The good, the bad, and the moronic

Two books. Two sets of protagonists. Both heroes are or were law enforcement. Both heroines are being chased by hit men. Seemingly similar, right? Then how can two books be so different?

Last week I finished two books: Extreme Danger by Shannon McKenna and Hot by Julia Harper (aka. Elizabeth Hoyt.) Large defining characteristics were commonalities between the two books. The end products, though, were vastly different.

Extreme Danger

Shannon McKenna

The book starts off well enough with Becca Cantrell escaping to remote Frake's Island to avoid the press. Her fiance (now ex) was caught the night before the wedding in a compromising situation. His ex was giving him some oral pleasure while he was driving and he crashed his car into a tree. Not so smooth for a guy aiming to be a politician. Also, the teeth marks must have been pretty bad.

Becca decides she has been too staid and boring. She needs to take risks! So after downing a bottle of wine she sneaks over to the neighbors house to take a clandestine swim... in the buff. This would be fine if the house was still own by the uber rich computer geek, but it has recently been bought by an international mobster. Not so good.

Nick catches Becca swimming in the buff. Who is she? Is she an assassin? Is she a test sent by the mobster to tempt him into betraying his cover? Is she just some stupid chick who stumbled in at the worst possible time?

Thus begins Becca's involvement with (and near destruction of) Nick Ward, undercover freelance operative trying to take down the international baddie. They strike enough sparks off one another to start all of California on fire. These two have some hot, raunchy sex. Sadly, I needed more than that. As intense as the story (and their smexin) was, I did not believe in their romance. I just could not buy into their love and HEA. Becca just found out the man she loved was getting his tootsiepop licked by another woman. Her judgement is men is atrocious. Nick does not trust anyone, to the point that he betrays Becca and nearly gets her killed. Yup, that' the basis for a lasting relationship. Sorry. I just can't buy it.

Hot

Julia Harper

Where Extreme Danger was serious and intense, Hot was lighthearted and fun. Bravo to Ms. Harper/Hoyt! Turner Hastings is sassy, fun and capable. When the bank she is working at is held up at gun point by Yoda and Spongebob, she sees her chance. In the ensuing chaos, Turner steals the contents of a safe deposit box and hits the road. You see, she has a criminal to catch and the items she stole just might be the key. John MacKinnon is one of the FBI agents called in to investigate the bank robbery. From the moment he sees Turner on the surveillance tapes his attention is captured.

For the first portion of the book, the two never meet. John is chasing after Turner, trying to apprehend her for the crime. Turner is trying to find proof that her uncle was innocent of embezzlement. Remaining out of John;s reach is essential. She is damn good at this! From the get go John makes contact with Turner via her cell phone. Soon the two begin talking more frequently than is altogether necessary for the investigation. By the time John captures Turner he is on her side and ready to be inside of her. Hot damn, baby! These two are hot.

I really liked this book. There are funny moments, sexy moments, incredibly intense moments. This book has two strong, likable main characters. Other fabulous mentionables: John and his handcuffs, the best dog EVER, two idiot bank robbers who have to have been based on Beevis and Butthead. Whenever there was a chapter devoted to the bank robbers on the run, I would end up in tears laughing. The dialogue between them was like listening to two of my junior high school students try to mastermind a bank heist. And the end of the chapters? Priceless. The dialogue and action would be going along and it would all end with a sentence like:

Then Bucky attacked. Then the cop car drove by. Then they fell in the swamp.

Two books with such similarities, yet so very different. If you were to pick between the two go with Hot. I'm not sure if I liked it as much as The Raven Prince (the only other book of hers I have read so far), but it is a fun romp. Definitely worth it.

Book Club: Unsung Hero

Title: Unsung Hero

Author: Suzanne Brockmann

Genre: Romantic suspense

Today is the day! BC Day (Blook Club Day.) It is time to let your opinions be heard.

What is your overall opinion of the book?

As the first book in a series, how do you feel Ms. Brockmann did at world building? Did this book make you want to continue on with the series?

How do you feel about the secondary WWII storyline?

Any other thoughts you would like to share?

Any other questions you would like to pose to us all?

Long live the Alpha male

Hello, my name is Shannon, and I am an Alpha-holic.

