C2’s review of Breaking the Rules (Troubleshooters, Book 16) by Suzanne Brockmann
Romantic Suspense published by Ballantine 22 Mar 11

Ah, faithful reader, I must start off this review by admitting that I am a fan of Suzanne Brockmann and I love her Troubleshooters series – a couple of are in my top 20 books ever. So when I heard her next release (and, as it turns out, her last Troubleshooters book for a while) was going to be Izzy’s book, I was very excited. Izzy – always upbeat and finding the fun even in dire circumstances. Readers have loved Izzy since he first sang and quipped his way into the Troubleshooters world and him being the star of his own book? Awesome! Right? Well…

Breaking the Rules picks up not long after Hot Pursuit ends. The opening is the kind of action-packed battle stuff we’ve come to expect from Ms. Brockmann. The SEAL team is deployed off into a danger zone and Izzy, Danny Gillman, and the gang are soon in a sniper’s sights. Danny is hit and is in danger of bleeding out before they can get him to a hospital, so Izzy performs a battlefield transfusion – a direct line out of him into Gillman. He’s family, sort of…right? (For those unfamiliar with the series, Izzy is married/estranged from Danny’s sister Eden – their backstory is played out in several books.)

Then we flash to New York where Danny’s maybe-girlfriend (they met in Hot Pursuit) is about to be taken hostage by some disgruntled veterans when she receives word that Danny has been seriously injured and airlifted to Germany. The veterans rethink their hostage-taking and the leader goes with her to the airport. I found this to be unnecessary and forced – why the drama here??

Another flash takes us to Las Vegas where Eden has arrived to rescue her teenage brother from a hellish home life with their mother and her current husband. Eden knows she will need money to support herself and her brother Ben and she owes Danny money, so she wants to find a job that will pay a lot. She decided to audition for a job at an exotic dance club – her reasoning? ”After years of getting leered at wherever she went, she was now on the verge of getting paid for the very same thing.” Of course, Eden is young (22 in this book) and has a bad history with men. And, from a completely objective standpoint, there wasn’t another legal activity that would let her earn lots of money, fast. Meanwhile…

Somewhere in Las Vegas, a young girl escapes from the the illegal brothel she was brought to as an eight-year-old and has been kept there ever since. Illegal aliens imported and kept as sex slaves…certainly not a subplot found in romances, normally. You know why, faithful reader? Nothing sucks you out of a romance novel faster than the thought of children being kept as sex slaves! I know authors have to write the book they are moved to write and who am I to question where the story takes them? Oh wait, I’m the reader. And this as a subplot in a romance? A poor choice, in my opinion.

Also, in the mix of subplots is Eden and Danny’s younger brother Ben. Since Ben came out, his stepfather is convinced (and has convinced the mostly-absent mother) Ben must be sent to a “special” camp so he can be shown the error of his ways. Also, Ben has Type I diabetes, so he has special health issues that must be considered. While at the local mall, guess who Ben meets? Yup, our little runaway – her name is Neesha. Ben tries to give her some advice on escaping the notice of adults, but she doesn’t trust anyone (go figure).

Tying all these plots together takes a lot of effort – and, reading the book, I felt that effort. All the characters aren’t in the same place, working toward the same goal until about halfway through the book. The structure feels very fragmented and disjointed. The switching from place to place and subplot to subplot is jarring.

Izzy is the first to arrive in Vegas. He has been trying to catch up with Eden for the last few books and, when Dan’s father visits the hospital in Germany, Izzy finally gets her address. He heads for the States, hoping for closure. He finally, finally has decided that he has to accept that Eden doesn’t want him.

And now we come to my main problem with Breaking the Rules – the portrayal of Izzy. He has always been so upbeat and able to see the good, even in bad situations, but in this book he is sad. And actively works to keep his natural optimism down. Even after he agrees to help Eden and Ben, at least until Danny can get there, he just isn’t the same Izzy. He and Eden agree to just have a physical relationship and when they’re done, they’re done. No together forever, no happily ever after. And sure, that isn’t an unusual agreement for couples in romance novels, but, usually, it isn’t described in such a sad, hopeless tone. Nor does the tone continue for an extended amount of time.

