Review: Worth the Trip by Penny McCall

Title: Worth the Trip
Author: Penny McCall
Series: -
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Release Date: November 2, 2010
Publisher: Berkley Sensation
Edition: Mass Market Paperback
Source: Publisher
Blurb:

For behavioral psychologist Norah MacArthur, relationships and family are stressful and messy. That's why she leads a quiet, clinical, solitary life. That is, until the days leading up to the release of her con artist father from jail. For fifteen years, Julius has managed to conceal the location of his stolen bank loot but now everyone, from two-bit crooks to the Feds, is scrambling to get their hands on it—and Norah is the perfect leverage.

It's a quick leap from ‘control group’ to ‘out of control’—as FBI agent Trip Jones knows all too well. He might like to strangle Norah himself, but he's been sent to protect her. Besides, behind Norah’s psycho-babble and ugly suits there’s something special. Something way more valuable than ill-gotten gains—and just maybe a real life study in love...

This was the first book I've read by Penny McCall, so I didn't know what to expect. What I got was a complicated romance with plenty of action and interesting characters.

Norah is the daughter of a jailed con artist that has tried the best she can to go on with her life on her own. The problem is, her father is being released and now everyone wants to know what happened with the loot her father stole but was never found. I never understood the loyalty Norah felt towards her father, he puts her life in danger, he lies to her, he betrays her, but she never gets mad at him, and that's one of the reasons why I really didn't connect with her. Truth be told, she comes across as a smart woman, but in reality she makes a lot of stupid mistakes and does things that are unnecessary and that I don't understand. In my opinion, she never evolves as a character and she's annoying almost all the time. Those are the main problems I had with her.

Then there's Trip, the FBI agent asigned to the case. He's arrogant, tricky and smart, and he always puts his job first. He has plenty of issues but the good thing is that he knows he has them and he is willing to eventually work on them. He grows a lot through the book and I like how he never lies to himself or to Norah.

The relationship between Norah and Trip is intense and hot. Both of them have trust issues and I think the happy ending between the two of them was far fetched because their personalities were so different.

Memorable lines:
"If someone comes at you with a gun you won't have time to psychoanalyze them, Norah. Not that you'll need to. Shoot first and ask questions later is a pretty straightforward concept."
"You said the want to use me as leverage, not to kill me."
"Yeah, but after a few seconds of conversation with you they'll probably change their minds."

Rating: