Kelly Johns, beautiful and ambitious, is the evening anchor of WBRX, a local Atlanta television station. Kelly is working outside her normal duties by researching building construction corruption, and is doing some outside shots of a large building that has been abandoned before completion. When she and her camera crew wander inside, Kelly notices a parked car on the side street, and when another car arrives, the three men in the first vehicle step outside and opens the trunk. All hell breaks loose then with a shootout that kills the three men. Kelly is knocked to the floor by a man whispering in her ear to stay down as a bullet whistles by her. Kelly doesn't know her savior, but he looks vaguely familiar. The camera man gets the happening on film.

Deke Bannon is the youngest of three brothers, and is a federal investigator in Atlanta trying to find the leader of a global money laundering ring. He had staked out the abandoned building and couldn't believe that civilians were on the premises filming. Deke knows that the blond he saved will be trouble with a capital "T". He will have to contact her to get the film to see if there is anything identifiable on the woman in the second car. But, Kelly isn't about to turn over what could be her ticket to a larger market media without some quid pro quo. She wants to work with Deke and his team and promises not to get in their way or report anything until she gets permission.

TRIUMPH is a fast moving adventure tale involving crooked billionaires mingling with high society in Dallas and Atlanta, and probably nationwide. Kelly is both an asset to Deke's team, and a liability. However, she is one crackerjack investigator and finds clues others have overlooked. There is a definite sexual chemistry between the protagonists, but business and pleasure do not mix.

Janet Daily always creates believable and strong characters, including the secondary and peripheral ones. The narrative is crisp and the story lines are viable. Ms. Daily wraps up the Bannon Brothers trilogy nicely.

Book Summary

Need a hot hero? Janet Dailey's Bannon Brothers deliver--to the max. Deke Bannon is rugged and powerful and just as dangerous as his older brothers RJ and Linc. But an ambitious TV anchor tracking an explosive story may be more than his match. . .

Deke Bannon, federal criminal investigator, risks his life just about every damn day--but that doesn't mean he'll let Kelly Johns do the same. A deadly international gang has targeted the gorgeous news anchor for knowing too much and trying to find out more. To protect Kelly, Deke will have to keep her close--no matter how hard she fights him.

Good luck with that. Kelly's every instinct tells her she's stumbled across the story of her career. But there's a catch. Without Deke, she can't infiltrate the dark underworld operating beyond the reach of the law. With him, she's in a whole other kind of danger. On the case, Deke Bannon is a force of nature--unpredictable, unstoppable, and always one step ahead of her. Except when he takes her in his arms--and the world stands still for both of them. . .