Lynn H. Blackburn: Under Fire

By Kelly Bridgewater

USSS Special Agent Zane Thacker has landed his dream assignment protecting the president of the United States. When the president plans a fundraiser at the exclusive estate of a political supporter in Raleigh, Zane is thrilled to be working again with Special Agent Tessa Reed, his best friend--and the woman he desperately wishes could be more.

Though Tessa almost lost everything, she battled her demons and came out on the other side healthy and healed. But when her role as the liaison between the Raleigh office and the president's protective detail wrenches her past back into the present, her greatest failure threatens to come to light.

Zane refuses to let Tessa go through this alone. But can he stand by the woman he loves and protect the president from a mounting threat at the same time?

Sparks fly as award-winning romantic suspense writer Lynn H. Blackburn closes out her Defend and Protect series with this explosive tale of secrets kept, lies exposed, and relationships restored.

 

My Thoughts:

Under Fire by Lynn H. Blackburn is defined as a romantic suspense novel. As the genre suggests, should be plenty of suspense and romance to round out the story. Unfortunately, for my opinion, the story focused 85% on the development of the romance between Tessa and Zane and about 15% on the suspense element. The plot did not move that fast. Plenty of moments for Tessa and Zane to question their budding relationship. Plenty of moments of wondering why or why not that they should be in a relationship. At certain times, there were moments were Tessa's life was put in danger and then the story would plan the presidential patrol, but nothing really pressing. I would assume if a president of the United States would be coming to town, and someone has threaten to bring him harm that the story would be more focused on the protection and trying to figure out who did the threat. But that was not the case. It seemed to be a little important, but not that important to the characters. I would delete the suspense part of the genre title and just call it a contemporary romance novel.  While the writing of Blackburn is a delight to read, the plot just didn't deliver what it promised. I wanted more suspense and a sense of urgency for the readers.

I received a complimentary copy of Under Fire by Lynn H. Blackburn through Revell Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

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Lynn H. Blackburn: Malicious Intent

 By Kelly Bridgewater

Dr. Ivy Collins, founder and CEO of Hedera, Inc., is ready to begin clinical trials of her company's cutting-edge prosthetic. Her work has been heralded by government, medical, and advocacy groups and everyone hopes the device will be a success. Well, almost everyone. Someone is trying to sabotage Hedera and the launch, but to what purpose--and how far will they go to get what they want?

Meanwhile, U.S. Secret Service Agent Gil Dixon can't believe he's finally been reunited with Ivy, his childhood best friend. Now that he's found her again, Gil intends to spend the rest of his life with her. But it will take all his skill to uncover the truth in time to save Ivy's life's work, her own life, and the innocent lives caught in the crossfire.

Perfectly balancing chilling suspense and uplifting romance, award-winning author Lynn H. Blackburn delivers a story of revenge, greed, and overcoming that you won't want to put down no matter how late it gets. 

 

My Thoughts:

Malicious Intent by Lynn H. Blackburn checks all the boxes off for a Romantic Suspense novel. The first chapter dives into a character, who happens to be the heroine of the story, who has been tortured recently. From then on, the story moves forward with trying to discover who harmed her and why. Of course, the heroine, Ivy, runs into someone from her past, the heroine, Gil, who actually has loved her and wanted to come back into her life. As the story progresses, the suspense is heightened also, allowing the readers to jump into the action just like the heroine and the hero. On the same vein, the romance is questioned, then jumped into with full emotions. When the climactic moment is revealed, there is many different elements that make the final answer different than I have ever seen before. Has it been done before? Not in any novel that I have devoured. Can I see it happening in real life? Most definitely. Overall, Malicious Intent by Lynn H. Blackburn does give fans of romantic suspense just what they want. Plenty of action sprinkled with fighting emotions across the page. Fans of Colleen Coble and DiAnn Mills should be pick this novel. They would definitely enjoy time spent with this story.

I received a complimentary copy of Malicious Intent by Lynn H. Blackburn from Revell Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

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Lynn Blackburn: Unknown Threat

 By Kelly Bridgewater

US Secret Service Special Agent Luke Powell is lucky to be alive. Three of his fellow agents have died in unusual circumstances in the past ten weeks. Luke is devastated by the loss of his friends and colleagues, and his inability to locate the killer feels like a personal failure. He's an expert at shielding others, but now the protectors are in need of protection.

FBI Special Agent Faith Malone is driven to succeed and confident in her ability to solve every case she's assigned. She's been put in charge of the investigation into the unprecedented attacks, and with Luke's life in danger, the stakes have never been higher. But it's hard to know how to fight back when you don't know who the enemy is.

As more agents are targeted, Luke and Faith will have to work together to bring a killer to justice and prevent any more names from joining their fallen brothers and sisters on the Secret Service Wall of Honor.

 

My Thoughts:

Unknown Threat is a bombing interesting story! With the opening chapter, readers are taken for a quick ride as they wonder through the word of agents being targeted and killed one by one. Who is next? Could it be the hero? Could it be the heroine? Lynn Blackburn takes readers on a journey through the life of interesting characters and an interesting plot. Blackburn does a wonderful job at crafting a story with showing the Secret Service and FBI operations. While the romance does occur, it does take over a lot of the story. As for the plot, I wanted more suspense. If these agents’ lives were in peril, then why was it not happening all the time? I kept wanting something to happen at certain moments, but then Blackburn would talk about the case through the eyes of Faith Malone, FBI Special Agent, or Luke, Selective Services. Overall, in my humble opinion, this was a predictable, yet original tale through the world of the police. I believe fans of DiAnn Mills, Colleen Coble, and Irene Hannon would enjoy this novel.

I received a complimentary copy of Unknown Threat by Lynn Blackburn from Revell Publishing, but the opinions stated are all my own.

My Rating: 3.75 out of 5 stars

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