Okay. I had no idea this was book six in a series when I selected to read it. As such, I was able to read along just fine. I am left wondering if there where Easter eggs and whatnot that I missed out on not having read the previous books? I enjoyed the setting and characters very much. Easily read in one sitting, I’m ready to loop back and read the rest of the series now.

this was a great mystery novel, it kept me invested from the start to the end. The characters were great and I really enjoyed going on this journey with them.

This is pretty interesting story. I haven't read any of the previous books and all in all you can be sure, this one can be read as stand alone as well.
The characters in the book have their own stories however all is nicely blended together.
The case they worked on and help of the people, it gets you in.
By the time you realize story is over.
Of course the happy ending makes it all better.

My feelings were all over the place about this book. I didn't know it was written by a man, and this bothered me a little bit, but by the time I found out, I was into the story. I'm generally skeptical of WLW books written by men and I stay away from them, as a rule.

What I liked is that, while the two main characters are lovers, there was no need for a lot of sexuality. The star was really the story and the peripheral characters as well.

Claire Curran has to take over the helm of the Sheriff of Squires Isle when Sheriff Cal Rucker dies in a mysterious accident. Claire knew something was up, but had no idea what it was. Claire has spent a great deal of time trying to run away from her past, and now she's a bit of a legend in her own time. This fact could be a good thing or a bad thing, and we the readers are taken for a ride on the way to finding out which way the ball bounces.

There are very bad guys doing despicable things, and Claire and her friends and co-workers need to stop these guys. The story is well-constructed and flawless, editorially. This means a lot to an intelligent reader. I liked this book very much.

I was given an ARC of this story by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a great read - I made it through in one Sunday.

A fast paced, well written story that can definitely be enjoyed as a stand alone book - However, I need to find out what has gone into shaping Claire, her wife Jodie and the other characters in this series. I have to read the other books in the series!

Claire is a happily married Deputy in the Northwest. She lives in a small town that is a tourist magnate for nature lovers. Though a very small town, the population has more than it's share of lesbians in positions of responsibilities- I want to live there.

Claire's boss, Ruck, stumbles on a few unsavory characters but dies before he can tell Claire his fears and suspicions about what their activities mean to the picturesque town they call home.

Monarch by Geonn Cannon
Claire Lance #6

First off – even though this is book six in a series I had no trouble following and enjoying the story. I admired the main character and was provided enough backstory to feel I knew her. She is a woman I wouldn’t mind calling friend and would love to have in charge of security where I live.

What I liked:
* The location on a small island up off of Vancouver – had to look it up it sounded so enticing
* The plot and writing – drew me in and kept me engaged
* Claire: strong, intelligent, committed, professional, dedicated to her community, responsible, loving, a good police officer and excellent partner to Jodie
* Jodie: mechanic, loving partner, capable, strong, fierce, supportive, a great anchor for and partner to Claire
* The supporting characters: enough detail provided about them to flesh them out and make them real but not too much. The team and town worked together well.
* The small-town vibe and supportiveness of the community – worked as a team and all knew and cared for and about one another.
* That I felt I was part of the story
* That the bad guys were caught and dealt with
* The way all the pieces came together
* Reading the work of a new-to-me author that I would willingly read more of.
* All of it really except…

What I didn’t like:
* Knowing that human trafficking happens more often than we might believe and also knowing there is nothing I can do about it
* Saying goodbye to the characters and community.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes
Would I read more by this author? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and Supposed Crimes for the ARC – This is my honest review.

5 Stars

3.75 Stars. Claire Lance is back! I honestly never thought I would say that again. This is book 6 in the series and book 5 came out seven years ago! After so many years, I never thought we would see Claire again so this was a real treat. While this was my least favorite book out of the series, I had so much fun spending time with Claire again.

I started reading this series about 8 years ago and it still holds a special place in my heart. I had been reading WLW books for a while, but this series was very different. This was about a slightly morally grey character, who would bend the rules to make things right. And not only was she a bit of a rule-breaker, but she also was a total badass. This series was so unlike the other books I was reading in the WLW genre and I just loved it. It was such a fun action series that eventually turned into an action-romance series. I loved all five books and I was sad when it ended. So to get a chance to visit Claire again, even though this book wasn’t my favorite, made me one happy camper.

It is so hard to write about anything in this book without giving spoilers away to people who have not read the whole series. If you think you might be interested I would suggest picking up Book 1, Tilting at Windmills, and not even reading this book’s blurb. You could read this book as a standalone if you wanted to. The story is contained enough and Cannon fills in some blanks about Claire’s past. The problem is, is that it also gives away some major storyline spoilers as to what happened over the previous five books. Books 1-5, are a contained series so this was like a bonus, where are the characters now and throw in a little action since its Claire.

I know this is not the most in-depth review but I don’t want to spoiler anything for readers who might want to start at the beginning. After all this time, the first 5 books of the series are still so different compared to other WLW action and action-romance books out there. This series will always hold a special place in my heart and I’ll happily read more Claire any day.

This is the sixth in the CIaire Lance series, yet I was drawn to this book despite not having read any of the previous ones. The adventure finds Claire settled down for the past six years in Squire’s Island, a small town in Washington. Claire is about to become sheriff and faces a lifetime of low-level crime enforcement until the death of a fellow police officer raises questions. As Claire investigates, Squire’s Island is shut off from the main land due to a snow blizzard. A pleasant read with minimum tension and only a two and a half star read. As an independent reviewer, my thanks to the author for a copy gratis prior to publication. All opinions expressed herein are freely given and totally my own.

