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Showing posts with label romantic suspense. Show all posts
Showing posts with label romantic suspense. Show all posts

31 October 2013

Review: Live Wire by Lora Leigh

Author: Lora Leigh
Publication Date: March 1, 2011
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Genre: Adult Romantic Suspense
Find It: GoodreadsAmazonB&NBook Depository
Source: Purchased

Meet Captain Jordan Malone. For years he has been a silent warrior and guardian, operating independent of government protocol or oversight, leading his loyal team of Elite Ops agents to fight terror at all costs. A legend in the field, Jordan’s true identity has remained a mystery even to his own men…until now.

Tehya Talamosi, codename Enigma, is a force to be reckoned with. A woman this striking spells nothing but trouble for Jordan. Armed with killer secrets—and body to die for—she’ll bring Jordan to his knees as they both take on the most deadly mission they have ever faced. Because this time, it’s personal.

Live Wire is part of the Elite Ops series and I believe it's the last book in the series. I have not read any of the other books in the series. I don't think you necessarily need to read the other books in order to enjoy this one but there was obviously a lot of history between all of these characters. Tehya's been on the run for most of her life until the day, 6 years ago, that Elite Ops helped her take down her father, an infamous and cruel criminal lord. Since then she's become a valuable member of team. Jordan Malone is the leader of Elite Ops, a man who has sworn never to feel or love again after losing one of his teammates in an op. He thinks that getting too close means getting sloppy and he doesn't want to make another mistake again. Of course, the two are insanely attracted to each other but Jordan insists on maintaining his distance.

This book was just an OK read for me. There wasn't anything really wrong with it but it also had a hard time keeping my attention. It was a little too long and there were slow periods where not much happened. It was certainly steamy enough and the two main characters had a lot of physical chemistry and some intense love scenes. Those were fun to read but I also felt that some of the love scenes were a little long (I never thought I'd say that about a love scene) and, at a certain point, became repetitive.

I wasn't the biggest fan of Jordan's. I get why he didn't want to fall in love but he treated Tehya pretty poorly. He warned his teammates and friends to stay away from her but he never made a move on her himself. He wants her to give him everything but holds himself at a distance. Tehya's a really interesting character. She had a really brutal childhood but managed to survive and do well for herself. But her past has definitely left a mark on her and she often feels lonely and unloved. She's a fighter though and I admired her. I liked that she called Jordan on his BS.

The plot wasn't terribly interesting to me. I wanted to find out who was after Tehya but it felt like we were taking the long road to figuring it out. I wish it had been a little more fast paced as I think it would have kept my attention better. Fans who have read other books in the series will probably enjoy this one, having more invested in the characters. This book just failed to fully engage me and I found myself reading it just to finish it rather than because I was really interested in the outcome. Fans of romantic suspense might still want to check it out. It just wasn't for me.




Visit the author online at loraleigh.com and Facebook.

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26 September 2013

Review: The Heart of a Killer by Jaci Burton

Author: Jaci Burton
Publication Date: October 18, 2011
Publisher: Mira
Genre: Adult Contemporary Romantic Suspense
Find It: GoodreadsAmazonB&N
Source: Publisher via NetGalley

No one said coming home would be easy. But for Dante Renaldi, it's murder.

Before the Special Forces hero has even unpacked his bags from twelve years of active duty, he's embroiled in murder—corpses bearing the brutal trademark he's seen only once before—on the worst night of his life.

The last time Detective Anna Pallino saw Dante Renaldi, they were in love. Now, he's part of the connection to a string of fresh homicides and a horrible assault Anna only survived thanks to him.

More than anything, Anna wants to trust Dante. But as the bodies and the coincidences stack up, Anna will have to decide, and fast: Is the man she owes her life to the very same one who wants her dead?

