Great debut to a new series with a strong female lead. Great writing with well-developed characters. Interesting plot with twists and turns. The mystery keeps you guessing. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley, Montlake Romance and Melinda Leigh for an ARC of 'Say You're Sorry'.

My first Melinda Leigh book and I really enjoyed it. Characters are well developed and there are plenty of suspects to keep you guessing. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of this series.
I purchased the audio version and enjoyed the narration.

Title: Say You're Sorry
Author: Melinda Leigh
Format: Audio
Genre: Romantic Suspense, Legal Thriller
Standalone: Yes
Part of a Series: Morgan Dane book 1
POV: Mostly Morgan and Lance but some Nick and the killer
Steam Level: Some kissing, nothing explicit
4/5

Say You're Sorry is the first book in the Morgan Dane series. It's been a while since I've ready Melinda Leigh and I've forgotten how much I enjoy her books. I wasn't sure about who the killer was and loved that I was unsure throughout. I loved that this a combination of romantic suspense, legal thriller and murder mystery. It brought my past of loving mysteries and my present of enjoying romance together. I enjoyed this book but got frustrated with the technical issues.

I loved going back to Scarlet Falls and diving into Morgan Dane’s story. And having Lance play such a huge part in the story was even better.

This plot was fast paced and I couldn’t put it down. I’m diving right into the next book in the series. I so love having a strong female heroine.

Great story by Melinda Leigh. Really thrilling read, great characters and an enjoyable story. Highly recommend to others!!

I enjoyed reading this book both due to the major plot points and due to character development. This book surrounds a murdered teen and a (possibly) falsely accused classmate. A neighbor of the accused teen is an attorney who offers to take on his case and enlists the help of a local PI she grew up with. The book follows the relationship with her and the PI as well as the solving of the crime.

I listened to this as an audio book through Kindle Unlimited.

Yay new series...Boo...kinda boring.


This book was just not holding my interest. It's just not interesting enough. It's like chicken with no seasoning. I was re-reading the same paragraph over and over again because I would just drift or fall asleep.

The writing is average and lacking life and originality. The main characters needs so many more layers. And the hero has ZERO appeal. The mystery in itself is mediocre and the conclusion ties itself too nicely. The romance... a fart in the wind. It could have gone so much deeper.

It’s been a while since I read a book written by Melinda Leigh, and I have regretted it because I adore her books. I dived right into Say You’re Sorry sometime ago and had a hard time putting it down. I ended up buying it in paperback, so I can enjoy carrying the book around in my purse. It also looks great with the rest of Melinda Leigh’s books on my bookshelves.

Onward to my review of a such a suspenseful book though. 🙂

First off, I love the characters that Melinda writes in her books, especially in Say You’re Sorry. If you’ve ever read a Melinda Leigh book, then you’ll realize from the beginning that she writes some strong female leads into her stories. The female lead that always knows how to handle herself and that is just one of many reasons why I’m addicted to Melinda’s books. I still love strong female leads.

The female lead in Say You’re Sorry is one I adored. Morgan Dane is a widow who lost her husband overseas in the military. She’s living with her grandfather with her three little ones trying to get her life back together. She’s doing a fantastic job at it. She’s moving on to big things on working with the District Attorney’s office. Although, life is about to be turned upside down when her babysitter is killed in Scarlett Falls, and the boyfriend/Morgan’s neighbor is accused of the girls’ murder. It’s up to Morgan to prove his innocence. She has the help of her friend, Lance Kruger who happens to be a private investigator to help her along the way.

Melinda Leigh brought on the suspense in this story, which made it hard to put down. I wanted to follow along with Morgan and Lance and uncover who was actually behind the murder. It was great to read the different POVs in the story, and I enjoyed getting to follow along with Morgan, Lance, the boyfriend/neighbor Nick, and even the killer (who I couldn’t figure out who he/she was). Melinda Leigh kept me guessing on who was behind it all.

I loved Lance’s character because he indeed was a gentleman trying so hard to keep his feelings over Morgan under the bay. Poor guy. He was definitely in love with her. Morgan though is grieving still, and she realizes it in the story what she needs to do. The ending had me in tears because of what she finally got the courage to do, which made it where she finally decided on her next steps.

Overall, this was a fantastic book, and I wish I could give it more than 5 stars. I look forward to making time to read the second book in the series before the third one comes out next year. I’m cracking down and finally making time to catch up on the books I’ve had on my to read list for a while now. I’m also happy to read one of my favorite authors books and finally catch up, so I can keep up with every book she comes up with writing. 🙂

Say You’re Sorry was a fantastic start to the Morgan Dane series. I have not read the Scarlet Falls series that was published before this, so some of the connections were not clear at the beginning of the book, but it did not diminish the enjoyment I had while reading this book.

