Guest Review: Over the Line by Emmy Curtis

Posted March 24, 2016 by Judith in Reviews | 1 Comment

Guest Review: Over the Line by Emmy CurtisReviewer: Judith
Over the Line by Emmy Curtis
Series: Alpha Ops #2
Also in this series: Dangerous Territory, Over the Line, Pushing the Limit, Compromised, Pushing the Limit
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Publication Date: October 7th 2014
Genres: Suspense
Pages: 300
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

Army Special Forces Sergeant Beth Garcia owes James Walker big-time for saving her life in Afghanistan. So the least she can do is agree to be his rock-climbing partner. After a year of physical therapy, she's finally eligible for deployment again, and what better way to celebrate than a weekend with a sexy Air Force hero? She's prepared to kick his ass at climbing-until James reveals what he really has in mind . . .

Pretending to be engaged wasn't the most brilliant idea James ever had. Neither was dragging Beth to his sister's wedding. The competitive tomboy is a far cry from the type of woman his family usually pushes on him. Yet Beth is more exciting than anyone he's ever met, and James has a feeling that if he can get her in bed, she'll blow his mind. They're just supposed to be acting-but as the wedding weekend wears on, Beth and James have a fighting chance at something real and much more lasting . . .

(75,000 words)
More Alpha Ops books: Dangerous Territory (novella), Pushing the Limit, Blowback, Compromised, Risk of Exposure.

This is the second novel in a series that has taken quite a number of months to appear.  I just recently obtained this book through a discount reading service and was fascinated with the dynamics of this family and these characters.  It seems that the characters of this story are intertwined with others who are involved in the intelligence community and its various agencies.  In fact, the heroine’s dad is the director of the CIA and while he seems to have his head in the intelligence game, his need to keep his political relationships front and center drive the dynamics of the family.  The two main characters meet in the Middle East and their lives seem glued together over those shared experiences.  James doesn’t want to admit that he was already emotionally ensnared by Beth even before they met once again Stateside after her lengthy rehabilitation.

Beth loves her job and is planning one more deployment in order for her to meet the requirements of an applicant to the CIA.  She really is attracted to James but knows that anything between them must be temporary as she is not prepared to set aside her goals.  James is busy hiding his real job as an Air Force officer from a father who has never stopped being disappointed that his son hasn’t ever wanted to go into the family “business” of being spies.  Now James is faced with deciding if he will attend his sister’s wedding, knowing it will be a political happening rather than a family celebration.  He also knows that his parents are still manipulating him in order to get him back with his ex, a widow who has been grieving the death of her husband for seven years.  So much of the action of this story is set at the family mansion in McLean, Virginia, and the dynamics of a very dysfunctional family surrounded by friends and not-so-friendly non-friends is a rich brew of ups and downs that make this novel fascinating and complicated.

I don’t remember reading an Emmy Curtis novel before this one, but I have to admit that I moved right out of this one into the next.  The characters were so well crafted, the action sharp and often unexpected, the growing love relationship between James and Beth a roller coaster of on-again-off-again emotions and misunderstandings.  Add in the fact there is mischief afoot which could potentially mean severe hurt for some of James’ family and you have a marvelous “stew” of ingredients that make this a novel well worth reading.  This book was released over a year ago, but the story is fresh and contemporary and the entire series is riveting.  Do yourself a favor and get this book.  I give it a rating of 4 out of 5.

You can read more from Judith at http://www.drjsbookplace.blogspot.com.

Reading Order:
Dangerous Territory
Over the Line
Pushing the Limit
Blowback
Compromised
Risk of Exposure

four-stars


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