Tempering the Agent Review and Giveaway!

Posted by abakersp in Contemporary / 4 Comments

About the Book

TheTemperingAgent_Cover_med

Book Title: The Tempering Agent

Author: Victoria Pitts Caine

Release Date: February 14, 2014

Dr. Priscilla Hackling finds herself thrown back into the murder investigation of her fiancé, Trey Whittington. While she was a suspect three years ago, she’s now working with the police to find the murderer, Egyptian artifact trafficker, Zarka El-Din. During a sting operation in Siwa, she and Agent Donnie Barnes are drawn to each other but Priscilla, overcome by personal ghosts from her past, decides a relationship isn’t possible. Priscilla realizes she’s the bait in the ruse and uncovers others involved with El-Din. Will she and Donnie reconcile and unravel the reason behind Trey’s death before El-Din kills her, too?

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My Perspective

This book was so fun to read. It had suspense, love, action, antiques, dig sites, and artifact trafficking! I’m going to be completely honest, when I saw that this book was about artifact trafficking, I was pretty sure I was going to be bored reading it. It just didn’t sound like my thing. But to hear Priscilla talk about her digs, and see her passion for finding artifacts and uncovering the past, it kind of made me want to go on a dig myself. It really changed my perspective about artifact trafficking too, as I didn’t really put too much thought into it before. Now? Well, I hope that if it is truly happening out there, and I’m sure it is, someone is doing something about it! Thank you Victoria Pitts Caine for bringing this to light. I don’t think it’s something that we think of very often.

The story itself was pretty fast paced. I was scared that Priscilla’s character would be written as a weak woman after hearing of her fiancée’s murder, but I was pleasantly surprised. She held her own pretty good, and had a stubbornness about her that I didn’t expect. When Donnie made his move, I half expected her to just melt in his arms. But she really tried not too, as she needed to deal with some things in her past before moving on. I’m glad the author gave her character time to grow and grieve. I don’t like it when a romance is forced too soon. Even though I didn’t know her fiancée, I would have felt like their story had no closure to it before allowing her to move on with Donnie.

There were some nice surprises that came up throughout the story as well. Some of the characters who were part of the bad team I didn’t really think would be involved. I actually thought I had it pegged – the most unobvious choice just because some authors will do that to get you thinking and wondering. I’m glad I was totally wrong – I happened to like that character. Perhaps I’ve read too many suspense novels! In this sense it’s nice to be wrong.

I will say the ending was kind of abrupt – I can’t really say why so I don’t spoil it for you, but be prepared for wanting the next book to be in your hands real soon. I am excited to see what adventure Priscilla and Donnie go on next. I hope some of the other characters can return as well! I received a complimentary copy of this book. I was not required to write a favorable review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

About the Author

Victoria Pitts Caine Head Shot

Victoria Pitts Caine is a native Californian and lives in the central portion of the state. Her varied interests include genealogy and exotic gemstone collecting both of which she’s incorporated into her novels.

The author has received recognition in both fiction and nonfiction from: Enduring Romance top 10 picks for 2008, William Saroyan Writing Conference, Byline Magazine, Writer’s Journal Magazine, Holt International Children’s Services Magazine, and The Southern California Genealogical Society. Her first novel was published in 2007 followed by two more as well as novellas and short stories in anthologies.

Victoria is a former staff technician in air pollution control. She is the mother of two daughters. Now retired from the work force, Victoria and her husband enjoy travel, cooking, and are self-appointed “foodies”.

Guest post from Vicki Caine

Since childhood, I have been interested in genealogy and ancient Egypt. Two of my prior novels, Alvarado Gold and Cairo, let me follow my fantasies into those two areas. Donnie the hero in The Tempering Agent is also in the other two books, and it was his turn to find his own romance. When archaeologist Dr. Priscilla Hackling finds herself drawn back into the murder investigation of her fiancé and the missing breast plate of the high priest, Agent Donnie Barnes, is just the man to help her out, even if she doesn’t think so.

Traveling along with Priscilla and Donnie, I discovered some interesting facts about ancient Egypt, from the ruins in the Siwa Desert to the mystery of the Valley of the Kings. The genealogy factor in my novels is Donnie is loosely based on my cousin. Alvarado Gold tells the story of my family while Cairo and The Tempering Agent fueled my inquisitiveness about Egypt.