I must firstly apologise for the amount of time it has taken me to provide a review of this book, my health was rather bad for quite some time, something that had me in hospital on numerous occasions and simply didnt leave me with the time I once had to do what I love most.

Unfortunately that does mean I have missed the archive date for many of these books, so It would feel unjust throwing any review together without being able to pay attention to each novel properly.

However, I am now back to reading as before and look forward to sharing my honest reviews as always going forward. I thank you f0r the patience and understanding throughout x

I received an ARC from NetGalley and this is my honest opinion.
I was a little unsure of this book at first but I am glad I stuck with it. I don’t often like second chance books but this was definitely interesting.
Some hot and steamy romance and an action packed storyline kept me reading.

I was kindly provided with an ARC copy of this book for an honest review.

Derek and Cynthia.
Once upon a time they were co-workers in a secret ops that was so undercover even the top echelons of power didn't know about it. Then Cynthia got a bit over enthusiastic about her work. And was let go. She let Derek go then too.
Years later she is back, and Derek is now her boss.
There are enough peripheral players to keep your curiousity up. Will they show up in future books? Hope so.
This book was fun, and a fast read. Enough drama and angst leading to a HEA to keep you reading.

What a wonderful surprise! I had almost given up on romantic suspenses having a solid plot, until I read this book. Not everything is perfect, but how the team works is sound, the criminal actions seem logical, and the characters looked competent. It’s more than a lot of other books.

I had trouble understanding the main characters’ motivations though–not about their work, but about their relationship. It’s actually the romance part that is a bit weaker here. I still liked it. Though the heat is at a minimum level because they deny themselves, there was a lot of simmering passion and a good chemistry between Cynthia and Derek.

The rest of the team, a weird collage of very unique characters, was interesting enough, though some of them lacked a bit of flesh–understandable since everything is in Cynthia’s point of view, this we don’t have access to their personal stories.

There was some actions, and the pace was good. The tension and suspense builds up bit by bit, and the reader ends up at the edge of their seat, waiting hopefully for a happy resolution.

Quickie

- Series: Agents of HEAT #1 (can be read as a standalone)
- Hashtags: #romantic suspense #second chance
- Triggers: violence
- Main couple: Cynthia Kessler & Derek Wilder
- Hotness: 3/5
- Romance: 4/5
- + the suspense element was well crafted
- – still wondering why Derek didn’t say the truth…

I didn’t know what to expect as this was a new author for me but wow, I really engaged with this story and thoroughly enjoyed it.

A fun read with moments of comedy, romance, thrill and frustration entwined skilfully through an exciting ride of a storyline.

Derek and Cynthia (not the most inspiring name choices in my opinion but regardless...) work for an agency that has questionable links and carte blanche to execute undercover operations. They were previously paired together as a team but this resulted in them having a closer relationship than was strictly allowed by their bosses and something happening that caused her to have to leave.
Now she is being brought back in from the cold and tagged as part of a wider team and Derek is her boss.
The old feelings are still there and this is really well explored in the book, though we do only see this through the narrow lens of Cynthias perspective throughout.

Emotional, angsty and fraught at times, I did sometimes wish she would get a backbone and tell Derek where to go as she seemed to really not trust him at times despite his assurances that it was all part of a plan he just couldn’t tell her..

Despite this, the ending was well crafted, wrapped up the romance into a tidy HEA and contained enough action to make the pages turn at speed...

As the first in a series of books, time was taken to introduce other supporting characters who will presumably get their story and what a mix these will be. The Easter eggs were well laid to inspire lots of excitement about whose story might be next and what it might be like. All I can say is that there are a lot of wild women in that team!!!

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.

A big thank you to NetGalley and NYB Publishing for the ARC. I am voluntarily reviewing this book. This is the first in a new series. I actually really enjoyed the book, but I didn't like the title. This is a fun, quick, fast read. It has romance, suspense and teamwork. I think most romance readers would enjoy this book. This is Derek and Cynthia's story. 4 stars.

Good book! This book had a little bit of everything! It had suspense , action, drama, some heart pounding moments! And it was funny too! Its definitely well worth reading! Don't miss out on this one! Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for sharing this book with me!