Review: The Ones We Trust by Kimberly Belle

This was a good book. It held my interest. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started the story. Takes place in DC, involving a former journalist. I saw one review compare it to an episode of Scandal, which I've never seen, but have some idea as to what it is about.

In the beginning, we're told about a story Abigail wrote - the one that ended her career. After exposing someone, the person committed suicide and Abigail left journalism due to her guilt. Initially, I thought the story would be about this particular case, but it gets mentioned a little bit, and then the focus of the story is on something completely different.

I felt like maybe there were too many "ripped from the headlines" issues happening in this book. Every time something else was mentioned, I thought of an actual news story that was similar.  I think maybe this book would have worked better if there had been more focus on one particular story line.

After receiving a mysterious envelope on her doorstep, Abigail finds herself doing research again and getting involved with the Armstrong family. Gabe Armstrong lost a brother in Afghanistan and he doesn't believe the story being told by the army. Coincidentally, Abigail's dad is the general involved in what appears to be a cover-up.

I guess I expected something more sinister and dramatic. The truth was certainly intense and a pretty big surprise, but not what I thought it was going to be.

Rather than a mystery/suspense story about a journalist uncovering government scandals, which is what I assumed this book was leading up to be, it turned out to be more about families and guilt and forgiveness and most importantly, trust.  There's also a bit of a romance happening in the story, but it's not at all the main point of the story.

I think I wanted more shocking scandal, more journalist in action and less family drama. Overall, it's a good book. I didn't love it but I also didn't dislike it.

I received a review copy via NetGalley.

Review: Need Me by Cynthia Eden

I very much enjoyed this book, the third in Cynthia Eden's Dark Obsession series.  This was another that I devoured while traveling - this one on the return trip from New York City.  Really the perfect kind of book to keep the mind occupied while waiting in an airport or passing the time on an airplane.  Fast paced, lots of action, danger and suspense, along with plenty of steamy romance.

I liked this one a bit less than the other two in the series, I didn't find the heroine to be as likable.  But I still enjoyed it.  The book is a stand alone, but I really liked how the same characters appear in each book.  I recommend reading all three, and in order.  Because I read them all so close to each other, it sort of formed one big story in my head.  

As in each of the stories, a woman in danger hires a body guard to protect her after she feels her life has been threatened.  In this case, the woman is the beautiful young wife of a man found dead.  She's accused of the murder, but she claims she's innocent - even though she can't remember the details of the night her husband died.  Now she's worried the person who killed her husband is also after her.  There are several suspects, quite a few twists and turns.  And of course, the hot bodyguard falls for the woman he's protecting.  

I'd recommend this to anyone who enjoys quick, fun, romantic suspense.

I received a review copy via NetGalley.

Review: Want Me by Cynthia Eden

I began reading Want Me, the second book in Cynthia Eden's Dark Obsession series, as soon as I finished the first book in the series, Watch Me.

I was traveling from Dallas to Newark, NJ, on a Saturday, and I found myself looking forward to diving into this book.  This type of story is perfect for travel.  Lots of action and suspense and romance.  After I got on the plane, I was only slightly aware of the delay because I was absorbed into the book immediately.  Of course, then it turned into an hour on the runway, get off the plane, get on another plane and then another hour on the runway.  Flight was delayed again, this time something to do with catering.  Whatever the case, I finished reading this book before we landed and was able to start the third in the series - though I wouldn't get back to it until the return flight.

The stories are fun, not exactly literature or deep or thought provoking.  Beautiful woman in danger, hires sexy guy to protect her.  Their lives are in danger multiple times, lots of fighting with bad guys and gunfire, and along the way the couple falls for each other and has some very hot sex.  But what makes these books stand out, and what I especially like about them is that the women are really tough and badass.  These aren't weak, flailing beauties dependent on a man for their very survival.  They hold their own.  Yes, they hired a professional body guard because they're in danger.  But they aren't curled up a corner watching their bodyguard save them.

