The Neighbors

Mystery and chemistry drive Bush’s riveting third River Glen romantic suspense novel (after The Gossip). Mackenzie “Mac” Laughlin has joined fellow former cop Jesse Taft as a private detective. Mac knows she could all too easily fall for Jesse, but she won’t risk her job or her heart. Still, she isn’t thrilled about her latest assignment: acting as bodyguard to Daley Carrera, Taft’s ex. Daley and her husband, Leon, recently moved into a high-end development called the Villages and have been victim to pranks ever since. While staying at the Carreras, Mac discovers the residents’ salacious secrets, uncovers conflicts between the neighborhood’s old and new guards, and learns about the relationship between the Villages’ earliest residents’ and the development’s shady founder, Victor, dead for more than 15 years of apparent heart failure. Meanwhile, Taft investigates the death of a construction worker that may be connected to a man from the Villages. Readers will need to pay close attention to understand the tangled relationships between the extensive cast, but the payoff is rewarding and the subtle romance between Mac and Jesse helps keep the pages flying. Series fans will be well pleased. Agent: Robin Rue, Writers House. (June)