Izzy’s attitude toward Eden is so out of character – he decides to just go with it and sleep with her, even though he knows it is just temporary because she needs his help and that’s just how she operates. Just waiting to get your heart broken? Again?? Looking at someone with your eyes wide open, knowing they will leave you and not look back and still hanging around for whatever crumbs you can get before the implosion? Heartbreaking. And the whole tone of the book is so bleak and sad because of that.

Being noble didn’t get him anything last time she was in his life, so this time he’s going to take whatever pleasure he can get for however long it lasts. But he never forgets that it will end. He expects it and doesn’t pretend otherwise with Eden. She has burned him too many times before. And Eden thinks no one will ever love her – because of her past, her reputation, her whatever – but she knows lots of people will want her and she’s willing to work with that, if it will help her get what she wants.

Really, the character that grows the most, changes the most, is Danny Gillman. Readers started learning more about him and what makes him tick in Hot Pursuit and we find out more in Breaking the Rules. He and Jennilyn really become a solid couple over the course of the book – who knew he isn’t a complete jerk?

Only in the last few chapters, when everything comes to a head and the good guys rush in to save the day, does this book have the same feel as the other Troubleshooters books. It’s like the characters suddenly snap back into their real selves (with some improvements in Dan’s case). And after the good guys prevail, we’re done. After all the sadness and suffering, everybody loves everybody and The End. I would have liked a bit more happy to balance out the bleakness of the rest. So is the happy ending worth suffering through the previous 7/8 of the book? For fans of the series, I’m not sure. For new readers, maybe. So is it necessary to read the rest of the series before reading Breaking the Rules? No – probably just Hot Pursuit. You might be better off, actually.

My final thought? Izzy deserves better than this.

Grade: C-

Summary:

Izzy Zanella wasn’t looking for another reason to butt heads with his Navy SEAL teammate, and nemesis, Danny Gillman. But then he met Danny’s beautiful younger sister, Eden. When she needed it most, he offered her a place to stay, a shoulder to cry on—and more. And when she got pregnant with another man’s child, he offered her marriage. But Eden’s devastating miscarriage shattered their life together—and made the intense bad blood between Izzy and Danny even worse.

Now Eden’s back, and she’s on a mission to rescue her teen brother, Ben, from their abusive stepfather. Even if she and Izzy can prove that their broken marriage is still in one piece, winning legal custody of Ben is a long shot. But they’re not alone: Danny and his girlfriend, Jenn, offer to help, and he and Izzy agree to bury the past and fight for Ben’s future.

As they plan their strategy, Izzy and Eden grapple with the raw passion that still crackles between them—while Danny and Jenn confront new depths in their own rocky relationship. But events take a terrifying turn after Ben befriends a girl fleeing a child prostitution ring. When the young runaway seeks refuge with Eden and Izzy, her pursuers kidnap Ben—and a deadly standoff begins. Now they must all pull together like never before and strike back, swift and hard, to protect their unconventional little family and everything they hold most precious.

Other books in the series:

C2’s review of Hot Pursuit (Troubleshooters, Book 15) by Suzanne Brockmann
Romantic suspense released by Ballantine 28 Jul 09

In Suzanne Brockmann’s latest Troubleshooters book, we become reacquainted with The Dentist, a serial killer who likes to claim the teeth of his victims – sometimes before he kills them. We first heard about The Dentist in a bonus short story featuring Sam and Alyssa that was included at the end of Flashpoint. In Hot Pursuit we learn that Alyssa is part of a task force trying to track down elusive Dentist. What Alyssa doesn’t know is that The Dentist has developed a fixation on her and has started making plans.

The events bringing Sam and Alyssa back into contact with The Dentist start out innocently enough – or do they? A New York assemblywoman has been receiving threats and needs her security beefed up. Since she happens to be a good friend of Savannah van Hopf Karmody (heroine of Out of Control, for those not familiar with the whole series), the Troubleshooters team takes the job. It seems like a nice easy assignment that will let Sam and Alyssa and the rest of the gang help out a friend of a friend while spending some time in New York City. But when do things ever run so smoothly for the TS Inc., faithful reader? As always, in the Troubleshooters world, there is a lot going on.

