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bodebeabay's review
3.0
[b:Hot Pursuit|17929642|Hot Pursuit (Hostile Operations Team, #1)|Lynn Raye Harris|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1438202673s/17929642.jpg|25131354] by [a:Lynn Raye Harris|2973925|Lynn Raye Harris|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1457641754p2/2973925.jpg]
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Crime, Romance, Suspense
3.5 Stars
Just a few adjustments to this story and it would have been a solid 4 stars for me.
There was action and suspense on virtually every page. Most of which I enjoyed. Unfortunately there were also instances of the mc's having 'Asinine' moments during the action.
Then there is excessive repetition in the mc's thoughts about each other, their past and themselves. Add to that, some of these thoughts are truly juvenile.
A Mother's Rant ⤵⤵
At the 10% mark there is a scene that really aggravated me.
"She turned and tried to smile politely at Jimmy. He wasn’t bad-looking, with his dark hair and dark eyes, but she’d never liked him." "Evie pushed his hand away and kept smiling. There wasn’t an ounce of friendliness in it, but she knew Jimmy was too dumb to see it."
I don't know what the author was trying to portray here, but, quite frankly, if I don't like someone and they put their hands on me, I am NOT going to smile politely. I will slap the sh#@ out of them & I expect my daughter to do the same. Especially if you think they are too 'Dumb' to get the message.
NO MEANS NO!
If you have to, Kick Them Where It Hurts! You do what you have to do to make your point clear.
I am a Southern Woman. We Do NOT politely smile and take that type of behavior with a wave of our fan and a giggle. We Do Not train our young Southern Ladies to be polite about being harrased in that way.
The rest of the story was pretty good. Good enough that I kept reading and didn't dnf it.
It is interesting & it has potential.
The adult intimate scenes were not overdone and they were romantic. Not super hot & steamy, but definitely adult.
I have the bundle of the 1st few books in the series & I will read them eventually. I just can't say when that will be.
All in all, it is an okay read. About midway between 3 & 4 stars.
Since I round down, this is a 3 star for me.
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Crime, Romance, Suspense
3.5 Stars
Just a few adjustments to this story and it would have been a solid 4 stars for me.
There was action and suspense on virtually every page. Most of which I enjoyed. Unfortunately there were also instances of the mc's having 'Asinine' moments during the action.
Then there is excessive repetition in the mc's thoughts about each other, their past and themselves. Add to that, some of these thoughts are truly juvenile.
A Mother's Rant ⤵⤵
At the 10% mark there is a scene that really aggravated me.
"She turned and tried to smile politely at Jimmy. He wasn’t bad-looking, with his dark hair and dark eyes, but she’d never liked him." "Evie pushed his hand away and kept smiling. There wasn’t an ounce of friendliness in it, but she knew Jimmy was too dumb to see it."
I don't know what the author was trying to portray here, but, quite frankly, if I don't like someone and they put their hands on me, I am NOT going to smile politely. I will slap the sh#@ out of them & I expect my daughter to do the same. Especially if you think they are too 'Dumb' to get the message.
NO MEANS NO!
If you have to, Kick Them Where It Hurts! You do what you have to do to make your point clear.
I am a Southern Woman. We Do NOT politely smile and take that type of behavior with a wave of our fan and a giggle. We Do Not train our young Southern Ladies to be polite about being harrased in that way.
The rest of the story was pretty good. Good enough that I kept reading and didn't dnf it.
It is interesting & it has potential.
The adult intimate scenes were not overdone and they were romantic. Not super hot & steamy, but definitely adult.
I have the bundle of the 1st few books in the series & I will read them eventually. I just can't say when that will be.
All in all, it is an okay read. About midway between 3 & 4 stars.
Since I round down, this is a 3 star for me.
island_reader's review
3.0
Characters - 3
Story - 3
Pace - 3
Feels - 2
Quality - 3.5
Stand-alone: Yes
Am I Continuing Series: Yes
Overall - 2.9
A decent story that I enjoyed well enough. My only real complaint is the sluggish middle. That's partly my own quirk as I lose interest easily. Hence my love of short stories and novellas. The end picks back up slightly though. That said, I look forward to the next in the series.
