3.5⭐
When the Smoke Clears is a story packed full of drama from an elite group of soldiers who disappear on deadly missions, to pregnancy loss, to memory loss and so much more this story had so much going on. But it wasn't the action packed, suspenseful read I was anticipating, and honestly, it didn't blow me away. Still, I did like the fact it featured an interracial couple, and I liked the group of soldiers too. I just wish there had been more of an introduction to them and what the Black 2131 elite unit and actual mission was all about.

A good blend of chemistry and action makes this a winning book. When the Smoke Clears is an apt title for this book. Good writing and characters make the pages fly by.

I very much enjoyed reading this book. They say love hits you when you're least expecting it. Follow Paige and Brendens journey from the moment they meet through the ups and downs of an operators fight to not let complications and love into his life. It's definitely an amazing read!

I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the first book I have ever read by this author and as I couldn't find any others I believe it may be a debut novel. While it started of well it slowly became just to complicated as more and more was thrown into the story It would have been a far better read if it had just stuck to one or maybe two tropes instead of trying to cram just about everything that could be into it. There is huge potential in both the authors work and the story line it just needs some trimming.

Paige is a product of a military upbringing and she has always believed that she would never have a relationship with someone in the military That all goes out the window though She meets Brenden and the connection is instant and they spend a passionate night together but she leaves the next morning a while later they reconnect when a misunderstanding almost causes Brenden to cause Paige to lose her job Soon the connection between them flares again but Brenden isn't only military he belongs to one of the most elite and clandestine units around can Paige handle the life this will lead to You will have to read to see

Paige is a product of a military family and never thought “her guy” would be part of that life until one New Year’s Eve party when she meets up with Brenden. A passion filled night that leaves you reaching for a fan ends on a slightly awkward note when “Cinderella “ disappears. Fast forward a bit and the two meet up again under an even more embarrassing note when Brenden flexes his military and monetary weight around, almost getting Paige fired from her job do to a misunderstanding with his niece. But the sparks continue to fly and soon the two begin a relationship, but can it last knowing Brenden’s super secretive military designation will keep Paige isolated. This book has a nice mixture of heat, action, and tenderness with a bit of emotional drama. The military theme is quite heavy and there is a difficult pregnancy issue that may be a trigger for some, but it was nice to have both leads be strong in their own rights. This was a nice military romance and I hope that Brenden’s comrades get stories too. 4.5 stars. I received an arc copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher for my honest review.

When I read the blurb for this title, by new-to-me author, C. Chilove, it sounded like a great read, especially since I'm fond of novels with Navy SEAL, Special Forces, and first responder heroes, and while the novel started out with a steamy, interracial attraction, for me, by the time I got to the midway point, I felt that the novel's forward momentum fizzled out completely, and the best I can give it is a 2-star rating.

Additionally, I felt no affection for any of the main or secondary characters, and got tired of reading seemingly endless passages which described everything but the brand of toilet tissues each character had in their bathroom, the furniture, the windows, the flooring, the art on the walls, the view, and darn near everything else to the point at which is was silently screaming, "Enough already, move on!" which is the main reason I dragged myself to the ending, but if ever a novel needed an editor, this one was it.

Further, every time that Brenden went on a mission, we never really were given much information about his missions or his teammates. Mostly his deployment chapters were just him leaving at the drop of a hat without mentioning it to Paige. The rest consisted of Brenden sitting in the plane, and the return flight. Where was the drama? Where was the danger? Nowhere I could find.

I also disliked reading about the reverse racism and two cardinal rules Paige's family had pressured her to live by. Rule One: Never date a military man, and Rule Two: Never get involved with a white man. Had the races been reversed in this novel, the author would be hearing from the NAACP. As someone who considers herself color-blind, and who has had two interracial relationships in the past, I found myself deeply offended by the attitudes of Paige's military father and brothers.

All in all, I barely made it through this rather long and dull novel, and I certainly don't recommend it.

I voluntarily read an advance reader copy of this novel The opinions stated are my own.

This book started out with a great bang, but it slowly fizzled out and I found myself falling out of love. I think I would put that down to the use of trope after trope, which not only put us back at where we started, but also made me begin to dislike their relationship and feel as if nothing really mattered.

I enjoyed the development of the relationship between Paige and Brenden, it was a good mixture of pure chemistry and attraction, as well as the two of them actually having a chance to talk and get to know one another. Then we got to the last 40% of the book, and events that happened meant that the first portion of the book were just there to set up the story. I think that it could have worked if we didn't spend over half the book getting to know the relationship only to have it fail before being quickly fixed in the last 20-30%, it meant that the first half dragged on and the second half went too quick.

I really liked how good of a man Brenden was, and how much he cared for Paige, I often find in this genre it's not obvious that the man really cares. That made their relationship feel very realistic and heartwarming.

