Feeling Fictional: Tonya Burrows

Showing posts with label Tonya Burrows. Show all posts

Monday, 24 February 2020

Review: Fragmented Loyalty - Tonya Burrows

All I want is to leave my past of criminal hacking behind. Oh, and ditch the blackmailer who has been dogging my every move for the last three years.

The plan: Hack my way into being part of Class Alpha, a training program for a secretive organization that rescues hostages the government can’t or won’t go after. Save the world and make enough money to pay back my blackmailer—solves all my problems, right?

The complication: Sweet, nerdy, and unbearably sexy Eric “Harvard” Physick. Harvard is my ideal man, but he’s also my instructor. Seriously a no-go, except we can’t seem to keep our hands off each other.

My blackmailer isn’t willing to let me off the hook, though, and a series of freak accidents—deadly accidents—sends Class Alpha into a tailspin. And the more I get to know Harvard, I start to realize his past is just as troubled as mine.

Am I the cause of this chaos...or is he?

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
It's been a couple of years since Tonya Burrows published the last book in the Hornet series but I was always hoping we'd get a book for Harvard so I was really happy when I found out about this new spin off series Hornet: Class Alpha, starting with Fragmented Loyalty. Although this series is focusing on the team Hornet have been training Harvard is a member of the original group and you'll see a lot of familiar faces from the previous books showing up as teachers and mentors. I think you could probably start with this book but you'll definitely have a much fuller reading experience if you read the original series first.

Harvard is Hornet's tech wiz and he's been instrumental in many of the team's rescue missions thanks to his surveillance skills and the backup support he's offered. He's an expert hacker and a total nerd, also really sweet and very protective of his team. All Harvard has ever wanted is to find a place to belong, as a child genius who graduated school far earlier than most he never really fitted in with his peers and with a vindictive alcoholic mother he never had much support at home either. The Hornet team have become his family and what he wants more than anything is to prove himself to them.

Sami is also a hacker extraordinaire but one who got caught up with a bad group and crossed some lines as a child and was sent to juvie at the age of 14. Her family disowned her after she was released so she was left completely alone at 18 with nothing and nobody. She made the mistake of agreeing to a favour to a mystery benefactor in exchange for the money she needed to survive and three years later she's still waiting for the hammer to drop. Being accepted into Hornet's training program was a chance for Sami to turn her life around, she wants to make something of her life but when her benefactor finally calls in their favour things go downhill fast.

I was so happy to be back in this world, as far as the series timeline goes not much time has passed, in fact some of this book touches on previous events just from a different perspective, but in reality it's been a while and I enjoyed catching up with the characters. I worried for a minute that I wouldn't remember everyone but it all seemed to fall back into place very quickly. Harvard and Sami are both great characters, I loved the geeky banter between them as they fan out on things like Star Wars and Game of Thrones and it was very easy to imagine being friends with them. They have a lot in common and they had wonderful chemistry but I did find it a little frustrating that neither of them opened up about their secrets a little sooner. It worked for the story but put a bit of a downer on their budding romance. It wasn't too hard to look past that though and I was totally rooting for them to work it all out.

The story has everything I'd expect from a Hornet novel, great romance, lots of intrigue and a nice amount of action. I'm enjoying getting to know the rest of the Alpha Class and I'm very happy that Wolfe's book is up next.

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Release Blitz: Fragmented Loyalty - Tonya Burrows

Today we have the release blitz for FRAGMENTED LOYALTY by Tonya Burrows! Check it out and be sure to order your copy today!

Title: Fragmented Loyalty

Author: Tonya Burrows

Genre: Contemporary Romance

About FRAGMENTED LOYALTY:

All I want is to leave my past of criminal hacking behind. Oh, and ditch the blackmailer who has been dogging my every move for the last three years.

The plan: Hack my way into being part of Class Alpha, a training program for a secretive organization that rescues hostages the government can’t or won’t go after. Save the world and make enough money to pay back my blackmailer—solves all my problems, right?

The complication: Sweet, nerdy, and unbearably sexy Eric “Harvard” Physick. Harvard is my ideal man, but he’s also my instructor. Seriously a no-go, except we can’t seem to keep our hands off each other.

My blackmailer isn’t willing to let me off the hook, though, and a series of freak accidents—deadly accidents—sends Class Alpha into a tailspin. And the more I get to know Harvard, I start to realize his past is just as troubled as mine.

Am I the cause of this chaos...or is he?

Order Your Copy Today:

Universal Buy Link

Exclusive Excerpt:

A finger poked my ribs from the table behind me, and, face blazing, I refocused on Jean-Luc at the front of the

room. I’d been so caught up in fantasizing about Harvard, I’d completely missed the last ten minutes of the lesson.

Even worse, it had been obvious enough that Wolfe felt he had to intervene. Excuse me while I melt into a puddle of red-hot embarrassment.