Story - 3
Pace - 3
Feels - 2
Quality - 3.5
Stand-alone: Yes
Am I Continuing Series: Yes
Overall - 2.9
A decent story that I enjoyed well enough. My only real complaint is the sluggish middle. That's partly my own quirk as I lose interest easily. Hence my love of short stories and novellas. The end picks back up slightly though. That said, I look forward to the next in the series.
jonetta's review
3.0
Evie Baker is a chef whose Florida restaurant failed when her partner embezzled funds and left her in dire straits. She returned to her hometown in Louisiana but seems to have attracted attention from the wrong elements connected to her partner. Matt Girard, an Army special forces captain, also has returned home while he waits for a decision regarding the fate of his career following a failed operation. He and Evie have a history that is about to be resurrected.
The story starts off interestingly enough with a strong premise and intriguing characters who have compelling back stories. The pace was also pretty good as things seemed to move along quickly. It fell apart for me with the romance between Evie and Matt as I never felt he really had any remorse for what he did to Evie right before he left town ten years earlier. It affected her deeply, shaping her future. And, she seemed to let him off the hook easily. I just couldn't get into him.
The action and suspense built to what should have been an exciting climax but just ended quickly. There were too many straggling details left unexplained or not delved into more expansively. This just ended up being an okay reading experience but I intend to read at least one more book in the series, especially since the next book seems to be pretty good.
The story starts off interestingly enough with a strong premise and intriguing characters who have compelling back stories. The pace was also pretty good as things seemed to move along quickly. It fell apart for me with the romance between Evie and Matt as I never felt he really had any remorse for what he did to Evie right before he left town ten years earlier. It affected her deeply, shaping her future. And, she seemed to let him off the hook easily. I just couldn't get into him.
The action and suspense built to what should have been an exciting climax but just ended quickly. There were too many straggling details left unexplained or not delved into more expansively. This just ended up being an okay reading experience but I intend to read at least one more book in the series, especially since the next book seems to be pretty good.
bookswithangeli's review
2.0
The hero is okay, the heroine though... I almost DNF this because of her. It's cute that for once the heroine is not a doormat, which is typical with these type of books. What's not cute is when Evie purposely runs into trouble to 'help' a trained black ops military man who ordered her to stay. I don't have any idea what kind of help she'll do. Throw punches against a man with a gun? It's also irritating that she keeps pressing Matt to tell her what is the reason why he joined the military and that she thinks that rich/privileged has so many options to take as a career aside from military. Terrible ending. Action scenes are lacking.
lex_gutsche's review
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Kidnapping, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Minor: Murder
nbiblioholic's review
3.0
Two old friends, a dark shadow of the recent past, suspense, and maybe new love? This book definitely grabbed my attention.
Evie was a hot mess. She left town eight years ago to go to culinary school and start the restaurant of her dreams. Her naivete had her falling for the tricks of a con artist, which ruined her new business and forced her to come home with her tail between her legs. What was she going to do?
Matt left town right after high school and joined the military. His father expected him to stay to run the business, but Matt's blood ran too hot to sit behind a desk and slowly die from mind-numbing boredom. He plays fast and loose, in life and in relationships. He doesn't have time to settle down and promises nothing. So what if he feels an emptiness yawning in his chest. Ignoring it and denying it got him this far, hasn't it?
When Evie's con artist shows back up, bringing the mob right along with him, not only is Evie in danger, but so is her family. And the only person she can count on is the man who showed her that he couldn't be counted on. For a guy who doesn't tend to stick around, Matt's willing to do whatever it takes, even gamble his future military career, to protect and help his friend.
This book ranks pretty low on romance, although it did have a couple of steamy scenes, but the plot was interesting enough. Matt wasn't the easiest guy to warm up to, but he gave me just enough hero vibes to make me like him. Evie was a bit ridiculous in her urges... why she thought she could protect Matt in every dangerous situation was beyond me... but I liked her spunk. As an introduction to the series, I already like the guys who make up H.O.T.
Evie was a hot mess. She left town eight years ago to go to culinary school and start the restaurant of her dreams. Her naivete had her falling for the tricks of a con artist, which ruined her new business and forced her to come home with her tail between her legs. What was she going to do?
Matt left town right after high school and joined the military. His father expected him to stay to run the business, but Matt's blood ran too hot to sit behind a desk and slowly die from mind-numbing boredom. He plays fast and loose, in life and in relationships. He doesn't have time to settle down and promises nothing. So what if he feels an emptiness yawning in his chest. Ignoring it and denying it got him this far, hasn't it?
