The latest entry in Hannah Alexander’s popular Hideaway series is one that will please readers who enjoy a good small-town mystery novel. No SEALs, secret agents, or fast-paced urban world here, simply residents of a small town in the Ozarks trying to live their lives and discover the truth behind the terrible events plaguing them. Add in a truly likable heroine dealing with two men from her past showing up in town all in the same week and you have an enjoyable inspirational romantic suspense read.

For local nurse Jill Cooper, caring for others is what she knows how to do best. From a young age she was responsible for her younger sister and then later for her patients, and she takes her obligations seriously. When a retired school principal and close friend of Jill’s collapses and suddenly dies, Jill feels it is her duty to discover what happened to her. Many believe the death to be an accident, but Jill thinks it may be something more sinister.

As if this weren’t enough, Jill’s life is further complicated when she learns that not only is her former fiance, Rex Fairfield, back in Hideaway, he will be working at the same clinic where Jill is a nurse. Though it has been many years since their broken engagement, having Rex back in town reawakens old conflicts for Jill – and perhaps some old feelings, too. In addition to Rex, Jill’s high school sweetheart, Austin Barlow, also returns to town and wants to renew their acquaintance. That this happens just as old secrets seem to be ever more important is a circumstance that strikes Jill – and others in the town – as rather curious.

The stress of the mysterious death and reappearance of former suitors is compounded for Jill by some of her own issues. Jill suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder and the authors of this book do a wonderful job of showing just how this disease affects not only Jill’s outward habits, but how it also causes her constant moments of self-doubt and insecurity. Jill is shown as bright and competent in the eyes of others, but she has great difficulty seeing herself that way. This struggle affects her relationships with other people and seeing how this issue plays itself out throughout the story was one of the strong points of the book.

While the suspense plot is well written, it is a touch slow to develop and takes a back seat to the stories of relationships, both romantic and platonic, in the wake of a beloved local person’s death. The main characters, especially Jill, are very likable, and the secondary characters are more vividly written than in most books these days. Readers of this novel will feel like they have gotten to know an entire town by the end of the novel.

Though Grave Risk is part of a series, it stands quite nicely on its own. For that reason, much of the recitation of history from prior books at various points pulled me out of the story and slowed things down. However, these moments are few and do not prevent the book from being an enjoyable one. If you enjoy medical suspense or if you’re simply wanting to try some well-written inspirational fiction, Hannah Alexander is definitely an author worth reading.