Dark Diva Reviews

 Summary: Will Maggie be the stalker’s next victim or will Stephen step in to save the day?

My Very Special Agent is Book One of The Special Agent Series.

My Very Special Agent is a contemporary damsel in distress saved by a modern day knight story. The damsel in this story is a successful romance writer, Maggie Tyler, who is being stalked and threatened. Very afraid, alone, and in danger, she turns to the FBI for help.

Stephen O’Leary is the tall, dark, and handsome FBI Special Agent who is assigned to protect her. Upon meeting Maggie, Stephen is totally taken by this widowed beauty, a woman who possesses a kind heart and deep passions, passions that match his own burning desire.

Amidst danger, mystery, and the villain’s overwhelming desire to have Maggie to himself, she and Stephen take every opportunity to fulfill their burning desires.

But by doing so are they are unknowingly fueling the fire of burning desire the unknown stalker has for Maggie?

My Review:

Meet romance author Maggie Tyler and Special Agent Stephen O’Leary and prepare to engage in a suspenseful scorcher.  Despite a few flaws, I enjoyed Ms. Harris’s voice and writing style and was able to overlook those weaknesses.  I felt like Maggie and Stephen were actually sitting in front of me over a glass of wine and sharing their story with me. 

A little bit of intrigue mixed with sizzle. I give My Very Special Agent, 3 ½ Delightful Divas

Rated 3 1/2 Delightful Divas by Eliza!

Summary: Rocked to the core by traitors and spies, the Organization made an unprecedented move in bringing together six highly trained men to track down one rogue wolf: The Archer.

 There are three field agents: one at the top of his game, one hoping to retire, and another walking the line; a cold-blooded assassin who can use any weapon known to man; a demolitions expert who can’t resist the allure of fire; and a computer hacker with more tricks in his mouse than Houdini. This team is made up of the best of the best, and if it can’t succeed in this impossible mission, no one can. But no plan survives first contact with the enemy – especially when you can’t even find out who he is!

 Despite what a cluster the assignment is from the start, the six men try to get their act together to track down the rogue operative, and in the process they discover there’s more to life than the next assignment. Now it’s up to them to survive by working together and determining who the real traitor is: an unknown friend, a close-by enemy, or the Organization itself.

Review:

The Organization calls together their six most highly skilled and trained men to form an elite unit to bring down a bad agent, known as The Archer.  Thiago, Brandt, Nikolaus, Shawn, Carl, and Remi have to learn to work together because if they can’t catch The Archer, no one can.  Will they ever be able to find the unknown traitor with the assignment not going well and the six men not working together or trusting one another?

This highly suspenseful story with such a complex story and characters kept me on the edge of my seat, guessing what was going to happen at the next turn.  With so many main characters, I was worried that they would not be developed well.  However, Ms. Roux did an exceptional job of developing each unique character and their distinctive relationships with one another.  The story has so many twists and turns; the reader must pay attention or quickly get lost in what is happening.  This book kept me on my toes and falling in love with these men.  If you enjoy suspense and gay sex, you will not be able to put this book down!

Rated Five Delightful Divas by Melissa.  A Recommended Read!

Lady Sophia Donovan has everything a woman could wish for—a new-found family, the hard-earned respect of her peers in the corporate world, loyal friends, and an exciting lover.

Marco Willis is a spy. Tall, dark, handsome, and oh-so-virile, he’s long been accustomed to bedding women and securing information while between the sheets. But Sophie is unlike any woman he’s ever known. With her open, warm, and loving nature she not only gains Marco’s trust, she captures his heart. But is there more to Lady Donovan than meets the eye?

When a series of terrifying events threatens Sophie’s life, things really begin to heat up. Marco, the man she’s grown to love, is determined to protect her at all costs. How can he hope to win, though, when his opponent is a dead man, and his only weapons are Sophie’s secret past and a bunch of buried memories? In Flames—a scorching hot read that you won’t be able to put down.

Review:

Lady Sophia Donovan has moved from rags to riches.  Once poor and homeless, she now has money and position.  Now, the past has come back to haunt her and she isn’t so sure that she, or her new friends, will make it out alive.

Marco Willis can and always has gotten any lady that he wants.  He is a sexy spy who has used the ladies, in bed, to get the information that he needs for his cases.  Sophie is not like any woman he has ever been with and she is the only one to ever capture his trust and his heart.

After a series of events nearly costs Sophie her life, Marco is there to make sure that she stays alive and in his life.  The major problem is, though, that the suspect is dead.  How can he possibly win this battle for love and life?

In Flames by Melody Knight is the sequel to In Trysts.  That being said, this does not make for a good stand-alone title.  In order to understand all that is going on in In Flames, you must have already read In Trysts.  In Flames begins, basically, right in the middle of a story left of from In Trysts.  The relationships between Sophie, Marco, Peri, and Jake are already established.  If you haven’t read In Trysts, you are missing so much that is vitally important to In Flames.

The story moves along at a decent pace, but at times, I felt that the story did not flow as well as it could have.  Melody Knight did a good job of having an interesting story, along with likeable characters and in-depth relationships between her characters.  This story held a lot of action and suspense, keeping you on the edge of your seat, as well as passion, to keep you breathless.  Overall, I enjoyed this book, but I must stress, again, if you want to read In Flames, please read In Trysts first.

Rated Four Delightful Divas by Melissa.

 Eureka Point is the first novella in The Special Agent Series. Katie Montgomery, learns that her estranged husband, Craig Montgomery, has been deceiving her and is involved with a dangerous South American drug cartel. He becomes a fugitive and leaves Katie alone and in danger. The FBI is afraid that the drug cartel thinks Katie may know all about their drug operation, and to protect her the FBI assists her in assuming a new identity. Then enters Tom, the FBI special agent assigned to protect her. He is totally smitten with her and will do anything to protect her. They fall for each other but Katie cannot allow herself to give in and show her true feelings.

