The Darkest Hour - More Romance than Suspense

The Darkest Hour has made my top books list for 2010.  I was already tickled when we chose Maya Banks as our book club’s first author but then add to that it was the first book in her new romantic suspense series.  I had been craving a series just like this one since I’d finished Leigh’s Elite Ops series; and Maya didn’t disappoint.
I can’t help myself; I judge a book first by the hero. And Ethan was the perfect hero for me. He felt genuine, an alpha male that had emotions and wasn’t too much a man to show them. (yum!) I could see why Rachel fell in love with him – heck, I nearly fell in love with him. Watching Ethan deal with his guilt over how he treated Rachel before she disappeared, his joy at finding her, and his fear of losing her again gave depth to his character.
I connected immediately with Ethan as the book opens with him mourning the death of his wife. He is overwhelmed by his guilt and does his best to shut out the world. When Ethan receives proof his wife is alive, he turns to his brothers who run KGI, an intelligence agency, for help rescuing Rachel. I fell into the fast paced, action packed scene when the brothers raid the jungle camp in search of her. They find Rachel drugged and without her memory.
I can’t help myself; I need to feel the love to love the book. When they returned home and began weaning Rachel off the drugs, her memory comes back slowly. Maya knows how to develop a strong character, and instead of appearing weak, Rachel’s struggles give her a soul. Rachel and Ethan reconnect, and Rachel begins to remember that her marriage had not been as perfect as she first remembered. Rachel’s isolation was heart wrenching and Ethan’s sincerity warmed my heart. Their tender love scenes were sweet. I was praying for their happily ever after.
More a romance than a suspense though, The Darkest Hour was centered on the relationships of the characters, something Maya is skilled at and demonstrates in all of her books. The relationships between all the characters felt genuine and immediately drew me in. (I want a family just like theirs!) The Kelly family is terrific. Their interactions felt genuine, and it was like peeking in on a real family. The brothers make jokes, punch each other, and throw each other in lakes. It was nice to see a group of bad ass military-type men doing something other than just plotting and scowling at each other.
I can’t help myself; I want drama, mystery and suspense.  My major contention with the book is the story line on Rachel’s abduction and the continued attempts on her life which I felt was weak. She is being hunted by this mysterious man and when we finally learn what’s going on, it seemed like just an afterthought. And what about those bad ass, military-type men? Seems to me they would be overprotective to a fault and wouldn’t have let so many mysterious attempts happen on her life. Come on, Kelly men, do your jobs.
I am also holding out my opinion on the sub plot with Marlene taking in Rusty, the homeless teenager. It was one of only two things I had an issue with because I didn’t feel it connected to the rest of the story. I wanted more between her and Rachel. I thought a lot more could have been done with her character, but my guess is that Maya was setting up something to happen later in her series so I’ll quietly wait to see.
Neither of these two issues bothered me enough to ruin the story because the rest of the book was so strong. I am counting the days until the next book (December, where are you?).  The Kelly brothers and their family will have a special place on my favorite books list, no doubt about it.
RATING: Four out of Five Chocolate Dipped Strawberries... if only they were real!

Happy Hump Day Review: Maya Banks' The Darkest Hour

Happy Hump Day everyone!

Today's treats for you include: my review of Maya Banks' latest endeavor, her new KGI Series, Book 1 - The Darkest Hour AND the only true calorie free treat - mmmmmm eye candy! Lookie here - the perfect Ethan Kelly......

Let me preface this review with the statement that I adore Maya Banks, both as a person and a writer. Her works have an unique blend of sweet and spice, strength and vulnerability - highly prized in a writer, very difficult to achieve. Most of her work (if you have not read her Sweet series - run, do not walk to your nearest bookseller!) is quite steamy erotic romance. Not so with this series, which is most definitely catogorized as romantic suspense. The Kelly series struck me as quite a departure from what I have come to expect from her brand of storytelling - not bad, just different.