First things first – the team assigned to assist Assemblywoman Maria Bonavita with her security issues: Sam Starrett and Alyssa Locke (along with baby Ashton), Izzy Zanella, his not-so-loving brother-in-law Danny Gillman, Jay Lopez, and Tony Vlachic. Gillman is recovering from an injury that has left him with nightmares and blackouts. Stress from a potentially career-ending injury plus the usual Zanella-induced stress does not make Danny a happy boy.

To distract himself and, perhaps, get some happy (or something), Gillman decides Jenn, the assemblywoman’s chief of staff, is a prime candidate for an assignment-long fling. Jennilyn LeMay is not a dainty, delicate flower. She is what some would call real-sized (“statuesque”, thinks Dan). She isn’t focused on her appearance, she doesn’t date much, she’s the pal in the background of her friends’ lives. Needless to say, when the gorgeous Danny starts flirting, Jenn is suspicious of his motives. But our Dan is a smooth talker and good with the rationalizing so she agrees soon enough.

There are those (you know who you are) who would say Gillman is an ass and a player and only out for what he can get with the least effort expended. I choose to think he has issues stemming from his childhood and more recent traumas and just needs a bit of therapy to help him deal in a more constructive way so he can recognize the good thing right in front of him (which he almost does, without the therapy). Yeah, yeah…yell at me in the comments.

In the meantime, the security threat to Assemblywoman Bonavita has taken a gruesome turn and the team springs into action to catch the person responsible. The FBI is called in on the case and you know what that means, don’t you? Jules! Ah, faithful reader, he is my very favorite person in the Troubleshooters world. A TS Inc. book without Jules is like a day without sunshine. Plus Robin is along for the ride – and to provide babysitting services – since things in NYC have become dangerous and Sam and Alyssa will be busier than they anticipated.

We find out what has been going on elsewhere in the Troubleshooters world…new babies, weddings, promotions, etc. We also get an update in the Izzy/Eden saga. Izzy, we learn, has made several trips to Germany to try to talk to Eden; so far, no luck there. Oh, Izzy…he just breaks my heart. He’s still the same in Hot Pursuit – always with the jokes and smart comments and impromptu songs – but his sadness shows around the edges. I don’t think it’s a spoiler (since it’s all over the interwebs, by now) that his book is next in the series. Let me take a moment to say YAY and Snoopy dance with joy!

As we race toward the end of the book, there is police brutality, bodies are found, and people are being stalked. Characters are kidnapped and their would-be rescuers seem to be off on a wild goose chase, as the Dentist’s evil plan comes to its climax. Will the good guys win? Will everyone survive?? What are you looking at me for? Go read the book!

Grade: A

PS: The blurb for this book makes it sound as if Alyssa is the main focus of Hot Pursuit but I didn’t find that to be true. Yes, she is a main character and at the center of a good bit of the action but I think this was Danny Gillman’s book. After you read it, come back and tell me what you think.

Summary:
.
Alyssa Locke is no stranger to dealing with danger. As team leader of the nation’s number one personal security company, Troubleshooters Inc., she’s seen more than her share of action, survived plenty of close calls, and holds her own with the best of them–and against the worst of them. Guarding lives is her game, and no one plays it better. But her toughest challenge will be protecting herself from a serial killer she’s been after for years–known only as “The Dentist”–who is determined to make her his ultimate trophy.
.
The assignment was supposed to be an easy one: teach self-defense techniques to a newly elected assemblywoman and her chief of staff after a political controversy generates a blizzard of hate mail–including death threats–from hotheads and cranks. But as soon as she mobilizes her squad of moonlighting Navy SEALs in New York City, Alyssa begins butting heads with the hard-case cop who thinks that the Troubleshooters are chasing shadows.
.
Until they discover a dead body. And then another. Now Alyssa really has her hands full bodyguarding two independent, busy women, managing a murder investigation, and trying to find time for her husband, Troubleshooters operative Sam Starrett, and their infant son. Meanwhile, it wouldn’t be a Troubleshooters operation without romantic sparks and heated rivalries–and any time the SEALs of Team Sixteen are involved, there are plenty of both.
.
But then, while investigating a suspect, Alyssa is ambushed and suddenly finds herself imprisoned by The Dentist. Cut off from everyone she loves and relies on, Alyssa must call upon all of her strength and skill to survive this final confrontation with the sadistic monster, meanwhile trusting that her Troubleshooter teammates, led by her beloved Sam, will reach her before it’s too late.
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Read an excerpt HERE!

