SHADES OF GRAY - Maya Banks
A KGI Novel , Book 6
Berkley Sensation
ISBN: 978-0-425-25112-6
January 2013
Romantic Suspense

Denver, Colorado; Vienna, Austria and Tennessee - Present Day

P.J. Rutherford is winding down after a successful mission when she gets a surprise visit from teammate David Coletrane.  His arrival is timely because it interrupts a tense moment between P.J. and her former S.W.A.T. teammates, but she wonders why Cole came to Denver.  Their usual game of one-upmanship leads to a dare that eventually leads P.J. to invite Cole to her home.  Not surprisingly, P.J. and Cole share a sizzling night, but the morning after is a bit awkward until it's cut short by a call from their boss.

Returning to Tennessee, P.J., Cole and the team are briefed on their latest mission: Carter Brumley is involved in human trafficking, and the team has received intel that he has a “shipment” of American girls between twelve and fifteen that he is selling into sexual slavery in Vienna.  P.J. is the type of woman that Brumley's assistant likes, so the plan is to get him alone and get details about the shipment.  While the mission begins well, it quickly takes a wrong turn and goes horrifyingly wrong.  In the aftermath, P.J.—bent on revenge—quits KGI and goes after Brumley and his men on her own.

Cole isn't about to let P.J. go, and he spends six months chasing her down before the team finally gets a lead.  Knowing that she's going after Brumley, the team is determined to bring her home. KGI takes on cases the government can't touch, but they've never been abut vengeance.  Now though, P.J., Cole, and their team are willing to break the rules—no matter the cost.

In spite of being “one of the guys” P.J. has always been a bit of a loner, and in SHADES OF GRAY readers find out why.  She's a person who sees things in black and white, but after the mission goes so wrong, lines get a little blurred for P.J., and she isn't about to bring KGI down with her.  Cole has had a thing for P.J. since she joined the team four years earlier, and he had been hoping that their one night together would be the beginning of a relationship between them. Instead, the mission happened, and now he doesn't even know how to find P.J. 

What started out as a typical high-stakes mission becomes so much more, which creates a story both action-packed and heart-breaking.  Yet, it also gives us a character stronger than most, and considering the Kelly women we've met in previous stories in the series, that's really saying something.  P.J. has been part of the team for years, but she learns just how much she can rely on them.  Whether you've read the series or not, SHADES OF GRAY is a captivating tale that I highly recommend.

Jennifer Bishop