Overall it was a great story and I enjoyed my time, it's just unfortunate how it went in the end.

Solid 3/5

“I’ll be there when the smoke clears”

This story is full of roller coaster moments, especially the relationship between Paige and Brenden. It starts steamy and just like a one night stand with a little regret from both sides when the night passes. But nothing stays put, as life has its ways of reuniting them and guiding them through the ups and downs that every relationship withstands, moreover, if you are dating someone who has to keep secrets as a way of living.
For me, it was a great story, although it has its moments where it felt like the story was going nowhere and suddenly, you find yourself trying not to cry or to roll your eyes ( this last, everytime Paige demands to Brenden that he share at least a bit of himself and his line of work), but all in all, it was a very entertain reading. I fully enjoy the last chapters of the book, where action gets its peak and you are at the edge of your seat waiting for the next shoe to drop.

Did I enjoy the trappings of American imperialism in which this novel is steeped? No, I very much did not. Now, did I enjoy the romance despite that? Yes, I did; it was nuts and I like crazy in my novels.
I'll say that the talk about love seeing no color also kind of soured this book for me. Love (and everyone) should see color, that's not a bad thing.
3.5 stars

This had the premise to be good but unfortunately fell flat for me. Brendan is a super secret army guy and we follow him and Paige’s story. This book is quite frankly a lot and half of it you can’t even follow. It almost ended up being a DNF for me but I trudged through. This clearly needs a good editing because it’s kind of all over the place. All opinions are my own, thank you to Nergalley for the ARC.

4+ stars

When the Smoke Clears, by C. Chilove, is...a lot. Paige and Brenden's story is emotion charged, in part due to their strong feelings for each other but also due to the secrets they both keep and the events that happen both to them and around them. The storyline and its accompanying action will keep you reading long into the night.

It's hard to summarize this book without spoilers. In short, Brenden is a smoking-hot white black ops commander. Did I say black ops? I mean black ops of black ops. Commitment means complications, and from the moment he meets her at a New Year's Eve party, beautiful and brilliant Dr. Paige Nichols is both with a capital C.

Paige is pretty perfect, a Black woman with an astonishing artistic talent that she denies because of its close connection to one of her darkest memories. She counsels college students and is considered a brilliant mind in the world of art therapy. She falls head over green dress for a man who represents everything her Admiral father warned her against: white guys and military men.

The story follows their tumultuous road to happiness (yes, they get an HEA), Paige's career track, and Brenden's involvement in an op that is clearly compromised by a traitor. Brenden continually warns Paige that he can't tell her anything, and he tends to disappear at a moments notice. Paige demonstrates remarkable tolerance all things considered. When her life becomes endangered because of his job, he'll do anything to protect her. But will it be enough?

I found time to be hard to follow sometimes. A chapter would end seemingly in the middle of something, and the next would begin days or even weeks later, with the results of that something told as a memory. A few times, I even paged back to see if it's missed something. Long passages about Brenden on the job were sometimes confusing (a lot of military speak), and I wished there'd been similar attention paid to Paige's. With the amount of stuff this book covers, I suspect some of the content ended up in the cutting room floor.

The only other beef I had was the interspersing of serious dirty talk (both in quoted and narrative passages) in the middle of non-intimate situations. The sex scenes were off-the-charts hot, but for example, I didn't need to hear Brenden reminiscing about her delectable p***y while at his niece's birthday party. Ew.

Overall, though, I liked this book.

I received an ARC of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion. Thanks!

I was quick to request this book based on the blurb, which I thought sounded really interesting. Unfortunately, the story itself fell flat for me personally. I didn't feel any real connection with or between the characters, and thus I had a hard time rooting for them. I also wasn't engaged in the story like I thought I would be, and I struggled to finish it. It's not that the book wasn't written well. It was. There weren't distracting grammatical errors or anything like just. It's just that I like very fast-paced storylines, and this wasn't it. I'm sure it will appeal to readers who don't mind a slower pace.

I received an advance copy; all opinions are my own.

I received a copy of When the Smoke Clears by C. Chilove from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This novel was okay. The summary was interesting and the writing was fine, but the pacing was uneven and the characters were kind of bland. Not something I’d recommend to friends or rave about though.

Brenden is one of the best of the best, Lieutenant Commander of a special black ops team Black 2131. His country comes before anything else until he sees beautiful Paige. Paige analyze and teaches art as a form of therapy. There is an undeniable attraction between Paige and Brenden. But Brenden has secrets he cannot reveal to Paige. The darkness Brenden has inside could destroy whatever he could have with Paige. So when danger comes for Paige, Brenden will do anything to protect her.
At first I couldn’t understand the story but it took no time for me to sucked into the story. My review may not make sense but I did not want to give anything away.
Action ✔️
Suspense ✔️
Smoking hot sex ✔️

* Voluntarily read and reviewed this for NetGalley *