ARC Review: Deadly Chemistry by Teri Anne Stanley

Title:  Deadly Chemistry Author:  Teri Anne Stanley Publisher/Publication Date:  Entangled Ignite, June 23, 2014 Format/Source:  E-ARC, Publisher AMAZON     BARNES & NOBLE     GOODREADS Book Summary Former undercover cop Mike Gibson has been lying low, working as a maintenance man to put his troubled younger brother through college. But when a beautiful scientist enlists Mike’s help to repair the damage done to her lab by a group of vandals, Mike finds that his, and his brother's pasts, are about to be brought to light. Laura Kane was happy having a secret crush on the hot maintenance man at Tucker University, but when the drug she was studying is stolen, Laura has a chance to get to know Mike in person. The problem is, he seems to know more about what's going on than any maintenance man should. But then the drug turns up in the wrong hands, and Mike and Laura have to decide if their own chemistry will help, or hinder, the race to save innocent lives.  My Thoughts Deadly Chemistry was an entertaining story, but it had its downfalls. I loved the beginning of the story. And throughout the book there was a nice balance of   humor, romance, and suspense. The way Lauren literally tumbled into Mike’s life was absolutely amusing. There was an instant connection. But things didn’t move too fast. And Stanley did a good job of incorporating work life balance issues, which contributed to Lauren’s fears of being in a relationship. One problem I had with the book was that the description of the African American Chief of Police Dwayne Crawford was stereotypical and lacking. It was assumed that he was around 30 years old with a height and lean power of someone who played basketball. There were a couple of other details, but it wasn’t enough information to allow me to really connect with the character. The description of the police chief just fell flat and didn’t compare to the descriptions of some of the other characters such as Lauren who was described as being tall, blond, and curvy. As for the elements of suspense, it was a slightly predictable. However, there were several characters that could have had a motive to distribute the Devil’s Dust, a deadly substance that was thought to be derived from Lauren’s experimental drug.    Although there were some aspects of Deadly Chemistry I disliked and it was somewhat predictable, the storyline was captivating enough to keep me reading until the end. Rating 3/5      I received a copy of Deadly Chemistry by Teri Anne Stanley from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.