Other books in the series:

Suz Brockmann exclusive aka info found in Hot Pursuit Author’s Notes (well not in the ARC)

We are FINALLY going to get Izzy’s book next and sadly for Troubleshooter fans it will be the last Troubleshooter book for a while.  But she will be publishing an antho of the novella’s she has done over the years and does say she hopes to include some new stories as well.

Dan is also in the book, as well as the woman he hooks up with in Hot Pursuit, as you haven’t read that yet and god knows you peeps can be rabid about spoilers I will not even go there.  Hell I am not even going to type up the paragraph for fear of saying something deemed omgish.

What I did find interesting is it looks like Suz is pulling a Quinn and dusting off a old manuscript she had under the bed.  Well I have no clue where she had ”Gallagher’s Claim,” but you get the point:

bit more info from an old Q&A

LETTERS TO KELLY is one of my mom’s favorites – but she also liked another book that never got published, called GALLAGHER’S CLAIM. Nobody knew how to market it. It was a contemporary (took place on a movie set of a western), yet there was a subplot that was told by diary entries, AND one of the subplot characters (the hero’s great-grandfather) was a ghost.

It deals with themes of truth vs. legend – perceptions, things are not as they seem.
Parts of it are freakin’ stupid, (sorry, mom!) but parts of it are really worth salvaging.

Some day…

- Suz

At least it will be published in MM wonder if it will be marketed as a Romance or fiction? Hopefully someone will get the scope. Tis amazingly dead at the B&N boards I am oddly not at all surprised…

I have finished reading the Troubleshooter series and I do have to say I am sooooo glad she is finishing Izzy’s story since he is the only reason I started the whole damn thing to begin with, think we have any chances of her doing a book or two in her Harlequin series during her Troubleshooter break *g*. WHAT I can hope!

C2 (C-Squared)‘s review of Dark of Night (Troubleshooters, Book 14) by Suzanne Brockmann
Romantic suspense hardcover released by Ballantine 27 Jan 09

Anyone who has ever visited my personal blog knows I’m a Suzanne Brockmann fan. I’m not a crazy stalker fan grrl or anything – *innocent look* – I’m just enthusiastic. I like all the interwoven stories and the whole deep point of view thing. And I say it’s impressive that all the characters are so real and clearly drawn that it is often easy for the reader to know, without her telling us, who is speaking. No cookie-cutter characters to be found here! 

So, of course, I was anxiously awaiting the release of Dark of Night, the newest Troubleshooters book. Now, before I go any further, I will warn you that this post will be filled with spoilers. Did you catch that, gentle readers? **FILLED WITH SPOILERS** I don’t know how else to do it. I admire and appreciate those reviewers who managed to write up their thoughts without spoiling it for the rest of us – especially since it took my book 3 days to get to me. Grrr. I mean, honestly, they get Harry Potter books to those who pre-order on the day of release. Can’t they do that for all hard covers? *Deep breath* Sorry! That’s a topic for another day. Back to the matter at hand – and remember HERE BE SPOILERS!!

**  YOU’VE BEEN WARNED! **

Dark of Night picks up almost exactly where the previous book, Into the Fire, left off. So we have the Troubleshooters trying to deal with the loss of one of their own. However, Jimmy Nash isn’t dead. He’s badly injured, yes, but quite alive. Jules Cassidy, everybody’s favorite FBI guy, knows that the key to keeping Nash alive long-term is to keep him “dead” until the people targeting him can be found and stopped.