In this book, Sophie, a successful attorney, hires Lex for protection, when she suspects she is being stalked.  She's made a lot of enemies and she's got friends with some shady pasts.  This makes for a lot of twists and turns in their attempts to figure out who is stalking her.  Lots of suspense here.  Along the way, as their lives are put in danger numerous times, the intensity of the situation ramps up Sophie and Lex's attraction to each other.

I love these books.  Love this series.  For a moment, after I climbed onto the plane and noticed my excitement at having a few uninterrupted hours to read this book, I thought of how odd it might seem that I like these books so much.  I almost felt a craving for them.  In another review I described the book as "mind candy."  It's danger, action and romance.   All the fun things that don't exist in my real life.  I feel like there's an essay topic there waiting to be explored.  Why an independent, educated woman gets so much satisfaction in stories about big, strong protective men?  Maybe because in the real world, in my experience at least - I have no statistics to back this up - big, strong, hot men don't like strong women.  They'd prefer someone frail, someone who needs them.  But in books, it's okay for a woman to be strong, and in books like this, the men respect that, they think it's sexy.  This may be why I love books like this.  Perfect escape from the real world.

Like I said, essay topic I'll explore further at some point.  For now though, I highly recommend this book - this whole series, really - to anyone who wants an action packed story with plenty of suspense and romance.

The book works as a stand alone, but I'd recommend reading the whole series, because they're really good and the characters reappear in each story, which I think adds to the story.

I received a review copy of this via NetGalley.

Review: Watch Me by Cynthia Eden

Late last night, I got the text letting me know work would be closed due to inclement weather.  Not completely a surprise, as there was already a thick layer of sleet on the ground.  For a brief moment this morning, I considered using the unexpected day off to clean house, so I wouldn't have to spend so much time doing that during spring break next week.  But all the World Book Posts I was seeing on social media convinced me reading a book was a better idea.  (Not that I needed a lot of convincing.)

I wanted a book I could finish during the day.  Something quick and fun, something with plenty of danger and romance.  I wanted what I consider to be mind candy. Having read and loved Cynthia Eden's Mine series, I figured Watch Me, the first of her new romantic suspense series, Dark Obsession, would be a safe choice.  Every once in a while, I do make good decisions, and this was one of them.

Fast-paced, plenty of action, suspense and a very steamy romance.  Your typical "boy gets hired by girl's dad to protect her from stalker, and girl and boy end up falling in love as he's protecting her from crazed stalker."  No, actually, there's a bit more to it than that.  Like the body guard had worked for the dad years before, when dad was a big shot government official, and that's when he fell in love with the daughter, but he was too professional to act on those feelings.  The woman he loved took this as a rejection and was very hurt.  Now he's not working for her dad, or at least she doesn't think he's working for her dad.  That gets a little complicated.

One of the things I very much enjoy about this book is that the women - even though they have men who want to save them and take care of them - are perfectly capable and willing to take care of themselves.  From the daughter who doesn't want to be controlled and is willing to fight to save herself and the people she loves to the police officer who makes clear she can get a promotion without having her boyfriend call in any favors - these women are great.  I can never get enough of this in books and I will always return to authors who feature women like this in their stories and recommend their work to others.

This book reminded me quite a bit of the books in the Mine series - the guys have the same type of job and similar backgrounds and the romance has that same type of intensity.  But I loved the Mine series, so I am perfectly okay with the similarities.  I have every intention of continuing to read as many of these books as are released because I enjoy them quite a bit.  As I was reading this I was thinking of how the love story almost has a Heathcliff and Cathy-like quality in that the love borders on unhealthy obsession.  But the characters are willing to acknowledge that they may not exactly in a healthy state of mind, (the series is called Dark Obsession) and while in reality that might be a little distressing, in a book, it makes for a very enjoyable read.  (And to be clear, in case it wasn't apparent, Wuthering Heights is my all time favorite book.)

Glad I read this, made for some delicious mind candy.  I've already started reading the second book in this series, Want Me.  Would recommend this to anyone who wants to read a fun, sexy romantic suspense novel.

I received a review copy via NetGalley.