My only saving grace was that Harvard hadn’t noticed.

Everyone else had, and I’d get major flak from all of the guys later, but Harvard had been too absorbed in the lesson. Yay for hyper-focused nerd boys!

“Hey,” Wolfe whispered and nudged me again. He pretended to wipe drool from his mouth. “You got a little something…”

I shot him the bird. “Keep it up, Wolfey. I’ll send your browser history to your mother.”

“Go ahead.” He flashed a grin. “I erased everything incriminating.”

Thoroughly amused, I raised a brow. “You think I can’t find erased data? Oh, you poor, naive luddite.”

His grin dropped away.

I returned my attention to the front of the room, but by that point, the lesson was completely lost on me. I was just biding time until class ended—but then I noticed Jean-Luc had stopped speaking. The room had gone completely silent, save for an evil villain laugh that started soft and grew in volume.

I looked up at the whiteboard. The projection screen had gone black. An 8-bit video game character with blinking red eyes filled the screen. Underneath it flashed the words

LET’S START THE GAME.

About the Author:

Tonya Burrows wrote her first romance at age 13 and hasn't put down her pen since. Originally from a small town in Western New York, she suffers from a bad case of wanderlust and usually ends up moving someplace new every few years. As of now, she lives in the Pacific Northwest with The Boyfriend, a diva schnoodle, a plucky pug-mix, and #writercat.

When she's not writing about hunky military heroes, Tonya can usually be found kayaking, hiking, or road tripping across the country. She also enjoys painting and B grade disaster movies.

Connect with Tonya:

Friday, 27 April 2018

Review: Reckless Honor - Tonya Burrows

Jean-Luc Cavalier has only ever cared about three things: sex, booze, and the dangerous missions he undertakes with HORNET. Laissez les bons temps rouler is more than a Mardi Gras motto—it’s the way he lives his life. But all that changes the night he rescues Dr. Claire Oliver from deadly mercenaries.

Now he can’t get the gorgeous blond virologist out of his head.

Claire is running for her life. Someone wants her antiviral research and they’re willing to kill anyone and everyone to get it. She has no one to turn to except a womanizing Cajun with a silver tongue and devastating smile.

But when an ultra-deadly virus decimates the Niger Delta, saving Claire and her research becomes the least of HORNET’s concerns. The virus has all the markings of a bioweapon and Nigeria is only the testing grounds...

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
I've been a fan of Jean-Luc since the beginning of this series, he's that kind of fun-loving, irresistible ladies man who you just know would break your heart but you can't help falling for anyway. He's charming, funny and would be great company but he's never been one for sticking around in the past. We saw his first meeting with Claire in the previous book, she is the doctor he helped escape from the hostage situation and she is one of the rare women who turned him down flat which of course makes him want her even more. Ever since the previous book Claire has been on the run from the mercenaries who killed her research partner and who are now after her so they can steal her life's work. Jean-Luc knows she is in trouble and he's determined to find her first so that he can protect her.

This series is getting better with every book and things take an even darker turn in Reckless Honor, much of the story is set in the middle of a hot zone where Claire and her colleagues are trying to save the lives of hundreds of people who have been infected with a deadly virus. Jean-Luc has guessed she'll be there trying to help and he knows the mercenaries after her won't take too long to catch them up but she refuses to walk away when there is a chance she could save lives by staying. I loved how strong Claire was, she was working in horrific circumstances and it would have been easier for her to run away and let someone else deal with it but she cares about her patients and wants to make a difference. She's a lot more serious than Jean-Luc but he brings out a more light hearted side of her and they make a really good match. I think what I liked most was that it wasn't just Jean-Luc walking in and rescuing a damsel in distress, yes Claire is in trouble but she gives as good as she gets and she rescues Jean-Luc as many times as he saves her.

There were some really interesting revelations about a certain HORNET team member in this one that definitely has me curious to see what is going to happen next in this series. I have a feeling some of the characters are going to be in for a bumpy ride but I really want to see them all get their own HEAs.

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Thursday, 26 April 2018

Review: Code of Honor - Tonya Burrows

Jesse Warrick used to consider himself a kickass medic, but a teammate’s brush with death has him questioning everything. Now he’s been promoted to field commander of HORNET. How can he lead when he can’t get his shit together? And how can he focus when the sexy new recruit makes him want to break the rules?

Lanie Delcambre can’t seem to find solid footing within the elite hostage rescue team. Worse, the man she’s loved for most of her life is now her boss. She’d kill to act on the chemistry between her and Jesse, but she can’t risk ruining her career.

It was only supposed to be a training mission. No live ammo, no hostages, and no real bad guys—only someone didn’t give the bad guys that memo. When their hotel is taken hostage with half of HORNET inside, Jesse and Lanie are the team’s only hope of escaping alive...

