Review courtesy of Dark Faerie Tales
Quick & Dirty: One hot dark and dangerous DEA Agent and a cartel princess!
Opening Sentence: “After two years building his rep as the “Widow Maker,” an independent contractor who killed not only for the government but for the everyday working stiff when justice failed to deliver, undercover DEA Agent Matthew Kane, known on the street as Mateo Juraez, had his next target in sight.”
The Review:
Let me start off by saying that I have not read any of the other books in the series. Having said that, this series is definitely one you can jump into without having to read the others. That of course is super good for me as a reviewer! Okay, if it had been one that you had to read the others, I am the type of reader that would stop and go read the previous books first. Now to get down to business, Sworn to Love focuses on hot cop Matthew Kane, aka Mateo Juarez. Mateo’s first order of business is to take down Javier Bertram. We find out rather quickly that he fakes Javier’s death and takes him into custody despite a desperate need for revenge. Javier murdered Mateo’s brother in cold blood, and he is also engaged to Sophia Dumas, the cartel princess!
Now we have the beginning set up. Mateo gets to work taking Javier’s place and initiates a meeting between him and Sophia. There is an instant connection between the two of them. From there this is a fairly typical romance novel, except this one has murder attempts, dangerous drugs and one bad ass girl saving the boy! I really did enjoy this book, it was super easy to read and a quick one too, almost feeling more like a novella instead of a book.
It was action packed and fast paced, with plenty of sexy time thrown in there. Despite its length, I really didn’t feel like there was more sex than action. There really was a good balance of plot, danger and sex. I am intrigued enough to go back and read the first four novels! Unlike other cop novels or police procedurals this book wasn’t bogged down in endless detail and descriptions, the author was not trying to make a legit case. I do enjoy those books too, but sometimes if the author isn’t careful you can lose a reader if it gets too boring. Karen Tabke clearly doesn’t have that problem, she did throw in evidence and details, but she didn’t get overwhelming with them.
I also enjoyed Sophia, and by that I mean as a character in a novel this short you would almost think that you can’t quite connect with the character. She rocks though, you really get to know her, the love she has for her father, the disgust she has for his business. The sense of hopelessness she has with her life, her fears and even the hopes she has for the future if she could have a future. Sophia really made the book enjoyable. I know we are supposed to be hung up on the hot cop, but Sophia was the real star of this book. So get out there and check it out!
Notable Scenes:
“Mateo was a firm believer in sticking close to the same lie with everyone so when they compared notes there were no discrepancies.”
“He was blindfolded and tied at the wrists and ankles to a chair.”
FTC Advisory: Simon & Schuster provided me with a copy of Sworn to Love. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.