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Book Review of Line of Duty (Newpointe 911, Bk 5)

Line of Duty (Newpointe 911, Bk 5)
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The reader returns to Newpointe, Louisiana, for the fifth time and it's still a pleasant little burg to visit. Allie and Mark have a baby; Jill and Dan are settling in as newlyweds, as are preacher Nick and his paramedic wife, Issie. However, their idyll shatters when a 30-story building in New Orleans becomes an inferno thanks to three bombs placed at interval levels. Jill is taking a deposition when the explosions occur, and of course Dan and all of the Newpointe 911 responders offer their services.

Blackstock throws in a minor subplot about Iranian students being held for questioning (mostly due to racial profiling following 9/11) and this feels racist here. The bomber's identity is a neat plot twist. Jill's semi-adoption of a ragged, insecure girl whose mother was killed provides part of the story, as does her husband Dan (who is missing and presumed dead at the start)'s loss and eventual recovery.

Dan's mother is a caricature of a spoiled heiress and adds nothing to the story, except to irritate the people of Newpointe, Jill in particular. Dealing with grief and loss after a tragedy are handled fairly well, although I am truly sick of Christian authors having their characters state that they don't understand why good people suffer. Anyone who has studied the Bible can explain this fairly easily.