Frostbitten (Deep Ops, #6) by Rebecca Zanetti 
Series: Deep Ops #6
Published by Kensington on January 2, 2024
Genres: Action, Crime Drama
Pages: 304
Format: eBook
Source: Netgalley
I received this book for free from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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Enigmatic.
With a wildly gifted mind, and an untamed head of hair to match, petite powerhouse Millicent Frost is brilliant when it comes to gadgets and electronics—less so with people. After an attempt to bust a bank scam goes awry, Millie is in hot water with Homeland Security and targeted by lethal enemies. In the midst of the trouble, she heads home to help out with the family hunting and fishing business. But when their rival competitor and Millie’s ex is murdered, she’s the number one suspect . . .
Irresistible.
Former Marine turned lawyer Scott Terentson devotes himself to getting his clients out of tricky binds. A loner, the last thing he wants is to belong to any team, yet the Deep Ops group considers him one of their own—and he pays the price by getting shot at by their enemies. Now Millie is seeking his help—just as he’s dealing with a brutal fail regarding a recent trial. Both are a headache, yet he’s drawn to Millie in spite of himself. They’re opposites, but maybe the old adage is true . . .
Electric.
Working together, Millie and Scott soon have more on their hands than they bargained for as the danger escalates—along with the sizzling heat between them. And when a disappearance is thrown into the mix, all bets are off . . .
We didn’t get enough of Millie’s skills in her own story.
HDD Agent Millicent Frost is the queen of gadgets. She loves investing things. There isn’t anything in life that she can’t make better with a gadget. Her most recent case took her away from the Deep Ops team and involved planting bugs. Unfortunately, it also put her directly into the middle of attorney Scott Terentson’s divorce. When he subpoena’s her to give testimony against the person she was bugging, it puts her operation and her job in jeopardy–and apparently her life.
When Millie is put on leave by her superior, she returns home to her West Virginia hometown but somehow she wakes up in the bed of her ex-fiancé, covered in his blood and holding the murder weapon which she created. Millie refuses to drag her Deep Op friends into the middle of his craziness but when Scott receives a phone call from the local sheriff telling him that Millie needs legal help, he drops everything to be there for her.
Someone is framing Millie and has no problem killing her to make sure Millie takes the fall for the murder. Then Scott’s client disappears and her husband is making threatening calls to Millie. Is this all related or is this something completely different. Scott knows that it’s time to call in the Deep Ops team for their help but first he has to convince Millie that someone really is playing for keeps.
THOUGHTS:
I love this series but I was disappointed that we didn’t get more Millie inventions in Millie’s own story. She keeps making mental notes of inventions she wants to make, but the only ones we see her use are exploding squirrels. What the heck? There should have been more gadgets involved in Millie’s story. No question.
We also don’t get the full-team until the end of the story and good for Angus for telling Millie that she should have called them immediately.
Millie’s hometown was adorable with everyone creating fake alibis for Millie or calling the sheriff to confess to the murder even though Millie was the one to call the Sheriff while covered in blood. The sheriff was adorable too, even sneaking out of Millie’s Aunt’s window since he didn’t want her to know they were having an affair.
As you know, I love to try to solve the crime before the end. It is a bad habit whenever I read a thriller. This time I said “It would be so crazy if this is what happened,…” and OMG, that’s where she went. I was so happy that she went off the deep end with me.
More Deep Ops! I love these guys!
Favorite Scene:
“What are you doing?” Millie whispered, blood on her chin.
“Looking for anything I can use for a weapon.” He grabbed a fishing knife off the ground.
Millie scrambled through the items and wrapped her small hand around the handle of a fillet knife.
“Don’t suppose you have a gun nearby?” he asked, listening for advancing steps.
“No.”
Going stone cold, he grasped the knife handle in his hand. The stainless steel weapon contained a six-inch blade, and while he would much prefer a gun, he’d make do. “Are there guns in the house?”
“Yes,” she said, looking across the wide distance. “As well as some makeshift weapons I’ve created for fun.” She gestured. “Come on. I have structured booby traps behind the bunkhouse and natural ones already set in the trees on the other side.” Ducking, she scurried around the rear of the building near the river.
He didn’t have his phone or a weapon other than the fishing knife. His mind quickly calculated the best way to get Millie to safety. He navigated around the building, pausing to look back. The shadows obscured the men’s faces, but each one held a weapon, clad in all black. They sported no masks, which hinted at danger. They had killing as their aim.
He kept his back to the rough wooden siding and edged around toward the forest. No doubt the men would flank the building, approaching from both sides. Forcing emotion away, he gingerly lifted a dirty window and peered inside the small building. The main room held two sets of overlarge bunk beds, one strewn with clothing and a couple of books. JT’s belongings. “Are there weapons inside?”
Millie peeked inside. “It’s doubtful. I’m sure JT has weapons, but he’d keep them with him or hidden from the guests we let say here overnight.” She scrambled to open a utility chest set against the side of the building and pulled out several remote controls.
Scott craned his neck as the clock counted down. He could feel the men getting closer. “What do we have?”
She handed him a remote and leaned in to pull out what looked like three life-size squirrels to place on the ground. “Press the power button,” she whispered.
He pressed the top button and the animals came to life.
“Good.” She recaptured the remove and pressed a bunch of buttons. The squirrels turned around the corner. “I have them rigged to explode because I planned to play a joke on JT.”
Fucking brilliant. He brushed his knuckles across her delicate jawline. “Stay down and out of sight.”
She looked between the bunkhouse and the trees. “I’ve planted booby traps in the trees to protect the property.”
He measured the distance. “What kind?”
“Poisonous herbs. If we can get those guys into the right patch, they’ll be sorry.”
Excellent. “I’ll go around the other side. When I yell, you blow up a squirrel.” He couldn’t believe he’d just said that. “When I say run, you dart into the trees and lead the next guy to the poison.” Which meant he had to take out two of them first.
“Got it. They’re not expecting short Millie and her lawyer to be a threat.” She crouched down against the structure, disappearing into the shadows.
He was counting on being underestimated.
