Review: Thrill Ride - Julie Ann Walker

He's Gone Rogue

Ex-Navy SEAL Rock Babineaux’s job is to get information, and he’s one of the best in the business. Until something goes horribly wrong and he’s being hunted by his own government. Even his best friends at the covert special-ops organization Black Knights Inc. aren’t sure they can trust him. He thinks he can outrun them all, but his former partner—a curvy bombshell who knows just how to drive him wild—refuses to cut him loose.

She Won't Back Down

Vanessa Cordova hasn’t been the team’s communication specialist

very long, but she knows how to read people—no way is Rock guilty of murder. And she’ll go to hell and back to help him prove it. Sure, the sexy Cajun has his secrets, but there’s no one in the world she’d rather have by her side in a tight spot. Which is good, because they’re about to get very tight…

My thoughts:

This is a book about running, running for your life and making out in the jungle a bit ;)

Rock is a member of the Black Knights and made a few mistakes. Now he is running. He also have some issues from the past that makes him not wanna love again. You can see where I am going with this.

Vanessa is also a member of the Black Knights, just not the shooting and fighting kind of Knight. No, she is smart, and knows her languages. She also likes Rock a lot, and jumps at the chance to find him as the Knights and the CIA are trying to catch him. We all know she is gonna find him so I am just gonna tell you she does. There is running, hiding, bad guys gunning for them and the whole conspiracy why he is on the run is slowly emerging. And of course there is the "romance", that is she wants to, he does not.

Conclusion:

A thrilling book about a man not ready for love, and one woman sure ready to give him the world.

Cover

Eh

Black Knights Inc #4
Mass Market Paperback, 352 pages
Published April 2nd 2013 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
For review

Interview and Contest: Julie Ann Walker - Rev it Up

Today Julie Ann Walker is stopping by for an interview, and there is a contest to win her new book Rev it up and it's open to all.

1. Could you tell me a bit about yourself?

JW:  I'd be happy to!  :-D  My name is Julie Ann Walker.  I grew up in rural Oklahoma, tipping cows, catching crawdads, and riding around in the back of pick-up trucks.  After obtaining a degree in advanced mathematics, I married my college sweetheart and set about making my life as a mathematics teacher.  Alas, fate intervened.  My husband lost his job, forcing us to move away from the rolling wheat fields and vast cattle ranches of Oklahoma to the gritty, bustling city of Chicago where teaching positions were scarce.  And though the move was difficult on many levels, it ended up being a blessing in disguise.  Because, though I never knew it, I'm a city girl at heart.  I LOVE the hustle, the culture, the excitement of living in Chicago.  Additionally, the time off afforded me the opportunity to return to my first passion, which is writing.  I entered a contest, secured an agent, signed a publishing contract, published three novels back-to-back-to-back and voila!  Here I am!  LOL!  

2. You have a new book out, Rev It Up. What is it about?

JW:  It's a second-chance love story, which I absolutely love since a past history means there's lots of angst to go around, baggage, if you will, that must be dealt with. 

REV IT UP picks up where IN RIDES TROUBLE leaves off.  Jake "the Snake" Sommers returns to Black Knights Inc. after four long years with one and only one goal in mind: to win back the only woman he loves.  He knows it won't be easy, but he's overcome the demons that held him back years ago and is finally ready to settle down.  Unfortunately, Shell is wounded and wary and refuses to give him the time of day.  Until a psychotic mobster forces her to seek Jake's protection, that is.  

Bullets fly, hearts race, secrets are revealed...  You know, all the good stuff.  :-) 

3.  “Love her and leave her…” Was it hard to write this book, when Michelle had to forgive Jake so that they could get a happily ever after?

JW:  You have no idea.  I had to write, rewrite, and then delete and write Michelle's character again and again.  I find it extremely difficult to construct a heroine who's suspicious and hurt without making her come across as a total bee-yotch.  The line between guarded and cold is very fine.  But I think I finally got it right.  You'll have to let me know, readers!  ;-)

4. Who is your favorite member of the Black Knights, the man you would choose?

JW:  Oh, that's not fair.  I love all my guys.  And I have a soft spot for qualities in each of them.  I adore Ghost's steadiness and loyalty.  I'm in awe of Frank's ability to lead by example.  Jake's humility and willingness to lay it all on the line for the woman he loves is absolutely delish!  I could go on and on, but I'll let the readers decide for themselves which of the Black Knights is the sexiest.   

