Safe From Harm
R J Bailey
Simon & Schuster Australia
ISBN: 9781471157172
Description:
London: a city where the super-rich flock – and where their enemies follow. And in this city of eight million people, where any stranger could be a threat, a close protection operative is the must-have accessory for anyone who is anyone.
But not just any close protection officer. A female close protection officer. One who can blend into the crowd, but who is tough enough to counter any threat.
Safe From Harm is the explosive opening to an exciting new series by a thrilling new talent.
My View:
This is an action packed, adrenaline fuelled thriller! It took me a little time to absorb the acronyms and the back story – the story of PPO’s (Personal Protection Officers) I know this needed to be done but I felt this bogged down the narrative…for a short while, then when we were all up to speed – I could not put this book down!
A great opening hook – a job description – sounding more glamorous than dangerous – but don’t be fooled – this is a narrative where what you think you see/read is not what you get! Be prepared to be manipulated, to be conned, to be played…then watch what happens to the protagonist!
Told from alternating time frames – twenty months earlier, mostly safe and secure and then this very minute – where there is “a man coming to hurt us. Probably more than one man. Two or three perhaps. Not four. They won’t need four to deal with us. After all we are trapped down here…” p. 3 this really is a heart pounding read! I do not say this lightly – I could feel the tension in my body rising as I delved into this narrative, once engaged with the story I could not put this book down. I had to read until the end, I had to know the outcome…and I was not surprise for the two mega twists here!
If you like your protagonist to be strong, sensible, assertive, combat ready and female and your villains to be dastardly, bold, calculating, incredibly smart and savvy who will fool you at least once, maybe twice in this read…than this is the book for you. Be warned you will be staying up until you finish reading this book. You will not believe the gut wrenching outcomes…but rest assured there is at least one more book in this series, and if you are a fan or Rachel Amphlett, Ian Andrew, Ben Sanders or Lee Child, you will love this thriller.
Reading, Writing and Riesling 
It certainly sounds like a high-octane thriller, Carol. And the premise sounds interesting, too. I hadn’t heard of CPO’s before, but it makes sense, especially for those who are wealthy enough to have made enemies and to be vulnerable. Glad you enjoyed it.
Margot it interesting that all of a sudden I am reading a few of these high octane thrillers- a little different to my usual reads- but real thrillers they are – and this is the first I have heard of Personal Protection Officers ( Body guards ++) but I think that this theme is one that will be explored more often in crime fiction/thrillers in the near future.