FBI / US Attorney Books In Order

Publication Order of FBI/US Attorney Books

The FBI / US Attorney is a series of contemporary romance novels by lawyer turned New York Times Bestselling author Julie James. James published the first of the FBI / US Attorney series of novels, Something About You in 2010, and had written five more titles in the series by 2015. The series is one of the very first legal contemporary romance novels, and hence in some way Julie James can be said to be a pioneer of the genre. The series has a variety of protagonists though they share the characteristic of being highly driven professional women who find themselves at the center of romantic liaisons with men in law enforcement they just cannot resist. Being a former lawyer, many of the stories in the series often include characters working in or ones that were formerly in law enforcement. Some of the protagonists include a US Attorney, a lawyer, a special agent, and an investigative journalist among others. When it comes to the male protagonists, James seems to prefer defining them from the type of car they drive. These range from an Aston Martin, a Bentley to a motorcycle. Since these are contemporary legal romances, the use of dialogue is a critical component. Julie employs dialogue that consists of sarcastic and hilarious banter between the heroes and heroines, to make for some spectacular sexual tension.

Despite the fact that the first novel in the series was first published in 2010, the series has become one of the most popular contemporary romances even spawning a new genre. Most of the novels are about the inner workings of the Chicago criminal justice system. The system is composed of two distinct groups of people. There are the U. S. Attorneys responsible for the prosecution of criminals and the Special Agents of the F.B.I. who are charged with the investigations of the criminals. While the two groups could not be any more different, they are similar in some aspects such as, all of them tend to be highly attractive and often sarcastic persons that for some reason prefer to spend most of their time at Starbucks throwing barbs at each other. What sets these novels apart from the truly legal or procedural novel is that they do not tell the stories of how the detectives unravel mysteries or how attorneys convict clients. Instead, James tells the insider stories of the going-ons behind the scenes. They are stories of what law enforcement officers get up to when they are not out trying to take down the bad guys. With some sizzling romance, humorous one-liners, and twists and turns of plot, the FBI / US Attorney series has some of the most titillating narratives in the genre.

Julie James has asserted that the key to the success of the FBI / US Attorney is her penchant to research and write quite detailed outlines of her novels including aspects such as character background, motives, and plot. Since most of the heroines in the series are lawyers, the author does not do much research on them, since she is a lawyer and hence knows the ins and outs of the profession. However the great insights into guy talk and the social relationships between the protagonists are drawn from research and interviewing her friends and readers on how they would relate in certain circumstances in real life. The series brings together hot swoony heroes and strong independent heroines, though it seems that there is a deliberate effort at not putting too much focus on the sexual aspect of the relationships. The overarching theme in the novels which is embodied by the heroines is that, women that are sophisticated, intelligent and powerful can match and outwit their male rivals. Another aspect of the novels that make them so great is that while the heroines run the show, Julie makes such strong secondary characters with great storylines that are emotional and deep yet still retain their humorous banter.

The first novel, which is one of the most popular of the FBI / US Attorney series, sees fate throw two sworn enemies into each other’s arms. A cruel twist of bad fortune made Cameron Lynde choose a hotel room next to one in which a loud marathon lovemaking session is in progress. It is just her luck that the lovemaking ends in a high-profile murder that makes her worst fears come true. She now has to work with Special Agent Jack Pallas who has called into town as the lead investigator in the case. What makes it worse is that this is the same guy that has a vendetta against her, for botching a big case they were working on, which ruined his promotion prospects, and nearly cost him his career. Having been away from Chicago for years, Pallas thinks that the assignment, which requires him to work with Lynde, may be a welcome home prank after all. But this is no joke, as their superiors believe, that they are the best people for the job. They now have to forget their past and focus on solving the case in front of them. But first, they have to smother the searing hot sexual tension, and tone down on the razor sharp digs they have been hurling at each other.

Another sizzling novel in the FBI / US Attorney series is the second title, A Lot Like Love. Jordan Rhodes answers the call for cooperation with the FBI and soon finds herself falling for charms of the handsome undercover agent, Nick McCall. Rhodes is the daughter of a billionaire restaurateur and hence has access to the most exclusive parties in town. With her brother in prison, the FBI approaches her and asks that she crash the fundraiser of a wealthy wine baron believed to be acting as a money-laundering conduit for the mafia. If she can manage to get their man in, her brother would probably get an early release from a long prison sentence. The FBI will go as far as providing her with a date, one of Chicago’s top agents, Nick McCall. For Nick who has vowed never to get personal on the job, this is just one of those assignments that he will soon put behind him after achieving the objective. But the problem is, the two cannot be alone for five minutes before the sarcastic jibes come out, raising the sexual tension to a crescendo. The plot gets thicker when they suddenly have to pretend to be a couple after McCall’s operation is compromised. Suddenly what had begun as a quick get in get out assignment could have more far-reaching romantic and investigative implications.