#19

I just finished Jenna Bennett’s latest mystery, Collateral Damage:  A Savannah Martin Mystery.  I love this series.  It started out as equal parts romance, equal parts mystery, but it’s evolved into a strong family and marriage.  I was curious how the author would handle having Savannah solve crimes and care for a baby, but it works.  Admittedly, I had one fussy baby who cried more than she cooed and one easy-going baby, but even then, I don’t know anyone whose baby is as good as Savannah’s.  Still, it works.

I particularly liked this book because it felt like Rafe and Savannah were a married team, with both of them showing their strengths and supporting each other.  For a long time, they loved each other but they each did their own thing.  Now, they work together.  The thing that keeps surprising me is that this is the NINETEENTH book, and I still look forward to the next one.  The stories haven’t grown stale because the characters keep growing–all of them.  Savannah’s mother, who was a spoiled southern belle at the beginning of the series, has changed a lot book by book.

I’m turning in my 6th Jazzi Zanders mystery this weekend, and I’ve worried about keeping each book fresh, not falling into a pattern, a rut, but Jenna Bennett proves it’s possible.  I think COLLATERAL DAMAGE is one of her best.  I’ve followed some authors for a long time, and some of my favorites hit a point where their books sagged.  It felt like they were just tired of them.  And I worried that that might be a common pitfall, something that was hard to avoid.  Eventually, they pulled out of it, and their books flexed their muscles again.  But so far, for me, that hasn’t happened with this series.  And I’m glad.  It gives me hope.