Fast Track, by Julie Garwood

I have been waiting for Cordie and Aiden’s story for-EVER! Finally! 

Having first met Cordelia in Murder List, you know she has this long standing crush on her BFF’s older brother, Aiden. Apparently, her friends Regan and Sophie know all about it, but think she’s over it. She’s not. 

The novel starts with a bit of depressing story - She experiences the death of her father, and his deathbed confession that leaves her reeling, searching for answers, and vowing to change her life immediately.  

While grieving for her father, she and Aiden share a moment together that solidifies the fact that she is not over him, not even close. Chalking it up to just a stolen kiss, and thinking that his brooding ways means that he regrets their lip-lock, she decides to find out more about her mother that she thought was dead. Learning that her mother is in Australia, she decides to go and find out why her mother left all those years ago, who she really is, and what she is hiding.  

Aiden jumps in to help. He flies her off to Sydney, and while there, they both discover what they’re up against – a powerful family willing to go to any length to suppress their secrets. Of course, what is also being suppressed are the feelings that they have for each other. While in Sydney, things heat up with both.

Like the other novels in the Renard/Buchannan series, this one has the same thread of mystery, suspense, and romance. What was missing was the humor, intense sparks and chemistry between the two main characters, and extreme drama surrounding the heroine.  Aiden was a bit aloof, and we didn’t really learn much more about him than we already knew. While the reader discovers a bit more about Cordelia and what she does when she’s not hanging with Regan and Sophie, I miss the quick comebacks, smart mouth, and strong women characters that I loved with Regan and Sophie. 

While it’s not Murder List, or Fire and Ice, it’s not all together bad. You do get to revisit some of the gang, including Regan, Alec, Sophie, Jack, and some of the other poker-playing buddies.  I’m hoping that the series continues with one of the other brothers (Walker or Spencer) and that they have a bit more depth to them than what was found here.