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
Jesse is the HORNET medic who has saved the life of several members of the team but he can't get over the death of one of his own and the guilt is eating away at him and knocking his confidence. Throw in the distraction caused by his estranged fifteen year old son coming to live with him, his growing attraction to fellow team member Lanie and his promotion to field commander and something has got to give. Lanie has been friends with Jesse's cousin for years and she fell in love with him when they were still children, he broke her heart when they were teenagers but she's never gotten over her crush on him so working in close contact is torture. When a training mission goes horribly wrong and half of the team end up being taken hostage it's up to Jesse and Lanie to get them all out alive. To do that they have to put their feelings to one side but in a high adrenaline situation things are about to come to a boil.

I've loved Jesse ever since I first started reading the HORNET series so I was really looking forward to his book. He's always been the light hearted joker of the group but recent events have changed him and he just can't get past the fact a team mate died on his watch. It was heartbreaking for all of the team but Jesse has taken it even harder because he just keeps thinking that there should have been something he could have done to save him. He has a history of depression and is close to being dragged back down into a dark abyss by his demons but his son and his team need him so he's trying really hard to fight for them. I really enjoyed the romance between him and Lanie, they have history but it was all fairly innocent so there is no bitterness or sense of betrayal between them - it's all about unexplored lust and long term friendship instead which I loved.

The beginning of this story was a little slower than previous books in the series but that was to give us a chance to catch up with some of the previous couples and to get a feeling for the amount of history there is between Jesse and Lanie. We also get to meet Jesse's son Connor who added an interesting dimension to the story. Once half the team is taken hostage the action takes of at an accelerated pace as Jesse and Lanie work together to try and get everyone to safety. I really enjoyed the suspense side of this story and it's all set to continue straight into the next book Reckless Honor where Jean Luc is set to take the lead.

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Review: Too Wilde to Tame - Tonya Burrows

For three years, ballet teacher Natalie Taggart has lived across the hall from grumpy, reclusive, sexy Greer Wilde. Save for a handful of hellos and the occasional heated glance, they never spoke to each other.

Until the morning Greer lands on her doorstep, bleeding, beaten, and bullet-riddled.

Greer doesn’t need or want her help. He has only one goal: revenge. And nobody—not his brothers, and certainly not his too-hot-for-his-sanity next-door neighbor—is going to get in his way.

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
I've been looking forward to Greer's story ever since we first met the Wilde brothers, as the oldest he was the one who managed to keep the family together after their parents died and that's a lot of pressure to put on the head of one sixteen year old boy. You might wonder how a teenager managed to get custody of four younger siblings and keep a roof over their heads, well in this story we find out that and so much more. Greer gave up everything to keep his brothers safe and happy and he's been paying the price of that alone for years working black ops for a secret arm of the military.

If you've read the previous books you'll know that Greer has been missing for months and his brothers are going out of their minds looking for him. It all started with a mission that went to hell and it ended with a lead that could take Greer right to the person who murdered their parents. Of course that's if he lives long enough to confront the culprit which is looking less and less likely as he comes under attack from all angles.

Natalie is Greer's neighbour but she's never really spoken to him apart from to exchange a few hellos, she has been keeping an eye on his place for his brothers but the last thing she expects to find on her doorstep is a battered and beaten man who refuses to let her take him to the hospital. Natalie is at a loss, she can't leave Greer alone and injured but she doesn't know how to help him without calling for reinforcements.

I loved this story, I've waited such a long time to find out what was going on with Greer and it was definitely worth the wait. He's had the weight of the world on his shoulders since he was so young but he has helped to raise four incredible men so you just know he is going to be an amazing guy himself. Natalie has been through her own struggles and she isn't willing to put up with any of Greer's crap which I really appreciated. She called him out when he said or did something stupid and I think he needed someone like that in his life. There were also some great family bonding moments with him and his brothers and I really appreciated seeing them all living their own happily ever afters. This was a fab ending to the Wilde Security series but I'm glad we have a few more HORNET books to go and I'm hoping we might see a few of the brothers pop up as side characters occasionally.

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Friday, 20 January 2017

My Ten Most Anticipated Contemporary Romances for the First Half of 2017

The Contemporary Romance Reading Challenge is hosted by Andi's ABCS. As part of the challenge they are setting a different topic every month that participants can choose to join in with which I think is a brilliant idea so you can expect a post like this to appear at random most months throughout the year.

The January Prompt is:

Ten Most Anticipated Contemporary Romances for the First Half of 2017

(Links below will take you to the book's Goodreads Page)

Are any of these books on your list? Which other contemporary romances should I be looking out for?

Monday, 4 January 2016

Review: Running Wilde - Tonya Burrows

All's fair in lust and seduction . . .

Lark Warren can never stay one person for too long, so when her past starts to catch up to her, she hops the first bus out of DC, steals a new name, and goes deep into hiding in New Orleans. Unfortunately, all it takes is the wrong set of eyes to blow her cover. Enter Vaughn—the man she once let get too close to her real self.