So, a plan is set in motion. A select few know the truth about Nash and are guarding him at a safe house in the desert. Sam and Alyssa (and their new baby), Tess, Jules and Robin are there. The only other person who knows the truth is Decker – until Tracy figures it out, too. Yup, Suz takes the ditzy blonde secretary stereotype and turns it on its ear. And throws Decker and Tracy together in a major way.

At the same time Sophia and Dave are dealing with their grief over Nash, their relationship takes a romantic turn. Yes, Dave has loved Sophia forever but she is, finally, returning his interest. Like, really really returning it. But, poor Dave, right when it looks like he’s going to be happy, the bad guys grab him. Thinking they can get info out of him about Nash – or trade him for Nash, if he’s alive like they suspect. The torture scenes were uncomfortable to read, I must say. Yikes. Thankfully, they were brief. And we are shown some new facets of Dave’s character. He has a lot more in common with the rest of the Troubleshooters men than I had realized. He isn’t just a brain, after all.

And the race is on – find Dave, catch the bad guys, get Nash out of the line of fire, couple up the couples. With most of the SEALs out of the country, there is only a small group of Troubleshooters available to help. Still is there any doubt of the outcome?

The bad guys are dispatched. Dave is found – he dispatched some of the bad guys all by his tortured, infected self. And we get two new happily ever afters, one hinted at and one brand new, plus a bit of closure for an existing couple.

Closure for Nash and Tess – finally, the things that have kept them from moving forward (Nash’s secrets) are out of the way. In my opinion, I think that was the main purpose of the bad guys and Nash’s death. Since Nash was “dead” (and truly injured), he had to sit by and wait for the his team to take care of the bad guys. He had plenty of time to think about things – and get some advice from Love Doctors Sam and Kenny “Wild Card” Carmody. Talk about good times!

Our hinted coupling – when Dave is kidnapped, Sophia has a chance to realize she had only fooled herself into thinking she was settling for Dave. She figures out that he really is the guy she wants.

Our brand new couple — Decker and Tracy’s — whole romance happens in Dark of Night. They see in each other things they didn’t realize they wanted or needed. Deck needs someone who isn’t in awe of him. Someone who sees the real person behind the awesome Chief Decker, Navy SEAL. Tracy needs someone who sees beyond the packaging to the real person and brain underneath. And appreciates her chattiness. I totally believed their romance, even with all the other stuff happening in the book.

What? Is that screaming I hear?? Something about Decker and Sophia being meant for each other? Puh-leeze, people. What, exactly, are you basing that assumption on? I have never been a fan of that pairing – chemistry, they lacked it – so to see Suz moving those characters in a different direction made me happy. I understand that isn’t true for all readers. Whatever. You have to trust the author to take her characters where they need to go.

Yes, there were some small issues with the book — the bad guys were a bit too all-knowing, and some of the violent acts were a bit gruesome (not gory just icky). But acts of violence are like that, I suppose. To make an impact, they have to be uncomfortable for those who witness them. And yes, it was almost too fast-paced. Another 50-75 pages would have been welcome… not that I’m greedy.

Where does that leave us, gentle reader? With the story arc that began in Flashpoint all wrapped up and waiting impatiently for Hot Pursuit — coming this summer — of course! Let me take a moment to say how very glad I am that Suz has moved to two releases a year. Yay!

Grade: A-

Blurb:

Badly shaken after the loss of one of their own, the men and women of Troubleshooters Inc. go up against their most deadly opponents yet – the clandestine organization called The Agency. Blackmail, extortion, murder: The Agency’s black-ops sector will apparently stop at nothing to achieve their objective. But this time they’ve gone too far and hit too close to home.

Led by former Navy SEAL Lawrence Decker, a team of investigators – from FBI agent Jules Cassidy and former CIA operative Dave Malkoff, to Troubleshooters Sophia Ghaffari, Tess Bailey, and even receptionist Tracy Shapiro – band together to uncover the truth, and bring the killers to justice.
But the stakes are raised even higher when Decker barely escapes an attempt on his life. It soon becomes clear that the hunters have become the hunted – and the Troubleshooters are no longer just solving a crime – they’re fighting for survival.

