Hot Pursuit, by Julie Ann Walker is an intriguing contemporary action-suspense romance book.

Due to a tragedy, Christian Watson left England without plans to return. However, he is temporarily back in London working on a serious case along with Emily Scott and the Black Knights Inc.

Even though they are secretly attracted to each other, Christian and Emily hide their feeling and constantly bicker with each other. Until a harrowing incident causes them to share their mutual attraction. As the story unfolds, Christian deals with his past, while struggling to keep his team alive. Of course, there's still time for romance, despite their lives being at risk!

Also, the secondary characters are quite entertaining and further develop the story.

Since it's the eleventh book in the Black Knights Inc series, it's recommended to start with the first book to properly understand various references and to previously meet some of the secondary characters, yet it's not necessary to read the books in order. The tenth book in the series is Fuel for Fire, which I recently reviewed.

Hot Pursuit features odd phrases and quirky cliches as a backdrop to this contemporary action-suspense romance. And I'm looking forward to continue reading future books in this series!


Note: I received this book from NetGalley, which is a program designed for bloggers to write book reviews in exchange for books, yet the opinions expressed in this review are my own.

The last few books in Julie Ann Walker’s BKI series are so closely interconnected they read as one book; that you have to wait a few months between chapters. The hijinks that began in Fuel for Fire continue in Hot Pursuit without missing a beat. Early cover copy indicates that Built to Last will keep things going and wrap up the series (but not until next July, so I might have to cry a little bit, even though I definitely don’t want this series to end). Christian and Emily are everything I expected them to be and more. Watching Christian get ruffled is definitely worth the price of admission. I would have liked a little more movement on the Spider portion of the story, but things definitely pick up as the story progresses. BKI fans won’t be disappointed. New readers should start with at least Fuel for Fire, but considering the BKI team is fabulous, going all the way back to the beginning is fun.

I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this novel.

Christian and Emily have had a love/hate relationship for awhile. Everyone in the company could see and feel the sparks they set off, but kept their knowledge to themselves as both of them were in denial. Plenty of action and chemistry lend to an exciting story with secondary characters that are just as interesting.

I have followed the Black Knights Inc. series since the beginning - before I was even blogging - and over the time I have completely fallen in love with the gang and the author's style of writing.
With the gang, you can always count on them having your back, going to the extreme lengths to keep you safe and alive, while they picker, argue, mess with your head through every step of it.
The author obviously is familiar with the slang, the dialects, and accents. They are all part of the different characters in the series, partly defining them and their past. She writes over the top emotions and expressions, and though I usually prefer digging deeper than going over the top, Ms. Walker manages to do both when it comes to the expressions and emotions of the characters. The feelings are raw and real, and the way they display them at times peculiar yet genuine.
Hot Pursuit is the book eleven in the series, and the world the current characters live in is rather far removed from the beginning of the series. Christian Watson and Emily Scott have been bickering and flirting for three books now, so to get the full impact of their developing relationship, I would start from earlier.
The chemistry between Christian and Emily is scorching hot, they are so perfect for each other, if only they dared to take the step forward. They both have secrets they would rather hide for the rest of their lives but to make the new connection to work between them, they peddle the secrets for favors and thus get to know each other deeply and intimately.
As usual, there is a secondary couple developing in the story and this time it is male/male couple Ace and Rusty. I like the chemistry between them, they are obviously attracted to each other, yet the fact that Rusty is not willing to come out and be openly gay keeps Ace from getting into a relationship with him.
There's more focus on the relationship drama and progress than suspense and action in this book. The burst of attacks and threats are short, intense, and deadly. The first part of the tale is very familiar since it is happening parallel to the previous book as the team split and had to escape from the Great Brittain separately.
It is known that this exhilarating, thrilling, and humorous romantic suspense series is coming to the end, what I am curious about is if there is a book or two still in the works, will Angel find his match in the mysterious lady who was introduced at the end, and will Rusty and Ace find a peaceful co-existence or will their ways depart as the Black Knights Inc. closes its doors.
The heat factor is high, the emotions all over the map, the danger is constant and lethal, the bad language as natural to the characters as breathing, yet the stories are delightfully adorable, just don't tell the Boss I called him that...
~ Four Spoons

Another great Black Knight book from Julie! This one is about Christian and Emily and how they are trying to deal with each other after they are forced to hide out with each other and their other teammates in England because their covers were blown while trying to bring down Spider!