When Evie's con artist shows back up, bringing the mob right along with him, not only is Evie in danger, but so is her family. And the only person she can count on is the man who showed her that he couldn't be counted on. For a guy who doesn't tend to stick around, Matt's willing to do whatever it takes, even gamble his future military career, to protect and help his friend.
This book ranks pretty low on romance, although it did have a couple of steamy scenes, but the plot was interesting enough. Matt wasn't the easiest guy to warm up to, but he gave me just enough hero vibes to make me like him. Evie was a bit ridiculous in her urges... why she thought she could protect Matt in every dangerous situation was beyond me... but I liked her spunk. As an introduction to the series, I already like the guys who make up H.O.T.
terriaminute's review
3.0
This is an acceptable romance, and an acceptable suspense plot, but as you can tell by the 3/5 stars, I have some issues with it. Luckily it's free, and is one of the better free books I've not DNF'd.
As is a trope in m/f romantic suspense, one or both the main characters (apparently) is required to lust after the other at all times. AT ALL TIMES. As a reader, this quickly gets ridiculous, particularly when there's eminent danger. This isn't the worst example of that, but it's in the running.
By 1.5 chapters in I tracked two phrases: "my virginity" or "her virginity" was said or thought three times in first few chapters. Virginity was also equated in his thoughts with weakness, which is a huge no-no, author. That is not okay anywhere. He counters it quickly, but it's there implicitly for the rest of the story. Internalized patriarchy and misogyny are A Thing writers need to be super watchful for. There's enough of that nonsense IRL. Keep it out of fiction. Yuck.
The other was "ten years." That exact phrase was repeated eleven times.
Eleven.
Writers use ten years because it is easy for readers to remember. That was TERRIBLE editing.
Another fail was her harping on why he'd choose a dangerous job over being rich. She's in danger and she's a chef, so... But I love when he calls her on it. I just wish she'd then stopped thinking the same stupid thing.
I did love her reasons for telling him to go, the 'separation' part of a romance. Intrinsic to her character, very good self-care. And I did come to appreciate that he is just not that good at expressing himself, it's consistent, and rather sweet at the end.
The epilogue is the setup for the next book, I haven't read it yet. I have the second book, also free. Let's hope the author's skill improved...
As is a trope in m/f romantic suspense, one or both the main characters (apparently) is required to lust after the other at all times. AT ALL TIMES. As a reader, this quickly gets ridiculous, particularly when there's eminent danger. This isn't the worst example of that, but it's in the running.
By 1.5 chapters in I tracked two phrases: "my virginity" or "her virginity" was said or thought three times in first few chapters. Virginity was also equated in his thoughts with weakness, which is a huge no-no, author. That is not okay anywhere. He counters it quickly, but it's there implicitly for the rest of the story. Internalized patriarchy and misogyny are A Thing writers need to be super watchful for. There's enough of that nonsense IRL. Keep it out of fiction. Yuck.
The other was "ten years." That exact phrase was repeated eleven times.
Eleven.
Writers use ten years because it is easy for readers to remember. That was TERRIBLE editing.
Another fail was her harping on why he'd choose a dangerous job over being rich. She's in danger and she's a chef, so... But I love when he calls her on it. I just wish she'd then stopped thinking the same stupid thing.
I did love her reasons for telling him to go, the 'separation' part of a romance. Intrinsic to her character, very good self-care. And I did come to appreciate that he is just not that good at expressing himself, it's consistent, and rather sweet at the end.
The epilogue is the setup for the next book, I haven't read it yet. I have the second book, also free. Let's hope the author's skill improved...
mslizalou's review
4.0
I've been reading Lynn Raye Harris pretty much since she released her first book with Harlequin. I was super excited to give her new HOT series a try. Thanks to the author, I was able to get a review copy through NetGalley.
First let me just say I love stories about top-secret military guys. That being said, I'm already counting down until the next release in this series. I loved Matt Girard from the moment he appeared on the page. I have to say I also loved Evie Baker. She was strong enough to leave home, go to culinary school, and open her own business. The fact she had to move back home after her deadbeat ex-partner stole all her money, only made me want her to come out on top in the end. I have to say I loved the history between Matt and Evie. I think I loved it best that they started out as childhood friends. I had to agree that Matt was a bit of a dog in how he shared the fact with his friends that he and Evie had sex in high school, but then I remembered all the guys in high school and how they bragged about everything, and I let it go. Evie and Matt have the absolute best chemistry both in and out of bed. They are such an awesome team. When Evie needs help after her little sister turns up missing, Matt steps in to help her without really worrying much about what it will mean for his future career...especially once he starts asking his team members for help.
