First You Run (The Bullet Catchers, Book 4) [Mass Market Paperback]

Roxanne St. Claire (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 25, 2008

AN UNSTOPPABLE BODYGUARD ON THE HUNT.

A WOMAN HIDING A SECRET EVEN SHE DOESN'T KNOW. A PASSION THAT BEGINS WITH DANGER....

Bullet Catcher Adrien Fletcher is on a mission to track down a baby given up in a black market adoption thirty years ago. He has a list of possible names and one tantalizing clue: the infant girl had been marked with a tiny tattoo. And since tattoo-hunting will mean getting up close and personal with the women on his list, he's the perfect man for the job. But when Fletch meets Miranda Lang, he knows she can never be just a name on his list. If she's not his target, he should move on and find the right woman, despite their electrifying attraction. But Miranda is on her own mission, and every step takes her closer to a deadly trap. Fletch may be the only man who can protect her...forcing him to choose between duty and desire.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Hot, fun, fast and fearless! I want one of those bodyguards!" -- Cherry Adair, New York Times bestselling author

"When it comes to dishing up great romantic suspense, St. Claire is the author you want." -- Romantic Times

About the Author

Roxanne St. Claire left her PR career to write full time. She lives in Florida with her husband and children.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 346 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Star (March 25, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416549064
• ISBN-13: 978-1416549062
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.7 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #859,756 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

ROXANNE ST. CLAIRE is a New York Times Bestselling author of nearly thirty novels of romance and suspense. The author of two very popular suspense series, the Bullet Catchers and the Guardian Angelinos, her most recent release is a full-length stand-alone romantic suspense novel, Space In His Heart.

A five-time nominee and one-time winner of the prestigious RITA Award for the best in romantic fiction, Roxanne's books have also been awarded the National Readers Choice Award for best romantic suspense for two consecutive years as well as the Daphne du Maurier award, the Booksellers Best Award, the Award of Excellence, the Maggie, the Holt Medallion and many more. Her novel, The Sins of His Past, was selected as the Borders Top Pick in Romance for 2007, and will be reissued this March as part of the "Kiss Me, I'm Irish" trilogy from Harlequin. Roxanne's books have been published in dozens of countries and are routinely featured as selections in the Doubleday and Rhapsody book clubs.

Space In His Heart is her first independently published novel, a never-before-released thriller about a Navy fighter pilot turned astronaut and the PR superstar who sends his heart to the moon. This spring, a brand new contemporary romance series set on a fictional island off the coast of Florida begins with the April 2012 release of Barefoot In The Sand. In addition, Roxanne has stories in multiple anthologies throughout 2012 and her entire backlist is available in electronic versions. This summer, her first Young Adult novel, Don't You Wish, will be released in hardcover.

Free reads, excerpts, character profiles, author news and contests can be found on her web site: www.roxannestclaire.com. You can follow her at www.facebook.com/roxannestclaire and www.twitter.com/@roxannestclaire,or email her via her web site. Roxanne lives in Florida with her husband, two children and loves to hear from readers all over the world!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Good onya", Ms. St. Claire! The Bullet Catchers fourth full- length book is both a terrific mystery and romance., March 31, 2008

By 

Alyce In Wonderland "The Looking Glass" (Over the hill or underland, or just behind a tree) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: First You Run (The Bullet Catchers, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

The Bullet Catchers Series:

Kill Me Twice

Thrill Me to Death

Take Me Tonight

What You Can't See: "A Reason to Believe"

First You Run

Then You Hide (Wade's story. Due for release in July 2008)

Now You Die (Lucy Sharpe's story! Due for release in September 2008)


Each book in this series can stand on it's own, but you will miss out on some of the bonds and history between these body guards if you start the series in the middle. Every book in the series so far is excellent. I recommend starting from the top.

Five stories strong, The Bullet Catchers series has never let me down. Roxanne St. Claire writes modern mystery- thrillers that are vivid enough to make you "see" the scenes unfold. All the while, she develops a romance that is both steamy and emotional. Her heroes are big, powerful, intelligent (something I personally find very hot in a man), and completely loyal to their job and their loved- ones. Put these page- turning traits together and you have "The Bullet Catchers".



In "First You Run", our hero is an Australian charmer complete with knee- weakening dimples. Adrien Fletcher, or "Fletch" to his friends, is known for being fearless. Raised by Aborigines in "The Bush", there is very little about the modern world that can frighten him.

Adrien's principle is a highly intelligent college professor, author, and doctor of Maya history. Miranda Lang is ready to launch a book- signing tour to promote her new controversial non- fiction novel. Her book shatters a myth that many Maya historians believe to be true. One man in particular wants to make sure that Miranda's book fails to reach the public. He'll scheme, threaten, and even commit murder to meet his goal.

