Harvard's Education (Tall, Dark & Dangerous, Book 5) Review

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(More customer reviews)This is the fifth in Suzanne brockmann's S.E.A.L. series for Mira books. It is just as good as the first three. I thought the fourth EVERYDAY AVERAGE JONES was not as good.
Harvard is the only black member of this SEAL team, and we have been waiting for his story.
When FinCOM agents are training with SEAL teams anything can't happen, they have rules. Like only 8 hour days. No out of country training missions, limited runs, etc.
Joe Cat needs for them to realize that they can't do what the SEAL's can. One of the agents is P J Richards, a woman. He wants the members of his team to become friends with one of the FINK agents. Turns out the best agent is PJ.
Harvard has trouble seeing her as an agent and as capable as she is. This causes trouble between them from the start.
PJ is not a trusting soul either. The dance of working together and romantic attraction leads to other problems. Over the course of 8 weeks they manage to overcome most of their problems.
However, on a planned mission, fubar happens. PJ and Harvard are the only ones in place who can rescue Joe Cat who has been shot and captured by tangos. With several Marines dead, they know they only have one chance and very little time.
As with all of Brockmann's books everything works out at the end and we have a good time with these characters.

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A New York Times Bestselling AuthorFor eight weeks FInCOM agent P. J. Richards is being given access to the absolutely-no-women-allowed world of the U.S. Navy SEALs, and she isn't about to let anyone tell her she can't hack it. P.J. can't afford to be distracted by anything . . . or anyone. And that includes Senior Chief "Harvard" Becker, who believes there is no room for women in a combat zone. To P.J.'s mind, Harvard has a lot to learn.

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Over The Edge Review

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(More customer reviews)The Saltwater Cowboys are at it again, as they are charged with the rescue of 120 passengers on-board a hi-jacked plane which is forced to land in Kazbekistan. Joining the SEAL team in the covert operation is FBI hostage negotiator Max, agents Jules Cassidy (who merely is window dressing again) and Alyssa Locke, who continues her tortured romance with Lt. Sam Starrett., and Reserve shopper pilot Teri Howe.
This time out, it is crusty Senior Chief Stan Wolchonok who gets the love interest, though he tries numerous times to blow it by setting her up with hunky Lt. Mike Muldoon. Teri Howe is the pursuer, while Stan tries to steer clear of the whole enlisted verses office fraternization rule (which does not apply to reservists). Each step Stan tries to take away from her, she takes two steps forward. It is nice to see the least romantic of the SEALs show his softer side.
This one is fraught with so much tension and a pretty harrowing assault of one of the passengers (as the negotiation team has to sit by and watch and listen in abject horror). Negotiator Max wrestles with his growing feelings for the hostage, who is nearly 20 years his junior, and his inability to save her in time.
One thing I can do without is the WWII junk. I just skip over that stuff. It does not add anything to the story line other than additional pages. I like when they use an alternate font so that skipping is even easier!
I usually do not like serial books, but this particular series manages to make each book stand on their own merits. You really get to like the characters, and they pop up all over the series, but it is not a forced inclusion like some of the other stories I have read. I look forward to each new installment.

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Into the Storm (Troubleshooters, Book 10) Review

