Counting to Zero

Paxton is like Jack Bauer and Chloe rolled into one with a dash of MacGuyver too. An expert hacker who also happens to be able to take a beating and deliver on to boot. She's flippin' phenomenal. Her counterpart Emma starts off kind of bad ass, but then her character sort of forgets what all she's capable of. Doesn't matter though. Pax is able to take care of them both and then some. I was a little apprehensive wondering if my lack of in depth computer skills would hinder me from understanding some of the stuff going on but Ms. Quinn wrote this in an easy to understand way. The storyline is exciting. There's some steamy scenes too. Overall very enjoyable read.

Reviewed by Samantha Luce

I really enjoyed the original and interesting premise, engaging plot, and well developed characters. The book is well written and the language is not too jargon-y. The romance takes a backseat to the action but I didn't mind. Those interested in cyber security and hackers should definitely read this book.

Reviewed by Melina Bickard

The NSA orders Dr. Emma Thorpe to put together a team of hackers - off the books - in order to help the US government fight cyber terrorism. One of the people tapped is Paxton James, currently in an Indonesian jail because she was set up for a crime she didn't commit. Paxton is willing to deal as long as it gets her out of jail and it doesn't hurt that Emma is hot. But trust won't come easy to the betrayed Pax or the hardened agent Thorpe and they must learn to deal with their mounting attraction and fight a cyber criminal with ties to Pax's criminal past.

If you like your romances a little slow, this is a good example of the main couple having an instant attraction but not the insta-love so many romance novels tend to use as a trope. The situation these characters are in gives them some real issues to deal with so the real focus of this novel is the cyber crime. Quinn has created some smart, interesting, and fun characters who are a pleasure to get to know ...enjoy a quick, romantic thriller with some strong female characters....

Reviewed by Lenora Ashford

I really enjoyed this book -...t was a damn good read. Paxton is an excellent character - rounded, well drawn and likable. Some of her actions make you wonder how damaged she is and at times whether she is a goodie or a baddie but you always remain sympathetic to her plight. Emma is also credible and the relationships "feel real". I like the presidential aspect and the taking over of airplanes as a plot idea. There is a lot of good stuff in this story and I enjoyed it despite knowing nothing about computers or cyber warfare, black/grey hat hackers or anything techie. It reads as a good old fashioned "will they save the world in time" thriller and on that basis highly recommended. In amongst all that there is also a romance...

Reviewed by Anne Maguire

Paxton James is a hacker – a hacker who was once on the wrong side of the law, and now chooses to use her incredible brain to do good. Emma Thorpe works for the NSA and is facing a serious threat to national security in the form of a concerted effort by unknown hackers with an as yet little understood plan. This is a classic ‘set a thief to catch a thief’ story but updated for our modern age of cyber warfare.

Too often crime thrillers can get caught up in the procedural elements of the investigation, with the detail weighing down the reading experience. Also, too often, a romance is thrown in that really doesn’t add to the story, or seems too far-fetched in terms of the two characters involved. I’m happy to report that this book does not contain either of those two problems, and instead is a fantastic piece of writing that contains the very best of a crime-related storyline with a delicious—and thoroughly believable—romance woven in.

The two main characters are women who have great strengths in their fields, and do not need another person to validate them or “complete” them. The romance between them, therefore, is genuine and intense. When Emma gets Paxton out of jail after a rogue colleague of Emma’s sets her up for a crime she didn’t commit, Paxton has trouble learning to trust that Emma has her best interests at heart. Especially when Emma asks Paxton to work for her in battling the hackers.

Quinn’s writing is excellent – the characters are richly drawn, and the interactions between all of them are very natural. Emma’s right-hand man, Dom – and indeed, the rest of her team – are great secondary characters. There’s a female President of the US who seems to have some personal connection to Paxton, and that’s slowly revealed in tantalizing pieces. There’s a perfectly flawed bad guy, and his point of view crops up in occasional chapters that reveal what game he’s playing and why. There’s some well-explained detail of the cyber-crime itself, but it’s not overwhelming in technical knowledge; I could follow it all very easily.

And then there’s the romance between Emma and Paxton, which contains chemistry off the charts but without taking anything away from either of them as strong-willed, determined women each wanting to make their mark in their own way. They clash, often, but it’s not the clichéd “fiery exchange followed by blistering sex” line that a lot of thrillers can take. Quite often the clashes lead to a distance between them, and the ways they come back together, and gradually become stronger – both as themselves and as a partnership – is delightful to read.

I couldn’t put this book down, and that, for me, is the quintessential sign of a good thriller. Highly recommended.

Reviewed by Rainbow Book Reviews