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kathydavie's review against another edition
4.0
Fifth in the Black Ops, Inc. romantic suspense series revolving around Nathan Black and his BOIs. The couple focus is on Wyatt Savage and Sophie Baylor with a minor focus on Nate and Juliana's relationship.
My Take
Gerard manages to create such different scenarios to introduce her romances. Each of the BOIs has a different background, a different history. Their one commonality is the loyalty and support each man receives from the others. They go all out to protect. Brutal men when needed, gentle and teasing when they can. The world needs more men like them. And fewer of the Hughes.
As the spirited Sophie says: Wyatt's friends are focused, driven, and capable. With heart. She would never say that about her husband's men. Once Hugh and Wyatt were alike. Now, they couldn't be more unlike.
Gerard is good at hiding and teasing us, leading me down the garden path. Making me wonder who had planned this kidnapping. Enough that I suspected and still was surprised at the end.
No end of action and hot, heavy jungle trekking. And more than one rescue. Nice handling when Hugh and Wyatt finally confront each other. Kind of hard to handle a man walking into his [old] bedroom only to find his best friend in bed with his [ex] wife.
The BOIs wreak havoc on Bonilla's operation, completely and totally and I'm surprised they didn't stop to consider the consequences of what they were doing. I can't believe the BOIs spent all that time in the military and never picked up basic first aid. The way they panicked was just not believable.
Omigod!! Mean Joe Green is softening up! He cracked TWO jokes!!
Okay, the tension Gerard is trying for with Montoya isn't working. It's merely irritating as it's too obvious as to Sophie's reaction. To make it believable, Gerard has to have Sophie participating to some extent and Gerard tipped her hand much too early for this to work.
The Story
A call out of the blue from a former girlfriend in big trouble. Savage has always loved Sophie, but she chose Hugh Weber, his best friend, a brother, and he can only respect her wishes. He hasn't seen her since he left the CIA and joined Black's BOIs. Hugh, too, has left the CIA and begun his own protection and security service.
Meanwhile, Sophie has also achieved her dream---a quality school providing a good education to poor children in El Salvador. But now someone has kidnapped Lola thinking she was Hope. And Sophie can't find Hugh.
Wyatt is her last hope.
The Characters
Sophie Baylor Weber started by teaching Spanish for the State Department where she met Wyatt and Hugh. She slowly worked her way through the educational system until she understood the infrastructure and proved her own abilities so she could achieve her dream of educational parity. Hope is Sophie's adopted daughter and Lola Ramirez is Hope's best friend. Ramona is Lola's mother and works for Sophie. Maris Hoffman is the vice-principal at Baylor.
The 37-year-old Wyatt "Papa Bear" Savage was CIA before he joined the BOIs. He's never been married as no women has ever measured up to his memories of Sophie. His family home is in Adel, Georgia and it's been two years since he's been home to visit his momma and daddy---and Margaret Savage is determined to make up for lost time. Annie is his kid sister, married to Jed Cooper and they have a terror of a toddler, Will. Carrie Ginger is an old girlfriend of Wyatt's and momma's got matchmaking on her mind.
Nathan Black commands Black Ops, Inc. They work off the books for the U.S. government. He's friends with Dr. Juliana Flores even as he dreams of more. Johnny Duane and Crystal Reed will be Hope's protection detail to Argentina; Rafe and BJ Mendoza; "Mean" Joe Green is still seeing Stephanie Tompkins, Luke Colter, and Gabe Jones are the rest of the BOIs in this installment.
Diego Montoya is a "handsome coffee baron", wealthy, and very interested in Sophie. He will do anything for her and donates generously to the Baylor School. Vincente Bonilla is absolute scum *naturally!* and is in cahoots with someone who placed the order for the Weber girl's kidnapping. He also heads up one of the biggest criminal gangs in Salvador. Jorge Vega is secretly with Guerrilleros Nacionales and the assistant to the director of San Salvador's Primary Education Board with news for Sophie.
The Cover
It's a pinky purple sheer overlay of Wyatt Savage from cheekbones to waist. And all sorts of hard, chiseled muscle concealed and revealed by his white tank top. He's in profile with his head turned towards us. Serious. Intent. Yup, it's Papa Bear all right.
I'm clueless about the title. It's not so much that there are secrets at risk as there are secrets buried in their own subconscious.
My Take
Gerard manages to create such different scenarios to introduce her romances. Each of the BOIs has a different background, a different history. Their one commonality is the loyalty and support each man receives from the others. They go all out to protect. Brutal men when needed, gentle and teasing when they can. The world needs more men like them. And fewer of the Hughes.
As the spirited Sophie says: Wyatt's friends are focused, driven, and capable. With heart. She would never say that about her husband's men. Once Hugh and Wyatt were alike. Now, they couldn't be more unlike.
Gerard is good at hiding and teasing us, leading me down the garden path. Making me wonder who had planned this kidnapping. Enough that I suspected and still was surprised at the end.