Yes, that's right, I do love me some Alpha males. Sweet, sensitive, and tender? pfft! Only if he is also strong, arrogant, sarcastic, protective, slightly possessive, lusty, and fully in charge (or at least tries to be.) When it comes to my reading habits, the beta guys never win. I need the likes of Roarke, Sam Donovan, and, well, any of the Brockmann men. These men with the tough exterior and the soft inner filling, they just do it for me. They are pure sex in a uniform/cowboy boots/leather/fur/fangs. Hey, if I am going to read for escapism, I want to read about the kind of guys I will never meet (and might not really want to get involved with in the real world.)

It is with big sighs and fluttering heart beats that I share two books with you.

Title: Dreaming of You

Author: Lisa Kleypas

Genre: Historical Romance

I know, I am really late to the party when it comes to Derek Craven. Now that I am here? My love for him is only outmatched by the size of his attitude. Mmm, baby. That is one amazing hero. Damn!

From Ms. Kleypas' website

In the shelter of her country cottage, Sara Fielding puts pen to paper to create dreams. But curiosity has enticed the prim, well-bred gentlewoman out of her safe haven -- and into Derek Craven's dangerous world.
A handsome, tough and tenacious Cockney, he rose from poverty to become lord of London's most exclusive gambling house -- a struggle that has left Derek Craven fabulously wealthy, but hardened and suspicious. And now duty demands he allow Sara Fielding into his world -- with her impeccable manners and her infuriating
innocence. But here, in a perilous shadow-realm of ever-shifting fortunes, even a proper "mouse" can be transformed into a breathtaking enchantress -- and a world-weary gambler can be shaken to his cynical core by the power of passion...and the promise of love.

I loved both the hero and heroine. Sara was sweet and innocent, yet sassy at the same time. I worried that she might be TSTL, since the book opened with her all alone in the slums of London, but she proved pretty quickly that she was more than a pretty face. Derek was so wary and closed off. You hurt for him. You wanted to comfort him. You wanted to smack him upside the head for ever being involved with that evil, crazy skank Lady Ashby. Seriously, that bitch was CRAZY! Derek is so Alpha. So prickly. So sexy. The way he completely held himself back from Sara, controlling all his impulses to try and protect her from his wickedness. Ugh! And when she leaves London and he pines for her.... pines! le sigh

If you love the Alphas like me, and have not read this, go out and get your hands on a copy of Dreaming of You. You will not regret it!

Grade: A- (There was a strange little lull in the story right after they get married, but the action gets moving again.)

Title: White Lies

Author: Jayne Ann Krentz

Genre: Romantic Suspense (with a big psychic twist)

From Amazon

As a level 10 para-sensitive, Clare Lancaster can tell for certain when someone is telling the truth. So Clare knows that her half-sister, Elizabeth Glazebrook, isn't lying when she says her husband, Brad McAllister, is trying to kill her. But Brad is murdered instead, and as the first person to find his body, Clare becomes the Stone Canyon Police Department's favorite suspect. With no evidence to tie her to the crime, Clare is allowed to return to her old life in San Francisco. But six months later, her father, Archer, summons her back to Phoenix. Her unique gift tells her not only that there is more to her father's new business "consultant" Jake Salter than he would like her to believe but also that she is in grave danger.

If you like your Alphas with a psychic twist, Jake Salter is your man. This man is hawt! Ms. Krentz has always fed my Alpha love. She may actually have been my introduction to that fine species of men. She continues to assuage my yearning with White Lies. Jake is a Hunter, a psychic detective, of sorts. He is passionate, arrogant, mysterious, sexy. Roawr! Clare is a strong, no-nonsense chick. Don't mess with her, and don't lie to her. She will know. I love the world JAK has created, the paranormal senses she has gifted her characters with. Human lie detector. A Hunter. These are well thought out skill sets. The reader was first introduced to them in her book Second Sight, a historical in which the Arcane Society mythology is established. White Lies is the second book in this "series". It is a pretty loose series since the books are jumping back and forth between historical and contemporary. The books share the mythos and the legends, but you can read each as a stand alone.

Grade: B+

Force of Nature

Title: Force of Nature

Author: Suzanne Brockmann
Genre: Romantic Suspense

Florida private investigator and ex-cop Ric Alvarado's life is spiraling out of control. His beautiful new Girl Friday, Annie Dugan, is far more interested in fieldwork than filing, and despite Ric's best efforts to ignore the attraction, sparks are flying between them. Then one of Ric's clients turns femme fatale and tries to gun down an innocent man. Thanks to quick thinking and even quicker reflexes, Ric comes to the rescue, only to learn he's done a very good deed for some very bad people. Suddenly Ric finds himself deep undercover with Annie, working for notorious crime boss Gordon Burns. One mistake from Ric's painfully inexperienced partner and they're both dead.

