So good! 4.5 stars. Wow! Terrific storytelling. This story picks up where the first one ends and is fantastic. An emotional exciting read with great characters. Will Nina and Ewan get back together? I’m rooting for this couple. This one end’s in a cliffhanger too and I’m looking forward to the next installment. I voluntarily reviewed an ARC thanks to NetGalley.

Wicked Attraction is the second installment in The Protector series in which new dangers emerged, and things got more emotional and complicated for the main characters Nina and Ewan.

Poor Nina and Ewan... I had that thought many times throughout the book, especially at the very end. The title of the third book made me suspect the story was headed that way, but, still, poor Nina and Ewan. I had that same thought at the beginning of the book.

In the previous installment, Dangerous Promise, Ewan and Nina met and fell in love. They had a short blissful time together before the reality came crashing in, and Ewan's secret came out. Nina left after that. Soon afterwards, Ewan used trickery and hired Nina once again. That was the end of book one.

The beginning of Wicked Attraction revealed that Nina stayed with Ewan as his bodyguard. She treated it as any other assignment. For Ewan that was the only way to have Nina near him to try to get Nina's forgiveness and somehow repair their relationship. With the time period and the world they lived in described in the previous book, there was no need for detailed descriptions in this installment, so there little left to distract me from the relationship between Nina and Ewan. I liked that very much. Like I said in my review of Dangerous Promise, complicated and emotional love stories is one of the main reasons I love Megan Hart's books. Speaking of emotional, I have to talk about Nina here. Ewan was more-or-less his same likeable self as in the first book, though not so set in keeping the laws about enhancement tech as they were. Nina, on the other hand, was quite different from the woman I first met. I think I would call all of Megan Hart's leading female characters strong women, but Nina was on a whole other level. The enhancement tech had made her into a super soldier, a super soldier who at the beginning of the series was incapable of feeling any intense emotion. By the end of the previous book that changed -- she had started to feel too much. She was like that in this installment, too. It was strange from someone as fiercely strong as her. Unsettling, even, and sad because she was feeling negative emotions.

Luckily, though very slowly, Ewan won Nina back, and for a while they were happy. They were a couple madly in love, and they worked together to change the laws which would improve Nina's and other enhanced people's lives. However, living in a happy bubble couldn't last. This isn't the last book, after all. New shady characters entered the scene, and apparently the old shady characters weren't done with doing damage. The difference was this time around, the one in danger was Nina. It was a danger neither Ewan nor her enhancement tech could save her from. Like I said, poor Nina and Ewan.

All in all, Wicked Attraction was a great sequel to Dangerous Promise and a great lead-up to the final book. I couldn't be more ready to see these characters get their happy ending.

book two in the protector series, wicked attraction, picks up right where dangerous promise left off. nina has been rehired by ewan for protection, and he's basically trying to win back the trust he broke by not confiding his role in developing the enhancements that are slowly going to kill her as they deteriorate. he's also working on a plan to alter the ban he was instrumental in enacting, so that those who have already received enhancements may be eligible for updates.

he's still keeping secrets though. he hasn't shared the extent of his work with nina, or what his actual plans are. trust is very much an issue between them. on the one hand, ewan trusts nina with his body. he enjoyed the pain she gives him. he loves to be under her control. but when it comes to his business dealings, his political intrigues, he is less forthcoming. part of this is because he is afraid of her judgment. but part of it is also that he isn't very good at letting others in.

so it's a work in progress. but nina can't help forgiving him. the pull she feels for ewan is stronger than anything. but when the attacks keep coming and seem to be targeting nina, suddenly the dangers they've faced before are no comparison to the one ahead.

and then it is ewan who must do everything in his power to save nina. except it may not be possible to save the nina he knows, the one who loves him most of all.

things aren't resolved at the end of this, but the story is still highly entertaining and engaging. megan hart has created a hero and heroine worth rooting for, and i really enjoyed this latest installment of their story.

**wicked attraction will publish on february 6, 2018. i received an advance reader copy courtesy of netgalley/st. martin's press (swerve) in exchange for my honest review.

“’You’re in a cage,’ the shadow man tells her without moving into the light. ‘I want to get you out of it. I want to save you.’
‘I’m the one who does the saving.’
The man’s voice fades as he speaks. ‘Not this time . . .’”

This book is the second in The Protector series, and shouldn’t be read as a standalone. It picks up a few weeks after the first book ends. I had some issues with the first book, mainly because I have a hard time with characters who lie, either directly or by omission. Given that, I was pretty pleased with the what happens in this book. As a warning, there are massive spoilers for the first book!

