By Her Side Kindle Edition

A mysterious hit and run accident starts the ball rolling in Chandler's second novel. Vince, the hero, is gorgeous old school hero material. Indepenant Rory isn't expecting to fall in love but how can she help herself with Vince? Sensitive and tender in places. I couldn't get enough of Vince. This is a wonderful romance.
A wonderful read.

Set in Sydney and the Blue Mountains of New South Wales this thriller/romance had me hooked from beginning to end. The ending was a very satisfying surprise. The lead characters Rory and Vince were engaging and sympathetic and, even though they came from very different backgrounds, their lovestory was believable. The story is peppered with just enough detail about the setting to bring it to life without bogging it down. I'd highly recommend this book.

a well written tale told at a good pace

Chandler’s created really likeable characters in Rory and Vince. She could have gone with caricatures (the poor little rich girl and love interest from the other side of the tracks) but stops short of that and grounds both characters with layers of complexity.

I also loved the fact there’s no game-playing.

Both Rory and Vince feel an attraction to the other and have some misgivings, but the will they / won’t they? doesn’t take over the book. And when the issue is finally broached I love that it’s done in quite a sweet manner. This may border on a #spoiler, but one of them basically presents their feelings to the other which I found to be both honest and brave (and obviously realistic cos I’m commenting on the character’s behaviour as if they were a real person!).

The novel’s short at only about 150 pages which allows it to keep a good pace. The plot itself is interesting and I found myself engaged in what was unfolding.

I’d been warned about the romance / sex scenes before I read this book so I was a tad nervous but quite frankly it’s not gruesome and is handled really well.

This is an enjoyable and easy read, offering up a solid plot and delightful characters.

Read the full review on my blog: http://www.debbish.com/books-literature/by-her-side-by-lizzy-chandler/

I read another book by this author and loved it so when I had the chance to pick up this one, I did. I love that the author is an Australian setting her romantic suspenses in Australia. The stories are a nice balance of both romance and suspense with a nice degree of character development tossed in for good measure.

The story opens with Rory Sutton Whitfield returning home from her travels to figure out her future. She grew up with wealth, but this brought it's own problems. Rory wants to make her own way, but before she barely gets home from the airport trouble comes. She and her grandfather are almost victims of a hit and run, her grandfather has a heart attack, her half brother is missing along with some company money, and Rory is confronted by a brooding cop, Vince Maroney, who is ready to nail her brother for the crime. Her grandfather smoozes Vince into being her bodyguard and this is bad because she is attracted to him and he isn't in a place for a relationship.

Vince is not in a good place. He has been slowly losing his soul a piece at a time. His best friend and his only child both died on his watch, he and his wife grew apart over it all and now she has died to in a car accident, and for years Vince has been deep undercover in the drug world. He just wants to be left alone, but saving the lives of Rory and her grandfather now involves him in their troubles especially when he thinks his wife's death was no accident and Rory's brother is Vince's prime suspect. Vince doesn't think he has anything left to give so he does his best to hold Rory at arm's length while working together to get the truth about his wife's death and her brother's disappearance.

The story was engaging from the beginning. The author did well making me second guess along the way and feel the surprise behind the twist in the end. The story is balanced with easy going and tense moments. It focuses on the story and not a lot on the setting, but I loved the local flavoring I did get with a blend of city and rural recreational.

The mystery seemed to morph as the reveals came so that the reader isn't sure if there really is something sinister or if there is just a bunch of coincidences. Did the death of Vince's wife really point to murder or was it a sad tragedy? Was Rory's brother missing for real or was he just away and didn't tell anyone? I liked that feeling. And the big twist at the end was a good one.

Rory and Vince were a nice pair as a detecting team and as a couple though they started out mostly as wary opposites and prejudiced against each other. I liked how there was more to both of them than met the eye.
Vince was rough around the edges and tended to get snarly when Rory poked at his wounds. He might not have grown up with her money and he led a rough life even as a cop because of his undercover work, but he was rich in family.
Rory was touchy about proving that she wasn't just a rich princess and that she was healing from a guy cheating on her and only with her for her money so she was as wary as Vince in her own way. They both brought good things to the table.

All in all, it was an engaging romantic suspense that had some tension and mystery as well as passion. I would definitely recommend it particularly to those who might enjoy some suspense and romance set in Australia.

My thanks to Escape Publishing for the opportunity to read this story in exchange for an honest review.