GRR Reviews Fall Fast by Zoe York

Navy SEAL Nathan just finished visiting his family and is flying back to his base/home in San Diego, but a snowstorm just stranded him in Chicago. Emme, flight attendant, just finished signing her divorce papers in Chicago and is trying to fly out on any standby. Neither got their wish, and both sensed a connection so they agreed to a drink in the airport bar. Then it became a bit more, as they got a hotel room. Emme and Nathan both agreed to not use any names... as Emme is not ready for a relationship, and Nathan is not ready to let her go yet. The night was... excellent. But will Emme be ready for more... like move to California, maybe not now, but in a few months?

Pretty short, and a lot of sex, but that's the way this sort of story goes... A connection that could lead to more, and learning how to love again for Emme. 4/5

GRR Reviews Cowboy SEAL Homecoming by Nicole Helm

Alex left Montana behind a long time ago with his bad memories, and became a navy SEAL, an elite warrior. But when injuries forced him and two fellow teammates to retire, there is no place to go except back home... and meeting Becca who now lives there... a step-sister he never really knew. Becca will help Alex turned the family ranch into an equine therapy center to help wounded veterans, but will she also rope Alex's heart?

While this is technically a step-sibling romance, the two are so estranged they may as well be strangers. Romance is slow simmer. This is a series starter, and the setup is good. 4/5

GRR Reviews Deceitful Choices by C A Harms

Zack, a navy SEAL, was just taking leaving with some fellow SEALs on a beach, and have a good evening with hot chicks when he saw Lindsay. She is young, vivacious, and wanted a night to remember. So they did.  But Lindsay lied. She wasn't 19. She's 17. And that night left her a reminder that'll come due in 9 months. // Zack can see that this girl was really into him that she would fly out to California to meet him, but she's not Lindsay. Then Zack found out what really happened to Lindsay, and how many lies were told by that deceitful person to keep them apart...

Okay, interesting combination of tropes, even if it was a bit exasperating at times to see the characters struggle with their circumstances. It almost not felt like there is enough karma. 4/5

GRR Reviews Breaking His Code by Patricia D Eddy

West, ex-SEAL, is still haunted by his final mission where the rest of his team was killed. He survived, and runs a gym back in the US, but he's getting pushed out by fancy CrossFit and slogan-driven gyms. His only solace was online gaming with friends, such as Camila "Cam". // Cam has her own nightmares. Exiled by her own family, she chose one of the most dangerous branches in the military for redemption: Explosive Ordnance Disposal, aka bomb squad. And she came back with a cane and scars. // Cam and West get along fine online. But when West tries to take the relationship offline, Cam bolted. In the meanwhile, Cam found herself overwhelmed at her job, when her boss (and her former CO) accepted an accelerated timeline to roll out a new security system for the hotel... And her code suffered mysterious bugs. Is her growing attraction to West a distraction? Or a source of strength?

Okay, the tech sounded "fine", except to a techie. It's 90% accurate. I'm surprised a company that deals with high-end security didn't employ version control on their source code. Should be obvious that someone slipped in unauthorized code if they have a version control system in place.  And the twist was nice. Though his problem and her problem didn't really intersect. 4.5/5

GRR Reviews Have a Heart by Jodi Watters

Tessa became a runaway bride after she found her fiancee banging a chick with pink hair in the backdoor, minutes before walking down the aisle. She simply drove away, and ended up in Nowhere, California when she blew a tire. She walked into the bar, looking and feeling like a hot mess. And that's where she met Jason... // Jason had a blackened and charred soul that he channeled into a military career, becoming a Navy SEAL. His dispassionate style earned him the nickname "Tin Man"... because he doesn't have a heart. He should have walked away from this hot mess of a woman, still in her wedding gown, but he can't.

At 416 pages, this book is long, but I didn't feel there's much fat to trim. Tessa and Jason both felt complex and real, and Jason actually feels like a SEAL, where he doesn't talk about himself except in a self-deprecating way, not bragging (maybe a little bit of humblebrag). And Tessa, having been dealt a devastating blow, was struggling yet you can sort of see a bright-and-chipper self struggling to shine through. Some rough language didn't distract from the overall enjoyment. 5/5

GRR Reviews Shielding Nebraska by Casey Hagen

Nebraska Night Raven is one of the few native American Hollywood stars, but it appears someone is out to get her. Someone close to her (with access to her schedule) is sending threats or allowing them through. The head of the ex-SEAL security team called in additional help: Slyder, an off-duty SEAL (on a two-week leave) will become Nebraska's personal shadow, while the rest of the team figure out the true threat. Unfortunately, Nebraska is the kind of woman who will back down for no one, not even her bodyguard(s), esp. the cocky SEAL...

