ONLINE SUMMARY: Newly promoted police captain Bennett Carlyle considers being project manager for the new district substation the way to prove her worth in the male-dominated upper ranks of the department. But when the first girl she loved returns as the architect with little understanding of the operational needs of a police station, Bennett’s career and her heart could face permanent damage.
Architect Kerstin Anthony believes the new police substation will be the springboard to her own firm and the necessary resources to care for her mother. When she confronts the girl she kissed in high school, now a tantalizing police officer with unrealistic expectations about the new facility, Kerstin’s path to success becomes littered with unexpected hurdles. Along with tight deadlines, budget restraints, and architectural challenges, she has to battle both past and present feelings for the woman she was torn away from years ago.
MY REVIEW: I read VK Powell’s To Protect and Serve a couple of years ago and have no idea why it took me so long to get to another of her books. In any case, I’ll simply say I highly recommend that one and add that Captain’s Choice was every bit as good but with an even larger cast of characters to root for and maybe fall in love with. Anyone who’s read my reviews knows that characters are as important to me as plot and Powell certainly delivers in that respect. In both respects.
A few other reviewers on amazon have complained that the relationship between Kerstin and Bennett is unrealistic but I disagree: Admittedly, at times, I’d like to grab Kerstin by the shoulders and shake her until her teeth start to fall out, but hers is a perfectly normal defense mechanism and could realistically be caused by her parents’ unexpected divorce and the way she was torn away from Bennett before their relationship could even really begin.
As for Bennett not leaving Kerstin due to the latter’s constantly mixed signals, as Willow said to Buffy early in season two of BtVS, “Love makes you do the wacky.” To me, however, Bennett’s patience isn’t “wacky” at all. Bennett doesn’t even say those famous “three little words” until 85% of the way through the novel, so she’s clearly not rushing into things. Besides, it’s not as if she’s been pining away for 17 years and “forsaking all others.” Her key phrase “Life taught me not to bypass what I want if I know it’s right” doesn’t sound at all like the immature person that particular reviewer calls her. She realizes starting over with Kerstin isn’t going to be easy, but it’s worth it to her to try because “it’s right” and I think I’d be disappointed in her if she didn’t.
I freely admit to being a romantic, though hardly the hopeless variety — I hope. Despite the sudden interruption to their budding relationship in their youth, and Kerstin’s hot-and-cold reaction to its possible resumption, I see these two as, to use the common cliché, “made for each other.” Even Kerstin realizes this; it’s why she’s terrified by the idea of her and Benett as a couple: it’s something beyond her control. Quite frankly, I loved both characters and Kerstin’s vulnerability and her aversion to emotional intimacy is, possibly, a battle she can’t win. That vulnerability makes her more attractive to the reader, not less.
In addition to the two principals, Captain’s Choice is filled with a large cast of supporting characters who add greatly to the reader’s enjoyment. The entire Carlyle family is loving and fiercely loyal to each other, including Bennett’s adopted sister Jazz. Moreover, they’re all fun to read about and they contribute considerably to the novel’s more light-hearted side. This helps balance the angst of Kerstin and Bennett’s fraught reunion. I also think Kerstin’s dinner chez Carlyle plays a big part in her ultimate decision in re Bennett even though she’s still terrified by the prospect, the same reaction, incidentally, she had when she first encounters Bennett in the opening scene.
As a rule, I’m not a huge fan of romance qua romance, preferring a mystery or sf element as a necessary concomitant. In Captain’s Choice, the various obstacles to the successful completion of the new precinct substation satisfied that need; though not a life-or-death issue as in those other genres, the impact of the project on Kerstin’s and Bennett’s careers lends it adequate weight to serve as that needed counterpoint to the romantic plot.
There was absolutely nothing wrong with Powell’s writing in To Protect and Serve, just as one would expect from a Bold Strokes Books release. However, the author’s hand seems somehow more assured in Captain’s Choice. Of course, at least part of that is the difference between a writer’s book one and her book eleven. Having read two of Powell’s books, I’d also say she needs very little editorial support in the mechanical aspects of writing, all those things that call attention to the words on the page and distract the reader from the actual story. The narrative flows smoothly, naturally, holding one’s interest from the get-go.
I particularly enjoyed the fact that, although Captain’s Choice is set in a police precinct, it’s not a police procedural or murder mystery. The focus on the day-to-day administrative facets of law enforcement is unique and refreshing. Powell’s many years experience in law enforcement make her equally adept at portraying the daily grind, if I may, as well as the more common crime solving.
I also liked the Greensboro setting, since most mysteries are set in major urban centers like New York, Chicago, or LA. This gives the tale a entirely different “feel” from the standard law-enforcement-oriented story. Greensboro may be the biggest city in the Piedmont Triad, but that’s a far cry from being one of the four or five largest cities in the US. In a sense, Greensboro is almost a character as well as the setting, much like Mickey Knight’s New Orleans.
To conclude, VK Powell’s Captain’s Choice is a very well-written novel with characters whom it’s easy to care about and even admire. And, as I often say, they’re people you wish you knew in real life. Like the characters, the plot is engaging and holds the reader’s interest throughout. I recommend the novel unreservedly and I’m certain it won’t be two years before I revisit Powell’s works.
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