*** REVIEW *** FATAL SCANDAL by Marie Force

Book 8 of the Fatal series from New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author Marie Force...

As a new year dawns in the capital city, dual scandals rock the Metropolitan Police Department—and Lieutenant Sam Holland is right in the middle of them. Chief Farnsworth is catching heat for the way he handled a recent homicide investigation, and Detective Gonzales is accused of failing to disclose an earlier connection to the judge who decided his custody hearing.

When Gonzo's fight for his child turns deadly and he has a shaky alibi, Sam must defend two of her closest colleagues. All while her husband, Vice President Nick Cappuano, settles into his new office at the White House.

Nick begins to wonder if the president is using him for a political boost, and his worries mount over a complication in the plans to adopt Scotty at a time when Sam is being put through the wringer by the always-rabid DC press corps. As the evidence against Gonzo piles up, Sam suspects someone is gunning for her—and her team.

Fatal Scandal is an appropriate title for this book as there are scandals galore.  I love it.  Also, there are a lot of changes in the Cappuano/Holland household.  Nick is in his new position of Vice President after the former VP reveals his serious health problems.  Nick not only worries about his duties; he also worries about Sam.  Sam is worried about her Chief and another scandal brewing with one of her team members who is looking more and more like a suspect in a murder. 

Fatal Scandal is almost my favorite book in the story.   It is full of action and holds my attention from beginning to end.  In addition to a sometimes-tense murder mystery many of the ongoing story arcs progress forward or they are resolved.  I fall in love with Nick more and more with each book.  The support characters are complex and important.  I especially love the wrap-up at the end. 

I love this series.  I love the characters.  I love the plot, but, and there is a big BUT here.  I do not know why writers love to make female characters stupid when it comes to technology.  In my personal experience, cops are grateful for the edge technology gives them when confronting the bad guys.  The information technology puts at their fingertips is vital.  I’m talking young, old, male, female, and even technophobes in other areas of their lives.  The ability to know who might be behind the door or in the car helps ensure that they will go home after shift.  A lieutenant as skilled as Sam might delegate to a partner, but s/he would not refuse to use the tools at hand when working on a murder.  I cannot wrap my head around it no matter how hard I try.

Sam made a lot of stupid moves that hurt her performance, damages her reputation (in my eyes), and potentially cause injury/death to her and her team.  I don’t like it.  It is easier for me to give a handwave to Sam’s personal security decisions than it is the technology faux pas.  So as much as I love most of this book, the technology avoidance is an irritant and turned me off.  I do recommend Fatal Scandal, and the series in general, because the characters are some of the most interesting around. 

3.5 STAMPS