Stevie‘s review of Hell for Leather (Black Knights Inc. Book 6) by Julie Ann Walker
Contemporary Romantic Suspense published by Sourcebooks Casablanca 06 May 14
I had a lot of fun reading the previous book in this series, and after I read that one I was keen to both catch up on the back story and keep up with subsequent instalments. While I haven’t managed the former yet, I’m managing okay with the latter, and was pleased to see that this book gives us more detail on another of the fabulous women who hang out with the men of Black Knights, Inc. Not that there’s any need to have read the rest of the series, as once again this novel is pretty well self-contained and self-explanatory, but I suspect that those who have been lucky enough to have followed the series from Book 1 will spot little treats in the background that I missed in this story.
Delilah is a fabulous character. On the surface she’s a tough biker woman with a stunning figure and equally stunning hair – she runs the bar the guys hang out in and rides a monster of a custom bike – but under that façade she has both brains and a softer side. In her spare time, Delilah works as a forensic accountant, investigating major fraud cases for the authorities, and cares very deeply for both her customers and the uncle who brought her up from a young age. She’s also in on the secret that the guys run more than a repair shop from their base, and so when her uncle disappears on a road trip, she calls them in to help straight away.
The adventure part of the plot is a little over the top, although it touches on a lot of current issues – the selling of government secrets to potentially hostile groups, the dangers of creating more terrorists though collateral damage inflicted on civilians and their families while targeting existing terrorists, and secrets from previous conflicts cropping up to affect the present situation. I decided to go with the flow rather than pick at potential plot-holes, and definitely appreciated the decision to give us the bad guys’ point of view without ever covering up their identities or backstories.
Meanwhile, Delilah’s long-term favourite amongst the Black Knights, Mac, is as keen on her as she is on him, but he has serious trust issues, especially where glamorous women are concerned and so resists getting involved. Delilah’s not letting him get away with that; having recently lost one of her favourite customers as a result of the Black Knights’ previous encounter with some armed bad guys, as well as facing up to the possibility of losing her uncle, she really wants Mac to help her take her mind off her problems for a while. I love that she’s the one in control of that side of things, even while the guys are mostly running the search for her uncle, but some readers may want a tougher hero in their story.
The book has a few moments when I wanted to tell the characters to watch their backs a little more carefully, but generally it is a fun romp, and I’m very keen to see how the secondary relationship in this book plays out in subsequent stories. Plus, I want more explosions. This series does action very well.
Grade: B
Summary:
Black Knights Inc.—Behind the façade of their tricked-out motorcycle shop is an elite special ops team assigned the jobs too hot for anyone else to handle.
Only a crisis could persuade Delilah Fairchild to abandon her beloved biker bar, let alone ask Black Knights Inc. operator Bryan “Mac” McMillan for help. But her uncle has vanished into thin air, and sexy, surly Mac has the connections to help her find him. What the big, blue-eyed Texan has against her is a mystery… but when the bullets start to fly, Mac becomes her only hope of survival, and her only chance of finding her uncle alive.
Mac knows a thing or two about beautiful women— mainly that they can’t be trusted. Throw in a ticking clock, a deadly homegrown terrorist, and some missing nuclear weapons, and a man just might find himself on the wrong end of the gun. But facing down danger with Delilah is one passion-filled thrill ride…
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