Ex-Navy SEAL Vaughn Wilde has one objective: drive Lark back to DC to face charges for identity theft—which would be easier if he could forget the three lust-filled weeks he shared with her before she disappeared. With each passing mile, he can’t ignore the heat still sparking between them . . . or the fact he has led her enemies right to her.

Lark can’t stay with Vaughn, not when it will put him in the crosshairs of the dangerous man she’s spent the last five years running from. But Vaughn is determined to keep her safe—even if it means she’ll run off with his heart all over again.

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
Vaughn may be Cam's identical twin but personality wise they couldn't be more different, Vaughn is the intense and broody one who takes life very seriously but that's probably because deep down he feels things more than most and he doesn't want anyone else to realise he's so sensitive. We got a glimpse of the great chemistry between Vaughn and Lark in the previous books but then Lark did a disappearing act leaving Vaughn confused, hurt and angry. Lark has covered her tracks well but Vaughn is nothing if he's not persistent and he is determined to hunt her down and get answers. As it turns out Lark had a very good reason for running and now Vaughn has brought her enemies straight to her door putting her life at risk. No way he's going to walk away and leave her in trouble though so he calls on his brothers and a few friends to help keep her safe.

I have to say I absolutely loved Vaughn, in fact I think he might even be my favourite Wilde brother so far which is saying something because they've all been fab! I don't know what it is about a dark and broody hero that does it for me but it totally works in this case, especially when you discover that underneath that tough surface Vaughn has a gooey marshmallow centre. He loves his brothers but watching them all settle down and find love has made him realise how much he is missing out on and just when he thought that he might be about to find the same happiness Lark did a runner on him. He's hurt and angry at what he feels is a betrayal but no matter how much Lark frustrates him all he really wants is to make sure she is safe and well. Oh he likes to pretend that he's planning on handing her over to the authorities for identity theft but we all know he'd never go through with it.

I'm not going to tell you about what Lark is running from or whether Vaughn and the others are able to help her fix her problems, you'll just have to read the book if you want to find out, but instead I'll mention how great I thought she was. She's smart, resourceful and a survivor who escaped from a horrendous situation and is now fighting hard keep herself alive. Yes, she's stolen people's identities but she's only ever used their names to find employment and has never run up debts by taking out credit under her assumed identities. It would have been easier for her if she'd been willing to take that extra step but she's not a criminal by choice and all she really wants is to be able to settle down and live an honest life.

I did have a few minor issues with the plot but it's really hard to say what it was that bugged me without giving spoilers. I just felt that a few things at the beginning were a little too convenient when you realise how they tie into Lark's past and I also wasn't that pleased with the turn that things took when Cam was captured. I would have liked Lark and Vaughn to have discussed things like adults and for her to have put a little more faith in him from the beginning. Like I said those were minor things though and I still really enjoyed this story. They are a great couple with fantastic chemistry and I was rooting for them to figure out a way to solve Lark's problems. I also loved getting to catch up with the other Wilde brothers as well as a couple of the HORNET boys. I'm hoping that means we're going to get books for Marcus and Jean-Luc sooner rather than later but what I REALLY want to know is where is that elusive final Wilde boy Greer has got to and what kind of trouble he's in?

Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Previous Cover

Paperback / Kindle:

Wednesday, 9 September 2015

Review: Wilde at Heart - Tonya Burrows

He has everything under control. Except her.

Reece Wilde put everything in his life on the backburner to protect his brothers and their struggling company, Wilde Security. With a major contract on the line, Reece can't afford any mistakes...like getting caught in a red-hot, X-rated moment with wild child Shelby Bremer, who's more trouble than he can handle. Now he's being blackmailed.

Shelby's mile-long impulsive streak gets her in more trouble than she'd like to admit. Between her sister's wedding, her coffee shop set on fire, and getting down and dirty with the groom's brother, things are definitely coming off the rails. With both their careers and their safety on the line, Reece is determined to keep them both safe...even if it means a Vegas-style shotgun wedding.

But gambling on a wild card—and a wild soul—is risky...and sometimes, it can get a guy killed.

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
Reese is the most responsible of the Wilde brothers and he works all the hours possible to make sure the family is financially secure. He's a tech geek and his heart belongs with his own software company rather than the family's security firm but Wilde Security can't survive without his investment and it's causing a lack of funds within his own business. His only hope is to secure more financial backing but his rich potential investor has some very conservative ideas and Reese has to keep his nose clean until the deal is signed. The last thing he needs is to get involved with wild child Shelby. It's bad enough that she's his little brother's sister-in-law but her it's her knack for finding trouble that is likely to get him into trouble. Unfortunately, after getting caught on camera at the worst possible moment Reese is now facing a potential scandal unless he can get a blackmailer off his back.