Christian and Emily have a very combative relationship. They are constantly at each other's throat or hurling insults at each other. They are entertaining but also gets on their teammates nerves with their constant bickering! As they all try to figure ways to get out of England and back to Chicago, someone leaks information about Christian's past that even his teammates are not aware of so Christian has to disclose his past to his Black Knights team. Emily starts to realize that Christian's childhood was not how he is portraying himself to be as an adult. His childhood was not easy at all and they both have more in common than she would have thought.

Christian knows that he is attracted to Emily but isn't sure she feels the same way. So the bickering and insults between the 2 of them is how they can communicate with each other! Emily knows she is attracted to Christian but refuses to acknowledge that because she doesn't want another personal relationship to potentially ruin her professional life. However, as they try to find their way back to Chicago and also being pursue by a couple of men that they don't know who sent them, Christian and Emily finally admits to each other that they are physically attracted to each other, which is to no surprise to any of their teammates. However, a few near death experiences has Christian admitting that he is more than physically attracted to Emily, which gets Emily angry with him since she only wants to have a physical relationship with Christian. Emily doesn't want to have or thinks she is incapable of having a loving and lasting relationship. Growing up, Emily didn't have the best examples of what a true and long loving relationship is all about.

Christian decides to step back to give Emily space but he doesn't step back from showing her that he loves her and makes sure to tell their Black Knights family his true feelings for Emily. This makes Emily mad but also gives her doubts about how she thinks about love. Christian tries his hardest to get Emily to acknowledge that his feelings for her are real and that she has the same feelings for him. There are so many burst out loud laughing moments throughout this entire story with Emily and Christian's antics! And their banter/bickering is hilarious even though it drives their teammates crazy at times!

I received an ARC of Hot Pursuit from the Publisher and author in exchange for an honest review. This is the second book that I have read of Julie Walkers and the second that I have read in the Black Knights Inc trilogy which is a 11 book series so far. After meeting the two main characters Christian and Emily in the last book and seeing the potential romance connection that was growing between the two I was excited to learn that their story was the next one that she was going to tackle.

Julie does a great job of mixing romance, suspense and thriller all in one book. I think she did a great job of also introducing them in the last book and then seamlessly segueing their story into this book. I also really enjoyed the chemistry that she built between them. That made the story very realistic.

In addition to the storyline and characters I also liked the way that she described the setting of the book. It really made you feel like you were there with them in Europe.

Can't wait to read Angel's story next.

Worth the wait!

If you've read book 10 in the series ( Fuel for Fire ), then you had more than an inkling that Christian and Emily's story was going to be something else. Their constant bickering with and "annoying" each other made it clear to everyone but them (or was it?) that these two had chemistry to spare. You just knew their book was gonna be good--and it didn't disappoint!

Hot Pursuit begins where the last book left off, with four BKI employees still stuck in England, trying to get back to Chicago. The infamous and elusive Spider's still at large, but now another, more immediate enemy is at hand, and Christian, Emily, and the rest of the gang spend most of the book dealing with danger from that front.

But those gosh-darn hormones, they keep getting in the way...

I loved watching Christian win Emily over to his way of thinking (the car wash scene--whew, that one give you some niiiiiice imagery to ponder!) and am really looking forward to seeing them be all couple-y like in the next book ( Built to Last --Angel's book, woot!) but please, please tell me that Ace and Rusty are at least getting a novella (though really, they deserve their own full-length book!)