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(More customer reviews)It's the Saltwater Cowboys versus the Troubleshooters... as the two are pitted together in an exercise and competition of sorts. Troubleshooter Lindsey Fontaine is nursing a huge crush on vertically challenged SEAL Mark Jenkins (hey - I'm not the one who made his stature abundantly clear 25 times in the book). When she is chosen as the "victim" she has to work double time to prove her SEAL-worthiness. Mark is attracted to Lindsey, but has always wanted childhood goddess Tracy Shapiro. He thinks he might have a chance with her now that Tracy has broken up with her wandering eyed boyfriend Lyle. Again. But after the competition, it is Lindsey who lands in his bed, then races out of it when Tracy has another meltdown and turns to Mark for comfort.
When the competition proves successful, they decide to do it all over again... in the freezing cold mountains of New Hampshire. Tracy gets to come along as the victim, and Lindsey relishes in letting her know she can only bring one carry on. As they set out on the new excursion, the tension between Mark (who is now head over heels for Lindsey) and Lindsey is so thick you can cut it with a knife. But ever the professionals, they try to keep their feelings in check. During the exercise, chaos ensues, and then suddenly, Tracy is nowhere to be found, and falls unwittingly into the hands of a sadistic serial killer. Will the cowboys and troubleshooters find her in time?
There is so much going on in this story. And yet, it really lags. There are three potential romances, two of which are triangles. And a serial killer on the loose... each could be a story itself. While Izzy can be humorous at times, it got old really quick. I found that the only compelling romance was between Sophia and Deck, and that one is destined to play out longer than Sam and Alyssa.
Was it just me, or did Marc and Lindsey's romance sound eerily familiar, like perhaps Wes and Brittany from "Night Watch?" Vertically challenged guy in love with a woman they cannot have so they have a "casual" relationship with the next best thing that really turns out to be the best thing... It was a good read, but not one that would stand up to repeated scrutiny or readings. If this is your first SEAL 16 novel, go back and read an earlier one like "Over the Edge" first.

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Gone Too Far (Troubleshooters, Book 6) Review

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(More customer reviews)I absolutely LOVE this series; otherwise, I NEVER would have even considered buying a hardcover. I prefer smaller paperback books, but Ms. Brockmann can be credited for providing such an interesting world within a fictional US SEAL Team that I couldn't possibly wait for the paperback! I had to know how the outcome of the cliff-hanger from the last book. I had to know how Sam was going to win Alyssa back, after following their nail-biting, teeth-grinding exploits throughout the other books in this series. I had to know how the investigation would end and whether Sam's estranged wife and beloved daughter were really dead in that house!
I'm happy to say Ms. Brockmann delivers on all those unanswered questions... once again providing a thrilling mystery interwoven with great characters and plenty of love. Old friends are revisited and new twists keep the pace going full throttle. And again, the flashbacks to a WWII romance are an added bonus. Thank goodness, Ms. Brockmann hasn't "Gone Too Far", but has plenty more stories of wonderful characters to tell. I now look forward to Max and Gina's story! But in the meantime, I'll reread the series start to finish... it's just that good! Worthy of keeping. For those who aren't familiar with the Ms. Brockmann's US SEALs... this team's tales are great stand-alone stories, but are even better as a series. Their stories are found in the following books (in order):
1. Unsung Hero about Lt Tom Paoletti
2. Defiant Hero about Lt JG John Nilsson
3. Over the Edge about Sr Chief Stan Wolchonok
4. Out of Control about SEAL Ken Karmody
5. Into the Night about Lt JG Mike Muldoon
6. Gone Too Far about Lt Roger "Sam" Starett
She does have another series of 11 books on a different sexy SEAL team, some of which are being republished too. These are shorter books, without the interwoven flashbacks of the newer series. They are, so far:
1. Prince Joe about Lt Joe "Cat" Catalanotto
2. Forever Blue about Lt C. "Blue" McCoy
3. Frisco's Kid about Lt Alan "Frisco" Francisco
and Night Watch (formerly published as Wild Wild Wes) about Chief Wes Skelly, which is coming in September 2003.
(There are nearly a dozen books in this older series, so only the few above are easily obtainable. Hopefully the rest will be released again too???!!!)

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Night Watch (Tall, Dark & Dangerous, Book 11) Review