Shelby didn't have the best childhood and she made more than a few mistakes of her own but she has tried desperately to turn her life around. She has a reputation as a trouble maker but she's actually a lot more sensible than everyone gives her credit for, she's also hard working, intelligent and determined to stand on her own two feet. She's been crushing on Reese since the moment she first saw him but she is keeping so many secrets that she knows she has no hope of holding on to a relationship with him. Shelby is stuck between a rock and a hard place, she's trying so hard to do the right thing but someone has power over her and they aren't willing to let her walk away from her old life completely.

I really enjoyed getting to know these two, they are complete opposites but in spite of all their differences they're actually pretty perfect for each other. Reese can be too buttoned down and reserved while Shelby is more outrageous and fun loving but together they are much more balanced. I have to admit there were times when I was annoyed at the way Reese tried to change Shelby but that didn't last long and once he realised how special she was I loved the way he encouraged her to be herself and showed her how important she was to him. Nobody has ever really put Shelby first and it was nice to see Reese was the one who would finally break that pattern.

Wilde at Heart was a great romance with a nice amount of mystery and suspense, there is danger at every turn as the couple are trying to unravel a blackmail plot as well as figure out who is behind a spate of arson attacks all while trying to play the part of a respectable couple to woo Reese's potential investor. It was nice to catch up with the other Wilde brothers too, we see how the previous couples are getting along and also got to know the others a little better. I have very high hopes for the rest of the series and I can't wait to see them all get their own happily ever after.

Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Previous Cover

Paperback / Kindle:

Wednesday, 25 February 2015

Review: Broken Honor - Tonya Burrows

Ice-cold and unbreakable, Travis Quinn is the HORNET team's hard-ass. No weaknesses. Except, of course, for the accident that not only destroyed his career as a Navy SEAL, but left terrifying blanks in his memory. But Travis remembers everything about Mara Escareno—the curve of her lips, the feel of her body...and how he walked out on her suddenly six weeks ago.

Mara could never resist the dangerously sexy Travis, which is probably how she ended up pregnant and disowned by her family. But before Travis can fully process the news, Mara is kidnapped by his enemies and plunged into the violent, merciless world of human trafficking. They want Travis—and the information locked within his damaged memory—no matter the cost. And now Travis's enemies have discovered his only weakness...Mara.

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
Broken Honor is the third book in Tonya Burrow's HORNET series and although each of the romances work as stand alone stories I would recommend reading the series in order to get the most out of watching the team bond together as a solid group of brothers. I've enjoyed every one of these stories so was expecting big things from Travis and he delivered on every level. This series is just so much fun to read and I'm always excited to get my hands on a new instalment.

We already knew that Travis has been suffering with blackouts and memory loss since the car accident that cost both him and Gabe their careers as SEALs but they have since built the HORNET team into something that they are very proud of. Travis knows his time with the unit is running out though, it is getting harder and harder to hide his blackouts and on the last operation he ended up putting other team members at risk so he is facing the very difficult decision of having to walk away from everything he has worked so hard to build. Travis and Mara had a hot fling six weeks ago but Travis ran scared when he realised he was starting to develop feelings for her, now Mara is pregnant but before Travis has a chance to step up she is taken hostage to be used against him. Travis knows he doesn't have much of a future and that he has nothing offer a woman like Mara but he will do anything to keep her safe. His last job with the HORNETs is going to be his most important one yet but he wouldn't trust anyone else with the woman he loves and their unborn child.

I've liked Travis from the very beginning of the series but I have to admit there were a few times I wanted to punch him in the face for the way he treated Mara at the beginning of this book. He was scared to admit he had feelings for her so he walked away and left her but it was his reaction to finding out she was pregnant that really made me want to slap him. Thankfully he came to his senses very quickly though so I was able to forgive him fairly easily, especially because you can see just how much he adores her. Once he'd got his head around things he was brilliant and he was soon back to the guy I'd respected and started to fall for in the previous books. Mara is a great character too, she is strong and independent and although she wants Travis by her side for her pregnancy she is willing to do it without him, she won't put up with any of his crap and calls him on his bad behaviour when she needs to. They make a great couple and have fantastic chemistry, even when they're not in the best situations but what I really loved was seeing them working together to escape the situation they found themselves in. I also really pleased that although Mara never doubted that Travis would come to her rescue she didn't sit around waiting for him and took an active role in trying to save herself.

What I love most about this series is the bond between the team members and I've loved seeing this go from strength to strength throughout the series. The guys are bonded now and will always have each other's backs. This is tested a little when Jesse finds out that Travis slept with his cousin Mara, he is absolutely livid that Travis went behind his back and broke the bro code but they work things out in typical alpha man style. I've loved Jesse from the beginning and we get to meet his match in this story, I'm not going to tell you much about her but I will say that I think she's going to really put him through his paces and I absolutely can't wait to see it happen!