Anna and Dante were once in love, until the night that changed both their lives forever. During a brutal attack on Anna, Dante and his three foster brothers accidentally kill her assailant. They decide to cover up the crime and go their separate ways, Dante leaving town for good. Twelve years later, he comes back to celebrate the wedding anniversary of his foster parents. But on the eve of his return, another brutal murder takes place, drawing them all back to that night twelve years go. Now a detective, Anna is called in to investigate the murders that implicate Dante and his brothers. And while Anna's attraction to Dante has only grown, she doesn't know if she can trust him or if he is the one she's trying to catch.

The Heart of a Killer is a romantic suspense novel by popular romance writer Jaci Burton. This was one of the first Jaci Burton books I ever read. While not my favorite of her books, it gave me a taste for her writing and eventually lead me to her Play by Play series, which I am a big fan of. 

The Heart of a Killer is one of those books that I read quickly and enjoyed but left no real lasting impression. Anna and Dante are both likable characters. I love stories about reunited lovers so it was fun watching them learn each other again. The chemistry was good and the buildup of twelve years of sexual longing created a lot of great tension between Dante and Anna.

While there were some interesting twists and turns, I didn't find the mystery to be very suspenseful. There were a few red herrings but I could see right through them. I figured out who the killer was before the end and didn't really buy the motive.

I don’t think The Heart of the Killer is one of Burton’s best and was an enjoyable but forgettable read. This would be a good book for an afternoon on the beach or a bit of light vacation reading.


*I received this book free of charge from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This, in no way, affected my opinion or review of this book.





Visit the author online at jaciburton.com, Facebook and follow her on Twitter @jaciburton

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16 August 2012

Get A Clue - Review


Get A Clue by Jill Shalvis
Publication date: September 2005 (reprinted January 2008)
by Brava
ISBN 10/13: 0758211384 | 9780758211385
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N

Category: Adult Romantic Suspense
Keywords: Romance, suspense, mystery, murder
Format: Mass market paperback, eBook
Source: Library


Synopsis:

All in one day, city girl Breanne Mooreland gets left at the altar, takes the flight from hell to her honeymoon--alone--loses her luggage, and ends up snowed in at a Sierra mountains lodge run by the kookiest staff this side of the Addams Family. Oh, and there just happens to be a gorgeous naked man taking a shower in her suite who says he isn't going anywhere. Burned-out vice cop Cooper Scott is in serious need of this vacation, and he's not about to give up the only available room during a bad snowstorm just because an upset, okay, make that insane, woman is having a conniption fit. They'll just have to make the best of it--her side of the bed versus his. But when Cooper wakes up kissing the long, leggy Breanne, he has other thoughts. Part of him wants to prove that not all men are scum, and another part of him entirely wants to show her exactly what that honeymoon suite is intended for. But that will have to wait, because a screaming Breanne has just stumbled on a very dead body.

Review:

A snowed in cabin, a jilted bride, one sexy naked cop, a house full of suspicious servants, and one dead body all add up to a fun little read by one of my fave contemp authors.

A play on Clue, the story opens with Breanne making her way to her honeymoon cabin, without the groom. Stood up at the altar, she figures she can at least enjoy the paid for vacation. But instead of a cozy retreat, she finds herself snowed in with no power with Cooper, a very attractive ex-cop, and a hodge podge group of servants. When Breanne finds a dead body in the cellar, the inhabitants of the house have to figure out who the killer is before one of them is then next victim.

This would be a great beach read - fun, fast and not too serious. The murder mystery was not as exciting or scary as I had hoped. It was actually kind of slow and I wish it had been more suspenseful.

The best part of the book, for me, was the chemistry between Cooper and Breanne. They had some serious heat going on and I loved the smexy times. The book also had plenty of Shalvis's signature clever and oftentimes hilarious dialogue.

I really liked Cooper. Smart, sexy, and protective, I felt like he put with a lot when dealing with Breanne. She's pretty much afraid of everything and he kept saving her. She was a little neurotic for my tastes but again, the love scenes were hot, so it was worth it.

It's not my favorite Jill Shalvis book but I think fans will enjoy this peek into some of her early writing. Readers new to Shalvis should probably start with something more recent like her Lucky Harbor series.
 


Visit the author online at jillshalvis.com and follow her on Twitter @JillShalvis