I love the romantic suspense genre and have to say I'm super excited to see so many books coming out in this genre. I personally think Hot Pursuit is an amazing addition to the romantic suspense genre.
First let me just say I love stories about top-secret military guys. That being said, I'm already counting down until the next release in this series. I loved Matt Girard from the moment he appeared on the page. I have to say I also loved Evie Baker. She was strong enough to leave home, go to culinary school, and open her own business. The fact she had to move back home after her deadbeat ex-partner stole all her money, only made me want her to come out on top in the end. I have to say I loved the history between Matt and Evie. I think I loved it best that they started out as childhood friends. I had to agree that Matt was a bit of a dog in how he shared the fact with his friends that he and Evie had sex in high school, but then I remembered all the guys in high school and how they bragged about everything, and I let it go. Evie and Matt have the absolute best chemistry both in and out of bed. They are such an awesome team. When Evie needs help after her little sister turns up missing, Matt steps in to help her without really worrying much about what it will mean for his future career...especially once he starts asking his team members for help.
I love the romantic suspense genre and have to say I'm super excited to see so many books coming out in this genre. I personally think Hot Pursuit is an amazing addition to the romantic suspense genre.
kame's review
5.0
Evie and Matt grew up together in the small town of Rochambeau. They had been friends in their youth, but grew apart as they got older. Matt left for a military career; he is a member of the military’s elite Hostile Operations team. Evie left town as fast as she could and became a chef. She would have stayed away too if her business partner hadn’t stolen from her; after selling everything and paying all the debts she was left with nothing, so she came home to be the shampoo girl in her mother’s hair salon. Imagine her surprise when Matt walks in the door one afternoon looking for a haircut before his sister’s wedding. It doesn’t seem like he can sit back and enjoy some R&R before the wedding though, Evie’s little sister has been kidnapped!
Evie and Matt have deep feelings for each other, but Evie has some deep pain associated with the last time she saw Matt; pain he has no idea he had a part in. This pain is so deep Evie does not have any happy memories of her hometown and can’t wait to save enough money to leave again. But deep in her heart there is still love for Matt. It would have been easy for Evie to loathe Matt, and then this book could be the tired cliché of hero works to get his lost love to love him again. In this book Evie from the beginning admits she shoulders some of the blame. Matt is just a perfect specimen of military hero hotness with a little MacGyver thrown in (he is home for his sister’s wedding, this wasn’t a planned op!). While Evie is trying to live down the past, Matt is also trying to emotionally manage the feelings and regrets he has from his last operation, where failing to follow his gut caused the deaths of two men. The prologue of this book was excellent and that feeling of loss and failure set the tone of Matt’s inner fight so well.
I love romantic suspense, and this book was a five star on both parts. The suspense kept my heart pumping and the romance kept it pattering. Evie and Matt are strong characters, but we meet some of Matt’s teammates that I hope will be the heroes of future Hostile Operations books. And maybe if we can catch a glimpse of Evie and Matt’s continued love story too!
I received this book from the publisher for my honest review.
Evie and Matt have deep feelings for each other, but Evie has some deep pain associated with the last time she saw Matt; pain he has no idea he had a part in. This pain is so deep Evie does not have any happy memories of her hometown and can’t wait to save enough money to leave again. But deep in her heart there is still love for Matt. It would have been easy for Evie to loathe Matt, and then this book could be the tired cliché of hero works to get his lost love to love him again. In this book Evie from the beginning admits she shoulders some of the blame. Matt is just a perfect specimen of military hero hotness with a little MacGyver thrown in (he is home for his sister’s wedding, this wasn’t a planned op!). While Evie is trying to live down the past, Matt is also trying to emotionally manage the feelings and regrets he has from his last operation, where failing to follow his gut caused the deaths of two men. The prologue of this book was excellent and that feeling of loss and failure set the tone of Matt’s inner fight so well.
I love romantic suspense, and this book was a five star on both parts. The suspense kept my heart pumping and the romance kept it pattering. Evie and Matt are strong characters, but we meet some of Matt’s teammates that I hope will be the heroes of future Hostile Operations books. And maybe if we can catch a glimpse of Evie and Matt’s continued love story too!
I received this book from the publisher for my honest review.
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