Read an excerpt HERE.

Other books in the series (mass market paperback referenced where available):

and Book 15, HOT PURSUIT, Ballantine, Summer 2009

Lynne Connolly’s review of Into the Fire (Troubleshooters, Book 13) by Suzanne Brockmann
Contemporary Romance hardcover released by Random House 22 Jul 08

‘Into the Fire’ is Suzanne Brockmann’s latest Troubleshooters/Team 16 book and as it’s a great read. I wrote this review before I saw the one by Laura D, and it’s really interesting to see the differences between our views of the book.

Vinh Murphy disappeared after a sniper took his beloved wife down, years before. Now he’s back, newly sober and ready to discover what’s left after that devastation. Best friend Hannah, now deaf after an infection in her leg went badly wrong, is waiting to help. She’s been in love with Murphy for years, only he doesn’t quite realise it. For that matter, he doesn’t believe in himself.

Also in the mix is Izzy Zanella of the SEALs, and the daughter of one of his colleagues, Danny Gillman, who Izzy calls “fishboy.” Although Izzy didn’t get Danny’s eighteen year old sister pregnant, he wants to look after her and make sure she gets the care she needs in her pregnancy. But Izzy and Eden might just have a shot at a relationship, not just a way to get Eden the health benefits she needs.

Add to that an explosive plot. Tim Ebersole, leader of the Freedom Network, who were behind the hit on Murphy and his wife, is dead and the Network, a Waco style extremist group, is about to appoint a new leader. But they want to tidy up some loose ends, a move that slowly escalates through the book to an explosive ending and one that leaves a fascinating thread at the end that I for one am gagging for. If her next book isn’t about it, I might just take a trip to ask her why not.

I wouldn’t advise anyone new to the Teams to start here, as it contains characters you’ve already met and may have an investment in. Having said that, I’d say ‘ read this.’ Suz Brockmann shows people how to write grown up romances. Characters with names like Tom, Dave, Danny and Jimmy people her books. No vampires, no Dantes or Gabriels, no deus ex machina to appear in the final act, wave a wand and make everything all right.

These people live hard and occasionally suffer hard. You feel they are real. Murphy doesn’t bounce back after his wife’s death. One couple in the book, paired up in a previous novel, don’t have their happy ending, and another are still working their way towards theirs. You see, there is a cast of characters and you do have to work a bit to remember, but it’s so worth it.

Brockmann is superb at delineating character. You know who she is talking about and you can visualise them. You get a multitude of pov’s, all of whom are there because they need to be there, not because she wants to put them in.

I loved it and I can’t wait for the next one. If you want a book with explosive action, some really heartbreaking scenes and some heartwarming ones too, you can’t go far wrong with Brockmann.

Grade: B

Summary:

Vinh Murphy-ex-Marine and onetime operative for the elite security firm Troubleshooters Incorporated-has been MIA ever since his wife, Angelina, was caught in a crossfire and killed during what should have been a routine bodyguard assignment. Overcome with grief, Murphy blames the neo-Nazi group known as the Freedom Network for her death. Now, years later, Freedom Network leader Tim Ebersole has been murdered-and the FBI suspects Murphy may have pulled the trigger. To prevent further bloodshed, Murphy’s friends at Troubleshooters scramble to find him and convince him to surrender peacefully.

Murphy himself can’t be sure what he did or didn’t do during the years he spent mourning and lost in an alcohol-induced fog. He does know he occasionally sought solace from Hannah Whitfield, a former police officer and the very friend who’d introduced him to his beloved late wife.

But Hannah, still grappling with the deafness that resulted from an injury sustained while on duty, was fighting her own battles. For years Hannah had feelings for Murphy, and one painful night their suffering brought them together in a way neither expected-and both regretted.

Murphy is ready to rejoin the living. As always, he finds himself knocking on Hannah’s door, and as always, his longtime friend welcomes him back into her home. Yet even as Murphy slowly rebuilds his splintered life, hecontinues to fight his growing feelings for Hannah.

