Eliza Lentzski is also one of my favorite authors. Moreover, she seems like a very nice person although I don’t know her at all, except a little bit on social media. I suspect it’s because of how she writes. Her characters are not always easy but always so very decent and sweet, or at least nice. In Don’t Call Me Hero, the first book in this series, you empathize with the fortunes of Cassidy Miller and Julia Desjardin. The story is told from Cassidy’s perspective.

Cassidy is an ex-Marine who suffers from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) due to her stay in a war zone. She believes that everything is better than what she’s experienced while serving as a Marine. But the reality sometimes proves even more difficult because of her PTSD. In an effort to start over, she goes to work in the town of Embarrass (no joke, town really exists) as a police officer. Before she leaves, she has a farewell night with her friends at a bar and there she meets the cool and distant but stunning Julia. Cassidy is rather clumsy in her efforts to impress Julia and whenever she gets the chance, she leaves the bar and Julia as quickly as possible.

Arriving in Embarrass, Cassidy soon finds out that the city prosecutor turns out to be none other than Julia Desjardin, the same woman she left behind in the bar in shame. Julia turns out not to have forgotten Cassidy either and shows this by visiting her home and physically informing her. Julia, however, also appears not to be very communicative and after a love ’em and leave ’em action, she disappears again. Cassidy doesn’t know what to make of Julia, but she can’t get her out of her mind and tries to interact again and again. In the long run, more and more words are used instead of action 😉.

I have to admit, all the books I’ve read describe the most amazing characters. Women who made a lasting impression. But Eliza Lentzski has described for me an indelible character with Julia Desjardin. I was deeply impressed by her. Julia is elusive, unpredictable, dry humor, smart, secretly very sweet, takes good care of herself, ambitious but not about looking, chic, sexy and beautiful. What else do you want? So, Cassidy wants more. She wants Julia to open up more to a relationship with her. Well, that just barely works.

The way Eliza describes these two and their path to love is phenomenal. Julia is a complex but delightful character, but so is Cassidy. Despite her PTSD, she stays as positive as possible and doesn’t rule out anything. She shows Julia more and more of herself and Julia opens up more and more as a result. Even though you know that of course they end up together, Eliza does it in such a way that I was surprised again and again when there was a little bit of giving in from one to the other. You would almost forget, but in addition to the dynamics of the two, there is also a mystery in the background. Who is the fraud who is giving the town a lot of money?!

So, after this first book, four more books follow. And I thought, how can you keep this interesting in so many books? Well, Eliza Lentzski knows how!

In the second book in the series, Julia and Cassidy both live and work in Minneapolis. They are in a relationship, but Cassidy’s PTSD is getting worse. She also has a difficult partner to work with.

Julia does her best for Cassidy and their relationship. But can Cassidy forgive her for what happened in Embarass? Will Julia and Cassidy be able to overcome the obstacles so that the love they feel for each other is not lost? Since there is a Book 3, it seems to me that the answer to the last question is obvious 😉. But it is so wonderful to see the two grow more and more, personally and in love.

Cassidy takes on a new role as a cold case detective. It’s actually punishment for her. She knows nothing about cold cases and how to investigate them. Her office is in a sort of basement. But she does get nice, but rather strange colleagues in return. And as it turns out, Cassidy has a good feel for the job. Just maybe she is capable in solving a cold case.

Meanwhile, Julia and Cassidy learn more and more about how a relationship works. They also want it because they are madly in love with each other and do not want to lose each other. There is still work to be done, though 🥰.

Cassidy is also confronted again with her wartime past when she is faced with a blast from the past.

Cassidy is starting to feel more and more at home in the cold cases department. She is surrounded by nice colleagues and friends. And Julia and Cassidy now live together. That goes wonderfully well, though messy Cassidy has to adjust to Julia’s pristine household. But Julia is again 100% committed and knows how to give in a little bit here and there. Nevertheless, uncertainty continues to play a role when a certain question arises.

Meanwhile, Cassidy and her team struggle to solve a cold case involving a young woman who is found with a bullet in her stomach.

The book ends with a real cliffhanger! But luckily, we already have book 5 🎉.

It is a journey full of memories for both, good and bad. That is until Julia is a suspect in a murder case. Time for Cassidy to show that she really is a good detective. And a good partner for Julia.

To be continued in Book 6….