FBI Agent Jules Cassidy's life isn't in much better shape. For years the FBI has been trying to prove Gordon Burns's ties to terrorist activity. Now, thanks to Ric and Annie, Jules has found a way into the lion's den. But in the course of his investigation, he comes face to face with Robin Chadwick, the charismatic but self-destructive and closeted movie star for whom Jules feels a powerful attraction. Robin's in town promoting his latest film -- and Gordon Burns is a star-struck movie buff. With Robin and Jules's help, Ric and Annie are soon entrenched in Burns's organization, surrounded by killers who may already have executed an FBI infiltrator. Before long the couple realizes that many more lives than their own will be at stake if they make a false move. As the heat between them reaches dangerous levels, so do the risks they're willing to take -- in the line of duty, for the sake of loyalty, and in the name of
something that runs even deeper...

I have a crush. A big crush. It is true devotion. No matter what, I always stand by my love. Luckily, my love does not disappoint me. Oh no, I am consistently given only the best. Who is this crush? Suzanne Brockmann. Well, her writing and characters. Oh how I love them. No one does Alpha men like Brockmann. What is it about an Alpha man that is so compelling? Truly, given the following choice , what would you choose?

a) beautiful, sensitive, sexy, compassionate, gentle, sweet man

b) beautiful, strong, sexy, snarky, tough, badass, dangerous (with a hidden sensitive center and a bit of a jealous streak) man


If you answered A then you are either lying or have terrible taste in men! There is just something about an Alpha man that just makes my fallopian tubes twitch. Roawr!!! So when I saw Force of Nature on the shelf at my library I knew I was in for a treat. Brockmann has been feeding my love of the Alpha for years with her Troubleshooters/Navy SEAL series. This was book 11 of the series. Yes, that's right, the 11th story chock full of Alpha cock..iness. Mmmm.

Annie and Ric have known one another since she was 11 years old. She grew up with him hanging around, a friend of her brother's. Years of longing, misconceptions about one another's personal lives, and a boat load of smartass teasing. How could you not love this couple? Add to that the fact that we met Ric briefly a few books ago. A typical Brockmann move, introducing us to characters before they are featured.

Speaking of characters we have met before: Jules Cassidy. Oh my sweet Jules! How I adore thee! If you were really real we would be BFFs. Yeah yeah, I know Alyssa is your BFF, but I could take her. What? She is a sniper? She could eliminate me from 5 football fields away? Oh, but she would be more likely take me down in hand to hand combat? Um, could I bribe her with chocolate instead? I mean, there was that hawt scene many books ago that included her, Sam, and a bottle of chocolate sauce.... guh!

ehem. Back to Jules. He has been one of my favorites for years. We first met him 10 books ago. Yeah, Brockmann has been teasing us with him for years. Funny, sweet, strong, bad ass, funny, beautiful, and gay. The big gay FBI agent. He is fantastic. The poor guy has had his heart shredded and, finally, FINALLY, we get his story. Enter Robin Chadwick, action star, sister of Janey who's married to Cosmo (go read their book). Two years ago he was confused and so far in the closet he couldn't see the fabulously coordinated outfits hanging in front of him. Now he has come to term with his sexual orientation, but is still ensconced among his Armani suits. The yearning and love is so heartbreaking.

I loved this book. It has Alphas, hawt sex, longing, love, action, bad guys, crime, Sam Starrett, humor, Max Bhagat, a crazy little dog, a crazy ex-porn star... the list just keeps going. A week or so ago a discussion was brought up over on Dear Author regarding romance novels dealing with big issues. FON is packed full of them: homosexuality, prejudice, alcoholism, suicide, cancer. All are handled well, but the issues between Robin and Jules are dealt with in a sensitive and honest way. This is due in large part to the fact that Brockmann's son is gay. Having such an important inspiration in her life has helped her to bring real beauty to these two men. While I will probably not hunt out GLBT romances, I have loved reading about Jules' journey. Best yet? There is a novella that focuses on their wedding!!! I can't wait to pick it up!

Now, all of the being said, if you have not read the other books in the series DON'T YOU DARE read this book. Start from the beginning. Trust me on this. Tom and Kelly (the H&h in the first book) are the only ones you do not meet before they receive their own book. Oh, and they don't disappear after getting their HEA. You keep getting peeks into their lives. LOVE it! So yes, go check out these fabulous Alphas from SEAL team 16 and Troubleshooter. Trust me, if you like them strong, loyal and hot... these boys are for you.

Grade: A