The HORNET series has been full of action and suspense but I think that the bar was raised even higher in Broken Honor. Tonya Burrows has been laying down the building blocks for Travis's story since the first book and we see a lot of lose ends tied together here. I didn't find this book quite as heart wrenching as the previous instalment but I absolutely loved the epilogue and I was left with a huge smile on my face. The next book can't come soon enough!

Source: Received from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

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Monday, 8 December 2014

Review: Vision of Darkness - Tonya Burrows

A beacon of light...
Undercover DEA agent Alex Brennan doesn’t believe in the paranormal, despite the exhausting nightmares that reveal things he shouldn’t know. When sleep deprivation causes him to make a horrible mistake on the job, he is driven to find answers. Dreams guide him to a lighthouse in Three Churches, Maine, where he finds an inexplicable and comforting familiarity in the arms of the lighthouse’s beautiful keeper, Pru Maddox.

A whisper of memory…
Deadly misfortune has long plagued Pru’s family, the result of a curse “The Green Lady” placed on the lighthouse. Skeptical, Alex searches for less ghostly explanations, though he can’t deny that the town has had more than its fair share of disappearances, suicides, and accidents. As their passion simmers, Alex digs deeper, and his dreams turn violent, frightening, and very real.

A vision of darkness...
To keep Pru safe, Alex must embrace his abilities and unravel the lighthouse’s mystery. Except someone—or something—wants the past to stay buried...and will do anything to keep it that way.

D.I.E Squadron Series:
Vision of Darkness
Future titles and release dates to be confirmed

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
I'm a huge fan of Tonya Burrows, I've read and enjoyed all four of her previous stories and I know she writes great hot alpha men so to say I was excited about Vision of Darkness is an understatement. Especially when I heard it was her first paranormal romantic suspense and it was compared to Christine Feehan's GhostWalkers series because I love those books. Unfortunately I think I went in with my expectations too high and I ended up feeling a little disappointed.

I think my problem started with how quickly things develop between Alex and Pru, they've known each other for a couple of days when he is accused of murdering her cousin and she doesn't even consider the fact that he might be guilty. I get standing by your man but wouldn't you have a few seconds of doubt when it comes to someone you've just met? Especially when you're grief stricken over the death of someone who is practically a brother to you? It took a long time for me to actually feel any chemistry between them but by the time I did they were practically glued at the hip and it all came a little too late for me to feel fully invested in their romance. The fact that Alex lies to Pru (and everyone else) about his identity for absolutely no reason didn't help, I could understand his caution but not why he didn't at least talk to her about it.

Although the romance happened overly quickly I found this was a very slow book, we are introduced to a lot of characters and get to see things from a lot of different points of view which made it slow to read and harder to connect to. A lot of the POVs are from very minor characters so it gives you a good insight into who is up to no good from a very early point in the story - why else would we need to hear from them? - but we also got a half-hearted romance between Pru's friend and another relative that seemed completely pointless considering how it was left hanging and just added unneeded page time to the story.

On top of that both Alex, Pru and Alex's friend and fellow D.I.E. Squadron member Nick all make some ridiculously stupid decisions that consistently put Pru in harm's way and left me wanting to bang my head against the nearest wall. The worst was when Alex realises that he's been set up to drive 5 hours out of town to get him out of the way. Does he call Nick and Pru to warn them that they could be in danger? No, he just turns around and starts the 5 hour drive to get back to them. It's not like this is a historical story in the time before mobile phones & just one little phone call could have alerted Nick to the potential danger and saved a whole lot of trouble for Pru. That's only one example of the idiotic behaviour on display but I can come up with several more without even having to think too hard about it.

Now, I've mentioned a lot of things that I didn't like about this story and perhaps I'm being overcritical because I know how much I love Tonya Burrows' other stories but Vision of Darkness wasn't all bad and there were things I liked about it. The ghost was creepy, there were parts of the mystery that it took me a while to figure out and on the whole I liked most of the characters when they weren't being idiots. I'm intrigued by the idea of the D.I. E. Squadron and definitely want to know more about their abilities. The ending also left me desperately wanting to find out what happens next for one character in particular so I'm definitely planning on picking up the next book in the series. I am hopeful that the series will just go from strength to strength now that some of the world building is in place and I still have a lot of confidence in this author's ability to draw me into her stories.

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Paperback / Kindle:

Blog Tour: Vision of Darkness - Tonya Burrows (+ Giveaway)

Vision of Darkness by Tonya Burrows

A psychic DEA agent works to unravel the mystery of a cursed lighthouse and falls in love with it’s keeper, a traumatized former chef. VISION OF DARKNESS is the first in the brand new D.I.E. Squadron romantic suspense series and will be released December 1, 2014. Fans of Christine Feehan's Ghost Walker series, or Rebecca Zanetti's FORGOTTEN SINS, will love this new series from Tonya Burrows!