No end of action and hot, heavy jungle trekking. And more than one rescue. Nice handling when Hugh and Wyatt finally confront each other. Kind of hard to handle a man walking into his [old] bedroom only to find his best friend in bed with his [ex] wife.
The BOIs wreak havoc on Bonilla's operation, completely and totally and I'm surprised they didn't stop to consider the consequences of what they were doing. I can't believe the BOIs spent all that time in the military and never picked up basic first aid. The way they panicked was just not believable.
Omigod!! Mean Joe Green is softening up! He cracked TWO jokes!!
Okay, the tension Gerard is trying for with Montoya isn't working. It's merely irritating as it's too obvious as to Sophie's reaction. To make it believable, Gerard has to have Sophie participating to some extent and Gerard tipped her hand much too early for this to work.
The Story
A call out of the blue from a former girlfriend in big trouble. Savage has always loved Sophie, but she chose Hugh Weber, his best friend, a brother, and he can only respect her wishes. He hasn't seen her since he left the CIA and joined Black's BOIs. Hugh, too, has left the CIA and begun his own protection and security service.
Meanwhile, Sophie has also achieved her dream---a quality school providing a good education to poor children in El Salvador. But now someone has kidnapped Lola thinking she was Hope. And Sophie can't find Hugh.
Wyatt is her last hope.
The Characters
Sophie Baylor Weber started by teaching Spanish for the State Department where she met Wyatt and Hugh. She slowly worked her way through the educational system until she understood the infrastructure and proved her own abilities so she could achieve her dream of educational parity. Hope is Sophie's adopted daughter and Lola Ramirez is Hope's best friend. Ramona is Lola's mother and works for Sophie. Maris Hoffman is the vice-principal at Baylor.
The 37-year-old Wyatt "Papa Bear" Savage was CIA before he joined the BOIs. He's never been married as no women has ever measured up to his memories of Sophie. His family home is in Adel, Georgia and it's been two years since he's been home to visit his momma and daddy---and Margaret Savage is determined to make up for lost time. Annie is his kid sister, married to Jed Cooper and they have a terror of a toddler, Will. Carrie Ginger is an old girlfriend of Wyatt's and momma's got matchmaking on her mind.
Nathan Black commands Black Ops, Inc. They work off the books for the U.S. government. He's friends with Dr. Juliana Flores even as he dreams of more. Johnny Duane and Crystal Reed will be Hope's protection detail to Argentina; Rafe and BJ Mendoza; "Mean" Joe Green is still seeing Stephanie Tompkins, Luke Colter, and Gabe Jones are the rest of the BOIs in this installment.
Diego Montoya is a "handsome coffee baron", wealthy, and very interested in Sophie. He will do anything for her and donates generously to the Baylor School. Vincente Bonilla is absolute scum *naturally!* and is in cahoots with someone who placed the order for the Weber girl's kidnapping. He also heads up one of the biggest criminal gangs in Salvador. Jorge Vega is secretly with Guerrilleros Nacionales and the assistant to the director of San Salvador's Primary Education Board with news for Sophie.
The Cover
It's a pinky purple sheer overlay of Wyatt Savage from cheekbones to waist. And all sorts of hard, chiseled muscle concealed and revealed by his white tank top. He's in profile with his head turned towards us. Serious. Intent. Yup, it's Papa Bear all right.
I'm clueless about the title. It's not so much that there are secrets at risk as there are secrets buried in their own subconscious.
birdloveranne's review against another edition
3.0
Didn't like the characters, and found some things so predictable.
sbauer378's review against another edition
1.0
What a dumb book. The heroine is the type of person who can't live without being in a relationship. This book is basically the same as the previous one. Heroine keeps being brought along on black ops missions, despite being a teacher. Also, the author used the same plot device of rescuing someone, only for it to be *GASP*, not the right person. Unoriginal crap
lbrick363's review against another edition
3.0
While I liked Wyatt, I just wasn't feeling this story as much. I guess the series is really winding down for me.
jonetta's review against another edition
4.0
Sophie Baylor Weber contacts Wyatt Savage for help when someone tries to abduct her 12-year old daughter, Hope and her friend Lola. She's running a school in San Salvador, El Salvador, a hotbed for gang violence and recent kidnappings. Wyatt has a history with Sophie, who married his best friend, Hugh twelve years ago. She's still the one that got away and he'll do anything to help her free the abducted child.
This one grabbed my attention right away and really never let go. The tension is so off the charts that I had to put the book down to breathe now and then. These were brutal men behind the abduction and the team was seriously at risk. I loved getting Wyatt's history and learning why he gained the nickname Papa Bear. While I admired what Sophie stood for, I wasn't thrilled with how she handled the two best friends. Wyatt deserved a stronger commitment, especially after everything he risked on her behalf.
