Tara Janzen, Breaking Loose

General Grant, head of the Special Defense Forces, has no one ON THE LOOSE for his latest mission. Instead he sends contractor agent Suzi Toussi, a fine art expert (as both are needed on this assignment), to Paraguay to find and retrieve the stolen Memphis Sphinx that allegedly has mystical powers.

Also seeking the ancient Egyptian statue is Dax Killian, who needs the Sphinx to make an exchange with Erich Warner for information she possesses and he desperately wants to makes a Faustian deal. He is taken aback to see Suzi in a dive in dangerous Ciudad del Este. Dax vows to assist her in obtaining the Sphinx, but he will then snatch it from her; but soon finds he is rescuing her from one hot spot after another until their passion ignites.

This is a fast-paced SDF action thriller that will remind readers of Romancing the Stone with a roguish hero and an art guru who proves masterpiece paintings and kicking butt are compatible. The story line is fast-paced and somewhat over the top of Cerro Per , but no one will care as the game is afoot with Dax struggling between his growing love for Suzi and his need to purloin the relic from her.