Not sure what to think about this one. This was a "Kindle Worlds" book where Amazon sorta licensed an existing setup/characters from a known author and invite certain others play in the same universe, and this one is about SEAL bodyguards originally by Susan Stoker. While the setup is fast-paced, I'm not too sure about the "enemies turned lovers", as you can only push the "unreasonable diva" angle so far without making it TSTL. The plot twists are okay. 4/5

GRR Reviews The Rebel's Redemption by Jacquie Biggar

Jared had a one night stand with his high school sweetheart Annie, then disappeared from the town of Tidal Falls. Eight years later, after surviving as a SEAL, he's back for good, only to find Annie has a seven-year-old child... Do the math. Annie only recently started dating the handsome sheriff Jack, but there is no spark. Jared's return made her doubt her choices, and fear he may leave again. But then Jared's past came back to haunt him when a mobster he humiliated in a previous job decided that Jared needs to pay with his life, and he has plans to destroy everything Jared loved first...

Okay, I have a problem with the logic of the evil-doer. If he made it to the top echelon enforcer of the Bratva in the US (in charge of a whole casino), he must understand sometimes, "it's just business". For him to take revenge personally, without a single backup, on an extended plan, AND make a deal with the Cartel for info, that's a full neglect of his duties. Did he get fired and were told that if he doesn't bring back the head of Jared, he won't be reinstated? I don't think so. And the end was a full deus ex machina. Also, all the parts about Maggie going undercover seem to be just a setup for book 6. Still, for romantic suspense, it works.

Oh, and one more thing... a sniper rifle would not have drilled a hole between the dead guy's eyes. It would have, far more likely, obliterated the back of the head. Entry wound may be relatively small, but the back of head would have exploded.

Category: Romantic Suspense

Overall Rating: 4/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Pretend I'm Yours by Natasha L Black

Drake is a retired SEAL who found his wife had run off with his best friend to be a model. While in a bar with his buds, he witnessed a couple having a stare-down contest in the middle of the dance floor. His instinct told him to follow, and when the guy assaulted the woman, he intervened. She turned out to be Hannah, and he was her ex-boyfriend, ex-cop, and stalker. And he's rich and well-connected enough complaining won't do any good. Drake joked about maybe Hannah need a fake husband, but Hannah took him seriously... Drake was living out of a hotel anyway and has no job lined up, and Hannah is rich and can afford to pay him a LOT of $$$ to be her husband/bodyguard, even though she wants to get her degree in social work. As Drake and Hannah live with each other, they slowly fell for each other... But can they admit it to each other? Or are they each assuming the other will walk away because they are too different?

The story started with two long info-dumps on why Drake and Hannah are the way they are, and overall the writing just feels very... detached. And the plot twist was exactly as expected. How a cop drummed out of the force on corruption charges has the guts and time and resources to stalk his ex is beyond me. Still, otherwise, the story is rather... competent, but nothing outstanding either.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 2.5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews "Warrior Undone" by Jessica Ruben

Slade, an ex-SEAL, suffers from PTSD. He runs a security business with his friends. He had a fling with Lauren at a wedding. They are opposites. When they reconnected in Las Vegas when he had to protect her from a shooting it also triggered his PTSD. Slade refused to acknowledge his problems and tries to self-medicate, and Lauren, who already fell for the SEAL, is becoming scared of him...

The portrayal of PTSD and the downward spiral is good, as is how it's affecting the relationship.

Category: Contemporary / On the rocks

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Dearest SEALs Box Set by Blair Grey

NOTE: Collection, contains 5 books: SEAL's Baby, SEAL Billionaire, SEAL Firefighter, SEAL's Secretary, SEAL's Virgin.

This review will be a little different as I'm trying to address the entire collection, as the individual books are not available on Amazon Kindle.