The story opens with a broken man, Ethan Kelly, actively mourning his "dead" wife for over a year. His family, a large assortment of military and ex-military men, headed by strong and loving parents have been trying to help him return to the fold. Guilt consumes him and his relationships with this fascinating family suffer. And just about the time you think he is going to drink himself into complete self-destruction, he receives information that points to his love being alive and held captive in South America. Circle the wagons, boys, and rescue that girl!

The bulk of the story revolves around Rachel's recovery after her rescue, where she was forcefully addicted to drugs and returns with large memory gaps. Ethan walks the narrow line between joy at receiving a second chance at happiness and fear of her recovering her memories of their bitter struggles prior to her departure for trip to South America. Ethan comes across as a man fully vested in his relationship and he cares for his wife beautifully during her struggle with her addictions. Rachel feels like a woman tortured, with all the strengths and weaknesses one would expect from a victim of her experiences, and watching her relearn to love her husband is poignant and compelling.

That being said, I felt like there was a large lead up to the explanation of Ethan's source of guilt and Rachel's discovery of it and then it just hung there. The secondary storyline of why precisely Rachel was kidnapped and held captive hung in the background mysteriously unquestioned by this top notch investigative family until a series of events near the end of the book that quickly spun into a very action packed ending, which seemed a bit rushed or forced at points.

Overall, I enjoyed this book very much. I readily admit, I am one of those folks that has to read the 2nd or 3rd book to really get into a series. Fortunately, I am totally looking forward to reading the brothers' and their affiliates stories. Maya has a fan for life in this happy hump day reader! I give this story 3 1/2 chocolate dipped strawberries!

The Darkest Hour

The Darkest Hour, by Maya Banks

It's been a year since ex-Navy Seal Ethan Kelly saw his wife Rachel alive. Now he's received an anonymous package claiming Rachel is alive. To find her, Ethan will have to dodge bullets, cross a jungle and risk falling captive to a deadly drug cartel that threatens his own demise.

This book is the first in a new series for Maya Banks and WOW what a way to start. This book grabbed me from the beginning and didn't let go. I was emotionally invested in the main characters from the beginning, but what was really nice, and bodes well for this series, is that you become involved in the secondary characters as well and I am looking forward to reading their stories.

The emotional journey this book takes you on is heart wrenching, from Ethan trying to get over the guilt of how he treated Rachel before her "death", to Rachel struggling with being surrounded by her family and a past that she doesn't remember. I felt her struggles with re-acclimating and dealing with overcoming her forced drug addiction were very real.

Maya Banks does a great job of keeping the story going at a fast pace but you still have the very moving and intimate scenes between the two main characters. I am very much looking forward to the next book in this series, No Place to Run, which comes out December 7, 2010.

I give The Darkest Hour 4 out of 5 chocolate dipped strawberries!

I won an ARC of From Boardroom to Wedding Bed? by Jules Bennett and will be reviewing it next week. In the meantime here is a quick and yummy recipe that I hope you will enjoy:

Tyra's Guilty Indulgence Chocolate Fondue
3/4 cup chocolate chips
1 8oz. container frozen whipped topping. thawed
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract (milk chocolate chips) or rum extract(semi-sweet chocolate chips)

Melt chips and 1/2 container of whipped topping in microwave for about a minute and a half stirring every 30 seconds. Add remiaing whipped topping, cinnamon and extract and stir until mixed. Refrigerate for at leat half and hour and serve with fruit.


Have a great week!!!

GUEST BLOGGER NEXT MONDAY: Maya Banks

We are excited to announce that next Thursday, October 7th, The Darkest Hour author Maya Banks will be guest blogging here at Guilty Indulgence!  Stop in to hear what she has to say about her newest book in her newest series. 

There will also be a contest that day you won't want to miss... watch for details to come.

It's Saturday: Meet Jill!

I was camping on Saturday so I am late for my first Blog. I am Jill Browning and very excited about this book club and talking about great books with great women. About me... well, I have a great husband and 2 great daughters. I am a physical therapist and mainly work with geriatrics. I love my job but I do live for weekends so I can be with my family and have more time to read.

