Powerful, thrilling and character-driven, this romantic suspense is a real page-turner.
Special Agent indeed, Kandice Warner is everyone’s best friend. Talk about a Barbie doll! This female might have the same pretty-girl looks but even though she has a tender heart, she also has the resilience needed for a very successful FBI Hostage Negotiator. Feelings of inadequacy constantly force her to … force her to prove that she’s tough, and she demonstrates her courage when dealing with a murderous bank robber, a desperate jumper, being stalked, kidnapped and beaten. But her tender heart can get her in trouble and she needs to grow a thicker skin. Almost impossible when her obstinate new boss, for reasons of his own, interferes in everything she does.
Assistant Director of the Criminal Investigative Division in Washington, Dan Black is as hard as they come. With the grit of a street youth stiffening his resolve, he’s worked his way up through the ranks, his personal space shields as strong as ever. Until he sees the sweetest things on two legs! A girl from his past. The one he’s never been able to forget. Working undercover in the Seattle bureau, he tries to protect his childhood fantasy but she refuses to stay put or take orders. Faced with a woman like that, what’s a mere man to do?
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This is my first Mimi Barbour book to read and it did not disappoint. Special Agent Kandice, with her curly-blonde hair and super sweet disposition, is a top notch hostage negotiator struggling to find her inner tough guy. ASAC Dan Brown is a glowering mess who’s been in love with her since they were kids, but is afraid to tell her he is “the boy on the bus” who protected her from bullies. With exciting negotiator scenes and a strong plot line with several engaging sub plots, I enjoyed this book from start to finish. I think readers of Sandra Brown will really like this book.
This book is packed with action and intrigue. Agent Kandice is a marshmallow that perps take for granted, however, she is a top notch crisis negotiator. She has a loving and empathetic nature that have people eating out of her hands.
Dan is not only her new boss but a special someone from her past. He has a lot of explaining to do when things come out in the open.
I loved the characters in this story, from the agents, Kandice’s quirky genius dad and of course Blue..
First Loves
Kandice was one of those people who was a happy person and being a FBI hostage negotiator she had a way with people. Dan had come to the Seattle office to find a bad agent. But the two of them at met years before as kids on a bus. She didn’t have his name, but he knew hers. Now bad people are trying to hurt her and is going to protect her.
I loved Dan. Here’s this stoic man who’s had to fight for every good thing in his life, and he’s given this opportunity to reconnect with the person who made one of the biggest impacts on his young life. I’m not surprised he’s an emotional mess for most of the book. Kandi, on the other hand, left me scratching my head. I liked that the author was trying to create a strong female character who was as compassionate as she is capable. But, bright heavens! Kandi’s inability to prioritize her own safety drove me completely batty. She may have had law enforcement training and her daddy’s gadgets, but the way she kept throwing herself into potentially deadly situations with little to no forethought and no backup made me want to scream. It was very difficult for me to take her seriously, and that impacted my enjoyment of the story.
Great, great story. I loved every minute of it. And Kandi? Loved her too. She was a different kind of Agent. Both in personality and looks. She’s a really good agent and the unusual ways that she approached problems in the field worked for her. Good thing because she was often found right in the middle of whatever was going on. She has some really close friends that she adores in her unit. Bobbi and Wes, are both Agents who have a trustworthy but also at times humorous relationship with her. And her father is an eccentric, genius who loves her beyond everything! It was fun to get to see his overprotective ways too.
Dan Black is in over his head when it comes to Kandi, and he knows it. He may be in charge but she’s about to give him an ulcer if she keeps up her normal ways. I can see how that would happen, because the action never really stops. Everyone around Kandi acknowledges her unusual skills as a negotiator but that still didn’t keep them from wanting to protect her. Dan was a man who came from some pretty harsh beginnings, who got a hand up from someone who saw who he could become. I really liked him and how careful he tried to be around Kandi. Oh, yes he wanted her but he was just afraid she was just a dream to him. He stayed in the background as much as he could but Kandi’s antics didn’t let him stay there long. He hadn’t got over her after all these years and he was really afraid to press it. If he let her into his life and she left, he knew he’d never recover.
I found this to be a fun, interesting, action story with several twists towards the end of the book.
I received a ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Mimi Barbour does it again! You will not be disappointed in this 4th installment of the Undercover FBI series. A strong heroine and sexy love interest make a great story with loads of action, sexual tension, and an HEA.