Review by Fola_M -- Cynthia and Dan by Dorothy May Mercer

Post by **Fola Moni** » 20 Oct 2020, 18:45

[Following is a volunteer review of "Cynthia and Dan" by Dorothy May Mercer.]

4 out of 4 stars

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Gather around, romance and suspense novel enthusiasts. If you like your fiction steamy, dreamy and thrilling, please pick up Cynthia and Dan: Cyber War by Dorothy May Mercer. It has all the thrills and twists reminiscent of a classic page-turner; action, romance, international terrorism, cybercrime and suspense.

Cynthia Patterson is Senator Mike McBride’s chief of security in Washington DC. She, however, poses as his receptionist to make sure his office is safe and secure. She also works with her brother, Glenn, in his private investigator outfit to tackle cyber-terrorist crime. They enlist the help of two computer nerds who manage to infiltrate the terrorists online and discover the plan to cause chaos in the White House. Cynthia thinks this isn’t a coincidence as a drone had landed in the White House recently, but it was kept off the news. She and the others race against time to prevent the calamity. Will they succeed?

Meanwhile, another less serious but equally worrying issue is also brewing in Cynthia’s life. She suddenly finds herself in a love triangle with her boyfriend, Dan, and a mysterious stranger. Sky Eastman is as alluring and mystifying as the circumstances of their first meeting. Cynthia gets carried away with the charm and excitement of it all. However, alarm bells start ringing when she discovers that Sky isn’t who he says he is. Other details about him also don’t match, and she almost loses it when the unexpected happens. Who is Sky Eastman? Is he connected to the planned terrorist attack on the White House?

I absolutely love this book. It had me on the edge of my seat throughout. The way the author blended romance, cyber terrorism and informative facts about women’s health, is simply flawless. I finished the book in one sitting and re-read it again for good measure because it was so entertaining. Her descriptive writing style lets you feel the emotions and dilemmas of the characters, and the dialogue is catchy and simple to follow.

The main characters are well-developed and easy to identify with. Cynthia is the brilliant and sassy security expert, whose professional life is more organised than her personal one. Glenn is the smart and resourceful private investigator, who is also dedicated to fighting online terrorism. My favourite characters, however, are Tim and Garth, whose young and innocent looks belie their brilliant minds. Their staunch resolve to fight international terrorism is one of the many things that makes reading this book worthwhile.

I also applaud the author for the detailed information about women’s health. She broached the topic that many authors would shy away from, simply because of its sensitive nature. I like the way she wrote it into the storyline, pulling us into Cynthia’s emotions. The author also expatiated on the topic in the bibliography at the end of the book, focusing on miscarriage, contraception and medical abortions.

There’s nothing I disliked about the book so, I’ll rate it a 4 out of 4 stars. I found an error and the odd missing commas, but it didn't affect my reading experience. I will say it is professionally edited. The table of contents at the beginning made it easy for me to go back and forth the entire text. There is one graphic description of a sexual nature and some profanity so, I wouldn’t recommend it to a younger audience. Adult lovers of the romance literary genre would absolutely love this book. Fans of action and suspense would greatly appreciate it too. If you are looking for a thriller/ romance novel to enjoy on a lazy afternoon, this is your book.

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Cynthia and Dan
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