Jen’s review of Extreme Measures (Aegis Security #1) by Elisabeth Naughton
Being prepared for any scenario is the trademark of any good CIA operative, and Eve Wolfe is one of the best. But when her latest mission literally explodes in her face, she wakes up labeled a traitor and—even more surprising—in the custody of elite Aegis Security operative and ex-lover Zane Archer. Although she still secretly has feelings for Zane, he’s now demanding the one thing that she can’t give him: the truth.
When he caught her breaking the rules years ago, Zane let Eve walk away without an explanation. Now someone has not only sabotaged Aegis but also turned an American city into a war zone, and all signs point to Eve. Zane needs answers that can come only from Eve’s still-tempting lips, and he finally has the elusive operative right where he wants her—at his mercy.
The first book in bestselling author Elisabeth Naughton’s new steamy romantic suspense series brings a spy in from the cold…and sets her heart ablaze.
It’s always nice when a book for which you had no expectations turns out to be pretty good. That’s what happened for me with Extreme Measures.
Eve Wolfe is an elite CIA operative. When she almost gets killed on a mission gone wrong, she’s “rescued” by her old lover Zane Archer. I use the quotation marks because the only reason Zane was around to save her was because he was following her in order to exact his own revenge. Eve left him and sold out his team in the past, which resulted in the death of a hostage and a severe injury to Zane himself. He can’t forgive that betrayal, and he wants to make her suffer. Eve swears she’s innocent, though, and when other unknown parties start trying to kill them and both of them get branded national traitors, Zane realizes something more complicated is going on. Now he and Eve have to uncover the truth and decide whether they can ever trust each other again.
This is a fast paced, action packed story, as one might expect from a book about spies and secret ops. There are lots of twists as Zane and Eve try to figure out what the hell is going on. Who is out to get them and why? Who can they trust to help them, and who is trying to screw them? I also love these “private security agencies” that seem to be all over Romanceland. It’s utterly ridiculous that there would be so many agencies with limitless resources, gruff but caring bosses, connections in the highest levels of government, team members who are all the best of buds, etc. I know it’s crazy, but I don’t care! Zane’s employer Aegis seems like it’s full of great guys, and as this book is the first in a new series, you bet I’ll be checking out the future titles.
Eve is a bad ass agent. I always appreciate seeing a highly skilled, tough woman who can more than hold her own with the guys. She’s definitely got a sensitive side, though, and much of the tension in the story comes from her trying to handle her insecurities and fears. She loves Zane but just can’t see how she could be what he needs. It’s the kind of conflict we see so often in heroes–it is nice to see it in the heroine for a change. I really like her loyalty to Zane, too. At first he has to restrain her to keep her with him, but time and again she gets the chance to escape but sticks around for Zane. It was sweet and showed the depth of her feelings, which she herself didn’t even fully understand.
Zane is perhaps a little less complex than Eve, but he is enjoyable to read. When he basically kidnaps Eve at the start of the book, I wasn’t sure about him. Trigger warning: Zane is genuinely threatening to her at first. He has her tied up and drugged, and he is psychologically manipulative and physically threatening in an effort to try and get her to confess to her past betrayals. By the end of the book I fully believed this was an act and that he would never have actually hurt Eve, but at the start I didn’t know what to think. I like that once he figures out he can trust Eve, he goes all in. He wants to be with her and sticks by her even when it would be better for him to abandon her.
If you’re not a fan of spies, secret ops, or romantic suspense, this book isn’t going to convert you. But if those kind of things do appeal, I think Extreme Measures would entertain.
Grade: 3.75 out of 5
This book is available from Montlake Romance. You can purchase it here in e-format. This book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.