Title: Vision of Darkness
Author: Tonya Burrows
Series: D.I.E. Squadron #1
Genre: Paranormal Romantic Suspense
Release Date: December 1, 2014
Word Count: 100,000
Format: Digital eBook
ISBN: 978-1503095441
Preorder: Amazon

Synopsis:
A beacon of light...
Undercover DEA agent Alex Brennan doesn’t believe in the paranormal, despite the exhausting nightmares that reveal things he shouldn’t know. When sleep deprivation causes him to make a horrible mistake on the job, he is driven to find answers. Dreams guide him to a lighthouse in Three Churches, Maine, where he finds an inexplicable and comforting familiarity in the arms of the lighthouse’s beautiful keeper, Pru Maddox.

A whisper of memory…
Deadly misfortune has long plagued Pru’s family, the result of a curse “The Green Lady” placed on the lighthouse. Skeptical, Alex searches for less ghostly explanations, though he can’t deny that the town has had more than its fair share of disappearances, suicides, and accidents. As their passion simmers, Alex digs deeper, and his dreams turn violent, frightening, and very real.

A vision of darkness...
To keep Pru safe, Alex must embrace his abilities and unravel the lighthouse’s mystery. Except someone—or something—wants the past to stay buried...and will do anything to keep it that way.

About Tonya Burrows:
Tonya Burrows wrote her first romance in 8th grade and hasn't put down her pen since. Originally from a small town in Western New York, she’s currently soaking up the sun as a Florida girl. She suffers from a bad case of wanderlust and usually ends up moving someplace new every few years. Luckily, her two dogs and ginormous cat are excellent travel buddies.

When she's not writing about hunky military heroes, Tonya can be found at a bookstore or the dog park. She also enjoys painting, watching movies, and her daily barre workouts. A geek at heart, she pledges her TV fandom to Supernatural and Dr. Who.

Connect with Tonya at: Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | GoodReads

Giveaway:

To celebrate the release of Vision of Darkness Tonya is giving away a Lighthouse Locket + signed copies of SEAL OF HONOR and HONOR RECLAIMED. You can enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter form below, the winner will be contacted directly by Tonya so she can arrange to send out the prize.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Don't forget to check the other stops on the blog tour:

Dec 1st ~ 3 Partners in Shopping, Nana, Mommy, & Sissy, Too! and For the Love of Bookends
Dec 2th ~ CMB Writes
Dec 3th ~ MsRomanticReads
Dec 4th ~ Literary Treasure Chest
Dec 5th ~ Parajunkee’s View
Dec 8th ~ Becky on Books and Feeling Fictional
Dec 9th ~ I Smell Sheep and Read Your Writes
Dec 10th ~ Reading Between the Wines Book Club and Bibliophile Mystery
Dec 11th ~ Seeing Night Reviews
Dec 12th ~ Archaeolibrarian – I dig good books!
Dec 15th ~ Red Hot + Blue Reads
Dec 16th ~ Bea’s Book Nook
Dec 17th ~ Reviews by Crystal
Dec 18th ~ Becky on Books and Romance Junkies
Dec 19th ~ The La La Land of Books and Kit ‘N Kabookle

Tuesday, 27 May 2014

Review: Honor Reclaimed - Tonya Burrows

Former Marine sniper Seth Harlan is new to HORNET and anxious to prove he can still do his job despite an ongoing battle with PTSD. He remembers all too well what it’s like to sit inside an enemy camp, praying for rescue and waiting for death, so when a wounded veteran contacts HORNET to rescue a buddy that got left behind, all sorts of nasty memories strain his newfound stability.

An interview with a runaway Afghani child bride leads photojournalist Phoebe Leighton to an arms deal involving a suitcase bomb powerful enough to wipe out a mid-sized town, and she realizes this is one battle she can’t win on her own. Forming an unlikely alliance with a ragtag team of military and government delinquents, she meets Seth, a sniper carrying as many emotional scars as physical, who impresses her with his steely will and ignites passions within her she thought long dead.

Suddenly this mission is about a lot more than an abandoned soldier. Racing against the clock, Seth, Phoebe, and the rest of HORNET struggle to stop that bomb before it reaches its final destination: The United States.

HORNET Series:
SEAL of Honor
Honor Reclaimed
Broken Honor
Code of Honor
Reckless Honor

Wilde Security Series:
Wilde Nights in Paradise
Wilde for Her
Wilde at Heart
Running Wilde
Too Wilde To Tame

HORNET: Class Alpha Series:
Fragmented Loyalty

Visit Tonya Burrows' website for more information

Review:
I've become a huge fan of Tonya Burrows since I read SEAL of Honor last year and I love both her HORNET and Wilde Security series. I've been dying to find out more about Seth since he was first introduced in Wilde Nights in Paradise so to say I had high hopes for Honor Reclaimed is an understatement and I'm very happy to say that it's now my favourite book by this author. If you're new to this series I'd highly recommend reading SEAL of Honor first because there is a lot going on within the team that you'll only know about if you've read their entire history. The HORNET books do have a slight crossover of characters with the Wilde Security series and there is a suggested reading order on the author's website but both series can be read entirely separately if you prefer.

