Fatal Code

I knew I'd love Kekoa's story all the way back in the introductory novella. He was just such an intriguing and secretive guy that I knew he had to have a great story cooking. And did he ever...whew...he was carrying a load of guilt for years and trying to hold his life together in spite of it.

Kekoa's specialty is fancy Hawaiian food and cyber crimes, so naturally both are front and center in this mystery-thriller. But the crimes aren't only online and the team sees lots of action.

The romance is spicy without being overbearing of the plot and a theme of forgiveness is the spiritual lesson of the book. Overall, delightful—nothing to complain about!

Thanks to the publisher and netgalley for a free reading copy. A favorable review was not required.

Fatal Code is the second in Natalie Walters' SNAP Agency series. I haven't read the first, but after reading this one, you better believe I'm going to to grab it.
Buckle up, y'all! This book takes off right out of the gate and doesn't slow down. Elinor, an aerospace engineer, is grieving the death of her grandfather who practically raised her, hanging onto the journals he left her. But when she discovers some secret codes in the journals, she knows they're a puzzle she has to solve. Kekoa is part of the SNAP Agency, and they've been tasked with investigating leaks at the company where Elinor works. Everything seems to point to Elinor as the leak, and Kekoa is tagged to monitor her. As he gets to know Elinor, though, and finds himself rescuing her from hazardous situations, he can't reconcile what he's seeing with what the data is telling him.

I couldn't even tell you which character I liked more. Elinor is my kind of girl. She's incredibly intelligent, unabashedly nerdy, and a genuinely decent human being. And Kekoa? I want to hug him and hang out with his family and have some of those “ono grindz” they kept talking about. (I'm pretty sure that means tasty, tasty food. If only the book came with recipes....) He's smart, and he doesn't see himself as a protector, but he's willing to do whatever it takes to keep Elinor safe. They're both delightfully three-dimensional, and they aren't perfect. Elinor hesitates to let anyone get close to her. Kekoa is battling the guilt he feels over his younger brother's death several years earlier. They're all the more real and relatable by having to work through issues that their pasts have left them with.

And as I would expect in Christian fiction, both Elinor and Kekoa rely on their faith to help them in difficult times! Elinor often recalls “His Eye is on the Sparrow,” one of the hymns her grandfather would sing to her. I love having a good old-fashioned hymn woven into a story. Walters doesn't just pay lip service to faith in Christ. Her characters are living it out. The language is clean, and the romance is, too, and I appreciate that.

But don't think this is some precious, too sweet for words story. It is a butt-kickin' thrill ride of a suspense read. There are two mystery storylines to try to sort out – one, what the codes in Elinor's grandfather's journals mean, and two, who is leaking information on the top secret project and trying to case Elinor as the source. Walters does a great job in laying down hints and clues that take you first one way, then another, and in keeping the tension almost constant. I didn't peg the identity of the leak until she laid it out, and I do love books that keep me guessing until the end.

To sum up, if you love a clean slow burn romance, a good redemption story, and suspense that just never stops, get your hands on Fatal Code. Bonus that it let me learn about Hawaiian culture and nerdy tech stuff. It's a five-star read for me, and Natalie Walters has added herself to my favorite authors list.

Disclaimer: I received a review copy from the publisher. All opinions here are mine, and I don't say nice things about books I don't like.