Then he learns of Ebersole’s murder and comes to believe that the Freedom Network has targeted him-and Hannah-to avenge their leader’s death to violence. Now Murphy must face the terrifying prospect of losing another woman he loves.

As the Troubleshooters desperately search for him, Murphy races toward a deadly confrontation with the Freedom Network and ultimate choice: surrender his life in hopes that Hannah will be spared, or risk everything to salvage whatever future they may have together.

Read an excerpt.

LauraD’s review of Into the Fire (Troubleshooters, Book 13) by Suzanne Brockmann
Contemporary Romance hardcover released by Random House 22 Jul 08

I never thought I’d long for the good ol’ days, when the only part of a Brockmann novel that irritated me was the WWII flashback sequence. But I’ve got to admit, the hot mess that is Into the Fire had me wishing for something as simple as that to be disappointed in. Instead there were 4 different plot lines, one of which finally finished off a love triangle that probably has some fans howling with betrayal. Oh, and remember Sam’s ex-wife MaryAnne? She’s back, re-incarnated as Izzy’s new love interest. Kidding. Sorta.

There’s no use giving any sort of synopsis, there’s just waay too much going on. Ostensibly our main characters are Vinh Murphy and Hannah Whitfield. (He’s not a vampire, he’s half Vietnamese.) Vinh’s wife-who was also Hannah’s best friend-was murdered in a previous book. He is now suspected of killing the white supremacist who incited her murderer into action, but Vinh was so deep into drinking he doesn’t remember if he did it or not. He and Hannah are trying to figure out whether or not he’s guilty.

Hannah is a former police officer, injured in the line of duty. She is now deaf, and one of her legs is permanently disabled. After her injuries, she too took refuge in alcohol for a while. Despite this, she has no trouble lip-reading or speaking, or really communicating in any way. Unless the plot requires her to not hear something. She and Murphy realize they have always loved each other. Since she is a heroically injured ex-police officer with life altering permanent disabilities, it’s ok to not hate her for being alive. Every time they have sex, they cry, because Murphy’s wife-who was also Hannah’s best friend-is dead.

Next up, we have Tess and Jimmy/Nash/Diego. Things aren’t going well for these two; Jimmy is keeping secrets and Tess thinks he’s having an affair. Jimmy has been going off on all kinds of secret missions, and coming back with injuries that he shouldn’t have. Dave actually knows this as well, and thinks that maybe Jimmy is still working for the Agency, even though supposedly he and Decker quit the Agency years ago. Totally unnecessary side-story, and does anyone even really care about Tess and Jimmy?

Decker, Dave, and Sophia. Suz-o-philes have been waiting for about 5 books for the Decker/Sophia story to play out on the big stage. Sorry kids, it whimpers out in the background of this book. Decker’s been keeping a big, bad secret from everyone and it takes the psychiatrist/Agency spy that Tom Paoletti hires to help everyone finally deal with the death of Murphy’s wife-and Hannah’s best friend-to get that secret out of him.

Oh, wait. I almost forgot the SEALs! Can’t have a Brockmann book without a SEAL or three. Y’all remember Izzy? Izzy looks up one night, sees an underage girl in a bikini, and within the next few chapters is married to her. And she’s pregnant. Throw in internet porn, VD, and about 6 trips back and forth to Las Vegas. I found her more irritating than the infamous MaryAnne, and if Brockmann can redeem this girl I will bow to her.

I’ve got to say, I actually laughed towards the end of “Into the Fire”. Not only is there a large cast of active players, but the author name-checks almost every character who doesn’t have a participating role in this book. (It was nice to see Stan again, lol.) At the end of the climactic battle, all these characters are literally coming out of the woods, armed with fully automatic weapons, and it was so much that I had to giggle. I kept expecting to see the Team 10 guys.

Ultimately, Into the Fire suffers from Too Much. Too Much going on, Too Much drama. Too Many characters with Too Many problems. Makes me sad, because I have so many of her books on my keeper shelf.

