4.5stars
Intense, action-packed romance. Derek is forced into Afganistan to persuade Jenna, his best friend baby sister to come back home. But because he won't take force her father makes a step further and starts a few unexpected, intense events. A great love story between two very interesting characters. I loved both Derek and Jenna they were easy to fall in love and it is great to see how their love story begins and how they got their HEA.
I volunteered to review an ARC of this book for Netgelly

Hard Target is the first title in Pamela Clare’s new Cobra Elite series.

I’m yet to be disappointed by Pamela Clare. Her romantic suspense titles are not only packed full of action, intrigue, and drama but they are insightful, educational and incredibly engaging.

Jenna is strong, stubborn, committed, independent and resilient. She’s passionate, caring and compassionate when it comes to her role as a nurse and midwife and sharing her knowledge and skills with the women of Afghanistan.

Derek is an alpha to the core, a former Green Beret he’s no stranger to the dangers that are present in Afghanistan. He’s cocky, loyal and intelligent, and being around Jenna brings forth all his protective tendencies, yet he doesn’t smother her independence.

A sweet and sexy read with a few familiar characters who make cameo appearances, I can’t wait to see which of the Cobra Elite operatives will be next in finding a happy ever after.

Let me start by saying when it is time to pick up and begin reading this book, make sure you have a few hours where you will not be interrupted.....this book was phenomenal and I had a really hard time putting it down. You will embark on a whirlwind roller coaster journey with these characters....and what a ride it was!! Happy reading everyone!!!

I have been a Pamela Clare fan but I am saddened to say that this one just didn't do it for me, I tried and could not get into the story as much. We have two people that I did respect their professions and the work that they do but I didn't love them. However all that being said, her writing was good and descriptive and I will continue to read her.

Cheers to Pamela Clare for her new series! Hard Target tells the story of Derek and Jenna. Clare weaves a great tale using the linked backgrounds of both lead characters against her action-packed background. Fans of Clare will not be disappointed with this one!

This was my first taste of this authors work, and I am kicking myself that I haven’t found her sooner! I loved the intensity of this book, the main characters were strong, determined, and selfless. They had a passion for their jobs and always, well almost always put others needs before their own.
The book is full of emotions, from laughter and love to heartache and sorrow, and the author makes you feel each and every emotion as if you were right there in the book! She is very talented at drawing you into a world that you could only ever dream or have nightmares about, and for me this is one of the greatest gifts an author can give, to be able to take you away from reality, I mean everybody needs a break now and then.
Overall this is a beautifully crafted story with characters that have been properly developed, flaws and all. I personally will be looking for more books from this author, past and future alike.

I like the author and excited to see a new series form her. hard Target is a fast paced read with drama and romance.
Derek and Jenna have an immediate connection and chemistry. The storyline the pair shared in Afghanistan was interesting and so intense.
When they reached stateside, their relationship takes another turn. They become more and I couldn't wait to see this couple get their much deserved happy ending.

I received a copy of this book for a honest review.

Derek Tower is the co-owner of Cobra International Security and was pressured into a new assignment by an influential US senator who can control his company’s destiny. The senator wants his daughter, Jenna Hamilton, removed from a women’s clinic in Afghanistan. Jenna is a nurse and midwife who is six months into a two-year volunteer assignment and she’s not leaving. Derek thought he could give it a week before he successfully extracted her or abandoned the assignment but things turned dangerous really fast.

The plight of women in Afghanistan under the threat of Taliban rule is dismal, especially when complicated by other extremist forces who don’t even pretend to have a religious context. I learned a lot about the current politics and culture and ended up with a better understanding of our contribution to that country. Jenna’s commitment was admirable as she had nothing to gain by staying there and so much to contribute. This story was as educational as it was suspenseful with Derek and Jenna’s blossoming relationship providing needed relief from the dark circumstances. Both of them were fully developed characters who I came to admire and root for.