While you do get a lot of reading material (the collection is over 800 pages), the books just come across as rather... mediocre to poorly written. Background information was mentioned and never touched again. SEAL ability and training was never used, and villains are practically infantile. Even names picked are about as generic as they come, with minimal research for viability.

Here are some examples:

A woman of Chinese descent and "still had an attractive Chinese accent" is named "Yuki", which is a JAPANESE name.

Similarly, a Russian girl was named "Aria" (not Russian), and her brother (who stayed in Russia) is named "Andrew" (still not Russian).  If they were named Anya and Andrei it'd make MUCH more sense.

A gang leader picks a fight with a former SEAL firefighter... In front of the firehouse, with a dozen firefighters merely yards away, and police not far behind. And all the gang leader brought was a knife.

In the same fight, this ex-SEAL, instead of going for a disarm-move to take away the knife from the gang leader, goes for a face punch instead.

The plots just do not excite me at all. At best, I felt lukewarm. All five novels are consistently mediocre or worse.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 2/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews SEALed With Love by Heather Tullis

Someone is sending Sage creepy letters signed "Your future husband". It's so disturbing, her billionaire father hired her a full-time ex-SEAL bodyguard Joel. Her move to Juniper Ridge CO to run the latest DiCarlo resort with her half-sisters seems to be a good way to get away from the stalker... Until the stalker also arrived in Colorado... Joel dedicated his life to the SEALs until he was discharged by a career-ending injury. Now he's a bodyguard for a woman he should not want but does anyway. But how do you keep a stalker from a resort when you have no idea what he looks like? When the stalker escalated to sabotage and animal cruelty, Joel knew what he must do...

While the push-pull is good, it's nothing beyond a typical "bodyguard" story, and the stalker is simply a bit too good, IMHO. Appreciate the red herring, but shouldn't there be more than one?

Category: Contemporary / Romantic Suspense

Overall Rating: 3/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews The SEAL's Ward by Katie Knight

Ex-SEAL now security company head Jed is raising his goddaughter Nala, after his best friend and wife died, leaving him in charge. Nala withdrew into books, and Jed needs help, fast. // Tess lost her fiancee to suicide after helping him recover from a stroke. Her bookstore failed when a chain store appeared nearby. Left with no job and no prospects, it seems her speech therapist background may be useful to help Nala. But Jed... oh so big and so handsome... And they are good together. Unfortunately, an unknown danger soon threatens them both... Someone is going after Nala. Can the two figure out who's after them before it's too late?

Many too-stupid-to-live moments, and plot holes. What's with the "I can fix the cameras"? Sabotaging the ship makes no sense. Why go after Nala at all? It's as if the reason was chosen AFTER the plot. It really made no sense as a twist.

Category: Contemporary / Romantic suspense

Overall Rating: 2/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Her Billionaire Protector by Sophia Summers

Colton is ready to retire and his last job is also the weirdest: protect an old war veteran and his granddaughter, who clearly can look after herself... She's an ex-SEAL. But he had to shadow her. // Elsie retired from SEALs hoping to meet a nice guy and start a family, but a visit to grandpa's place resulted in a favor/mission... To visit a dude ranch in Texas. // Colton was instantly attracted to Elsie, and both stumbled into a conspiracy that involves huge hidden treasures that may date back a hundred years. And bad guys are desperate to find it. Colton's family is filthy rich and Colton wonders about a life with Elsie. When the treasure didn't pan out, the bad guys decided to turn their attention to Elsie and Colton...

Uh, did this author do ANY fact-checking? Military commander order people to go around the country? Not only the military is PROHIBITED from operating within the borders of the US by the "posse comitatus" act, but there are also no female SEALs. In fact, for all the blah-blah about she being an ex-SEAL, the ONLY prowess she demonstrated was flipping Colton ONCE (which he deftly reversed a moment later). People walking around with tranquilizer dart pistols, really? Elsie used one (where did it come from?!) and had one used on her. This plot simply felt as if it was written by a teenager.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 2/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Tidal Falls by Jacquie Biggar

Nick was forced to take a sabbatical to allowed his injured knee to heal, and he picked the small town of Tidal Falls, and he lives simply with his dog Jake. While in town, he came to know Sara and her 7-year old daughter Jessica, and Sara is clearly hiding secrets. Turns out, Sara is on the run from her evil husband Tom, who is a US Attorney with plans to run for governor, but he's also a shipping magnate in cahoots with the Syndicate including drug lords and human traffickers. When Sara ran, she stole a copy of Tom's log of transactions he did for the Syndicate. And Tom wants his wife back... along with the log. When Tom escalated into kidnapping Sara's friend to force her out of hiding, Sara found that Nick and his old SEAL team had a past with Tom... Who can she trust?