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(More customer reviews)Girls, if you're the saving type - you know, stray kittens, kicked puppies, men with low self-esteem so afraid of their emotions that they choose not to feel them - then Wes Skelly is the hero for you! He's so emotionally closed down that he only allows himself to feel much of anything when he's drunk (not a pretty sight!). This guy's going to need the mother of all savers!
And Brittany Evans is a saver if ever there was one! A woman who adopted a thirteen-year-old "juvie" to save him from foster care (he's now nineteen and a baseball prodigy) she's also a nurse and a very nurturing sort. But she's not nauseatingly sweet or annoyingly good. She's smart, sassy and on occasion a smart aleck and I liked her a lot. She fully recognizes her weakness for guys like Wes and so she tries to keep things light and casual when they are set up on a blind date. A sweet friendship results and it is clear that these are two people that truly like each other. All's well until she tries to help this intense emotional cripple to see the good and the positive in himself. Well she's really got her work cut out for her as we hear all about (she's a "talk it out" kinda gal) every issue Wes has: low self-esteem, height sensitivity, the death of a sibling, a cold, distant father, his possible drinking problem and his unrequited love for the wife of a friend. Phew! This guy either needs some serious therapy or an abundance of friendship and support from the most patient, understanding woman in the world! Lucky for him he meets Britt.
Don't get me wrong, I did like this story. But if you've got little patience for this particular brand of tortured hero, consider yourself warned. I'm a bit of a sucker for them myself on occasion, even though at times his problems seemed over the top. But Wes is a very likeable guy and worth the effort, though it seems Britt is doomed to a life of reassuring him (it seems she wouldn't have it any other way). And though I like Britt's character, we find out little about her other than what I've described above, that she's a great mom, that she's divorced from a guy who cheated on her and that she's jealous of Lana, Wes's unrequited love. Contrasted with the mountain of stuff we learn about Wes, she seems a bit short-changed (a chronic problem of almost all Brockmann heroines). But their friendship is sweet and their passion is hot! The background story of Lana's TV star sister's stalker, mainly serves to provide the expected, exciting SEAL Team Ten climax of the story.
If you are a fan of the Tall Dark & Dangerous series, I think you'll like this book. It's a quick and enjoyable read and it pretty much wraps up all the guys from Alpha Squad, though we are briefly introduced to "the new guy" Rio Rosetti. Could book 12 be in the works? A recommended read!

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Hollywood Nights . . . Leading To Hollywood DaysWhen U.S. Navy Seal Chief Wes Skelly was sent to L.A. on assignment, he agreed to go on a blind date with beautiful single mother Brittany Evans, sister-in-law of a fellow SEAL. After all, he had been secretly in love for years, albeit with a woman who belonged to another man. So what did he have to lose?Plenty, it turned out. Because suddenly the woman he thought he could never have was available. However, so was Brittany -- and not only that, she was in danger. Because of him. He knew he could keep her safe. But why was he increasingly certain that he was the one in danger?--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Breaking the Rules: A Novel (Troubleshooters) Review

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(More customer reviews)Well first of all let me mention, if you haven't read at least the past 4 or so novels of the Troubleshooters series, this is not the place to start. You will be lost and constantly thinking "Glehk - who are these messed up people and why on Earth should I even care?" And "Why in the world does that big girl put up with that total butthead anyway? Run Jenni! Run!!!"
The first 75% or so of the novel is completely bogged down in various forms of Gillman family dysfunction and the ways it has totally messed up the Gillman siblings - Dan, Eden and Ben. There are readers who enjoy angsty books and chapter upon chapter spent analyzing the ways parents can damage their children, with fists and with words. They are probably going to rate this book much higher than I have. I really can't say I'm one of them and on more than one occasion I almost put this book down for good.
I'll be honest, when I read my Navy Seals I really don't want to spend hours reading about them sitting around with tears in their eyes and talking about their feelings and how they've been victimized by society. Why is Dan such a jerk? Why is Eden such a slut? (excuse me, exotic dancer) Why has young Ben painted his finger nails black and is now walking around like a Marilyn Manson impersonator? No. Not for me, at least not from this author, because frankly - Brockmann really doesn't do this type of plot all that well. The characters are too one dimensional and stereotypical. These books she puts out anymore - it's like they don't even have characters. They have ISSUES which pose as characters.
I want ACTION. I want hi-jacked planes, romps through a jungle to escape the bad guys. I want thwarted terrorist plots and a couple of explosions. In other words, I want Suzanne Brockmann the way she USED to write.
In the final chapters the author seems to remember that she's supposed to be writing Romantic Suspense, and the suspense part of the story finally kicked in with kidnappings, rescues, shoot-outs with the bad guys and those Navy Seals finally doing what they do best, making our hearts pound. It really was almost enough to salvage the book, but take my word for it when I say this is no Over the Edge (Troubleshooters, Book 3) with Terri and Stan.


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