Helpful Score: 1
It's like coming home and sitting in front of the warm fire. The characters you know and love, but slightly different as they've grown over time. Brockmann's writing style is top notch.
Helpful Score: 1
When I first read the blurb, I was a little skeptical about how much I would like this one. I felt like Sam and Alyssa, while beloved Brockmann characters, already had their story. Not to fear! There is a new romance between Dan Gilman and Jeni LeMay (employee of the politician that Troubleshooters is protecting), so you get the best of both worlds. There's the fun of the new love story along with the familiarity of Sam and Alyssa and Jules and Robin. The serial killer plot line is a little creepy, but the good guys win in the end.
While definitely written in the typical Troubleshooters's format of interleaved subplots told by specific characters' points of view, this novel is a bit different. This one is more suspense plot driven and the subplots stay closer to the main plot throughout the whole story. Not to worry romance devotees. Because most of the romantic relationships are already established and the one that's new moves pretty fast, there are a lot of people getting it on in this book. If you've thought some of the recent books didn't have as much feel-good romance action going on as you'd prefer, this book rather makes up for lost time. There is still character and relationship growth and development but the whodunit is the primary payoff.
Basic plot is that Alyssa takes (yet another "easy") assignment to coach a public figure in self defense while bringing along Sam and some Navy SEALS to decorate the office for a while and thus convince the heckler(s) to back off. But one heckler is close. And far from backing off, amps it up to 11. The easy assignment becomes intense and the pressure mounts. Alyssa and Sam, then Jules and Robin, work on coping with the fact that their chosen mate works in the line of fire as a matter of course, and how to leave their non-pro family members out of the action. Alyssa is also a nursing mom. Having spent last Saturday hiking with a nursing mom who left baby with grandma, the problems Alyssa encountered rang hilariously true.
The subplot with Dan Gillman I found amusing. For everyone who has ever complained that Suz's guys are too idealistic approaching relationships? Meet Dan. Here's a good looking guy looking to get some action on vacation with minimum hassle, while trying to follow the campsite rule of leave 'em better off than you found 'em. He's hot and successful and it's campy good fun until his typical vacation relationship gets thrown a few curve balls. He's got issues, yes, and he starts to work through them and has to do it with annoying BIL Izzy hanging around. (Izzy also gets a few POV scenes, but Eden is not around.)
The character Jenn adds a useful point of view - I'm so used to Jules and Robin, I forget that Robin is supposed to famous. So when Jenn muses that "the award winning actor has come to babysit, will Susan Sarandon be dropping in to do the laundry?" it reminded me again to pay attention. Plus, I think I lived in her apartment for several years. 400 sq foot studio that averaged 90F in the winter with the windows open? Check. Also had her wardrobe - not quite a 16, but really not a 14 either. Check. Lots of uber-beauties in this story, so it was nice to have a sensible, average looking, average sized, average budgeted character I related to more easily.
While the serial killer aspect is creepy, it's was not as creepy for me as the Into the Storm subplot. There was a distance to the gruesome that allowed me not to dwell on the details. For the whodunit, I guessed the killer early on. Go me. There were red herrings. I don't know if I wasn't thrown because I'm so familiar with SB's writing or because it was easy or because I'm just that good. I still enjoyed finding out if I was right and "knowing" didn't affect my ability to enjoy how the story was laid out. I only had a couple quibbles which I won't mention in case they aren't your quibbles as they were easily overlooked. (If you noticed one word being used a LOT, mention it in the comments and see if it's the one I always notice or if I just have special radar for that word.)
I had a great plan to only read a couple chapters at a time and stretch the book out all week to spend more time lingering in the story. So much for that plan; I tore through the book. The book sucked me in, pacing was excellent, I found all the subplots very balanced and I was never tempted to skip one (only a big problem for me previously in Into the Fire). The book focuses heavily on characters trying to do the right thing for themselves, their friends, their colleagues, and their families which I found refreshing and entertaining. Highly recommended, even for people who haven't followed the series.
