A man born to protect After a major loss, Brody Carter found a home with the London office of McKay-Taggart. A former soldier, he believes his job is to take the bullets and follow orders. He’s happy to take on the job of protecting Dr. Stephanie Gibson while the team uses her clinic in Sierra Leone to bring down an international criminal. What he never expected was that the young doctor would prove to be the woman of his dreams. She’s beautiful, smart, and reckless. Over and over he watches her risk her life to save others. One night of pure passion leads him to realize that he can’t risk his heart again. When the mission ends, Brody walks away, unwilling to lose another person he loves. A woman driven to heal Stephanie’s tragic past taught her to live for today. Everything she’s done in the last fifteen years has been to make up for her mistakes. Offering medical care in war-torn regions gives her the purpose she needs to carry on. When she meets her gorgeous Aussie protector, she knows she’s in too deep, but nothing can stop her from falling head over heels in love. But after one amazing night together, Brody walks away and never looks back. Stephanie is left behind…but not alone. A secret that will change both their lives A year later, Stephanie runs afoul of an evil mercenary who vows to kill her for failing to save his son. She runs to the only people she trusts, Liam and Avery O’Donnell. She hasn’t come alone and her secret will bring her former lover across the world to protect her. From Liberia to Dallas to Australia’s outback, Brody will do whatever it takes to protect Stephanie from the man who wants to kill her, but it might be her own personal demons that could destroy them both.
Amazon | iBooks | Google Play | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords
MY REVIEW:
3.5 stars
***
This was a pretty good book, but I did have a few issues with it. This is Brody and Steph's story. Steph is a doctor at a clinic in Africa, aiding the local people. At one point, Brody was there as a bodyguard to Steph, working with Liam and Avery. They were friends, but right before Brody left, they had a one night stand. That night resulted in Steph having Brody's baby. She tried to contact him many times but he never answered her calls. Fast forward a year or so, now Steph's clinic is under attack. She managed to escape with her baby and she runs to Liam and Avery, who are very good friends of hers, in the US. The gang at McKay Taggart help Steph investigate who wrecked the clinic. And Brody finds out that he has a child. He feels extremely guilty for not answering Steph's calls. He actually did really like her, but he felt he wasn't good enough for her so he wanted to push her away by not answering her calls. He wants to make it up to her and be with her, but she pushes him away. She feels like she doesn't deserve happiness. Then the baddies who wrecked the clinic surface and there is much more that they want from Steph. They threaten to hurt her and everyone that she loves. It is kind of a big mess, but it all turns out in the end after much suspense, some sexy times and some frustration.
As a backstory, when Steph was a teenager, she fell asleep at the wheel one night and killed Avery's then husband and daughter in an accident. Avery has forgiven her and helped her get over it, go to medical school, etc. Since then Steph has devoted her life to helping save others, but she carries a crippling guilt for her past.
I liked this book but I didn't love it. It had parts that I liked and parts that bothered me. I liked Brody a lot. I was worried that I was going to be annoyed with his character but he ended up being sweet and just wanting to do the right thing by Steph and his baby. Steph on the other hand really annoyed me. She pushed him away and kept playing the martyr, willing to even give up her life because she felt like she deserved it (after her mistake as a teenager). She did this through the whole book, even being willing to leave her baby without a mother. She needed major counseling. It was very tiresome and at times I wanted Brody to find someone better. The couple took way too long to get their act together and be together. They were both wishy washy, back and forth on whether they should be together, Steph especially. It was much more angsty than I prefer. All of the pushing away really hampered my enjoyment of the book. The couple was separated and fighting so much and then the issue is resolved so quickly. It was a drama fest of epic proportions. I definitely needed more closure at the end and an epilogue to see them in an actual relationship in the real world. Still, the writing was good and I enjoyed the story for the most part. I liked catching up with the McKay Taggart gang too.
Overall, I liked this book, but didn't love it. Still, I love this series and I look forward to more from Lexi Blake!
As a backstory, when Steph was a teenager, she fell asleep at the wheel one night and killed Avery's then husband and daughter in an accident. Avery has forgiven her and helped her get over it, go to medical school, etc. Since then Steph has devoted her life to helping save others, but she carries a crippling guilt for her past.
I liked this book but I didn't love it. It had parts that I liked and parts that bothered me. I liked Brody a lot. I was worried that I was going to be annoyed with his character but he ended up being sweet and just wanting to do the right thing by Steph and his baby. Steph on the other hand really annoyed me. She pushed him away and kept playing the martyr, willing to even give up her life because she felt like she deserved it (after her mistake as a teenager). She did this through the whole book, even being willing to leave her baby without a mother. She needed major counseling. It was very tiresome and at times I wanted Brody to find someone better. The couple took way too long to get their act together and be together. They were both wishy washy, back and forth on whether they should be together, Steph especially. It was much more angsty than I prefer. All of the pushing away really hampered my enjoyment of the book. The couple was separated and fighting so much and then the issue is resolved so quickly. It was a drama fest of epic proportions. I definitely needed more closure at the end and an epilogue to see them in an actual relationship in the real world. Still, the writing was good and I enjoyed the story for the most part. I liked catching up with the McKay Taggart gang too.
Overall, I liked this book, but didn't love it. Still, I love this series and I look forward to more from Lexi Blake!
NY Times and USA Today bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband, three kids, and the laziest rescue dog int eh world. She began writing at a young age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn’t until she started writing romance and urban fantasy that she found the stories of her heart. She likes to find humor in the strangest places and believes in happy endings no matter how odd the couple, threesome, or foursome may seem.
No comments:
Post a Comment