Rating: 4 1/2 stars / A-

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

Hot Pursuit is the latest in Julie Ann Walker’s Black Knights Inc. series which features a group of ex- special forces operatives who now work for a covert government defence firm set up by a former US President. The book is billed as romantic suspense, but disappointingly, it’s neither romantic nor particularly suspenseful; the central characters are supposed to be in their early thirties and yet act like a pair of hormonal teenagers much of the time, and Ms. Walker has a tendency to talk directly to her audience through the heroine, which is odd and the exact opposite of endearing.

The plot is tissue-paper thin. After a mission gone wrong, Christian Watson, together with two other members of BKI, their office manager, Emily Scott (who apparently tagged along to keep them out of trouble), and a former marine turned charter-boat captain are forced to hole up in a small cottage in Cornwall until they can safely get out of England and back to the US. Their anonymity is shot to hell, however, when a bunch of reporters turn up on the doorstep trying to get to Christian, to get the story of what happened when he was captured towards the end of the war in Iraq. The timing was politically sensitive and the mission to rescue him was messy; Christian was blamed for the incident (although his identity was never divulged) and quietly left the SAS. He has spent the last few years living well under the radar, so someone must have discovered his identity and location and fed it to the media. The question is, who?

Watching the news on TV not far away are Lawrence and Ben Michelson, brothers of the soldier killed when the mission to rescue Christian went pear-shaped. Both are police officers, but Lawrence is a loose cannon – he has never forgiven the unknown SAS officer for his brother’s death and the later deaths of both their parents, and is out for revenge. Lawrence and Ben make for the cottage hide-out, just in time to witness Christian and his team make their escape, and then follow them to Newquay airport, where a jet is waiting.

Following a violent confrontation during which the pilot is shot, Christian et al get away and end up making for an Elizabethan manor house that is owned by the National Trust. Christian spent a fair bit of time there as a boy and is sure they can break in and hide out for the night while they make arrangements for another flight to get them out. The book was already on shaky ground, but this was where it completely fell apart. They break into a 500-year-old house, and find rooms in which they can actually sit and lounge about on the furniture and in which Christian and Emily find a bed they use for energetic, loud sex. There’s a reason these things are normally roped off – they’re old and probably fragile. They’re definitely not to be used for hot monkey sex. And don’t get me started about the fact that Christian has to wash the sheets afterwards in the washing machine in the basement.

That’s just the start of a long line of things that took me out of this not-at-all-gripping story. The pacing leaves a lot to be desired, because a huge chunk in the middle of the book – my Kindle shows it’s about 40% of it – takes place at the house, and nothing much happens other than Christian and Emily getting it on, and two of the other team members who are also suffering from a huge dose of unrequited lust, yelling at each other most of the time.

Christian and Emily find time to talk to each other about their pasts; his growing up with parents who were alcoholics, while Emily’s parents and grandparents were serial monogamists with more than a dozen marriages between them, which has made her think there’s something in her genes that means she can’t fall in love. (Oh, for the love of Pete…)

Emily spends most of her time looking at or thinking about what’s in Christian’s trousers, and then telling herself that no, she mustn’t think of him that way because she can never have him. Every bloody page is filled with endless mental lusting which bored the hell out of me incredibly quickly. Their sexy, flirty banter is neither sexy nor flirty. They are supposed to have that whole ‘you-irritate-the-hell-out-of-me-but-I-fancy-you-like-nobody’s-business’ thing going on, but the author’s attempts at flirtatious humour are very wide of the mark and the couple sounds like a pair of kids who are trying to come up with clever insults, but don’t have the requisite vocabulary. Worse than all that, there is no romance in this book whatsoever. There is no relationship development or progression from not being in love to being in love. Christian and Emily start the book in lust with each other, everyone around them knows it, so really, the only thing that changes is that they decide to have sex. And to tell their friends about it.