5. What made romantic suspense the genre for you to write?

JW:  First, I love to read romantic suspense.  All the action and adventure appeals to me.  Second, I volunteer at the USO - the United Service Organization - which is a non-profit support group for active-duty soldiers.  So, I'm around men in uniform all the time, which gives me a ton of material for my books.  Score!

6. What is the best thing about writing?

JW:  Are you kidding?  I get to live in a fantasy world everyday while managing to simultaneously avoid a commitment to the loony bin.  What better job could there be?  LOL!

Thanks!

Giveaway

1 copy of Rev it Up

1. Open to everyone in the world

2. Ends Nov 8th

3. Just enter :)

REV IT UP BY JULIE ANN WALKER – IN STORES OCTOBER 2012

He Never Misses A Target…

Jake "the Snake" Sommers earned his SEAL code name by striking quickly and quietly-and with lethal force. That's also how he broke Michelle Carter's heart. It was the only way to keep her safe-from himself. Four long years later, Jake is determined to get a second chance. But to steal back into Michelle's loving arms, Jake is going to have to prove he can take things slow. Real slow...

She Aims To Make Him Beg…

Michelle Carter has never forgiven Jake for being so cliché as to "love her and leave her." But when her brother, head of the Black Knights elite ops agency, ticks off the wrong mobster, she must do the unimaginable: place her life in Jake's hands. No matter what they call him, this man is far from cold-blooded. And once he's wrapped around her heat, he'll never let her go...

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Julie Ann Walker is the USA Today and New York Times Bestselling Author of the Black Knights Inc. romantic suspense series. She is prone to spouting movie quotes and song lyrics. She'll never say no to sharing a glass of wine or going for a long walk. She prefers impromptu travel over the scheduled kind, and she takes her coffee with milk. You can find her on her bicycle along the lake shore in Chicago or blasting away at her keyboard, trying to wrangle her capricious imagination into submission. Look for the first two books in her fast-paced series: Hell On Wheels (August 2012) and In Rides Trouble (September 2012). For more information, please visit www.julieannwalker.com or follow her on Facebook www.facebook.com/jawalkerauthor and/or Twitter @JAWalkerAuthor. 

Review: Hell on Wheels - Julie Ann Walker

Hell on Wheels

He’s the bad boy she’s always wanted...

Nate “Ghost” Weller has loved Ali Morgan nearly half his life. But he’s done something so heinous he’s convinced she’ll never forgive him if she discovers the truth, so he keeps his feelings and his secrets to himself. Then she blows into town with a mother lode of bad guys on her tail and Nate can’t deny she’s in serious trouble. Unfortunately, he’s the only one who can help her.

She’s the good girl he’s kept at arm’s length...

Ali knows Nate as the most solemn, aloof man on the planet. Sadly, he’s also the sexiest. For years she’s avoided him, unable to stomach his dark scowls and brooding silences… especially when she secretly yearns for his touch. Now she must rely on him to save her from the malevolent shadows ghosting her every move. When the bullets explode, so does their passion. But can love really conquer all? Or are some things just too terrible to forgive?

My thoughts:

I have to start this review with a quote, because while reading I kept think The Expendables and that is exactly what the heroine later asks.

"..And yeah, we're the Expendables. just younger, better looking, with cooler bikes and real bullets."

Lol, yes that did not go by well, lol.

To the book then, Ali is the sweet kindergarten teacher. And she does want Nate to see her as more than that. She tries her best. While the hero Nate does his best to keep his distance. Sighs, men are such idiots. She likes him, he likes her, he stays away cos of a promise to her brother. All brothers would say that. But hey we need the drama as these two dance around each other and keeps on sending mixed signals.

But this is romantic suspense after all and there sure is that too in it. Someone is after Ali. Why? That is for the Knights to find out and to protect her. Bullets will fly.

There is also a secondary story as we see the tension between another couple and that will lead up to book 2. Which seems to be another good one.

Conclusion:

A thrilling ride with a couple who wants each other so much.

Cover:

You all know I'd want to see his face too, but still ok

Series: Black Knights Inc #1
Genre: Romantic suspense
Pages: 349
Published: August 7th 2012 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
Source: For review