Suspense, Second Chances, and New Life

Retribution in the Mountains

Series: Trinity Investigative Team, Book 4

Written by Jodie Bailey

Published by Love Inspired Suspense Harlequin

Release Date: 04.28.26

Genre: Christian Romantic Suspense

5 Stars!

Suspense stories keep me turning pages because I need to know who is behind the danger.

Retribution in the Mountains did that, yes. My heart was pounding more than once. The danger felt close, the tension stayed high, and there were moments when it truly felt like nowhere was safe.

But what I loved most was not only the suspense.

I loved Melanie. I loved Elliott. I loved the ache between them, the history they could not outrun, and the way trust had to be rebuilt in the middle of fear, regret, and danger. Their relationship carried so much emotional weight. They were not starting from a clean slate. They had wounds. They had memories. They had reasons to protect themselves.

And still, the Lord was working.

That is what made this story so meaningful to me. Melanie’s life had been remade in such an earthly, visible way through witness protection, but underneath that was something far deeper. Her heart had been changed by Christ.

This line stayed with me: “Growing up she’d gone to church with her family, had sort-of prayed and sort-of known Jesus, but when everything had turned upside down, she’d truly understood what it meant to ‘die to her old self.’”

That is the kind of clearly Christian fiction I love. Not just danger with a prayer added in, but a story where faith actually shapes the characters. Where Scripture matters. Where Jesus is part of the healing.

Elliott’s story mattered to me too. His bitterness, his need for control, his resistance to what he could not fix in himself. Jodie Bailey’s author note made that part even stronger for me, especially the connection to Revelation 21 and the beautiful truth that God makes all things new.

I also loved this quote: “Never ignore someone who’s hurting. You might be the only help they have and the only Jesus they see.”

That one is worth carrying off the page.

Retribution in the Mountains gave me the heart-pounding suspense I expect from Love Inspired Suspense and Jodie Bailey, but it also gave me characters I cared about, faith I could feel, and a reminder that Jesus does not simply help us survive.

God makes us new.

This is exactly why I keep reaching for Jodie Bailey’s suspense … the kind of Christian suspense I am always hoping to find.

I received a digital ARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review and was not compensated in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own and reflect my honest evaluation of the writing and content.