And the language… oh, my god, the language is cringe-making. Do women of thirty really say things like “That kind of thinking was totally crazypants”, or “it was totally amazeballs” and actually MEAN it? Sure, I’ve said things like that, but only when I wanted to take the piss out of something. Or how about you look at a guy and think he’s “A breaker of hearts. A slayer of vaginas”. A slayer of vaginas?! What is this – Muffy the Vagina Slayer?! Or this – “How would she ever be able to look at him, talk to him, work with him knowing that he wanted to, in the parlance of their time, introduce his boy part to her girl part?” The parlance of whose time? Eight-year-olds in the school playground? I could find many more examples of such utterly dreadful phrases (there’s plenty of panty-melting and panty-slicking), but here’s a final doozy: “He did that humming thing and it hit her directly in the uterus.” Oh, good grief.

Still on the subject of language, I appreciate that Ms. Walker has tried to make Christian sound English, but his use of the word ‘fancy’ is grating and incorrect. We might say ‘I fancy him’ or ‘I fancy a bacon sandwich’ or ‘I fancy a coffee’, but we don’t use it as a substitute for ‘like’ in the way Christian does –“He assumed it was because she fancied keeping the people around her off-balance” or “What I fancy is for the woman to stay precisely where she is”. Plus when using the ‘f’ word to swear, we English usually pronounce it as ‘fucking’ not ‘fecking’. (And according to the Urban Dictionary, ‘fecking’ has a totally different meaning.)

For some readers, these will be minor points or perhaps will not register at all. But I mention them because I was taken out of the story on pretty much every single page, and given it’s a story that doesn’t have a lot going for it in the first place, that made it practically unreadable.

Hot Pursuit isn’t hot and there isn’t much pursuing going on. It gets a D for ‘Dreadful’.

Grade: D- /1 star

4.5 stars

“Let me show you why God made beautiful women and well-hung Englishmen.”

Oh I bloody love Christian and Emily! Their sniping and banter is just a form of foreplay for them, and all that UST finally boils over much to the shock of no one around them.

Call him a little off in the head, but Christian actually enjoys the heck out of Emily's constant snarky remarks toward him and her fiery spirit. Just don't ask him to admit it to anyone, especially himself! Emily certainly enjoys the banter too, and there is no denying the former SAS operative is one sexy piece of eye candy. The accent and chiseled abs are really just overkill on an already mouthwatering package, but she learned her lesson about mixing business with pleasure in the past and she won't go there again willingly.

Hot Pursuit lives up to its name with a fast pace from the beginning, and I was 1/3 of the way through the story before I even realized it! The team is still trying to navigate their escape from England, and Christian's past has picked an unexpected and poorly timed moment to rear its ugly head. Just when they thought they were in the clear to return to the US, the group finds themselves on the run from a deranged relative of a man who was a casualty on Christian's last SAS mission and the close quarters provide that final spark for things to combust between him and Emily.

It doesn't take long to figure out they have similar childhood experiences despite growing up on opposite sides of the pond and how those experiences shaped them into the people they are today. Christian doesn't hesitate to treat himself to the things he wants now that he has means to afford them after his Spartan childhood, and his need for control evolved from those experiences too. Emily thinks she is broken and incapable of long term love based on poor family examples and her own past experience with a boss. When it comes time to listen to her heart, her head gets in the way right along with an unhealthy dose of stubbornness that left Christian with a steep uphill battle and me with a serious desire to reach into the pages and shake some sense into her.

I know the end is coming soon for BKI which saddens me a bit but I can't wait to finally find out the deal with the mysterious former Mossad agent Angel. In the meantime, Hot Pursuit is one of my favorite stories in this series and well worth the 1-click!