“’Imagine reaching for something you know you should be able to grab, and it isn’t that it keeps slipping out of your fingers. It’s simply not there. Maybe it was never there. Maybe you’ve only been fooling yourself. When they took away the memories, Ewan, they stole pieces of our self-confidence.’
‘I never wanted that for anyone.’
‘I know you didn’t,’ she said. ‘I know that’s why you erased the records to hide the tech. I know that’s why you worked so hard to make it illegal. I even understand why you didn’t tell me at first, why you kept it a secret. But how could you let me love you, knowing I didn’t know the truth? How could you do that to me?’”

Ewan never meant to hurt Nina, but he did, and, as the book starts, it’s uncertain whether they’ll ever be able to rebuild the trust between them enough to have a relationship. He’s rehired Nina as his bodyguard, even though he’s convinced that, now that his old partner is jailed, the threats to his life are minimal, because he wants her close to him, and Nina stays because she’s stubborn, and as much as she’d like to say otherwise, her no-longer-dormant emotions are still telling her she’s in love with him.

Nina is, as always, awesome. She doesn’t hold her punches with letting Ewan know exactly how much his actions hurt her, and Ewan seems to realize that his actions were unforgivable. It is a bit circular – they spend most of the book talking over how much Ewan’s actions hurt Nina, and how the relationship may never recover. Just when I thought Ewan was finally getting it, he went and did something else ridiculously stupid (trying to avoid spoilers) as a “surprise.” While nowhere near as bad as the original lie, it was more proof to Nina (and me) that he didn’t understand her. And then, of course, it seems like things finally click, and I went from wanting to smack Ewan (and not in the way he likes) to wanting to cuddle him and then tearing up because he was being so damn sweet.

“He tossed up his hands. ‘Fine. But I’m cooking. You sit and look pretty.’
‘Yes,” she cooed, ‘because that’s exactly my goal in life. To sit quietly and look pretty.'”

Besides the “can Ewan be forgiven?” main plot, there was a whole multitude of subplots, from vandalism at the lab site where Ewan’s apprentices work, to degradation of Nina’s enhancements leading to unpredictable memory loss, to Nina becoming the spokesperson for legalizing the enhancement upgrades (including an interview on kitten heels), to Nina’s sister reaching out after years of silence. Ms. Hart does a superb job of ratcheting up the tension, bit by bit, as the reader starts to figure out the connections while Nina and Ewan are preoccupied with dealing with everything being thrown at them. I literally could not put this book down, and I was itching to start the final book in the series the moment I finished it, as it ends on quite a cliffhanger.

Overall, this was quite an enjoyable and thrilling ride! Highly recommended, especially if you love alpha women and scifi romance!

I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Wicked Attraction is the second book in the Protector series, set in a not too distant future, and starring the same couple in all three books in the trilogy. You shouldn't read this one without reading book 1 as it sets the stage, and the fantastic world building, for book 2. In the first story we were introduced to billionaire Ewan, creater of technology that was used to create super soldier turned bodyguard Nina. He was under a myriad of death threats and while protecting him they fell in love. But secrets have a way of getting out and when they do, it puts Ewan and Nina's relationship in doubt.

Nina is back as Ewan's bodyguard again but things are different this time. Her emotions, once reserved and easily controlled are now in full swing, to her dismay. Plus, it looks like the threats to Ewan are more subtle. Learning to trust Ewan again, even knowing he loves her, is challenging for Nina. Knowing he's got the means to fix her degrading technology but is forbidden from doing so because it's against the law makes being with him pleasure and pain. Can they recapture what they once had?

It's a good mix of intense, sexy scenes and suspense as the story progresses and Nina and Ewan try to work out their issues. Part of Ewan's work now involves supporting young people who show an aptitude for technology and the author writes in such a way that we know something about them is not quite on the level. Honestly, I couldn't put this down until I got to the end! Without giving away spoilers, there is no happy ending for the couple here (as expected since it's the middle of a trilogy) and I'm definitely planning to read the next in series to find out how it all works out.

Review has been posted at Goodreads and will be posted at sale sites during release week.

Wicked Attraction by Megan Hart is book 2 of the trilogy dealing with the near future issue of human enhancements. While mostly a suspense romance, it also shows the influence of that enhanced abilities could have on personal lives as well as society. This is a series best read in order since it is the continuing story of bodyguard, Nina Bronson and billionaire, Ewan Donahue. The plot certainly thickens in this new addition to the series.

Nina walks away from Ewan, who underhandedly tries to get her back “protecting” him but he may not be the one in the most danger. Lots of twists and turns as this story heats up. Nina and Ewan relationship continues its bumpy way. Be aware, there is a cliffhanger at the end of the book.

The science fiction aspects of the story are well-developed. In this second book, that is the best part. I came to wish that Nina would make up her mind concerning Ewan, it is a continual rubber band pulling away, then coming together again. Time for this to resolved in the third book.