Despite my issues with Sophie, I very much enjoyed the story. It was exciting, heartbreaking, funny and romantic (Nate has some great moments in this one). Still loving this series.
This one grabbed my attention right away and really never let go. The tension is so off the charts that I had to put the book down to breathe now and then. These were brutal men behind the abduction and the team was seriously at risk. I loved getting Wyatt's history and learning why he gained the nickname Papa Bear. While I admired what Sophie stood for, I wasn't thrilled with how she handled the two best friends. Wyatt deserved a stronger commitment, especially after everything he risked on her behalf.
Despite my issues with Sophie, I very much enjoyed the story. It was exciting, heartbreaking, funny and romantic (Nate has some great moments in this one). Still loving this series.
prgchrqltma's review against another edition
3.0
A satisfying addition to the series. This is a best-friend's-ex-wife story, so you know. Also, there is some amount of putting down the ex.
lissan's review against another edition
5.0
One day during my two week 'not feeling well' time when scrolling down my bookmarks on book blogs I came into the forgotten site of 'Xoxo After Dark' (xoxoafterdark.com). There is a free read section. Mostly Fantasy and Romance and not always to my liking but from time to time something pops up. And this series did. You normally have a limited time to read them free directly from the internet.
This Black Ops. Inc. series remind me of Alison Brennan's books on the Kincaid family. It is the same easy read, very thrilling stories and a little bit of romance in between. This series is about a bunch of tough, brave and gorgeous men and women who fight for the good side! Yes, it is a lot about the good guys and the bad guys. The series start in Sierra Leone where our guys are on a mission with their special forces group. One of them dies in the attack. This makes them think of what they are doing especially since they suspect that he died by foul play.
Back in the US to bury their friend they meet his parents Ann and Robert and his sister Stephanie. The parents state that they are all their son's brothers in arms and now they consider the group to be part of their family too. Since they are now fed up with their work and want to quite one of the guys decides to start the group Black Ops. Inc. as a contractor for protection and security. Of course all the other guys agree to work with him. In principal they work for the US government but unofficially and there will be no help if anything goes wrong! They are based in Argentina and each book covers one mission but it takes you not only to Argentina but Sierra Leone, Colombia, El Salvador, Indonesia and the US. The bad guys are all from drug lords, to kidnappers, to weapon smugglers or human traffickers. The stories are violent and sometimes it is even difficult to read when you see such evil in people. Each book is also centred on one of the guys and the woman he falls in love with. Each book finishes with an Epilogue where they all meet up with their 'adopted' parents mostly in their place. And every time there is another woman added to the group!
Well, like it is with these kind of series, if you like the first book you just have to continue. Once the book is finished you feel like loosing a friend and once you start the next it is like finding the friend again. However, I like that there at least is an ending. Having read 6 books I am now heading for the last one 'Last Man Standing'. From the teaser it seems we will finally know what happened in Sierra Leone in the first book. Knotting it all together. So if you are on for an easy read I can recommend these ones. Look in my reading list for the titles. As far as ebooks are concerned the first six books are available as a volume I and II.
Review from my book blog thecontentreader.blogspot.com
This Black Ops. Inc. series remind me of Alison Brennan's books on the Kincaid family. It is the same easy read, very thrilling stories and a little bit of romance in between. This series is about a bunch of tough, brave and gorgeous men and women who fight for the good side! Yes, it is a lot about the good guys and the bad guys. The series start in Sierra Leone where our guys are on a mission with their special forces group. One of them dies in the attack. This makes them think of what they are doing especially since they suspect that he died by foul play.
Back in the US to bury their friend they meet his parents Ann and Robert and his sister Stephanie. The parents state that they are all their son's brothers in arms and now they consider the group to be part of their family too. Since they are now fed up with their work and want to quite one of the guys decides to start the group Black Ops. Inc. as a contractor for protection and security. Of course all the other guys agree to work with him. In principal they work for the US government but unofficially and there will be no help if anything goes wrong! They are based in Argentina and each book covers one mission but it takes you not only to Argentina but Sierra Leone, Colombia, El Salvador, Indonesia and the US. The bad guys are all from drug lords, to kidnappers, to weapon smugglers or human traffickers. The stories are violent and sometimes it is even difficult to read when you see such evil in people. Each book is also centred on one of the guys and the woman he falls in love with. Each book finishes with an Epilogue where they all meet up with their 'adopted' parents mostly in their place. And every time there is another woman added to the group!
Well, like it is with these kind of series, if you like the first book you just have to continue. Once the book is finished you feel like loosing a friend and once you start the next it is like finding the friend again. However, I like that there at least is an ending. Having read 6 books I am now heading for the last one 'Last Man Standing'. From the teaser it seems we will finally know what happened in Sierra Leone in the first book. Knotting it all together. So if you are on for an easy read I can recommend these ones. Look in my reading list for the titles. As far as ebooks are concerned the first six books are available as a volume I and II.
Review from my book blog thecontentreader.blogspot.com
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