Theresa Janson’s Longer Than a New York Minute centers on Sam, a retired FBI profiler who has traded high-stakes government work for a peaceful Montana lifestyle with her husband, Will, and their baby daughter, Katie. Just as they start finding their rhythm, a devastating phone call pulls them right back into criminal territory. A wealthy close friend of theirs has died in New York under highly suspicious circumstances. Leaving their baby in safe hands, the couple travels to NYC to parse through the autopsy details, uncovering a shocking web of corporate greed and bitter family dysfunction. But while Sam chases a potential killer in the city, a vengeful stalker is waiting for her back on the reservation. Will Sam be able to outmaneuver both these threats and protect her family from a looming disaster?

Longer Than a New York Minute by Theresa Janson is very engaging crime fiction that seamlessly weaves heartfelt family drama into a complex mystery. What really grabbed my attention was the contrast between the case in Manhattan and the personal but tense energy of the Montana reservation. Sam and Will's relationship is written with stunning honesty, offering a portrait of a real marriage that wraps you up in their world until you feel like an acquaintance rooting for their very survival, every step of the way. The author's prose is sharp and unforgiving during the high-stakes sequences, even if the narrative occasionally jumps a bit abruptly between the dual subplots. I loved watching how Sam deployed her clinical expertise to dissect suspicious behavior when the pressure mounted. I recommend this book to any thriller enthusiasts who appreciate fierce, protective leads and stories that place family devotion above everything else.

Samantha (Sam) Wright has a lot on her plate. After escaping with her life in the previous book, she's hoping for a lot less drama. She was wrong. Her daughter Katie is only a few months old, and she's struggling with life as a sometimes single mom, as her husband Will needs to travel for work up to a week at a time. When her friend and mentor, Tad Collins, is found dead and the police rule it a suicide, she has her doubts. Meanwhile, the abusive husband of a young woman she's protecting finds out who Sam is and accosts her. On top of all this, she falls pregnant with her second child. Can she figure out if Tad was murdered, raise an infant, deal with her issues with her husband being away so often, and hide from an abuser? For all this heart-stopping action, read Longer Than a New York Minute by Theresa Janson.

The third book in the series is a slight departure from the previous two. While they were firm psychological thrillers, Longer Than a New York Minute is more character-driven, and Sam and Will's relationship is front and center. The investigation of their friend's death is almost a secondary plotline this time around. There are quite a few other subplots in this book, so there's plenty on offer to keep readers turning the pages. Sam is an extraordinarily strong character who takes on way too much and often suffers for it. Once again, there's a life-and-death situation involving her, which ups the stakes further than the previous stories did. Theresa Janson's Longer Than a New York Minute will suit fans of strong female protagonists, and if you like your stories with a bit of sizzle, there's plenty of that on offer too!