I have loved reading for as long as I can remember. I grew up on a farm so between chores I would get away and read. My first romance was Kathleen Woodiwiss " The Wolf and the Dove". Loved them all. But then after college I started reading Oprah books, very deep. Until Tyra had me over, and everyone was talking about a book. I inquired about it, and they asked if I would like to read some "vampire porn". I was game. She loaned me J.R. Ward's Dark Lover. I became addicted and soon Tyra was my book pimp. Every now and then, I slip over to her house to get my next hit. I have loved everything she has given me! J.R. Ward's Blackdagger Brotherhood is still my favorite. But I'm a lot like Tyra in that I really love anything where everyone has that one special person.

Next week we get to talk about our first book and hopefully I won't be late.

Friday Fix

Greetings! According to the schedule today is the day I introduce myself to the world. So, here we go! My name is Kim and I'm a mom to two wonderful kids. I work full time and part time and spend the in between time on the soccer field. Aside from my many work duties I love to shop and spend time with the girls (you know who you are). I also spend a chunk of time watching my favorite sports teams MSU, Miami 'Canes and the Lakers.

As far as my reading goes I am a diehard Harry Potter fan and will be till the end. I lost count of how many times I've read them and I own them on CD. When the last part of movie 7 hits and the series is over I will need therapy. My first day at my new job and Tyra spotted me with my Harry Potter book and that's where it all began! She and Jenn turned me on to so many series that I have enough reading to keep me busy for years! My two favs are the Black Dagger Brotherhood and the Dark Hunters. Basically, I read what ever they tell me to and they have never led me astray (in the book department that is). For some reason I usually never care for the first book in a series but love the rest. Go figure, I'm special. My current list of things to read include the rest of the Carpathian series, the lastest Artemis Fowl, the next Angie Fox, the next in the Cat and Bones series, Fang's story. I'm sure I'm missing something and that list doesn't include what hasn't been released yet.

Well that's about all I got. Till next time!
Today's blog was brought to you by the letter F. Cause all great things start with the letter F.

I'm All About the Books

It’s Thursday which means you get to meet me.  Lucky you!  I'm Rebecca and I am a multi-tasking mother of three boys.  I can get the kids ready for school, clean, work part-time, chauffeur kids to practices, do homework, cook and find time to write all in one day.  Most days, I can do this on only several cups of coffee (I worship the Starbucks god). But if you’re reading this and you’re also a mom, I bet you can do most of those things all in one day too!

With so many things to do and so many demands on my time (yes, I’m a PTA mom!) and only so much time in a day, I’ve learned to pick what’s most important to me.  I live by the motto: “The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it” by one of the all-time greats, Henry David Thoreau.  So, what’s worth my time?

My boys, my family, my home, my girlfriends, my memory albums and my books. 

Living in a highly testosterone driven home explains my need to escape into romance novels!  I’m a romance book connoisseur (some might call this a book-a-holic) so I read any chance I get, even on the sidelines of my sons’ soccer games and in the bleachers at baseball games. 

My nook is another appendage.  It goes wherever I go so I am never without a book.  As an introvert, books are my escape and I love any that take me somewhere new and give me the chance to experience another person’s life journey.  I enjoy a variety of genres depending on my mood and the seasons; but they all frame the basic romance category.  I do read some general fiction (think Wally Lamb) but mostly I gravitate to romance, paranormal, romantica and some urban fantasy.  I’ll also read some young adult series in these genres as well like Richelle Mead, PC Cast and, of course, Stephenie Meyers.  Pretty much, if it has a paranormal creature and a hint of love in the storyline, I’ll read it.  My favorite books come in series because I can immerse myself in their world, getting to know the characters on a deeper level.  I love Jeanienne Frost, Gena Showalter, Kresley Cole and Lara Adrian who write paranormal romance series.  And I would be remiss not to mention Lora Leigh who introduced me to the breed world, Shelley Laurenston who brought me my first shifter, and Lorelei James who gave me my first ménage (her cowboys are yummy!).

I also recently discovered audio books while driving home from vacation this past summer.  Karen Marie Moning’s highlander series on audio tape is divine.  I am psyched that I can now be “reading” while transporting the boys to their activities.  Now when my husband volunteers on occasion to drive the boys to practices, I decline and let him stay home to cook instead (did I mention I hate cooking?).  I am still waiting for him to figure out why I am always eager to do the driving now… it’s all about the books.