Basic plot is that Alyssa takes (yet another "easy") assignment to coach a public figure in self defense while bringing along Sam and some Navy SEALS to decorate the office for a while and thus convince the heckler(s) to back off. But one heckler is close. And far from backing off, amps it up to 11. The easy assignment becomes intense and the pressure mounts. Alyssa and Sam, then Jules and Robin, work on coping with the fact that their chosen mate works in the line of fire as a matter of course, and how to leave their non-pro family members out of the action. Alyssa is also a nursing mom. Having spent last Saturday hiking with a nursing mom who left baby with grandma, the problems Alyssa encountered rang hilariously true.
The subplot with Dan Gillman I found amusing. For everyone who has ever complained that Suz's guys are too idealistic approaching relationships? Meet Dan. Here's a good looking guy looking to get some action on vacation with minimum hassle, while trying to follow the campsite rule of leave 'em better off than you found 'em. He's hot and successful and it's campy good fun until his typical vacation relationship gets thrown a few curve balls. He's got issues, yes, and he starts to work through them and has to do it with annoying BIL Izzy hanging around. (Izzy also gets a few POV scenes, but Eden is not around.)
The character Jenn adds a useful point of view - I'm so used to Jules and Robin, I forget that Robin is supposed to famous. So when Jenn muses that "the award winning actor has come to babysit, will Susan Sarandon be dropping in to do the laundry?" it reminded me again to pay attention. Plus, I think I lived in her apartment for several years. 400 sq foot studio that averaged 90F in the winter with the windows open? Check. Also had her wardrobe - not quite a 16, but really not a 14 either. Check. Lots of uber-beauties in this story, so it was nice to have a sensible, average looking, average sized, average budgeted character I related to more easily.
While the serial killer aspect is creepy, it's was not as creepy for me as the Into the Storm subplot. There was a distance to the gruesome that allowed me not to dwell on the details. For the whodunit, I guessed the killer early on. Go me. There were red herrings. I don't know if I wasn't thrown because I'm so familiar with SB's writing or because it was easy or because I'm just that good. I still enjoyed finding out if I was right and "knowing" didn't affect my ability to enjoy how the story was laid out. I only had a couple quibbles which I won't mention in case they aren't your quibbles as they were easily overlooked. (If you noticed one word being used a LOT, mention it in the comments and see if it's the one I always notice or if I just have special radar for that word.)
I had a great plan to only read a couple chapters at a time and stretch the book out all week to spend more time lingering in the story. So much for that plan; I tore through the book. The book sucked me in, pacing was excellent, I found all the subplots very balanced and I was never tempted to skip one (only a big problem for me previously in Into the Fire). The book focuses heavily on characters trying to do the right thing for themselves, their friends, their colleagues, and their families which I found refreshing and entertaining. Highly recommended, even for people who haven't followed the series.
3 1/2 stars
The fifteenth installment of the Troubleshooters series brings back fan favorites, Sam and Alyssa. Alyssa brings her family along on an "easy" assignment to teach Assemblywoman Maria Bonavida and her staff about personal safety and give a little added protection for someone threatening the Assemblywoman. She also brings along "big bad SEALs" Dan Gillman, Jay Lopez, and Izzy Zanella to do a little scaring off by being themselves. It is supposed to be a boondoggle trip for the SEALs who are on liberty and not getting paid for the trip except for airfare and housing. The assignment stops being fun when the threats become more serious. FBI agent Jules Cassidy arrives with his husband, Robin, in tow to add to the investigation.
I'm a bit disappointed in this book. I'm a Sam/Alyssa fan and their story worked of fairly well...though I think Sam was a bit over-the-top in places. Jules and Robin bothered me the most. I loved Robin in Force of Nature because he was fun and smart and in this one he seems to have lost a lot that...he is treated like a small child...a lot. I found it to be a bit demeaning. He was the just "the spouse," who needed a lot of hand holding.
As far as the suspense/mystery goes, Brockmann puts in plenty of red herrings, but I figured the killer out long before it was revealed. A good mystery, but not great.
This is an "in-between" book. Brockmann has put in story arcs with both Gillman and Zanella leaving me a little confused and missing something. There was definitely not enough resolution in this one. I'm thinking this is one of those books you could actually skip in a series and not feel like you missed out on much.
I'm looking forward to the 16th installment (Izzy's story) for more resolution. I also love Izzy. I understand it is the last book for a while. The books will return, but it may be a while.