Hot Pursuit takes readers from where Fuel for Fire leaves off. After separating from two members of the BKI group when a mission goes south, members Christian, Emily, Angel, Ace and Emily’s friend Rusty are on a quest to return to the states. While you don’t have to read the rest of the novels in the Black Knight Inc series, I would highly recommend it. This novel, like the others, is action pack and high physical/emotional intensity. I enjoyed the batter between Christian and Emily. This novel was full of sexual tension and laugh out loud moments. While trying to leave Christian’s homeland country England, his past comes back to haunt him and put a hinder to their quick escape. Forces into life threatening circumstance, heighten emotion, and close quarters, their underline sexual tension lights on fire. Christian will stop at nothing to have and protect Emily. Emily is a once burned twice cautious kind of girl but she just can’t resist all that is Christian Watson. I loved reading Hot Pursuit and the journey to Christian and Emily’s HEA. I can’t wait to read the next book! Give me some Angel! (Hopeful) I would give this novel a 5-star review!

Another brilliant story by Julie Ann Walker. Christian Watson and Emily Scott are made for each other and it's proven through every page of the book. My normal style of reviewing isn't going to work here because there are too many spoilers to be had. I hate having books and movies spoiled for me before I've had a chance to devour them. All I'll say is Happy Reading!

Julie Ann Walker has put out another great installment for the Black Knights series! In this book, we pick up in England, where the gang still is after Zoelner and Chelsea have left for the states. It's fast and fun and I was laughing so hard tears came to my eyes. The banter between Christian and Emily is the best!! I loved getting to know them and watching their relationship finally come full circle. They are so fun together and I enjoyed every minute reading this book! We also got another peak at the mysterious Angel.
I received an advanced copy of the book. In return I am providing my honest review.

Christian Watson may be a super pain in the butt where Emily is concerned but her stupid lady parts don't care! She feels supercharged when they are antagonising each other and when he wheedles out of imparting information, Emily turns his own name into a verb!!!

He was SAS until he essentially abandoned by his country and as far as he is concerned BKI is now his home and family. But as with any family there are disagreements, simmering tensions and bickering, all of which is captured beautifully.

But when Christian's past and the teams current mission collide, he wonders if he can extricate them before Spider or whoever is hunting him, catches him and the team.

Emily is finally back on solid ground. She lost her job when she lost her former flame and vows to never mix business and pleasure again. But Christian is temptation personified. With her family's addiction to wedding cake, she doesn't feel that she would be a great long term partner for anyone.

Add in tensions between the clearly attracted Ace and Rusty, who go about their lives in very different ways and this is a funfilled, passion charged, edge of your seat ride. All packed into a very short time frame.

Hugely addictive!!

When entering one of this author's novels you will always be given her best. The ride will be filled with everything you want from a adventure filled romance with characters that meld you into the story with little chance of escape or wanting to for that matter. Christian and Emily have a challenge here that has to be met but with added factors that seep in. Anything to do with the Black Knights you know will push all the buttons with sweat running down the back. Finding their footing together as partners is the sizzle that gives us the treat in reading. The drama is just one aspect that starts the flow pulling us to the edge. You are given everything she has right up until the end with coma for sure wondering what next.

Spotlight, Review & Giveaway: HOT PURSUIT (Black Knights Inc.) by Julie Ann Walker http://wp.me/p3d0RZ-9VH
Publication Date: October 3, 2017
Genre: Romantic Suspense
Reviewed by: Reading in Pajamas/ Donna
Rated: 4.5 Stars

I’ll start by saying that I love Black Knights Inc. Each character is so finely crafted that I feel I’m a part of it all. Christian was no exception. I love his accent, humor and sexiness. Yumm. Emily was a good match for him, quick witted and strong willed; that made their romance nice and steamy. My only complaint is that there was so much talking that it felt like the story stalled a few times, which is unusual for a BKI book. I liked the tender ending and the lead in, to what I hope, is Angel’s story to come. I can’t wait!

*Review copy provided by Sourcebooks in exchange for an honest review.

