LUSTING FOR COVERS ~ AFTER THE STORM BY MAYA BANKS

Lusting for Covers is a weekly meme, held on Sunday, that allows bloggers to share their current cover obsession with fellow book lovers.

This meme is hosted by TBQ @ TBQ's Book Palace.

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Once you are ready to join the fun, please fill out Mister Linky over at  TBQ's blog post along with your name/blog name and the direct link to your Lusting for Covers for this week!

Expected Release Date: December 31, 2013

Over the years, Donovan Kelly has fought relentlessly for justice, women and children always holding a special place in his heart. Working side by side with his brothers, Donovan has witnessed firsthand the toll it’s taken—physically, mentally, and emotionally—on his loved ones, and the innocent lives caught in the crossfire. What he never expects is for his next mission to happen right on his home turf—or for it to take a very personal turn.

Picturesque Kentucky Lake is the perfect place for a soul in search of safe harbor. A beautiful stranger has arrived—desperate, breathless, and on the run from a dark past closing in on her and the younger siblings she has vowed to protect. Donovan must now draw on every resource at his disposal—if he wants to save a woman and the children who may prove to be his destiny.

Can I be more excited about this?????????

I just finished book seven of this series (LOVED it, BTW), and am so excited that I'll get another one at the end of the year. Seriously, I cannot have enough of these KGI men. And I love Maya's covers--all of them from this series has been hot, hot, hot! I love the fact that you can't see all of the hero's face--it makes me use my own imagination and place that image in my head when I'm reading. 
Second--check out his arms! SWOON. Those babies could pop a bad guys neck right off his shoulders. This cover screams protective male and bad-ass dude all in one. Can't wait to get my greedy paws on it!

What about you? What cover are you lusting over? Please leave me a comment and let me know! 

BOOK REVIEW ~ FORGED IN STEELE BY MAYA BANKS

Title: Forged In Steele (KGI, Book Seven)

Author: Maya Banks

Release Date: June 25, 2013

Reviewer purchased own copy of paperback for review 

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…

Steele, a KGI team leader, is an enigma not even his team mates understand. His emotions are tightly locked down and nothing can break that icy exterior. Nothing except Maren Scofield, a doctor on a mission, a woman who has gotten under Steele’s skin and threatens to crack that unflappable cool he’s legendary for.

Steele is determined not to allow Maren past his carefully guarded defenses, but when she’s in danger, there’s no way he’ll allow anyone else to protect her. She’s hiding something. He’s sure of it. But he isn’t prepared for the shocking discovery her secrets reveal. Or how they will forever alter the course of his destiny. He has a decision to make. Hold tight and shut her out. Or take a chance on something more powerful than he’s ever faced. Love.

Book Review

Maya Banks is an auto-buy author for me because she writes such addictive characters, and the KGI series is my favorite of hers. She has created a world where romantic suspense meets sensual romance and combines to make an enthralling series. The men of KGI are sexy, hard-bodied, smart, and fiercely loyal to the women who love them. 

Forged In Steele is the story of how the man known as having ice in his veins, Steele, finally meets his match with Dr. Maren Scofield. Steele has had running fantasies about Maren for a while. She resides in Costa Rica, where she runs a clinic for those who cannot afford health care. She has also treated the men of KGI in the past and each incident with Steele has been brief, blunt, and almost emotionless. He cannot seem to get away from her fast enough.

But when Steele and another teammate are injured during a mission rescuing a young woman, the iceman melts and he finally gives in to the mounting sexual tension between Maren and himself. 

Banks shows us a more vulnerable and sensitive side to this enigmatic soldier. And I fell for the softer, yet very passionate side to one Jackson Steele. Maren, too, had no problem falling for his charm. But Steele isn't always suave, spouting poetic words of love--he still has that outer crustiness that attracted me to him in the first place. 

While Maren and Steele are separated after their night of bliss, both are trying to figure out if what they had can develop into something more. Steele has never visualized himself as a family man, like some of the other Kelly men, much less have a serious relationship with a woman. His life has always been his team and his job. Can he make such a commitment, knowing that his career has him taking off without notice? Not to mention the high level of danger makes the chances of him returning safe, if at all? 

Maren has her own issues when Steele leaves on another mission. And it's one that will affect her life drastically and could have Steele wanting to run in the opposite direction. She is pregnant with Steele's child, even though precautions were taken to prevent it. 