Unexpected twists and turns keep you on your toes as you root for Tom, who turns out to be the modern day knight in shining armor.

 Review-
Katie Montgomery’s life changes in the blink of an eye when she finds out her husband Craig is not who she thought he was. His disappearance and the FBI’s witness protection program gives her a new life in Eureka Point, California. She falls in love with the town, her new home, and the man the FBI assigned to guard her, Tom Owens. However, she cannot shake the feeling that something or someone is lurking in the shadows, ready to jump out and turn her life into upheaval all over again.

It is clear from the beginning that the author has a very unique, storytelling voice. Writing in the first person, Betty Ann Harris uses vivid, sensory description and does a very good job of foreshadowing the events of Katie’s fast-paced story, which is slowed a bit by the author’s tendency to tell instead of show the action. The first few pages are a bit slow but the action picks up with Craig’s disappearance. All the characters throughout the story are well-drawn, well-motivated, and believable. The prose is clean and concise, making the story all the more enjoyable. Dialogue is effective and appropriate, making the reader wish for more intermixed with the narrative. Though the plot is suspenseful, there is a refreshing healing theme throughout the story.
31/2 Divas

Just a Job- Eliza

Have you ever read Edgar Allen Poe or Stephen King on a "dark and stormy night," all alone and horrified at the vision of the world they manage to conjure up? The eerie scenarios of "The Masque of the Red Death" and "Pet Cemetery" give us hair-raising questions about what it would be like if things really were that macabre.

Just A Job follows in their creepy footsteps. What would population control be like if it included not only pregnancy prevention, but also the removal later in life of those judged to be supernumerary, extra, one too many?

Just A Job explores this question through the eyes of those who must carry out such executions, the mandated Services. All the players in this frequently repeated drama must work together to bring those so selected to their demise in ways that encourage both compliance and cooperation.

Michelle Crenshaw is a master Executrix specializing in the swift and hopefully painless decapitation of Clients assigned to her by the Council. Victoria Patterson, young, beautiful debutante, is second on her list for the day's work. Mirroring the élan of Anne Boleyn or Lady Jane Grey going to the block, the Executrix looks for exquisite attire, detailed ritual, and the promise of top of the line post-mortem care to carry Victoria through her last moments of life.

What are the most unique moments in the victim's life really are all part of a day's work for Michelle and her team. With chilling normalcy, they focus on the carefully scripted sequence of their work as they guide Victoria to her fate with as much ease and dignity as possible. From initial contact to final tribute, those responsible are challenged to maintain themselves in the face of what their profession calls them to do.

How do they keep it all Just A Job?

Review:
Not for the faint of heart!  This dark and unsettling story is a must read for those who enjoy macabre tales.  Once I started reading I couldn’t stop.  Ms. Storm draws you into the twisted Realm that is this story’s setting and you can’t get out.  With this account of life ruled by Tarot, you will gain a graphic, morbid view of a beheading.  The characters take it all in stride, because it happens multiple times a day.  It is after all Just a Job.  (I couldn’t resist this line!)

Ms. Storm obviously did a lot of research for her story, and really had to get into her characters minds to write it so vividly for us to read.  Well done!

I give Just a Job, 4 Delightful Divas

 Her Secret Life...
Beth Walsh seems like such a demure housewife. Taking care of her attorney husband and doing volunteer work, the young woman is someone you'd meet at a church social. But Beth has a secret life. While her husband works, Beth slides into what she calls her "slut clothes" and goes on the prowl. She becomes a completely different woman, wanton and uninhibited, with dozens of handsome strangers. Until she meets the one blindingly gorgeous stranger who will make her more than sorry for her secrets and lies. . .

Abbott Lowery is every woman's dream: handsome, muscular, with intense blue eyes that contrast with his thick black hair. Women want him. Men want him. But Abbott is deeply damaged, and inside lurks a monster just waiting to be released. When Beth Walsh pursues him, it pushes a deeply-buried rage to the fore and he becomes determined to punish her.

Beth meeting Abbott lights the fuse on a bomb. Its explosion leads to a tale of terror and desperation so intense it will sear everyone who knows them. High Risk is a story of secrets, tainted histories, murder, kidnapping, and an ending so brutal and shocking readers will be left breathless.

Review:
Beth Walsh, is an upscale housewife with a secret, potentially deadly double life in High Risk. Beth, the perfect attorney’s wife by all appearances is living one big lie. As soon as her husband Mark goes to work, her secret addictions to sex and shopping kick in. Beth likes her clothes expensive, her sex tawdry and her personal stress level at maximum speed. It’s a sick ritual that turns into a nightmare when she hits on gorgeous sociopath, Abbott Lowery in a discount store. Determined to punish Beth for her sin of adultery, Abbott turns Beth’s world upside down in a mounting campaign of terror that threatens her sanity, her marriage and her life.

High Risk is a high-octane thriller that asks the question: What if you picked up the wrong guy? A cautionary tale with surprising twists and turns, it is a page turner despite an unlikable heroine in Beth and increasingly sadistic, tortured psycho in Abbott. Rick R. Reed knows something about addiction, which actually makes Beth a sympathetic character in spite of her extreme behavior. Abbott is also intriguing and original enough to stand out from the typical literary bunny-boiler. Reed’s intense pace, crisp dialogs and bare-boned yet atmospheric language make this a must read. You’ll want to sleep with the lights on and toss out your Phillip Glass CDs after reading this book.

Rated Five Divas by A.J Llewellyn. A compelling read!