Title: Striking Distance Series: I-Team
Author: Pamela Clare
Read copy: eBook
Published: November 5, 2013
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101626348
ISBN-13: 9781101626344
Her past is a secret—even to her.
Discovering it will be the most dangerous move of her life.
TV reporter Laura Nilsson, known as the "Baghdad Babe," spent eighteen months in an Al Qaeda compound after being kidnapped live on the air. Two years later, she's still wondering why.
No rescue mission in Javier Corbray's fourteen years as a Navy SEAL affected him the way Laura's rescue did. No woman has stirred his protective instincts the way she has. And he wants her more than he's ever wanted anyone.
As Laura and Javier's passion ignites, so does Laura's need to discover the mystery of her past. Especially when she learns that her abduction was not random—and that she's still a target for a killer with an impenetrable motive. Now Javier will have to rely on his skills to keep the woman he loves from being struck down before she dares uncover the truth.
My rating:
Javier “Cobra” Corbray and the world watched Laura Nilsson being kidnapped on live TV. Two days later, the terrorist who kidnapped her told the world she was dead, and Javier swore vengeance.
Eighteen months later, he finally gets his chance. Leading a SEAL Team on a raid to a terrorist compound, he can’t wait to get his hands on the bastard who killed Laura. Then, a tall figure breaks away from the gaggle of “wives” in burkas, claiming to be an American...Underneath the burka is Laura Nilsson. Alive.
Two years later, Laura is finally feeling like herself again, but after the terrorist who tortured her for almost two years, calls a fatwa on her head at his trial, the old fear is back. Fleeing back to Denver, amid the FBI’s doubts her life is truly in danger, Laura comes face to face with yet another ghost from her past, Javier Corbray.
I don’t know how to explain it, but I feel slightly disappointed by this story. It wasn’t bad, far from it, but unlike what the blurb or the prequel or the prologue “promised”, the final result didn’t really reach the mark.
It was emotional, yet, despite rather similar experiences by both heroines, Megan’s book packed a bigger punch. It was also suspenseful, yet didn’t bring the intensity of the previous books in this series.
After the heart-rate-elevating prologue everything sort of slowed down, the suspense lost its strength and momentum, and the romance ended up being rather lukewarm.
The intimate scenes were still hot, as per usual, but I didn’t exactly feel the connection between Javier and Laura. They had more steam and chemistry in the prequel than in their full-length novel, which is to be expected after what Laura has been through, but even once that hurdle was behind them, they never really sizzled in an emotional kind of way.
I didn’t feel their romance was organic, it seemed the love came out of left field. It felt more like Laura was simply clinging to that last good memory before her ordeal and built up a fantasy, while Javier looked more like he respected her strength and valor instead of really having true feelings for her.
Or maybe it’s just me.
I really expected something more from this story. I wanted an emotional draining journey, not just for the characters, but for me as a reader as well. I wanted a more nail-biting suspense, instead of this rather weak revenge-fueled plot. Because when everything came to light, the villain, the motive, etc. it felt very anti-climatic.
What really got my blood flowing was the prologue, and what got my tears flowing was Laura’s final decision about the secret she’s kept so long.
The rest of it was merely “meh”, something definitely missing.
3 ½ stars
3 stars, bodyguard/military/merc/gov/cop/spy, contemporary, contemporary romance, Pamela Clare, suspense/mystery/adventure/thriller
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