Shortly after finding out about the pregnancy, Maren is kidnapped and taken hostage by a deviant crime lord who has no plan of ever letting her go. He claims to want her medical skills while he recovers from plastic surgery that will greatly alter his appearance. But he also makes his more personal intentions known--he wants Maren in his bed. His delusional mind has him believing the baby Maren carries is his own. 

Steele and the men of KGI are now racing against the clock to find Maren--and an highly unexpected source comes to the rescue to aid in Maren's rescue.

Hancock. 

This man has made a small cameo in the KGI series and he has sparked my interest from the get go. He has his own secret agenda, working for an unknown boss, and walks the edge of the law. He makes no excuses for what he does, how he does it, and his mysterious ways has me wanting to know more about this sexy, unorthodox hero. 

But even after Maren is rescued from the mad man, her life still remains in danger. 

And Steele will do anything to protect this woman he has come to love. 

A gripping, sexually thrilling story that has easily become a favorite of mine in this series. Fans of KGI and Maya Banks will devour it. 

BOOK REVIEW ~ SHADES OF GRAY BY MAYA BANKS

Title: Shades of Gray (KGI Series, Book Six )

Author: Maya Banks

Release Date: December 31, 2012

Reviewer bought own copy of paperback for review 

P.J. and Cole were sharpshooting rivals on the same KGI team and enjoyed a spirited, uncomplicated camaraderie. Until the night they gave in to their desires and suddenly took their relationship one step further. In the aftermath of their one night stand, they’re called up on a mission that goes terribly wrong, and P.J. walks away from KGI, determined not to drag her teammates into the murky shadows she’s poised to delve into.

Six months later, Cole hasn’t given up his search for P.J., and he’s determined to bring her back home where she belongs. Bent on vengeance, P.J. is on a mission that will plunge her into a serpentine game of payback and make her question everything she’s ever believed in. Cole—and the rest of their team—refuse to let her go it alone. Even if it means sacrificing their loyalty to KGI and their very lives…

Buy Links:

Amazon / B&N

Book Review

First off--this book has a rape scene. So if this is not your thing, you may want to skip over that part. It is brutally real and plays a vital role to P.J's characterization, and the story itself. 

Maya Banks has written a compelling and emotional series with her KGI men. I am a huge fan of this series and love the way she has expanded outside of the Kelly men and onto the other Alpha warriors of the different teams. 

P.J and Cole are members of Steele's elite warriors--each with their own specialties and kick-ass attitudes. P.J. and Cole are the sharp shooters, with P.J. being the best, natch. *wink*

Both have been fighting a growing attraction with neither of them aware how the other has been feeling. Acting on such sexual feelings could upset the team dynamics and neither have been willing to risk it.

Until now. 

After an intense mission, P.J. returns to Colorado and holes herself up in a bar for a bit of R&R. While there, an ex shows up and shows his asshat ways. They share a past as co-workers (S.W.A.T.)-- one that P.J.left when she discovered said ex was illegally taking drugs and money from busts. When he refuses to turn himself in, P.J. leaves disillusioned after her other teammates refuse to have her back. 

Cole has been fighting his attraction for P.J. since the beginning and when he shows up at the bar where P.J. is, things change in their relationship. One night of hot, explosive passion is then put on the back burner, however, when both are called to report to Tennessee to go undercover to nab a man responsible for selling children as sex slaves. 

P.J. becomes the "bait"--used to attract the scum bag and get information on where the next deal will be taking place. But things quickly go bad and P.J. is left alone--and the unthinkable happens. She is raped by two men whose perverse tastes leave P.J. helpless and utterly battered. 

The men on her team are left just as helpless as they fight their way to find her--all while listening to the brutal attack via radio communication. 

What I loved so much about this book was P.J. She was a great character to read as she went from being vulnerable to fighting her way back from her despair. She struggles to overcome her rape and her fears. And more importantly, she comes to realize her team has her back, 100%. -- something that she thought she could never count on again. 

Cole was also great as a character--he refuses to give up on P.J. and is determined to show her that he will always be there for her. The climax of the story was a nail-biter, as Cole was tied to a chair and had to watch P.J. fight off the men who had raped her. 

Again, parts of Shades of Gray are difficult to read-the subject matter heavy. But Banks does it brilliantly.