He’s used to putting out fires, not starting them.Firefighter Blake Steele is living day-to-day, desperately trying to escape the guilt of his haunted past. He doesn’t deserve love after what he did, but when the gorgeous Mary Franks moves in next-door, the conflict between what Steele believes in his head and what he feels in his heart just adds fuel to the fire. For Mary, living next door to a … living next door to a firefighter should be comforting, except her handsome new neighbor insists on making a nuisance of himself by helping her—with everything. And though she can’t deny her attraction, love isn’t something Mary has time for. She has one goal: keeping her son safe, at any cost.
When Mary’s abusive ex is granted parole and fights to get his son back, she relies on Steele for support. But as Steele uncovers all of Mary’s secrets, he is forced to face his own troubled past before both of their lives go up in flames…
This smoldering, standalone romance by award winning author Erin Bevan takes readers back to Black Widow for a second chance.
more
May we all be as strong as Mary and have our own HEA with a humble Hero like Blake Steele.
Erin Bevan story takes the readers on an emotional rollercoster and a great escape. Her writing captivates you from the very beginning and makes you read in suspens of what will happen next.
I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Readers Copy of this book.
I gave this Book a rating of 5 ’s
Title: STEELE
Series: Black and Blue Series Book 2
Genre: Firefighter Romance
Author: Erin Bevan
Format: Kindle Edition
Published on: Nov 14, 2018
I voluntarily received a Courtesy Copy of this book from L. Woods PR and am choosing to leave a review.
>-< >–< >–< >–< >–<>–< >–< >–< >–< >–< >–< >–< >–< Character’s Descriptions: Blake Steele is a firefighter with a haunting past that won’t let him go. Mary is a single mother with a ex that just won’t leave her alone >–< >–< >–< >–< >–<>–< >–< >–< >–< >–< >–< >–< >–< What I liked/Didn’t Like: Sexy Romance story with enough drama to keep you reeled in and wondering what will happen next. The storyline was smooth and fun to read. The characters both have pasts that could have made the story messy but the author handled them beautifully.
Erin Bevan keeps you engaged and wanting more. I wasn’t able to put Steele down and read it every chance I got. Steele is a great read and Bevan definitely brings the characters to life. From bringing back characters from Book 1 and introducing new characters, Bevan has done a great job of building up the town of Black Widow.
I love second chance stories, and that’s what Steele by author Erin Bevan is all about. Getting a fresh start, whether it’s somewhere new, or just in your way of thinking. I haven’t read the first book in this series yet, as these are standalones, but they are connected by characters so maybe for anyone thinking about grabbing the first one, I’d read it Tank, then Steele.
In Steele, Mary has gotten away from her abusive husband and is doing her best to be a single mom and to show everyone that she can go it alone. Nathaniel isn’t hers through birth, but she’s still his mom in her heart. She’s flawed in many ways but still finds her strength when she needs it most.
Blake’s carrying a lot of emotional baggage and doesn’t think he deserves a woman like Mary, he’s to broken for her. But this man has hidden depths that Mary brings to the surface. Being a firefighter and a member of the Blue Guardians, he knows who to take care of himself and those he loves.
This was quite an emotional, suspenseful story. I enjoyed the characters, although I didn’t like Mary’s ex, and getting to hear his POV didn’t endear him to me.
At all.
I wanted to bash him with a frying pan. But, at least the ending was well played out.
A page-turner from start to finish with romance, action, suspense and redemption. Highly recommend this book!
A MUST read!!! The follow up to “Tank” is an exceptional storyline that keeps you engaged. A new adventure with each turn of a page. This book has it all!! Love, mystery, family, heroes, and everyday life!!!!
The best characters are the one’s who are flawed, because only by confronting the imperfections can there be true manifestations of our best self. Steele is both the best and worst of what life has to offer. Bevan lends an empathetic ear to hard truths, painful pasts and a web of lies. Blake and Mary are runners too afraid to stop and face the reality their working to outrun. Until fate gives each a reality check in the worst way. To find the pretty, we have to rise above the ugly.
Have you ever wanted a second chance in life but didn’t think you deserved it? That is what this book is about. It’s about starting over and finding a way to heal yourself. While this book is the second book in the series it is a standalone. I didn’t read the first book Tank and I wish that I had as it seems that we get more of Mary, Nathaniel (Bear), and Steele’s (Blake) beginning in that book. However I did feel comfortable reading this book missing those few details. Mary has gotten out of an abusive relationship with her husband Craig. She’s trying to prove to everyone that she is an amazing mother to Nathaniel (a child who she didn’t give birth to but who she has raised from toddler up). Steele is a man with a painful past who doesn’t think he’s worthy of love from an amazing woman like Mary. I enjoyed watching this little family find love and happiness. I enjoyed Steele’s strength no matter how often Mary tried to push him away and I was thrilled when Mary finally was willing to take all the help that was offered to her and Bear. What I didn’t care for was the sections from Craig’s POV. I get we needed his POV to better understand what was going on and to rile us up. I however, seriously wanted to strangle him. I’m very glad that this book ended the way it did. I didn’t think I could have handled it any other way. I thoroughly enjoyed this story.
**I was given a copy of this book by the Author/Publisher in exchange for my honest review. This was my first book from this author.
Well, what to say… This book is such a great read from beginning to end. And everyone loves HEA’s right??
The chemistry Blake & Mary have throughout the whole book evident. The up and down emotions and curve-ball/criminal events keep you wanting to know what happens next. Definitely a must read book!!
This book really hit home for me (1st marriage) regarding the abuse and how a lot me women feel they need to deal with abuse by themselves.