Becker Circle by Addison Brae

Becker’s Circle by Addison Brae. Tirgearr Publishing. Copyright March 2018.; pb. 281 pp.; ASIN #: B07B3HT15Y.

Gillian is a survivor!  Graduating from Harvard, she makes a bold move by abandoning her narcissistic boyfriend who does nothing but demean her and moves to Texas!  She’s now studying for her CPA Certificate while working for business company as an accountant and bartending several nights a week.  It’s a stressful life but she handles it with admirable aplomb before the actual conflict begins!

She must learn to dress appropriately for her nighttime job but gets the help of a friend.  The result is not only does she make great drinks but is a hit with the guys.  As she proceeds from night to night, she learns several “rules” that she lives by which mostly include being attractive enough to be “hit on” but not to allow abuse or crude behavior.  She’s pleasant but not a tease. 

Things, however, become challenging when she learns there’s a large circle of drug runners operating in Beckers Circle and some of the sellers are frequenters of the bar she’s tending.  Then tragedy strikes – an acquaintance who saved her life one night dies suddenly after jumping from a high riser apartment deck.  But slowly but surely it seems it was a murder although no one wants to admit that or get involved in the suspicious rumors.  With the help of a guy Jon and some cop presence, she realizes someone she calls “Creepy” is stalking her and not for sex.  They want her to stop asking questions about the dead “Bobby.”

The remainder of this swiftly moving plot reveals that there’s a drug war happening.  In the process of her being involved, another person will die, and Gillian will be placed in a life or death situation.  Gillian, however, gets wiser and stronger throughout the stressful experience and discovers warm, caring, sexy love without the trashy attitudes some associate with love.

Addison Brae is great at crafting a mystery and romance that is endearing and nail-biting at the same time.  Although the reader thinks Gillian will figure it all out by the end of the novel, she keeps the reader guessing until very close to the last page!  The engaging and seedy side of the bar life is shown without being highly offensive, and we have an intelligent, sensitive, compassionate and determined, spunky character to root for all the way!  Nicely crafted, Addison Brae!  Keep writing!