It’s wonderful having Clare return to this genre as she’s so skilled at writing exciting scenes that you experience viscerally and intellectually. I felt the fear and pain during the dangerous moments and the triumphs when the characters you cared about prevailed. Derek and Jenna were well suited and I loved their romance. I’m a big fan of the I-Team series and this is a worthy spinoff. It was also great to see the crossover folks appear here. I’m in for what I hope will be a long run as I want more of the members of Cobra. I enjoyed everything about this story.

Another Great military romance by the awesome writer Pamela Clare! A sexy hero and smart and feisty lady hero lead to a hot romantic story!!

i really liked the beginning of this book but then it just turned into a typical romance novel. with the authors note at the beginning i was expecting a lot more "realism". the heroine started out so strong but then just seemed to give up her convictions as she fell for the hero. once they left afghanistan, the book lost its momentum for me

The writing in this book is superb I love everything about it. Derek made me swoon. Jenna made me love her. The suspense kept me on edge and ready to see what was next. I am absolutely in love with this story.

In this story, Cobra operative Derek Tower agrees to go to Afghanistan in order to convince a senator's daughter to return to the states. Jenna Hamilton is a midwife and she has committed to spending 2 years in the country helping women there with their pregnancy/childbirth needs.

The writing is nice and crisp and the story moves along at a great pace. It's not really the author's fault, but I did find it hard to read blanket statements about how women and women's health are treated in Afghanistan when things in the USA are really heading downhill for women. It just seems so hard for me personally to read books that have lines like, "a generation of women...had their lives entirely controlled by men" or "Nothing frightened Talibs more than an educated woman" and not think, "gee, that's happening here, too." It's especially interesting to compare and contrast Jenna's very overprotective and overbearing father to the behavior of the men she encounters there. It's very very clear that Derek does not feel that way about her and that he respects her for her independence and bravery, which I appreciated. I'm not saying the author didn't do her research or that it wasn't sensitively done, it's maybe just time to admit that romantic suspense set in war torn foreign countries will never work for me, no matter how competently written it might be.

Great start to a new series! The story focuses on Derek who gets bullied into taking on the task of roping a Senator's daughter who is a midwife and in Iraq teaching the local women about midwifery and also serving the local population who would otherwise not get care. Jenna refuses to obey her nasty jerk of a father and as Derek bides his time living in the compound where the clinic she works in begins to see what and how the customs work with women and their persona non grata status since the Taliban rule. Derek is well versed in the area since his wartime service placed him in the same arenas. This story is an insightful perspective into that life and those roles and traditions that are held fast. Much of the book is spent in depth surrounding that and the relationship that unfolds between Jenna and Derek. The action doesn't heat up until the later portion of the book, but when it does it sets the book ablaze! I love great action stories and this one didn't disappoint in that aspect.
The characters were well written with depth and the chemistry between them was real and believable.
We meet other characters from the team, who I look forward to seeing in future Cobra Elite books!
All in all a great read.

A cultural eye-opener!

When Derek Tower is commissioned to run a mission for a US Senator who wants his independant daughter brought home from Afghanistan, his first instinct is to say no. But Jenna isn’t a spoiled woman in search of excitement in a far-off land- she’s the sister of Derek’s best friend, who died because of him.

He has no choice.

Jenna is determined to help the Afghan women as a midwife in the war-torn country. She knows full well the danger, but the need is greater than her fear. She certainly doesn’t need her father’s henchman following her around, even if he is sexy. But when danger arrives, Jenna is grateful she’s not alone.

Though it could cost her heart.

This book exposes the plight of many Afghanistan women sold into lives of slavery, often by their own families. The author obviously did a lot of research and brought to life the taste and smells of a culture very different to the western world.

The story starts out slow, but builds to a good action-suspense page-turner though the sex scenes felt out of place to me.

I give Hard Target 4 lovely kisses!

Action packed! I love these action packed romances and this one was fun to read. It was also shocking as is all of the ones where you know women are treated like this but it's hard to accept.

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Jenna and Derek were so amazing in this story. I thought the chemistry between them was so sizzling hot. There were some very sad parts to the story and luckily more happy. I thought the author did an amazing job building up the chemistry between the main characters.

