Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Darkest Before Dawn (KGI #10) by Maya Banks [Review]


THE ALL-NEW KGI NOVEL from the “incredibly awesome" (Jaci Burton) #1 New York Times bestselling author of When Day Breaks.

The Kelly Group International (KGI): A super-elite, top secret, family-run business.

Qualifications: High intelligence, rock-hard body, military background.

Mission: Hostage/kidnap victim recovery. Intelligence gathering. Handling jobs the U.S. government can’t...

The enigmatic Hancock has been both opponent and ally to the KGI teams for as long as they've known him. Always working a deep game, Hancock's true allegiance has never been apparent, but one thing is for certain—he never lets anything get in the way of duty.








But now, his absolute belief in the primacy of his ultimate goal is challenged by a captive he's been ordered to guard, no matter how much she suffers in her prison. She's the only woman who's ever managed to penetrate the rigid walls surrounding his icy heart, but will he allow his perplexing feelings for the beautiful victim to destroy a mission he's spent years working to complete or will he be forced to sacrifice her for “the greater good.”






3.5 Protecting at All Cost Stars
Darkest Before Dawn is a standalone and is part of the KGI series. I love Maya Banks. She’s one of the first authors I discovered when I adventured to **cough** smut reading. I mean, New Adult / Contemporary reading.

What can I say? She has a way in creating different characters and addictive stories. 
This is my first KGI book. I’ve heard so many great things about this series and I LOVE action pack novels. You throw in a sexy Hero, well I’m a happy gal.

I didn’t read the previous books, but Hancock has been on both sides, good and bad. Regardless where his ties are, he’s a man of his word.  Honor is the only survivor of an explosion and is now hunted, because there should be no survivors. She’s a woman in a war-torn country and everything seems kind of dire.  Because of Honor’s background, Hancock is requested to “save” Honor and bring her back.

“You’re safe, Honor. I’ve got you. Nothing will hurt you tonight”

The descriptive writing is a bit heavy in the beginning.  There’s a lot of character build up and you find out where the characters come from. The two main characters interact around the 20% and from there, the pace picks up and you are taken for a wild ride.

“Thank you”
“For what”
“For saving me…”
“I made no such promise, Honor”
“You trying is enough”

Honor and Hancock are attracted to each other, but both have goals that need to meet before anything romantic can happen. Hancock is on a mission and Honor is just trying to survive. But nothing is what it seems! Hancock needs to do the right thing, but what happens by doing the right thing is also a bad thing?

I love Hancock’s conflicting emotions in this book. He works very hard to do right, but he considers himself a monster and wants so much more for Honor. I love my Heroes with issues. Honor is no damsel in distress. She’s smart, strong and self-less.
 
“I care too … much, and that’s why I’m so … [angry], Honor. Because I’m not supposed to care. I’m not supposed to be human. I’m a killer”

The banter is addictive and adds a little nice tension to the story.


I like the complexities of the story and how it kind of sucks you in. If you are a fan of action pack reads with a leading male character, then this one is for you.


An ARC was provided







I got to meet Maya Banks at a book signing. She was recovering from surgery and she was pushing through the pain for her fans! She made each fan special and unique. Her pen ran out of ink and she asked a fan for another pen and she signed my tote twice! She's an amazing author. More book signing photos - >HERE




The Slow Burn Series

KEEP ME SAFE
When Caleb Devereaux discovers his younger sister, Tori, is kidnapped, he quickly turns to an unlikely source for help: Ramie St. Claire, a beautiful and sensitive woman with a psychic gift for finding answers others cannot. The two quickly find out their chemistry is undeniable and an intimate relationship follows. 

While Ramie can connect to victims and alert authorities to their locations, her ability comes with a steep price. Every time she uses it, she experiences the same torture as the victim. Helping the infuriatingly attractive and impatient Caleb find his sister nearly kills her. Even though his sexual intensity draws her like a magnet, she needs to get as far away from him as she can. 

Deeply remorseful for the pain he has caused, Caleb is determined to make things right. But just when he thinks Ramie’s vanished forever, she reappears. This time she’s the one in trouble and is in desperate needs of his help. Caleb will risk everything, including his heart, to protect her from a relentless and cruel murderer, who will stop at nothing and no one until he gets to Ramie.

 
In His Keeping
Arial knows the rules that keep her safe. She’s been following them since she was a little girl: Do not tell. Do not show. But in a moment of terror, facing an attacker intent on taking more than just her life, she has no choice but to unleash the psychic powers she’s been hiding since childhood. 

Now, with Ari’s abilities revealed, a bigger threat looms - something that makes her question everything she thought she knew about her parents and her secretive upbringing. But this isn’t a fight she can face on her own. 

As the head of Devereaux Security, Beau Devereaux is no stranger to the bizarre. But when he takes on a new client--a beautiful young woman with an extraordinary gift--Beau isn’t prepared for the extent of his attraction to her. What began as a simple assignment quickly turns personal as he discovers he’ll do anything it takes to protect Ari, the woman he loves.

Safe at Last
They say young love doesn’t last, but a girl from the wrong side of the tracks with unique abilities and the hometown golden boy were determined to defy the odds. For Zack Covington, Anna-Grace—his “Gracie”—was the one. Until one night forever alters the course of their future, when a devastated Gracie disappears without a trace, leaving Zack to agonize over what happened to the girl he loved. As the years pass, his desperate efforts to find her uncovered nothing.

Now working for Devereaux Security, he stumbles across a painting featuring a special place only he and Gracie would know. The image is too perfectly rendered for it to be coincidence. His Gracie must be alive. When he finally tracks her down, he is shocked—and heart-broken—to discover the wounded shell of the girl he once knew and still loves. Her psychic gifts are gone, and worse, she believes he betrayed her all those years ago.


Zack has enemies, and once his weakness is discovered, Gracie becomes a target for revenge. He’ll have to save her before he can earn her trust and her love. And he vows they’ll never be torn apart again. 



KEEP ME SAFE
Amazon * B&N



IN HIS KEEPING
Amazon * B&N



SAFE AT LAST
 Amazon * B&N



About the Author:



Maya Banks a #1 USA Today and New York Times bestselling author whose chart toppers have included erotic romance, romantic suspense, contemporary romance, Scottish historical romances. She is the author of the Breathless Trilogy, the KGI novels, the Sweet series, and the Colters Legacy novels. She lives in the South with her husband and three children and other assorted babies, such as her two Bengal kitties and a Calico who’s been with her as long as her youngest child. She’s an avid reader of romance and loves to dish books with her fans and anyone else who’ll listen! She very much enjoys interacting with her readers on Facebook and Twitter as well as in her Yahoo! Group.





To learn more about her please visit her online at www.mayabanks.com or at www.facebook.com/AuthorMayaBanks
Twitter: @maya_banks
           

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