Very enjoyable, I was surprised this was written by a man since-I picked this up thinking it was a lesbian romance but it is definitely a thriller story, but as they say never judge a book by its cover. It is from a series but I had no problem following this story without having read the others.

I will definitely be picking up the prior books in this series to see how it all started.

I received an ARC through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review, but would have written the same opinion if I had come across this author on my own.

This is actually book 6 (the last?) in a series about Claire Lance. It is actually the first one I read but it is OK as a standalone story. It does give you spoilers if you want to read the earlier ones but nothing (to me anyway) major that you couldn't probably have surmised. It is a bit along the lines of the old TV series "The Fugitive" but not as many episodes! I did go on and read the previous Lance stories and enjoyed them all. The first 5 lead you to the final denouement and this one takes place a few years after. So yes I would recommend this book (actually the whole series). It features characters that appear in some of his other books.

Very well developed characters and an extremely engaging story. Well thought out and very suspenseful story line that keeps the reader guessing until the final twist! This is the book to read this year! Highly recommended!

This book was a classic thriller with a few twists. Admittedly, I had no idea it was part of a series when I selected it to read. What drew me in were the location (island in Washington), the main character (a lesbian sheriff with a checkered past), and the desire for a quick escape.

This book was a quick and easy read. I enjoyed the main characters and the strong women. I enjoyed reading about a place where the women in charge are generally queer, to the point where it is so normalized it doesn't really even get mentioned.

A few things about the plot were less than ideal. First, the pacing and chain of events were a little unbelievable. Things happen so quickly they seem less than believable. Additionally, <spoiler>what seedy criminal approaches a sheriff and says, "Let's agree to ignore each other" at the very public funeral of the guy he just killed, on the first day she is Sheriff? If I were a criminal who had skirted the law (and killed the former Sheriff), I probably wouldn't immediately put myself on the new Sheriff's radar. Just me? </spoiler>

There were definitely some jumps in logic (possibly some overzealous editting) that had me questioning how progress happened so quickly...

But, I got what I wanted--a queer thriller set in a place I love. No complaints.

Thanks to NetGalley and publisher Supposed Crimes for the opportunity to read and review this book!

Once I started reading I realized this is actually the 6th book in a series. Throughout the story there are bits and pieces of the background story. These were just enough so this book can be read as a stand-alone yet it also made me think about getting my hints on the previous books since Monarch was a pleasurable read with realistic characterizations and a nice setting in a small town in Washington.
Claire Lance is the deputy sherrif when her mentor/friend dies and she becomes the sherrif, immediately forced into a situation where she will need to fall back on her previous life to protect the town she now considers her own.
While the story didn't have a complicated plot, the storyline was rather simple and straightforward, it did keep my attention and I wanted to know what would happen. For me it could have used some more action or at least setbacks or something. Everything went too smoothly for my taste and Claire hardly got a real challenge. Which feels a bit inconsistent with the danger described at the start of the book.

Still, enjoyable, good writing and characters so I would recommend to anyone who wants an easy to read thriller to relax with.

***An ARC was provided by Netgalley in exchange for a honest review. ***

NetGalleyARC Educator 550974

What would you do if your Mentor died and you weren't sure of the circumstances. This is Lance's tale. It's mystery combined with real life issues faced by law enforcement. It's the story of a town full of diverse persons seeking to keep their home and town safe. A really good one sitting read.

4.5 stars. I had no idea this was part of a series. There were times I felt like the author was hinting at a bigger backstory and I wondered about a previous book. Nonetheless, this read like a stand alone book well. I live in a tiny snowy town so the descriptions felt extra real. I cried for Ruck and Claire at the beginning. This book really kept me interested and wondering what was going to happen. I will definitely be looking for the previous books in the series by this author. I received an ARC of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

3/5

***Special thanks to NetGalley and Supposed Crimes for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***

I did not realize that this book was a part of a series.... but I was able to pick up the overall story pretty easily. This is a murder mystery featuring a wlw main character in a small town. This has a very similar vibe to the USA network show Eyewitness which is based on the Norwegian show Øyevitne (which I HIGHLY recommend).

This book was very entertaining, I loved the relationship between the main character and her wife, in addition, I liked how the small town was portrayed.

I would recommend this novel

I received an ARC copy and realized this is the sixth in a mystery thriller series. The book did really well at giving me a good amount of back story so I understood the main character. Claire Lance was once a police officer in Chicago and went undercover. When she is found out she is set up for killing her girlfriend and spends time on the wrong side of the law (think The Fugitive) until she can clear her name. In this story she is married and is a deputy who has been living for 6 years on a small island off the coast of Washington state. When the sheriff is killed it is up to her to investigate and she stumbles into a ring that is trafficking in women.

I liked the writing style and thought the dialogue between characters was good. I enjoyed the small town, touristy location. I felt the chill of the winter storm that cuts off the town from the mainland while the main action is taking place. And I appreciated that Claire did use other officers and volunteers to help her and didn't go all vigilante and do everything herself. Her wife Jodie has the right amount of concern, support and love for someone putting their life on the line. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC ebook in exchange for an honest review.