Fever

by V.K. Powell

Hired gun Zak Chambers expects to provide a simple escort service to philanthropist Sara Ambrosini, but nothing is as simple as it seems, especially love.

Zak Chambers is a disillusioned hired gun who longs for a connection with life beyond her sat-phone and assignments she can’t share with anyone. Her boss lines up a cushy escort job to Africa to give her time to refocus.

But the country she loved as a child holds memories she isn’t ready to face. Adding to her ambivalence about returning is the immensely attractive Sara Ambrosini, head of Ambrosini Philanthropic, who sees everything through the rose-colored glasses of wealth and privilege. Zak’s task is to provide security for Sara until they reach the future site of her primary school for tribal children in the bush country. But Zak soon discovers that Sara’s stubbornness and independence aren’t the only obstacles to the success of her assignment.

Genres: Lesbian, LGBT, Romance, Adventure, Action, Lesbian Romance

298 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2010

About the author

As a thirty-year law enforcement veteran, VK Powell brings a rare level of authenticity to her novels of romantic intrigue. Her career spanned numerous positions including beat cop, homicide detective, vice/narcotics lieutenant, and assistant chief of police. Now retired, VK infuses her writing with the wealth of experience she gained in police work.

VK is a member of the Romance Writers of America, Rainbow Romance Writers, and the Golden Crown Literary Society. She has penned several novels and short stories featuring strong women who struggle with the timeless question: can you really have it all?

Reviews

[Jae Jae]

This is VK Powell’s third novel, and it’s her best one so far. It’s an entertaining read with good descriptions of setting and characters. I would give it 3.5 stars if that were possible.

[Blink51n]

While some of the story is full of tropes used in many les fic books, the well written African setting was a huge redemption. Powell did a great job in immersing the reader and I felt like I learned about the wildlife, people and places along with Sara.
Good use of developed secondary characters help to flesh out the leads as well as expand the story. Really enjoyed this book.

[Fiona]

A little tedious. i could not buy the immediate initial attraction between the two characters so that hindered the whole book for me. Some good descriptions of African landscapes... but overall slightly redundant.

[J.E.]

Readers know what to expect from a V.K. Powell novel. What stand out in this one are two things: one, the setting, a specific and wild place in Kenya, in East Africa. The other is the depth of characterization. Of course we're rooting for the main characters, but the author creates intriguing secondary characters as well, including Maasai who are childhood friends of one of the heroines. I found myself aching for Imani and wondering what happened to her outside the pages of the book. For me, that's a sign of great storytelling.

[Jen]

Africa, Philanthropy, Corruption & Romance

“And I will not explain myself. Not that I could anyway. For some reason, I just can’t be near this woman.”
+ • + • + • +

Definitely not the story I was expecting after reading the description… but like, wow, was this a really, really, really good book!!

[Dide]

It entertained me but being an African and familiar with a handful of African countries and cultures I find this book a mix of African related information without definite details. Asides this the book was entertaining enough a bit too wordy on the dialogue at times though

[Daisy Teragram]

Exciting and satisfying
This was a good book. The characters were interesting and complemented each other. I'm glad Sara could stand up to Zak. And I'm glad Zak finally let Sara in. It's exciting, and I liked experiencing life in Kenya. I'm not sure I understood everything in the plot, but that's okay. The writing is good, and virtually error-free. I only caught four minor errors. I don't know if I have a need to reread this book, but I might if I crave an adventure story.

[Maryp]

I eventually finished this one. Unlike all the other books by this writer, I guess this one was hard for me to read because alot of it was based on places I'm very intimate with and she got many of the details wrong. I know, I know it's fiction, its make believe but I just could not wrap my head around it.

[J]

2.75 stars rounded up. If you can block out each reference to Africa as a country rather than a continent, the plot isn’t too bad. I thought the ending was a little lazy though considering the intricate lead up. An extra 50-100 pages and some editing could have made this book 4-5 stars. Also, the MC’s name is Zak not Lennox— not sure why the blurb on GR has it wrong.

[Margaret L. Hedman]

I loved this book.

I loved Fever. Action packed. Great mix of romance, action and suspense. The setting makes me want to travel to Africa to see the animals.

[Grace]

3.5

the will they won’t they was torturous

[SussexCat]

This had all the elements to be really great.
A feisty, wealth redhead and a secretive and sexy spy. Alone in Africa with the burden of their personal histories to overcome in order to open their hearts... You get the picture.
It just... wasn't. Great I mean.
It unfolded ...well.. sort of .. out of sequence and out of harmony in terms of a romance.
It was a good recipe with great ingredients but something went wrong in the oven.

[Missouri Vaun]

The first couple of chapters in this book made me laugh out loud. Mostly due to the feisty femme lead. I love books set in far off places. I really couldn't put this book down until I finished Zak's story. I've read other books by VK Powell and enjoyed them, but I think this one is my favorite.

[Elisa Rolle]

2010 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention (5* from at least 1 judge)

[Debby]

Well-written story and a departure from her usual police-based plots (good stories, too!).

[Debra Todd]

Hired gun Zac Chambers expects to provide a simple escort service to philanthropist Sara Ambrosini, but nothing is as simple as it seems, especially love.

[M]

Really sorry, but I just didn't buy these characters and I found the whole thing a little tedious and by the numbers.