Cassie Miles is both a versatile author and an uneven one. Some of her books have been great. Some haven’t been good at all. But she also never does the same thing twice in a row. Her last book, Restless Spirit, was a pleasant, fast-paced Western with likable characters that made the somewhat predictable plot worthwhile. Protecting the Innocent is an edgier, more contemporary and more original story. It’s also one of her best.

Anya Bouchard Parrish’s husband was a scientist at the Legate Corporation think tank in San Francisco. When he died in an explosion in his lab, she learned that he had arranged for her and their son to come and live at Legate. Her young son Charlie is a child prodigy, and the think tank offers a school for gifted children. It’s an excellent opportunity and the school would be a great place to maximize his potential. Something about the arrangement strikes her as being off, because her husband never mentioned his intentions to her. For the sake of her son, though, she moves them to the Legate compound.

There is one man she believes she can trust: Roman Alexander, her husband’s best friend and one of Legate’s administrators. She doesn’t know that Roman has his own suspicions about illegal activities being conducted at the compound. The center claims to operate “for the greater good,” but there are indications the scientists have taken their mission statement too far. While he used to believe in Legate’s goals, Roman is working with the CIA to uncover any misdeeds connected to the center. He would have warned Anya from coming there if he hadn’t conveniently been sent away by his bosses on an “urgent” assignment when she arrived. Now it’s too late. He vows to protect her, and she increasingly finds she will need his help, as she learns just how hard it might be to get herself and her child away from Legate.

It’s a little difficult to explain what made this book a B+ instead of a straight B for me. It’s not the love story, which was fine, but unexceptional. It’s well-developed and believable, and there’s certainly nothing wrong with it, but I didn’t find it particularly affecting or emotional. It’s not the characters, who were sympathetic and likable, but not particularly distinctive or memorable.

What stands out about it is the originality of the story and the strength of the execution. It’s not often that I get to read a romantic suspense book, particularly a series one, that feels completely fresh and different. While it has some familiar elements (the undercover hero, the kid), this story never comes across like something that was cobbled together out of the spare parts of other books. It has a little more of an edgier, more mainstream feel than most Harlequin Intrigues. There were times during this book when I found myself thinking, “This is abnormally good.” And it is.

Despite being only 249 pages, it also feels bigger than the usual series book. This is due in part because it takes place over several months instead of just a few days, which allows both the romance and suspense to unfold at an unhurried pace. In the end, Anya thinks back about all she and Roman experienced over the last few months, which does help make the possibility of a lasting relationship more believable than usual. The concept behind the suspense plot is intriguing and very topical. That gives the story a more contemporary sensibility than is often seen in this line.

Protecting the Innocent is a stand out among the series books I’ve read lately, and a great book period. While there are some minor niggles I could mention, I came away from it impressed with it in a way I seldom am. The writing is sharp, the storyline is compelling and the suspense plot is well-executed. Impressive really is the best word for it. I think you may be impressed with the story Miles delivers too.