4.25 STARS

In this second installment to author Meghan Hart’s Protector Series, “Wicked Attraction” picks up right where the first book left us hanging—with Nina Bronson right back in Ewan Donahue’s employ and determined to maintain a cool, professional distance.

When it comes to Nina, Ewan has made more mistakes than he can count. But none bigger than his lie of omission that shattered Nina’s trust, and which ultimately, tore them apart. It’s not surprising, then, that Ewan will go to any lengths in order to win her back. Still, Nina doesn’t fall easily for Ewan’s tactics, despite the constant war that wages between her head and her heart.

The primary emphasis in “Wicked Attraction” is directed towards the rebuilding of Nina and Ewan’s relationship, resulting in a lot less action than what occurred previously. But after a rather slow buildup, a new threat is introduced, only this time around, the focus is on Nina rather than Ewan. And while I found “Wicked Attraction” to be an enjoyable read overall, it lacked the excitement and vitality that initially drew me in during the first book in this series.

In the end, the reader is (once again) left hanging, but this time with a potentially more devastating outcome than the last. I see where the conclusion to Nina and Ewan’s story is heading, and I’m not so sure I can survive another brutal hit to my heart. Still, when it comes to Nina & Ewan finding their HEA, I guess you could say I’m a glutton for punishment. Because, at this point, I’m absolutely 100% “all in.”

<i>She wasn't going to fool herself into thinking this was a new beginning. It was an interlude, no more than that.</i>

I think I've been disappointed in this series ever since I realized it was a trilogy focused on the same couple with an over arcing plotline to tie them together. Even though this isn't a contemporary romance in the strictest sense, seeing as it's set in the future, nonetheless.. it fits the same general terms. And it's pretty rare a couple can be made to be interesting for more than one book. Case in point, after this middle installment my disappointment only grew. Why? Because it was bad enough that from the get-go in book one we were already forced to slog through a significant amount of filler to kill time, but in book two not only did that trend continue, it was also exacerbated by blindingly obvious plot directions that neither the intelligent inventor nor the super keenly trained soldier managed to pick up on. Despite the fact that these questionable moments, hints, and characters, were blatantly staring them in the face.

Right before the conclusion of a DANGEROUS PROMISE, our lovebirds were separated for spoilery reasons, only for the final chapter to show them coming together again.. but not why. Is Ewan Donahue, the billionaire creator of the tech that runs through Enhanced soldier Nina Bronson's body, once again being threatened? Has she forgiven him for what happened in book one?

The answer to both is nope. WICKED ATTRACTION goes in a different direction from book one. A direction that would have been interesting if the villain hadn't been as painful to read about as Jesse Eisenberg's version of Lex Luthor was to watch (and weirdly they even acted alike..). Additionally we are bogged down by too many sex scenes, see-sawing emotional interactions that veer from the dramatic "I can never trust you again" to "okay lets do this forever".. almost within, like, a chapter. With hardly any discernible resolution for anything or explanation as to why suddenly everything is shiny fine or why, later, we're suddenly doubting things again. Also, the constant repetition of "baby" and "I love you" and "you're beautiful" made this even harder to get through.. and it was already hard enough.

Hart's world is interesting, the concept is creative, but it's totally overrun by shitty characters, endless filler, and less than convincing emotional connections. The ending was totally predictable but the "tense" (I mean, I didn't find it tense, but I can tell that was the intention) moments leading upto it were intriguing and I really enjoyed the way the author executed that chapter right before everything goes sorta-cliffy.

This series is my first experience with Hart and at this point I'm not really sure how I feel about this author. Honestly, unless things turn around drastically in book three I'm kind of on the fence as to whether I would ever even read her again. Guess we'll see how things go in FORBIDDEN STRANGER.

1.75 "it always seemed easier to tamp down happiness than sorrow" stars

Holy cow!

Heart wrenching emotion and intense story line! I can't wait to read the next story. Ms. Hart is a phenomenal writer.

I voluntarily read an advanced copy.

This isn't a stand alone novel and the cliffhanger will pull some readers in and leaving others uninterested.

The story doesn't seem to flow well many times leave readers wondering if the are missing a part of the story in editing or if the author did it on purpose.

Many times I flipped though the pages finding the information repetitive or boring. Megan Hart also tries hard to make the story very political but ends up leaving readers wondering which side of the debt the author is on. Ewan and Nina have so much push and pull and emotions that do not make any since when they end up in bed it isn't a shock and really isn't interesting because it was a given.

Wicked Attraction lacks forces, leaving readers lost and at time bored.



Thank you to Netgelley and the publisher Swerve for the advance copy

The second book in the Protector series ...............