While suspenseful, and the villain isn't stupid, there are some parts of the plot that really made no sense. Tom's villainy isn't explained that well. His attitude toward children and marriage was explained once, then never mentioned again. Somehow, bad guys didn't bother questioning or tracing calls from Fiona, Sara's best friend until two years later. And instead of tapping her phone, they went straight to kidnapping. She's a gallery owner... Wouldn't anyone miss her? Hmmm? And the big fight at the end is a bit underwhelming. While good, it's not great.

Category: Contemporary / Military

Overall Rating: 4/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Beginnings by Katina Gavin

Angel is retiring from DEA after leaving the SEALs on medical discharge, having lost most of a leg. He has one last assignment... deal with a bunch of pot growers who may have killed two hikers who stumbled upon their camp. In town, he came into contact with Lindsey, who lost her husband in 'stan 8 years ago, and still grieving. Elsewhere in town, super genius Devin, hiding in town with his handlers and security team, had fallen for Lindsey's little sister Jamie, despite his complete lack of social graces. Angel's old SEAL buddy Joe had always loved Lindsey's twin Sydney, but Sydney refused to commit because she had no intention of becoming a Navy wife... or widow. Can these three couples sort out their differences?

A bit scatter-brained, I'm afraid to say. The novel had ballooned to over 500 pages due to cramming three separate plots together and they don't integrate well, even though it's in the same town. The characters definitely have their moments, but the plot could have been handled better, IMHO, or separate into two novels or something.

Category: Contemporary / Military / Romantic suspense

Overall Rating: 3/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.

GRR Reviews Logan by Melissa Foster

Logan was a retired navy SEAL now a private investigator. He felt responsible for his father getting shot dead by an intruder and his mother blinded by the same intruder while he's on active duty. For years, he hung on, living from day to day, doing cases, trying not to feel anything... Until he saw the strong yet vulnerable "Stormy" bartender being accosted by a drunk party guy... and he saw red. He saved her, and she, while not wanted to admit her own problems, found him attractive, yet it had been so long... But with her evil ex ready to get out of jail in merely days, she just wants to enjoy the present before she had to run again... But Logan is determined to help her to put it all behind her... if he can only get her to open up... because he has connections...

Man saves beautiful woman hiding from evil ex... evergreen trope, but this one got some interesting polish. Too bad we never get the see the real evil in action. Still, a good if not spectacular romantic suspense.

Category: Contemporary / Romantic suspense

Overall Rating: 4/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below. 

GRR Reviews HOT SEAL by Lynn Raye Harris

Navy SEAL Dane "Viking" Erickson and his team just got assigned to Hostile Operations Team (HOT)... a no-name multi-service elite operation that handles the toughest assignments and never gets the glory, and this latest one is a doozy, since not only he'll be taking down a terrorist org who managed to steal a drug smuggling sub from the Colombian narcos, the terrorists have a nuke and can be detonating it anywhere along the East Coast. Things just got tougher when he realized their DEA liaison is none other than his ex-wife... Ivy McGill... // Ivy had dedicated her life into taking down the Ruiz Cartel that killed her mother. She didn't believe in men any more, after Dane joined the SEALs instead of staying with her. But working with the man who betrayed her? It may be the worst part of it all. // No matter their past hurts, they have to work with each other to track down the rogue sub. But when the cartel came after her, believing she had a hand in stealing the sub, will Dane and his SEAL team save the day and still catch the sub?

The scenario is plausible, though I kinda wonder about the security setup, and the "fumbling assassins" trope. The 'working with the ex' trope, however, was executed VERY nicely. And the twist reveal was very good as well. But the sub ended up as an ancillary plot, which is kinda meh. Still, this is not a technothriller, but romantic suspense. And there's a twist about Ivy's past. A bit cliche, but it works. This gets a -0.5 for minor technical details screwup.

