Secret Investigation by Elizabeth Heiter 

In the wake of a tragedy, the Tactical Crime Division gets to work.

Investigating crime is a day at the office for the specially trained agents with the TCD unit. Except when it becomes personal for former army ranger Agent Davis Rogers. When ironclad body armor inexplicably fails on the battlefield, Rogers takes on the undercover assignment to find the traitor responsible. Petrov Armor CEO Leila Petrov is reluctant to provide access to her company…until she discovers she’s being framed. But will a joint effort be enough to uncover the truth?

Award-winning and bestselling author Elizabeth Heiter was kind enough to chat with The Big Thrill about her latest novel, book two in the Tactical Crime Division series, SECRET INVESTIGATION:

Was there anything new you discovered, or that surprised you, as you wrote this book?

I love research—the more hands-on, the better. I’ve been to the FBI’s firing range at Quantico, into the bowels of the CIA at Langley, behind the scenes with Customs and Border Protection, at a police academy training site, and much more. But with every book, I learn something new. This time, I discovered that while there are restrictions related to people with criminal records owning weapons, the same isn’t true of body armor. That comes into play in my book, where the heroine is the CEO of a company that makes body armor and the hero is undercover, trying to find out how faulty armor killed one of his friends.

Elizabeth Heiter

What do you hope readers will take away from this book?

The book is about a woman who’s determined to save the legacy of the father she just lost. But she fears that finding out who’s threatening it may mean discovering someone she loves isn’t who she thinks they are. It’s about a man who’s trying to get justice for a good friend, but who fears that getting that justice will destroy the woman he’s falling for. Along the way, both of them discover that love and truth aren’t all straightforward. I hope readers take away that good things can be born out of tragedy.

What attracts you to this book’s genre?

I love the blend of suspense and romance because each element can enhance the other. When romance is involved, emotions are high and the stakes are higher. Throw in a lot of suspense and it adds to the conflict between the characters, adds to the tension, and can both push them apart and bring them together. In my opinion, there’s nothing worth fighting for more than someone you love.

*****

Publishers Weekly bestselling author Elizabeth Heiter likes her suspense to feature strong heroines, chilling villains, psychological twists, and a little bit of romance. Her research has taken her into the minds of serial killers, through murder investigations, and onto the FBI Academy’s shooting range. Her novels have been published in more than a dozen countries and translated into eight languages; they’ve also been shortlisted for the HOLT Medallion, the Daphne Du Maurier award, the National Readers’ Choice award, and the Booksellers’ Best award and won the RT Reviewers’ Choice award.

To learn more about the author and her work, please visit her website.