After losing her husband in Iraq, Morgan Dane has returned to her hometown of Scarlet Falls to raise her three girls with the help of her family. This story picks up two years after Morgan returned home. She has been offered a job working at the DA's office when her life is thrown into chaos. Her young neighbour has been accused of murdering her old babysitter. The family can not afford a top notch lawyer, and on impulse, Morgan offers to take his case pro bono. She is sure that he is innocent. Recruiting an old boyfriend and ex-cop, who is now working as a PI, they begin their investigation to prove Nick innocent. The only way to do that is to find the real killer.

Morgan is an incredibly strong and brave character, in fact some may think she is rash and impulsive. She also has a great sense of loyalty for those she cares about which is how she ends up involved in this case at all. I love that, as busy as she is, she still makes sure she spends quality time with her daughters. Lance is dealing with his own issues. He was shot while still working on the police force and even though he enjoys the leeway he has working as a PI, he misses his prior job. I really enjoyed the working relationship Morgan and Lance have. They feed off each other well and Lance is very protective of Morgan. I will be watching to see if they develop a romantic relationship as this series moves forward.

The mystery surrounding Tessa's death and the disappearance of another girl was intriguing. There were several suspects over the course of the book which led to constant twists and turns. Each of these suspects often revealed another secret in Scarlet Falls. I suspected several people, but never actually the person figured out the killer until just prior to the reveal. Some other readers thought the book was slow, but I felt the pace was just right. I listened to it in one day and didn't want to take any breaks, as I was pulled right into the story. This book is listed as a Romantic Suspense, but I think it was more Suspense Mystery, as I mentioned earlier, perhaps the romance is yet to come. I recommend this story to Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, or Romantic Suspense lovers.

Morgan Dane is a military widow, returning to raise her kids in her hometown. Only to have her life reshaped with another death. Morgan and a friend private eye Lance started to look into murder of Morgan's sitter. The twist and turns of the book are at times are wow, but others are what. some part of novel are a bit slow for me. I hope this helps some.

I see now that this is the first in a new series, featuring Morgan Dane. She is a no-nonsense lawyer that believes in her clients - Nick isn't guilty according to her and she will die fighting for him. This was really an interesting and entertaining read and I can't wait to read the others in the series. The writing was done well, the book gripped me from the beginning and considering how much I read, and discard these days, it says a lot of the book and the author's style! Great read and worth the time and effort.

When a young teen girl shows up brutally raped and murdered, it is up to former-cop Lance Kruger and former prosecutor Morgan Dane to find out what happened. The girl is Morgan's babysitter, and the man accused is Morgan's young neighbor, Nick. Morgan doesn't believe Nick murdered her and recruits private investigator Lance to help her get to the bottom of it. Twists and turns fill this book and you will fall in love with Lance and Morgan Dane. Makes you want to say - Can I have the next book now? Please!

I love this Author's books and was looking forward to this 1st book in a new series .

Devastated at the loss of her husband in Iraq , Morgan Dane returns to Scarlet Falls, seeking the comfort of her hometown .
Feeling more at peace with herself she decides that she is ready to return to work and is offered a position as an Assistant District Attorney .
But the job offer is immediately thrown into chaos ...... her neighbour and family friend Nick has been charged with the brutal murder of her babysitter , a popular teenager ........... no one seems to think he might be innocent , except Morgan and the boy's father ..... she decides to represent him herself , so losing her new post .
Morgan asks her friend Lance Kruger, an ex-cop turned private eye, for help ........ as they take on the town and the zealous DA , determined to find the real killer , they too become targets .
Can they find the truth before the killer finds them ?
Can their slow , burgeoning romance take on a life of its own OR will her family commitments interfere ?

A well written , entertaining thriller setting up the reader for further stories in this arena

SAY YOU'RE SORRY by Melinda Leigh. In this tale, we are introduced to Morgan Dane, a lawyer working for the District Attorney's office. She's a widowed, single mom that is trying to find the balance between work and family. I liked her a lot - she's tough and wants to fight for what is right, but underneath, she's vulnerable and still reeling from her husband's passing. Lance is a former police officer, now a private investigator. Having known Morgan for many years, they will now work together to find the truth. Ms. Leigh certainly fills this story with twists and turns. Every time I thought I knew who the bad guy was, I was wrong! It kept me turning the page to see who it was and what might happen next. The story has danger and suspense with a sprinkle of romance thrown in. If that's you're cup of tea, don't miss out on this one. (received ARC for honest review)

Another great thrilling read from Melinda Leigh! I'm excited to that there will be more of Morgan and Lance in future books!

