Anna's father Davis, now out of prison and working as an accountant, has discovered a lot of money being moved through and out of the company he's working for. The biggest problem is that whoever is doing it is using his passwords and his name. On the surface it looks like he's been the one taking the money.
Anna's life is soon turned upside down when she finds out her father, an ex convict, has died and she's received a voice message from him shortly before his death warning her of danger...and telling her to go to the only other person he trusts. Brent Carver, now on parole, was her father's friend and cell mate in prison. When he finds Anna on his doorstep in the middle of the night, they are both scared. Neither of them knows what to think or who to trust. Brent knew Davis very well though. He believes he was innocent the first time, and he believes he is innocent this time too, no matter how things look initially. Anna has a harder time believing in her father's innocence. She is convinced he was guilty the first time, so in her mind it's very possible he's not innocent this time either.
Together, as danger gets closer and closer, they embark on a journey to discover the truth about the money and Davis' death. Davis hid the money and sent Anna documents before his death, but they can find neither. The people who want this information and the money will stop at nothing to get it, even if it means killing anyone in their way. Soon Davis and Anna must ask for help, Davis does not want to end up in prison again and neither of them want to end up dead. He seeks help from his brother Finn (ex-military) and Finn's fiancée, who just happens to be an RCMP officer, but they still run, not quite trusting anyone but each other.
As they search for the truth and the money, taking us on an adventure from Vancouver Island to Chicago, Anna and Brent are also drawn closer and closer to each other. Between the action and the terror, they are fighting an unexpected attraction to each other. Both of them have a past they are hiding from that have prevented them from getting close to anyone else, and make them fight their feelings towards each other. But as the chase gets closer, so does the attraction, and soon they can no longer fight it. Can they trust each other enough? Will they have anything left for each other when and if this is all over?
Anna was at times hard to understand. When her father went to prison her life fell apart in more ways than one, and as much as she's tried, she's never quite recovered from it or moved on. I'd have liked a bit more background on her family before her father's conviction, because it sounded like they had a happy, loving family and I couldn't understand why Anna didn't believe her father's proclamations of innocence at all. She maintained as much of a relationship with him as she could, but she always believed he was guilty. That was the only area of Dark Waters I'd have liked a bit more of.
Brent is an ex-con who just wants to be left alone. He's big, scary, and oh, hot! Anna does see the good in him though, and she is not scared of him. She sees past the walls he's build and even manages to get over them! Brent has hidden parts of him too, if only he can trust Anna with them. If they can survive, I think they'll be a great couple together. They're not quite as different as they think.
There are a lot of other people involved in Dark Waters, from the dangerous ex-mercenaries to Brent's brother and Anna's mother that kept the pages flowing, adding unexpected twists to Dark Waters.
Toni awed me with Dark Waters! Dark Waters is an intense, high energy romantic thriller. Toni had me at times wanting to turn the page, and at times scared to turn the page!Watching Anna and Brent's characters develop and evolve was fascinating! People are seldom what you expect them to be at first impression, and these two proved no different. The way they were and the stories behind them that came out as Dark Waters progressed really made me come to love them both.
I admit part of why I love this book is the setting! I am an island girl, and Toni's descriptions of the east coast (and other parts) of Vancouver Island were perfect and how I know it to be. She will take you there and you will hear those waves pounding and smell the salt water.
The journey to the conclusion of Dark Waters was intriguing both romantic and full of action. Toni will take you where you never expected to go, leaving you with a mix of emotions. I'd highly recommend this to anyone who loves romance with a lot of suspense and action, you won't be disappointed!
5/5 stars
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