Hump Day Hello!

Howdy - I'm Jenn and I'm a book-a-holic. I'm a nurse, mom of two kids/two dogs, hate housework, love to cook and think everything is better with a glass of wine. My motto in life: If it cant be fixed with duct tape or chocolate, it probably cant be fixed...

I've been reading since I was two - tackled all the Nancy Drew's by 3rd grade and had to have a major showdown with the small town librarian at 12 because she wanted to censor my reading and ban me from Harlequins....I prevailed and have been a hopeless romantic ever since.

I believe that books are the secret to happiness - anything that makes you feel, makes you think, turns you on is a good thing. My pet peeves are people who refuse to consider challenges. Life is more fun when you try something new - new food, new places, new people, new books, new ideas. As as nurse I know life can be hard, messy and painful. All we can do is handle it with grace and enjoy every moment you can.

I enjoy reading across the spectrum - find I read different genres for different reasons. While driving, I love audio books and find I like mysteries, thrillers and comedies (Carl Hiaasen, Janet Evanovich, Christopher Moore). I do read some general fiction and health related non-fiction but for the most part I enjoy romance, paranormal, urban fantasy and erotica. I love funny, romantic comedies like Lynsay Sands, Katie MacAlister, Shelley Laurenston/GA Aiken and of course, Kresley Cole. I also love the darker, sexier paranormals like Jeanienne Frost, Sherilyn Kenyon and Gena Showalter and even the epic greatness of Diana Gabaldon. Lately, since my 13 year old has expressed an interest in the paranormal genre, I have consumed a host of YA authors like Rachel Caine, Richelle Mead and PC Cast. If it has a vamp, a shifter, the fae or someone who kicks any of the aforementioned butts, I'm in!

I am excited to blog about books with my best gals and I hope to find inspiration from them and you out there to pursue writing dreams and goals of my own. First up review: Maya Banks, The Darkest Hour, from her new KGI series. And always remember, if you can't be inspired by the stories - at least remember to check out the covers! ;-)

Tyra's First Blog

Hi my name is Tyra and this is my first ever blog post so please bear with me. I am not sure how I got to be the first one to post for our little blog/book review group but I guess someone had to be, so here goes. First let me tell you that I am married with two kids and I work full time so I am glad I only have to do this once a week.

I think I have been reading since before I could talk, and for those of you who don't know me that is quite an accomplishment because I love to talk. I started out reading Trixie Belden mysteries and then went to science fiction/fantasy. If it had a dragon or wizard in it, I wanted to read it. I was a D & D geek that never played the game but loved the books. I loved to find a new author that wrote books in series, if I found and author I liked (Jennifer Roberson) I would read everything written by them. I went from sf/fantasy to Anne Rice (with a little Danielle Steele thrown in during high school) where I fell in love with vampires. It was several years later that someone said. "Hey if you like Anne Rice you might like Laurell K Hamilton.", and I said, "OK". That was about 6 years ago and I have been on a reading frenzy since then and have found many, many more authors that I have come to love and slightly stalk. I think I hit the Paranormal/Romance genre at just the right time, there seems to be an influx of authors writing about "things that go bump in the night and fall in love" and I can not get enough of them. I love the whole soul mate idea(and really what girl doesn't) that one person that completes you. I also really love to read about a kick-ass heroine and if you can make me laugh on top of all of that then you have hit the trifecta in my opinion(Shelly Laurenston).

I won't take up your time today listing all of the authors that I read, you will find that out when you come back to read my blog each week, but I do want to tell you about a site that I use all of the time.

http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/

I have found several new to me authors using this site and it's a great tool for confirming the correct reading order for books(and do not let me catch you reading out of order).

I am excited and nervous about this blog/book review but I am not shy about giving my opinion about books, so lets see what happens. The first book that we will be reviewing is Maya Banks, The Darkest Hour, it's the first in her new KGI series and I will have my thoughts for you on it next week.