Witty - Witty - Witty . . . I didn't plan it, but I got hooked. Not only that, Nina Bruhns was able to draw a tear or two, a rare experience during my moments in reviewing, and I must say, I was, and am, impressed with Blue Jeans and a Badge. When I read to review, I have a kind of "stream of consciousness" premise. As I receive impressions from each literary moment to the next, I make a note. It helps me to stay, honestly, connected to the read. I now glance over my notes. "Dialogue between characters real, and recognizable" . . . after awhile, I felt like I knew them. "Just enough tension to kindle a consistent spark" . . . I was there. Loved the chemistry and waded through it slowly. One likes to take her time. "After a couple of chapters, I rebelled against any interference on my time that interrupted the escape" . . . a hook, is a hook, is a hook. Bruhns has a great style.

Luce Montgomery is a bounty hunter doing what she does best, this time in Pinon Lake, New Mexico. She wrestles with her latest "mark" only to discover the hot, sexy, virile man she has pinned to the ground is not who she thought he was. Or, wished he was. It is this moment of mistaken identity that opens a floodgate of feeling, personal history, and emotional discovery.

With a backdrop of the mysterious and beautiful desert, this story is fraught with twists, turns, suppositions, and mistakes, all of which claim the reader without pause. It is a very good story. My only question to the brilliant writer, Ms. Bruhns, is where is this Phillip? And please change the title. This work deserves more sophistication.

Melanie Roget
© January 2005