The co-owner of an elite security company is tasked with protecting his best friend's sister, a midwife in Afghanistan. There's instant attraction between them, but it's forbidden in the hospital compound, unless he is family. Even pretending to be her stepbrother doesn't stop them from getting close. A fast paced love story set in a war torn country where you never know who you can trust.
A free copy from Netgalley for an honest review.

Pamela Clare is at it again doing what she does best...writing amazing stories of courage, bravery, brotherhood and their partners of life who stand by their side with unconditional love and support.

Her new series Cobra Elite, a group of elite soldiers who believe in protecting the innocent, starts off with the first “Hard Target”. A hard target indeed as Derek Tower is tasked with bringing Jenna Hamilton home from the war torn Afghanistan. But Jenna’s work as a midwife and educating the women there has been her mission and going back home before her term work ends is not an option. Derek very well knows the fear of staying in a war torn country with danger and betrayal dogging every corner, yet convincing Jenna otherwise is a monumental task.

As they work out the dynamics of staying alive, the sparks of attraction that flares between them sure enough lights a fire that engulfs them. With passion heating their hearts and danger dogging their feet, their escape is no easy task when bullets start flying. And Jenna still has to face the betrayal close to home.

It’s a great start to her new series, as Pamela Clare gives much insight into the life of the women in Afghanistan as well as the faith that amid evil, there are still good people who respect women and willing to protect their own.

Received a copy from Pamela Clare via NetGalley for an honest review.

"Jimmy had been Derek's best bud in the Green Berets. He had died saving Derek's life, and Derek truly didn't want his little sister to get hurt or killed."

Derek had to try to get Jenna out of Afghanistan per the orders, aka threats, from Senator Hamilton. Senator Hamilton seemed to want his daughter back in the States for her own safety. But honestly, Hamilton usually had ulterior motives that were more revolved around himself.

Upon meeting Jenna, Derek realizes getting her to leave Afghanistan before her contract was up was not something she was willing to do. She took her job as midwife very seriously. Her refusal to go and his immediate attraction to her is definitely messing with his plans.

Jenna hasn't seen an American man in a very long time - so she attributes her attraction to her lack of interaction with the opposite sex. But as the days go by, she knows it's more than that.

As things heat up between Jenna and Derek -and Jenna is threatened more than once, Derek is willing to put his life on the line for her. No matter what.

Pamela Clare hits the mark again with the start of this new Cobra Elite series. I get all the wonderful feels that I got with her ITeam series! The action, the romance and the fantastic story line drew me right in!

This review was originally posted on <a href="http://booksofmyheart.net/2019/05/21/hard-target-by-pamela-clare/" target="_blank"> Books of My Heart</a>
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Review copy was received from NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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I've enjoyed everything I've ever read from Pamela Clare. She's a knowledgeable author who writes amazing romantic suspense. <strong> Hard Target</strong> is the first in a related series to the <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/41381-i-team" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em><strong>I-team</strong></em></a>.   It looks like the new <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/series/257715-cobra-elite" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"><em><strong>Cobra Elite series</strong></em></a> will be about former special forces operatives who now work private security and government operations.

These guys are away a lot on business. They also often have issues from their military service, seeing things no one should see. Some of those things happen in this story.  Derek and Jenna are good people. They work hard, put care of others before themselves. Jenna's brother served with Derek and saved his life, so they have known each other awhile but not closely.

Sadly, Jenna has a controlling A-hole for a father, a politician. Also, unfortunately,  she is not as knowledgeable about the political and cultural environment of Afghanistan where she is working. She causes some serious issues which could easily get herself and / or others killed.  Luckily, Derek is both smart, well-trained and well-informed.

In a war torn country, with lots of danger, and plenty of people to help and protect, somehow that just ups the sexy attraction in a forbidden sort of romance. Derek is posing as her brother, to be able to speak with her privately. If anyone learns the truth, it will be another big problem.  The energy of this fast-paced, sexy danger is electric!

I'd willingly read everything by this author. I'm sure I will continue with this series. It was great to see many of the I-team folks briefly as well.  Holly and Nick were a little more present than others since they are part of Cobra Elite, also.