For Sam & Alyssa fans, you'll love it. If you are an Izzy fan, you'll love this one, too. He was my favorite part of this story.
The fifteenth installment of the Troubleshooters series brings back fan favorites, Sam and Alyssa. Alyssa brings her family along on an "easy" assignment to teach Assemblywoman Maria Bonavida and her staff about personal safety and give a little added protection for someone threatening the Assemblywoman. She also brings along "big bad SEALs" Dan Gillman, Jay Lopez, and Izzy Zanella to do a little scaring off by being themselves. It is supposed to be a boondoggle trip for the SEALs who are on liberty and not getting paid for the trip except for airfare and housing. The assignment stops being fun when the threats become more serious. FBI agent Jules Cassidy arrives with his husband, Robin, in tow to add to the investigation.
I'm a bit disappointed in this book. I'm a Sam/Alyssa fan and their story worked of fairly well...though I think Sam was a bit over-the-top in places. Jules and Robin bothered me the most. I loved Robin in Force of Nature because he was fun and smart and in this one he seems to have lost a lot that...he is treated like a small child...a lot. I found it to be a bit demeaning. He was the just "the spouse," who needed a lot of hand holding.
As far as the suspense/mystery goes, Brockmann puts in plenty of red herrings, but I figured the killer out long before it was revealed. A good mystery, but not great.
This is an "in-between" book. Brockmann has put in story arcs with both Gillman and Zanella leaving me a little confused and missing something. There was definitely not enough resolution in this one. I'm thinking this is one of those books you could actually skip in a series and not feel like you missed out on much.
I'm looking forward to the 16th installment (Izzy's story) for more resolution. I also love Izzy. I understand it is the last book for a while. The books will return, but it may be a while.
For Sam & Alyssa fans, you'll love it. If you are an Izzy fan, you'll love this one, too. He was my favorite part of this story.
Wow! Loved it. Fast paced and action packed. I was pleased that Brockmann decided to continue on with the Sam and Alyssa arc. She has been moving this arc along through the serie and it seems to work for me that there is one couple that is continuous throughout the series. Personally I think that is a great twist. I hope we will see more of them, but alas, I've been told that if we do it won't be for some time. Ms Brockmann is going to take a break. All in all, this book rocked!
Started slow, and somewhat confusing as I needed to remember past characters. Ended up interesting, and enjoyable.
One of my favorites from Brockmann. This one has everyone, Sam, Izzy, Gilman, Jules and Robin. Ok, and there are some women in their too.
Great suspense. Wonderful and tearful love stories, and somewhat of a cliff hanger for 16.
Great suspense. Wonderful and tearful love stories, and somewhat of a cliff hanger for 16.
Great book. Love this series~
Troubleshooters Team Leader Alyssa Locke thinks her next assignment is going to be a piece of cake. She, along with some Navy Seal friends who are currently on leave, are traveling to New York City to teach self-defense to an Assemblywoman and her staff who have been receiving threatening letters. Alyssa has even asked her husband Sam to go with her and bring their eight-month-old son as a sort of working vacation. But there is no vacation when dead bodies start turning up outside of the Assemblywoman's office. It's all hands on deck when the Troubleshooters must protect the Assemblywoman and her Office Manager, while helping the FBI catch a killer.
It's nice to have Sam and Alyssa featured in this book. They are my favorite couple in the whole series. Even though they popped up throughout several books in the series, I can't get enough of them. Along with Sam and Alyssa, we also have a romance between Navy Seal Dan Gillman and Office Manager Jennilynn. I thought Jenn was a great character. I still haven't warmed up to Gillman. Maybe it will take a couple of books. There is a lot of action and a long list of suspects in this one. It's another solid entry in the Troubleshooters series. My rating: 4.5 Stars.
It's nice to have Sam and Alyssa featured in this book. They are my favorite couple in the whole series. Even though they popped up throughout several books in the series, I can't get enough of them. Along with Sam and Alyssa, we also have a romance between Navy Seal Dan Gillman and Office Manager Jennilynn. I thought Jenn was a great character. I still haven't warmed up to Gillman. Maybe it will take a couple of books. There is a lot of action and a long list of suspects in this one. It's another solid entry in the Troubleshooters series. My rating: 4.5 Stars.