Category: Contemporary / Romantic Suspense / Military

Overall Rating: 4.5/5 (rounded up)

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below. 

GRR Reviews Not By Sight by Kay Lyons

Ian was a Navy SEAL and fought his own battle with claustrophobia from a childhood incident. When he went along with his brother's security company to rescue a hostage, he ended up getting shot in the head and lost his sight. Now he's blind, in permanent claustrophia, and deep depression. In desperation, Ian's brother hired a tutor... a BLIND tutor, Emma, who had been blind from a car accident since she was 14. Emma wanted the money to live independently since her family is a bit smothering, but her biggest challenge is not engaging Ian's interest... but not to fall for Ian... When there seems be someone stalking Emma... can a blind SEAL still protect his woman?

Very good touches on adapting to blindness, without beating you over the head with details, yet enough details to satisfy. I did guess who the stalker was pretty early. Romance is interesting, but nothing too outstanding.

Category: Contemporary

Overall Rating: 5/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below. 

GRR Reviews Protecting Summer by Susan Stoker

Sam "Mozart" Reed had been chasing after a serial killer for most of his life, ever since he learned that his little sister Avery was abducted, tortured, and killed. He grew up, and became a SEAL. But this killer was never caught. Years, later, with a lead, he's going up to the tiny town of Big Bear, California. That's when he ran into Summer. Summer had it all, until was all destroyed. Her friends shunned her. With no job, no prospects, she left, and wandered into Big Bear, where her car died, leaving her stranded, with a job that barely put enough food on the table and shivering at night. Then she met Mozart, who promised to come back for her. So she waited. But someone else is waiting... watching...

SEAL with enough free time to travel around, and the rest of his team can find a helo to drop them in the middle of nowhere? A serial killer who's basically a boogeyman, never been found? Who just happy to be a handyman who gave off the 'wrong vibe'? And the killer knew a navy SEAL is after him, almost two decades later? Sorry, the tropes are just too cliche here. At least the author knows how to polish the prose.

Category: Romantic suspense

Overall Rating: 3/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below. 

GRR Reviews The Soul of a SEAL by Anne Elizabeth

Captain Bennett Sheraton, Navy SEAL, just got pulled for an urgent reassignment... He and a fellow SEAL must get a new generation of space shuttle ready, but several deaths on the research base (include two Navy SEALs) has the base personnel on edge and the program on the verge of shutdown. But the payload, a new laser array to clean up orbital space debris, is needed urgently in space. Their liaison on site is Dr. Kimberly Warren, the chief engineer of the Warren Shuttle (yes, it's named after her), and she's fighting the project manager almost every day, and he also gave her the creeps. Bennett just needs to root out the saboteurs and murderers (unknown number) from within the facility, even as Kimberly and Bennett fell hard for each other... He appreciates a woman with a brain, and she wants this hard-bodied man... But someone who managed to kill two SEALs is not someone to be taken lightly...

I am not sure what to think about this one. The technical accuracies are sometimes, quite glaring. A 'captain' in US navy is an O-6. A SEAL team which is hundreds of SEALs, is commanded by an O-5, so an O-6 is in charge of several SEAL teams, i.e. a "naval special warfare group" or an "NSW task unit". And a desk jockey. They have engineering degrees and whatnot, but to claim they have astronaut level training? Huh? Isn't that more of Air Force's area? Also, when Bennett and Kimberly went out for a test flight, and the craft failed and auto-rotated for landing, they had to wait HOURS for a rescue to arrive by land. Doesn't the base have any helos? And a laser array deployed from a shuttle that can fire almost 360 and completely vaporize space debris? That's science fiction as that'd involve a disintegrating ray. Lasers don't do that. There's also a scene at the end where they rescued the pilot from the surf by shooting out his windshield. Uh, something that can withstand re-entry probably won't give a **** about a couple gunshots. On the other hand, the sabotage, the double-guessing, the find-the-mole parts of the novel are actually quite good, and the chemistry seems okay. All in all, I guess I have to rate this average.

Category: Romantic suspense / Contemporary

Primary Plot: Navy SEAL was reassigned to help protect the scientist and the next generation of space shuttle from sabotage

Overall Rating: 3/5

NOTE: Tropes are now in the "Labels" below.