Seth is an ex-marine and the newest member of the HORNET team, he spent 15 months as a prisoner of war in Afghanistan and the torture he endured has left him both physically and mentally scarred. He's suffering from extreme PTSD and the rest of the team don't trust him not to fall apart in a difficult situation so he hasn't exactly been made to feel welcome. When Greer Wilde asks for their help rescuing a fellow soldier who was captured in a very similar situation to Seth the team pull out all the stops to get to Afghanistan to rescue him. It means Seth facing his worst nightmares but there is no way he can leave someone in enemy hands when he knows exactly the kind of torture he will be subjected to.

Phoebe is a photojournalist who travels to some of the world's most dangerous places investigating women's rights and she is in Afghanistan helping her friend with a shelter she has set up for women and girls whose lives are at risk. The newest resident at the shelter, a young girl who was forced to marry a terrorist and who nearly ended up as an unwilling suicide bomber, gives Phoebe information about an attack her husband is planning. Phoebe knows she can't stop the attack on her own and she turns to Seth and the rest of the HORNET team for their help.

I love a damaged hero and Seth is about as damaged as they come. He may have recovered physically from his injuries (apart from the scarring anyway) but he is an emotional wreck. He has no self esteem, doesn't feel connected to the rest of his team and most of the time he feels completely worthless and subhuman. My heart absolutely broke for him and the more we found out about what he had suffered the more amazed I was that he'd even survived. There are some quite distressing scenes of torture - not just flashbacks from Seth but also of the newly captured hostage Zak who the team are out there hoping to rescue - but none of it is gratuitous and it didn't overshadow the rest of the story. Just knowing that there are soldiers who have probable been in (or are currently in) that kind of terrifying situation is horrifying though and it gives you a new appreciation for the risks our armed forces take with their lives.

Phoebe is a great heroine for Seth, he pushes away the people he cares about because he's scared to let anyone close but Phoebe sees through that and calls him out when he acts like an idiot. She refuses to let him get away with anything and he needs someone who is going to be forceful with him and not put up with his crap. I loved that she saw through his scars and saw the man he really is, she wanted to give him more self confidence but she loved him in spite of his prickly personality and the way he constantly pushed her away. They are well matched personality wise and I loved how brave and feisty she was, it doesn't hurt that they have fantastic chemistry too.

I was so annoyed with how unsupportive the rest of the team was of Seth in the beginning. It's a difficult situation because they need to be able to trust that he's not going to break down when they need him the most and end up putting all of their lives at risk so I could understand why they were wary of him but at the same time I desperately wanted them to give him a chance and start treating him better. Ian in particular was really annoying me and I enjoyed seeing him get taken to task by Phoebe. The team is still fairly new and they're all getting used to working together which leads to some interesting situations but I enjoyed the banter and watching them all bond more by the end of the book. This series definitely has more focus on the action so while the romance never takes a back seat there is a lot more going on alongside it. The team are risking their lives in the hope of saving Zak and there are some nail biting sections when I was really worried that not everyone was going to make it out alive. Honor Reclaimed brought me to tears on more than one occasion and I loved every minute of it. I can't wait to see the rest of the team all get their own happy endings and I'm excited that we still have so many books to look forward to.

Source: Received from Entangled Publishing in exchange for an honest review

Other Reviews:
If you have reviewed this book on your blog please leave a link to your review in the comments & I'll add the link here.

Previous Cover

Paperback / Kindle:

Release Day Blast: Fabulous May Titles from Entangled Select!

Whether you’re looking for a romance that makes you laugh, makes you ‘walk the plank’, keeps you guessing, or stars your favorite paranormal, look no further. Select books have the single-title stories you crave, and the longer length you need to really get ‘lost’ in a great book. To find out more about their titles, chat with authors, participate in special events, and to find out what books are coming next, visit the Entangled website, follow them on Twitter, and like their Facebook page.

Today I'm happy to be featuring Select's May releases:


A Hornet Novel Available in Print and eCopy! Find out more! Giveaway	A Sanctify Novel Available in Print and eCopy! Find out more! Giveaway


Never show fear to a demon. Special $0.99 Introductory Price! Find out more! Giveaway	Save the Dragons Special $0.99 Introductory Price! Find out more! Giveaway


A week together could be just the cure she needs... Only 99 Cents! Find out more! Giveaway	It's never the same old song... Only 99 Cents! Find out more! Giveaway