Adrien's best mate, Jack, is in need of help. A woman who is dying of Leukemia needs to find her long- lost daughter for a bone marrow donation. At the same time, she needs Jack to uncover the truth about a murder case that has her spending her last days in a prison hospital. While Jack works to solve the case, he asks Adrien to conduct the search for her daughter. Adrien has a few weeks vacation from his position with the Bullet Catchers. He'll gladly spend them helping his friend who once saved his life. With his boss's consent to use The Bullet Catchers' many connections and resources, Adrien sets out to search the country for the missing daughter.

Half- way through his list of possible women, Adrien believes he may have found the daughter in Miranda Lang. He gets more than he bargained for when he learns that she is the target of a madman's schemes. Time is of the essence. Adrien needs to learn if Miranda really is the missing daughter before Jack's principle succumbs to Leukemia. However, he can't resist helping Miranda defeat her unknown enemy. Without his protection, Miranda will face a murderer alone. His growing attachment to her makes it impossible for Adrien to abandon Miranda, even when he receives evidence that suggests she is not the daughter after all. Caught between his loyalty to Jack and his need to protect Miranda, Adrien is torn. Should he continue to guard the woman he has come to love, or follow the path of duty?


One of the things that made me like Adrien so much was the fact that he didn't fight his feelings for Miranda. Once he realized what she meant to him, he didn't hesitate to hold her hand or hug her whenever she seemed to need it. Big, strong and tough, Adrien was all heart.

I was a little concerned that this book was going to turn more into a paranormal, like "A Reason To Believe". There are some scenes where Maya gods and magic are part of the mystery. As much as I love paranormals, there are more than enough of them on the market. St. Claire's no- nonsense straight- shooting murder cases are a welcome change of pace. Most of the paranormal material in this book turned out to be trickery, but some things were left unexplained. In the end, it didn't overwhelm the story.


If you'd like to read the whole series, here are the links:

Kill Me Twice (The Bullet Catchers, Book 1)

Thrill Me to Death (The Bullet Catchers, Book 2)

Take Me Tonight (The Bullet Catchers, Book 3)

What You Can't See (Compilation of novellas, including the Bullet Catchers story "A Reason To Believe")

First You Run (The Bullet Catchers, Book 4)

Then You Hide (The Bullet Catchers, Book 5)

Now You Die (The Bullet Catchers, Book 6)


If you like body guard/ mystery romances, try the T-FLAC series. Here are the links to the first few books in the series:

The Mercenary

Kiss and Tell (The Men of T-FLAC: The Wrights, Book 2)

Hide and Seek (The Men of T-FLAC: The Wrights, Book 3)

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Yet, March 22, 2008

By 

Marilyn Puett (Huntsville, AL) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: First You Run (The Bullet Catchers, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

When Adrien Fletcher agrees to help his best mate, ousted Bullet Catcher Jack Culver, find a baby adopted through a black-market ring thirty years ago, he never dreams he'd be thrust into the world of Maya culture. He's given a name - Miranda Lang - and a clue - she was marked with a tattoo. Together, they may be able to solve a thirty-year-old murder.

Miranda, an anthropology professor at Berkley, is promoting her book which debunks the theory that the Mayans predicted December 21, 2012 as the end of the world. But someone is out to stop her. Signings are disrupted or mysteriously cancelled, books disappear by the case and her life is threatened.

If Miranda is indeed the adoptee Fletch is looking for, he must keep her safe from the lunatics who seem determined to stop her. And if along the way his attraction to Miranda turns into more, he'll just have to deal with that too.

Fletch, a former member of the Tasmanian Special Ops, is the most engaging Bullet Catcher to date. He's fearless in the face of danger and known for his ability to get a woman horizontal and naked in under five seconds. Miranda is his intellectual match, but she's a woman hounded by fears. Who better to help her conquer them than Fletch? Watching these two in action was pure bliss.

Sexy, thrilling, spellbinding, romantic - FIRST YOU RUN cover all the bases of a great romantic suspense while including a little history and geography lesson as well. The plot and characters hooked me from the first page and kept me hooked until I finished at four in the morning. This book - especially the hero - was well worth losing a night's sleep.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Aussie Bullet Catcher, May 1, 2008

By 

Tracy Vest (Northern California) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: First You Run (The Bullet Catchers, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

Aussie Security agent Adrien is between assignments and agrees to help a friend find the adopted daughter of a woman who has spent the last three decades in prison for a murder she didn't commit and now needs a bone marrow transplant due to cancer. The only distinguishing characteristic is a tattoo somewhere on the daughter's body. After quickly going through the first several gals on his list, he comes across author Miranda, an authority on all things Mayan, who is being targeted by an extremist group. With a couple days to kill, he provides protection for Miranda and quickly falls under her spell and realizes she has no idea she was adopted, nor does she appear to have a tattoo. Can he move on to the next candidate and leave the woman he is suddenly falling for in the lurch?

St. Claire has penned a sexy new entry in the Bullet Catchers series, and this one has an open end, which could be good or bad depending on the reader. I personally like for stories to get resolved in a single novel so I don't have to wait several months to find out how it all turns out, so I was disappointed in that respect. But her heroes are always sexy as hell, her writing first rate, and her plots are always intriguing.