Review: Save Me by Tiffany Snow

(from Goodreads)

In this fast-paced romantic suspense, China Mack will make one final choice.

Computer genius China Mack may be the former head of Vigilance, the government’s clandestine spy program, but she can still be knocked off balance. And two back-to-back personal blows have thrown her into a tailspin.

While her relationship with tech billionaire Jackson Cooper is on the rocks, China is testing the boundaries of what she feels for man-of-mystery Clark Slattery. But when China learns that her mother’s death sixteen years ago wasn’t an accident, she can’t rest until she knows the truth. And China’s own father, an elusive ex–CIA agent, might have been the killer. To avenge her mother’s death, she needs help, and both Jackson and Clark step up to the plate. But when her investigation is linked to a decades-old international plot to hack the New York Stock Exchange, putting both of the men she loves in danger, China must make an impossible decision to keep them safe.

As the three of them are plunged into a far-reaching conspiracy, China’s notions of love and trust are turned upside down. For China, this final case couldn’t be more personal—or more dangerous.

This has been an incredibly difficult review to write. Save Me is the fourth and final instalment of the Corrupted Hearts series.

When I first picked up this novel, I did something I don't normally do and skipped to the end to ascertain who won China's heart simply because I wanted to know. I read the final chapter and the epilogue before going back to read from the beginning onwards. I'm not going to give any hints or clues to the conclusion of that particular plot thread, so you'll just have to read this book yourself to make that discover. I will add, my actions didn't impact on my overall enjoyment of this novel and I don't regret my uncharacteristic impulsive action.

The lives of China Mack, Jackson Cooper and Clark Slattery become more complicated when it becomes clear both men want China and she herself loves them both too, which isn't surprising. They are drop dead gorgeous and powerful men so it's understandable the heroine is spoilt for choice and is undecided. Yet, China does make her choice but the decision doesn't have a noticeable "bells and whistles" impact I was expecting.

However, the conclusion of China's 'Happy Ever After' didn't go entirely as I predicted and an unexpected twist was a welcome surprise. However, because I've continually felt during this series that I was reading a narrative I've read before, it didn't have the impact it should have because I just wasn't invested in the protagonists and their tangled relationships to really care.

The suspense of the narrative is fast-paced as I've come to expect with this author and definitely the most positive aspect of this and the previous novels in the Corrupted Hearts series. Whereas I've struggled to wade through the story lines in the first three books, the writing seemed clearer this time around so I wasn't tempted to put the novel down until I'd finished reading the whole book. Whilst held captive as the numerous plot lines are tied up, I admit to rolling my eyes for each mention of the heroine's favourite biscuits. I wasn't interested enough to understand the acronyms displayed on her fan-fic clothing or tempted to find the meanings on Google. That aspect of China character went over my head and a big reason why I've had trouble relating to her throughout the series.

If I was a new reader discovering Ms Snow's novels and this was the first series of hers I'd read, the rating would be much higher than what I've given. I've read all her novels she's published yet this series has failed to shine for me because whilst the characters, plot and setting are original; the elements shaping the narrative trigger memories of a previous series. (Thoughts based entirely on my own reading experience)

***arc generously received courtesy of Montlake Romance via NetGalley***