EARLY REVIEW: Mr. Mysterious (Misters #4)

Mr. Mysterious (Misters #4), by J.A. Huss
Publish Date: October 12, 2016
Publisher: self-published
Format: ARC, provided by the author
Genre: adult contemporary romance/suspense/mystery
To Buy: Amazon

Rating: 4.5 STARS

(Synopsis) Paxton Vance isn’t as cryptic as he thinks. That broody nature and tough-guy exterior aren’t fooling me one bit. 

I know everything about him. I listen in on his most personal phone calls. I read his mail before he does. I even know what his mother got him for Christmas last year.

You’re the man of my dreams, Paxton Vance. You just don’t know it yet.

But don’t worry, I’ll remind you. I’m here to give you everything you need, before you know you need it.

So don’t get defensive because I take a challenge seriously. You have to open up to someone, and that someone is me.

Besides, you can’t stay Mr. Mysterious forever. Why play the game if you never want to win?

I wonder if Julie Huss knew THIS would happen back when she write her first non-YA novel. That a seemingly simple love story about a Tragic girl and her model-perfect boyfriend would give birth to this larger-than-life tale that now spans more than three decades and has spawned one crazy, epic romance after another. 

I wonder if she knew then that a chance encounter in a Starbucks would end with the Misters and their Misses. 

Mr. Mysterious introduces another Shrike kid to the world, and Cinderella, a.k.a. Baby Bomb, is something else. She's been a peripheral observer to the Mister drama that unfolded ten years ago, and as she grew up, she became obsessed with Paxton Vance. She learned everything she can about him, and has decided to finally make her move. And when Cindy Shrike makes a move, she MAKES. A. MOVE. 

I'm still a little surprised that Pax allowed Cindy to get away with everything she did to worm her way into his life. I'm shocked that he didn't toss her out on her ass when he realized she'd broken into his house or stalked his mother or knew his backstory. Her methods were extreme, but when Cindy wants something, she gets it. And she's determined to not only save Paxton, who is the love of her life, but in doing so, she saves her brother as well.

I will figure out his secret. I will figure out what happened that night. I will find all the evidence, I will put all the puzzle pieces together, and I will give him a gift to seal the deal. 

I will make it right for all of the Misters.

I like to think that perhaps the reason why Pax allowed Cindy to continue her extreme stalker ways is because he knew deep down that she was something more to him. And that she could give him a measure of freedom that he's never had before. Pax has always been the dark, angry and suspicious one of the five Misters. And Cindy was a breath of fresh air that he desperately needed.

"I want to leave everything - everyone - behind. Stop working and just do nothing for a while. Sit on a beach. Catch fish off a boat in the middle of nowhere. No cell phone, no email, no problems."

When Cindy's craziness is set aside, you can really see how perfect she is for Paxton. They're both good a fixing problems for other people. They're both totally bad ass. And he doesn't have to hide any of the stuff from that night from her since she's been involved since the beginning because of her brother. She loves him and accepts him as he is. And I don't think he knew how much he needed that until she came barreling into his life.

"She's not a fade-away kind of girl. She's going to fight. You have no idea how much fight that girl has. I mean, like I said, one day I was great. Just doing my thing. And then... and then this perfect fucking princess walked into my life."

Ten years ago, a girl was raped an then died, and that altered the trajectory of these five men's lives. It's become obvious that their pasts are coming back to haunt each one of them in turn, but in this book, a few more pieces of the puzzle fit into place, and the new picture it's forming will shock you. It shocked me. All the things you thought you knew will be disproven. And, it's only ensured that the final book in the series - Oliver's book - will be unbelievable. 

We've seen whispers of the original Team in the first three Mister books as Five (Ford's son) and Oliver (Spencer's son) have made their presences known. But now with Mr. Mysterious it really feels like I've come home. Full circle. 

Oli and Five, together with Ariel and Cindy have formed their own "team" that also includes Mac, Ellie, Nolan, Ivy, Weston, Tori and Paxton. And they are getting shit DONE.