a K-9 read and what do you expect with such a book? A canine to steal hearts and Jax does just that. He actually saves the day a time or two. It was interesting how Ms. O’Fallon worked the storyline around the infiltration of the mob to right a wrong and still fit in pets, intriguing characters, and a very good, intense romance.

If you love mafia, K-9s, a sweet, steamy romance, intrigue, action, and emotions that will pull you along from page to page and hate that it all has to come to the end, then ABOVE ‘N’ BEYOND is exactly what you are looking for!

Getting locked up had been easy. But for K-9 Sergeant Jamie Pataglio, going undercover at a maximum-security prison—and infiltrating the Mancusco crime family—was the hard part. Now, six months later, Jamie’s been accepted as one of the mob’s own, and he’s walking out of the gates as a free man…and stepping into the criminal underworld. There’s only one small, gorgeous problem: Bella Bianco.

The Italian bistro used to be Bella’s pride and joy. Now it’s become a nightmare, where her violent family uses her restaurant as its criminal home base. Guilty by association. She needs to find a way out, and fast. The last thing Bella needs is an attraction to their newest “associate”—even if every moment alone with him leaves her breathless. It’s almost enough to make her reconsider her “no mobsters” policy…

They can’t trust each other. But if either of them ever wants to break free of their circumstances, they don’t have a choice. They’ll have to take down her family. And if anyone finds out they’re working together…they’re both dead.