Grade: D

Summary:

Vinh Murphy-ex-Marine and onetime operative for the elite security firm Troubleshooters Incorporated-has been MIA ever since his wife, Angelina, was caught in a crossfire and killed during what should have been a routine bodyguard assignment. Overcome with grief, Murphy blames the neo-Nazi group known as the Freedom Network for her death. Now, years later, Freedom Network leader Tim Ebersole has been murdered-and the FBI suspects Murphy may have pulled the trigger. To prevent further bloodshed, Murphy’s friends at Troubleshooters scramble to find him and convince him to surrender peacefully.

Murphy himself can’t be sure what he did or didn’t do during the years he spent mourning and lost in an alcohol-induced fog. He does know he occasionally sought solace from Hannah Whitfield, a former police officer and the very friend who’d introduced him to his beloved late wife.

But Hannah, still grappling with the deafness that resulted from an injury sustained while on duty, was fighting her own battles. For years Hannah had feelings for Murphy, and one painful night their suffering brought them together in a way neither expected-and both regretted.

Murphy is ready to rejoin the living. As always, he finds himself knocking on Hannah’s door, and as always, his longtime friend welcomes him back into her home. Yet even as Murphy slowly rebuilds his splintered life, hecontinues to fight his growing feelings for Hannah.

Then he learns of Ebersole’s murder and comes to believe that the Freedom Network has targeted him-and Hannah-to avenge their leader’s death to violence. Now Murphy must face the terrifying prospect of losing another woman he loves.

As the Troubleshooters desperately search for him, Murphy races toward a deadly confrontation with the Freedom Network and ultimate choice: surrender his life in hopes that Hannah will be spared, or risk everything to salvage whatever future they may have together.

Read an excerpt.

Alicia’s review of All Through the Night by Suzanne Brockmann
Romantic Suspense published hardcover 30 Oct 07 from Ballantine

This is the spot where I say why I picked up the book. Duh. I’ve been waiting to read Jules’ story for years. All Through the Night does not stand alone. I’m writing this review assuming you’ve been reading Suzanne Brockmann’s Troubleshooter series, already.

How this book hits will depend on where you’re coming from. This is not the first Brockmann book to try if you’re not a fan, already. There is some suspense but every aspect of the plot has the sole purpose of resolving Jules and Robin’s relationship.

There’s a terrorist incident that feels kind of just stuck in there. It shows how that aspect of Jules’ job is going to affect their relationship. There’s a stalker but he’s just there to force the Adam issue. There is a secondary romance which I enjoyed a lot but even that was involved with Jules and Robin. If you’re looking for classic Suzanne Brockmann romantic suspense you may be disappointed.

On the other hand, this is Jules’ story! I had no problem with everything being about the romance. I loved seeing Jules so happy and I totally believed Robin had it together. When a story is built up this much there’s a danger that the realization of the HEA will fall short of my expectation. The end of All Through the Night left me with a good, solid, satisfied feeling.

So, bearing in mind the grading system here says a “C” is still a good book, that’s where I’m going with this one. There are a lot of things that feel sort of cheated in the story but they were sacrificed for a worthy cause. If you are a Troubleshooters fan, don’t miss All Through the Night.

Grade: C+

It’s Christmastime in Boston, and this year the silver bells will be wedding bells as FBI agent Jules Cassidy ties the knot with the man of his dreams, Hollywood heartthrob Robin Chadwick.

The pair plan a quiet, intimate ceremony, to be witnessed by family and close friends from the FBI, SEAL Team Sixteen, and Troubleshooters, Incorporated, including Sam Starrett and Alyssa Locke. But the holiday season brings more to the happy couple than they expect.

A waterfall coming through their kitchen ceiling, a bat colony in the attic, old family tensions.even an international incident can’t dampen their spirits. But add to that a parade of unexpected guests, including a reporter looking for a scoop, an ex-lover hell-bent on causing trouble, and a dangerous stalker, and suddenly the wedding is poised to unravel in chaos.

But nothing will stop Jules and Robin from getting their happy ending, because along with a guest list featuring the most elite counterterrorism force in the world, they have their own secret weapon – true love.

read an excerpt