This is the first installment in the Morgan Dane series and I have to say that I feel in love with this series.  This story was filled with so much suspense I was trying to figure out who was the person that could have killed Tessa.  There were so many suspects but also people that had their own secrets that they wanted to no one to know about.   

Morgan Dane was a wonderful woman that had lost her husband.  She had three beautiful little girls that meant the world to her.  Now she was thinking it was time for her to go look for a job.  She already had a job offer and all she had to do was say yes but after saying yes she couldn't do it.   

Lance Kruger had served in the Scarlet Falls police force but due to his incident he couldn't stay on the force.  He is now a PI and is about to start helping Morgan investigate the murder of Tessa.  Morgan believes that Nick is innocent and both of them together will help the innocent young man from serving a life sentence. 

Morgan and Lance are going to run into so many suspects but in the end the person that killed Tessa will come to light.  Morgan is a very good attorney and she is able to read people's body languages very well as well as Lance.  Lance and Morgan have this amazing chemistry but he knows that he can't act on any of his feelings.  But what he doesn't know is that Morgan also has feelings for him and she will need to make the first move.   

There are so many suspects but they are not only dealing with finding the killer of Tessa but they also have a young woman that has gone missing.  Could she be the link to find out who the killer is?  She is not the only person that could have a tie to the killer but the person that was in a video fighting with Nick.  Could he be the killer?  How about the father of the baby that Tessa was carrying?  Could he have killed her and their baby?   

Say You're Sorry was a great read.  The storyline was perfect and it enthralled me from the beginning to the very end.  Ms. Leigh has a way with her writing that can attract readers that read any genre.  I can't wait for the next story in this series. 

Received ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an Honest Review

Morgan Dane has been a widow for 2 years, is the mother of 3, and ready to get back to work as a prosecutor when her occasional babysitter is killed and her neighbor, Nick, is accused of the crime. Ms. Dane feels he is innocent and, against the emotions of her entire small town, decides to defend him. In her corner is Lance Kugar, a former police officer and former flame, who is now a private investigator. While the two works towards clearing Nick, they fight their mutual feelings. While this book is listed as a romance, thankfully the romance takes backseat to the mystery. In addition to a well-rounded story, Ms. Leigh does a great job of laying the groundwork for a myriad of characters that will hopefully continue to play parts in future books as many of them offered unique backstories and opportunities for interesting stories.

After the devastating loss of her husband in Iraq, Morgan Dane returns to Scarlet Falls, seeking the comfort of her hometown. Now, surrounded by family, she’s finally found peace and a promising career opportunity—until her babysitter is killed and her neighbor asks her to defend his son, Nick, who stands accused of the murder.

Tessa was the ultimate girl next door, and the community is outraged by her death. But Morgan has known Nick for years and can’t believe he’s guilty, despite the damning evidence stacked against him. She asks her friend Lance Kruger, an ex-cop turned private eye, for help. Taking on the town, the police, and a zealous DA, Morgan and Lance plunge into the investigation, determined to find the real killer. But as they uncover secrets that rock the community, they become targets for the madman hiding in plain sight.



* * * * *



Morgan Dane is an interesting blend of femininity and ruthlessness. You just don't expect a woman in heels and pearls to come up with some of her defensive moves. Talk about a total kick ass heroine!

And when you pair her with Lance, who had originally planned on working as a PI until his leg fully healed from a gunshot wound, and you have a dynamic duo. And they are determined to find out just how killed Tessa as Morgan refuses to believe that Nick is the culprit.



Ms. Leigh is one of my favorite authors in the thriller/romantic suspense genre and I do have to say that she has come out with another winner. SAY YOU'RE SORRY is a fast paced, tightly written suspense that kept me glued to the screen until the satisfying conclusion. Filled with great characters, witty dialogue and interesting puzzles, this is a must read for fans of romantic suspense.



*** I received this book at no charge from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed within are my own.

"Say You're Sorry" by Melinda Leigh was a pleasant surprise to me. Morgan Dane returns to her hometown with her children after her husband dies in Iraq. Unsure of where or how to start her new life, Morgan accepts a job in the District Attorney's office only to change course and take on a neighbor's request to represent his son who has been accused of a horrific murder.
I loved the fast pace of this novel and the character development that I am sure will grow as the series continues. This is a promising new series that I really am looking forward to continuing to read.
I received a copy from Montlake Romance via Netgalley for free in exchange for an honest review.