This book takes up immediately after the action in book 1 .
Ewan's mistake in not disclosing all to Nina is now his downfall..... she has left him , unable to accept his deceit.... their love in tatters .
He no longer needs a bodyguard , but the only way he can see Nina is if he takes on another contract to employ her once again . He has hidden who the contract is with hoping she will stay , he will do anything to make her forgive him and give their love a chance .
Nina is torn - he has awoken feelings in her , new feelings , feelings she had not felt since her enhancement ......feelings that were overwhelming .
There are new attacks made , initially thought to be against Ewan but it is soon realised that Nina is the the target .
Why ?
By whom ?
Ewan endeavours to keep her safe but she is betrayed by someone close to her and is captured .
Ewan and Al ( another enhanced soldier and friend to Nina ) must use all their resources to find Nina before it is too late !

A much better book with betrayals, fast paced action and not least LOVE .
I look forward to the next in series

This is book two of three in the series. We begin shortly after the cliffhanger of the previous book. The storyline is all over the place in the book. And we jump around a little too much for my liking.
Ewan and Nina face the odds head on, trying to forge a life together when outside forces are in play. There's lots of shadows in this book and more unanswered questions. You just want Ewan and Nina to finally be happy...

Ewan and Nina do not make falling in love look easy. The first half of this book is just him trying to get her to forgive him! And the second half is a TON of crazy action. It was quite a ride.

This is not a stand alone sort of series. Do not read this before book one. Oh, and that happy ever after? Well we haven't earned it yet I guess.

This is not my typical genre- some of this stuff is straight up weird to me, and not like anything I've read. It's in the future, a LOT had changed. But I'm so into the fantastic story-writing, that none of that makes a difference other than to add another interesting layer to it all.

Long story short, bring on book three! I'm not super patient with cliffhangers....

This one ends in another cliffhanger… and I’m done.

This second book is less awesome than the first. In this installment, the villains (yes, plural) were pretty obvious to me as a reader and I have a hard time believing that a super solider, even one with a few foggy and missing memories, wouldn’t see them coming a mile away.

There were better bits, particularly the sex scenes and interactions with the other super solider featured in the story. However, ultimately, dragging this out over several books is a major turnoff for this reader.

I received an ARC of this book, from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I went into this book with an open mind, even though I had mixed feelings about previous the book Dangerous Promise. Unfortunately, this story seem to pick up where the last one left off with the continual “one step forward, two steps back” relationship between Nina and Ewan.

However, after a terrible start and a review rating I wouldn’t normally bother to print, the second part of the story took flight and raced forward at a sprinter’s pace, keeping me totally glued till the end. The biggest problem with both stories is definitely the drawn out length of each book. The author could have achieved a far better result by streamlining the content and doing away with the grating dialogue. Fingers crossed that book three is not only better, but also a wrap up of this saga.

Ok so I kind of liked the premier of those series but I can’t decided, after reading the first two books, if I like the execution.

Ewan made a mistake. One he deeply is seeking amends for but may never get. Withholding information that was pertinent to Nina he felt helpless. His love for her drove his need to be consumed by her once again. Those moments were all he treasured and finally gave him a measure of peace. Will she rekindle what they once had or will she walk away from him forever. She did more than guard his body she invaded his heart.

This is for books 1 and 2 of Megan Hart’s “The Protector” series. Note - really hate cliffhangers.

Nina's basically the female version of your typical ex-military alpha hero, which worked surprisingly well. I like books with strong heroines, but usually they also have even stronger heroes, so it was a breath of fresh air to have a heroine who's both stronger and more alpha than her partner. She's delightfully no-nonsense, and makes no apologies for who - or what - she is. She doesn't hesitate to call out Ewan's bullshit, either professionally or personally. When Ewan points out that they're from completely different worlds, that his is dinner parties and business deals and hers is fighting and violence, Nina fires back that it's people like him that make people like her necessary. She also makes no bones about the fact that they're on opposite sides ideologically, and but she respects his opinion on that, which, frankly, is much more levelheaded than I would be in that situation. Without the enhancement upgrades, which Ewan actively fights against, Nina's brain will slowly degrade until she's basically a vegetable. Nina, however, has more of a "carpe diem" attitude, and I'm sure it also helps that she views their relationship - as boss and bodyguard as well as a couple - as temporary.

Interesting premise...

Wicked Attraction picks up just about where the first book (Dangerous Promise) left off. Ewan and Nina's relationship up in the air as it begins you tend to wonder what will come of them. Ewan and Nina are sweet and sexy. Even with the rollercoaster ride they go through together you are rooting for them. I loved the twist with this one. And just like the first book there is a big old cliffy that has you wondering what will happen next for Nina and Ewan. You can tell in this one that Nina is starting to come into her own. It leaves you wondering what is to come with her enhancement. Overall this second book as an amazing read and I can't wait to see where Nina and Ewan end up in the next.

I really didn't get into the first one so, I'm not even going to try to read this one. Author's other work though is good.