reread:
i love this series and these characters oh my god

I brought this e-book for $1.99 and even that price was too much for this book. I was so disappointed with it. I can count on one hand how many books I haven't finished and this is one of them. The story idea sounded so appealing, but the execution of it was just awful. My biggest issue with this book was the way it was written. I am an avid reader and don't think I have read anything so poorly written in a long time. I cringed and rolled my eyes every time Ali said "Crapola" or "h-e-double hockey sticks". Really? Is she 11 or 12 years old? What grown woman says that? And what was with the author constantly using-hyphens-to-make-her-point-with-descriptions-of-things? It was really annoying to continually keep seeing this every page or two. I wont be reading the other books in this series, nor will I try anything else of this authors. I've been put off for life.

I got this as a kindle daily deal so was skeptical, but it actually turned out to be pretty good. The author actually gets It. Political points about Afghanistan (I know, right?); however having just seen Miss Representation I was a little bothered about the portrayal of women and men but again this is a romance novel so nothing out of the ordinary here. (Perhaps this is why I prefer historical romances I don't feel guilty about how women are seen because its probably not far off for the reality of how it was)

Review posted: Happily Ever After - Reads
Blog rating: 3.5/5

I’ve always liked the setup of the hero being the best friend to the heroine’s brother. The story starts with the heroine, Ali’s, brother Grigg dead and Nate having to deal with the events that led to his death. Ali is now being followed and only has one place she can turn, to Nate and his Black Knights Inc. A group running a motorcycle shop as a cover but are really working secret ops headed by Frank Knight. Ali needs help and turns to Nate even though she hasn't seen him since the day he brought her family news of Grigg’s death and the comfort they found together. They haven't spoken since and Ali needs his help.

Nate and Ali start putting together the steps Grigg took prior to his death together and find out he was doing one ‘off the books’ job working security detail in DC. The clues aren't adding up but a file Grigg sent to Ali might have the answers. Nate and Ali take off to get the file and run for their lives when the man responsible for everything wants to keep them quiet for good.

I liked the set up the motorcycle cover and the men in the group, alphas all with different talents and personalities. A lot of time is spent on the supporting characters and we get a great idea about who they all are and their roles not only within the Black Kinghts but how the inner relationships are coming together. Nate and Ali are a nice couple to read about. I really enjoyed Ali even though some of her phrases (h-e-double hockey sticks) got old and felt way overused. She was still an overall sweet character who was still dealing with losing her brother and finding herself in the middle of something she knows nothing about. She's loved Nate for years but after a warning from Grigg to stay away from his sister, Nate never acted on his feelings. Ali is shattering his resolve though and while the romance takes a long time to build back up, it’s very emotional for them once it happens again.

“You want me?” she asked incredulously.

“I’d say that’s undeniably apparent.”

“But you don’t like me.” Inexplicably, she was still pressed against his pulsing, aching like a month of Mondays erection.

Not like her? Was she crazy? “Of course, I like you, Ali.”

(…)

“So that’s why you’ve been acting so…so surly and disagreeable all these years? She asked in disbelief. “Because you want me?”

Surly and disagreeable? He hadn’t been surly and disagreeable. He’d been noble and honorable. Jesus. Couldn’t she tell the friggin’ difference?

Nate is a man a few words, he rarely smiles and getting a laugh out of him is near impossible. Ali brings all that out in him slowly and my favorite scenes revolved around Nate retelling the past and his last moments with Grigg. He felt comfortable enough with Ali and knew she deserved as much of the truth as he was able to give her about what happened. The reality of his capture, which ultimately ended in Grigg’s death is heartbreaking and following along with Nate as he tells Ali the truth was very emotional; I loved seeing that side of him come out. Their storyline, along with the other members of the Black Knights, is what kept me into the story and invested. The suspense storyline surrounding Grigg’s death and the files with information he sent to Ali, it was ok, but it didn’t have me on the edge of my seat. The people drove the story for me and getting to know Nate, Ali and the supporting cast helped propel not only Nate and Ali’s story, but set up future books as well.

One of those future books (book 2) will be Frank and Becky. Talk about an explosive couple. Although calling them a couple would have Frank blowing a gasket. He’s 13 years older than Becky and the age difference bothers him a lot in this book. He’s attracted to Becky but just won’t let himself go there. Becky wants him to go there, 100%, but he cuts her down and at the end of the story this potential couple is going their separate ways. Becky has such a sharp personality, I can’t imagine her being gone for long and I’m excited to see her wear down Frank.

Even though Grigg has died prior to the story starting, it still felt like he was an additional supporting character. There is so much we learn about this man and to be honest, I went and checked the next books’ blurbs just to see if his name was mentioned as being a lead. I didn’t want him to be truly gone! He’s very present in this book, mostly living on through Nate and Ali’s memories, and I wanted him to a have a book. I wanted him to be that character that wasn’t really dead and showed up to surprise everyone. Yeah, not happening, but he ended up being one of the most interesting characters in this book.

This series has promise and I enjoyed and had fun reading book 1. Book 1s in any series are usually hit or miss for me, a lot of world building tends to pull them down. Once we get through who’s who and what’s what and the action and romance got going, the pace picked up quite a bit. Even though the suspense storyline didn’t really grab me, the relationship between Nate and Ali was interesting and I always have a soft spot for a guy who’s dealing with past pain and finally finding the person that allows him to let it all out. Nice start to this new series and I’m looking forward to seeing what’s next.

Nice blend of action, drama, and romance. I really liked the way Walker manages to straddle the fine line between intense drama and overly dramatic.

Ok. This was a solid start to this series. You have to remember that this book lays the groundwork as far introducing the characters. I really like Ali and Nate and their story. They have known each other for ever so their HEA is well earned. I'm so excited to read Frank and Becky's story.

Fun and serious all at once

This is a great read. Romantic and suspenseful and sweet and crushing. The mystery was presented from both the hero's and the villains point of view which I sometimes can't stand but it works for this book. I well check out the next one in the series.

Last minute ebook - don’t bother.

Really great story. I can't imagine what Nate was forced to do for Griggs, and I can completely understand Nate believing it would make Ali hate him. It was awesome to see during the story that Griggs had told Ali that Nate was a good man and she could do much worse than him. Funny how he threatened Nate with his life if he even thought about going after Ali! But it was a great story with mystery and danger and sex and love. I'm definitely interested in continuing the series.

I absolutely loved this book. At times it made me tear up and at other times it made me laugh. I loved how realistic it was about Ali's reactions, she's a Kindergarten teacher after all.