3.5 Stars

Christian Watson is stranded in England, his home country he never wanted to return to. Along with a few of his fellow BKI co-workers…. including the very bossy Emily Scott. While fleeing the country, they have been spending time in VERY close quarters… and he is holding on by a thread at trying to keep his hands off of her…

Emily Scott doesn’t do love. After many failed relationships in her own family, she never wants to set herself up for the same failures. Even though Christian pushes all of her buttons, why risk her job (again) and friends for a brief fling.

This was a good book in a fantastic series. It wasn’t my favorite out of all of them, but it was great to see the characters I have read so much about and see the BKI family as this series is wrapping up. Or seems to be at least!

I really liked Christian and Emily’s characters, I wish there had been a little more action or something more to their story than just Emily’s qualms about a relationship. Once they finally got down to business we get a brief look at their chemistry, and it is HOT.

I received a complimentary copy of this book for my honest and unbiased review.

https://www.amazon.com/review/RL7G3FSHOXYY2/ref=pe_1098610_137716200_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

Christian comes across as this cultured Englishman. Not a hair out of place, perfect clothes and a British accent. Emily is the office manager for BKI. She is a badass at running other people's lives while she ignores her own. They get on each other's nerves and are constantly sniping at each other until they are forced into close quarters situation when Christian's crazy past catches up with him. The two of them are on the run with 2 other BKI guys and a friend of Emily's. Things get intense quick. There is no room for secrets anymore with 2 bad guys and the press after them they need to get out of England and quick. Christian has been this big question mark for the past few books and what you see is not what you get. Emily has her own secrets and they've shaped her views on relationships. Christian hope he's up to the job of changing her mind. I loved these two sniping at each other and i loved watching them be there for each other. The other guys in this book are Angel, Ace and Rusty who is Emily's friend. There some intense stuff between Ace and Rusty and of course Angel is a huge ginormous mystery. I loved Angel back when he appeared in Boss and Becky's book and i still love him. His story has got to be intense with the hints we've gotten about his past. We know very little about Ace and Rusty is the new guy but they are explosive together. So much going on with the character's in this book but i feel it lacked a little of the action. Poor Christian had to work hard to reach Emily in the end and i think she was over the top a bit. Overall a satisfying book. Look forward to Angel's book and to see what happens with Ace and Rusty.

Find out more about this Julie Ann Walker and this series here www.julieannwalker.com

Hot Pursuit is the eleventh book in Julie Ann Walker’s Black Knights Inc. series. It is a direct continuation of the previous book, Fuel for Fire, so you may be a little lost if you hadn’t read it. I’ve read several books in the series including Fuel for Fire so everything made sense to me. As with all of the other books, the action in and outside of the bedroom is intense.

This time, the story focuses on former SAS officer turned BKI operative Christian Watson and BKI office manager Emily Scott. The two of them have been secretly lusting after each other since the day they met. Everyone else on the team knows that they need to just get a room already but they attempt to cover up their attraction by snapping at each other consistently. The intensity of the current mission finally forces them to address their attraction and they decide to pursue a friends with benefits arrangement although their feelings are much stronger than that. Emily doesn’t believe that she is genetically wired for a loving relationship because of her family history. Christian agrees to the arrangement thinking that he can get Emily to get over her issues and make a commitment to him. Christian is a hard nosed and lethal operative. But he is also sweet, kind, and noble. He was abused as a child but he never let that stop him from being a good person and believing in love.

In addition to the relationship issues, there is the matter of the team being pursued in London by two assailants, believed to be associated with their original mission to identify and take down a ruthless crime lord. That pursuit puts their lives in danger on numerous occasions and they must overcome various obstacles to make it back to their homebase in Chicago alive. It’s the culmination of all these things that make Hot Pursuit a fun and exciting read. Conflicts that occur between other members of the team add to the intrigue. This happens throughout the entire series and makes it all feel like a family atmosphere regardless of the peril that they always find themselves wrapped in. I look forward to the next book in the Black Knights Inc. series. I’m sure that I won’t be disappointed.