Hero Under Cover

by Suzanne Brockmann

When Pete Taylor first offered his services as a bodyguard, Annie Morgan wanted nothing to do with him. She was sure that the death threats against her weren't serious. While the Native American mask she was working on was valuable, it wasn't worth killing for.

One murder attempt later, Annie was glad to have Pete around. She owed him her life. Suddenly she was beginning to believe in heroes--and dreams. But Pete wasn't a fantasy--he was real, and at the moment he was the only person she could allow herself to trust, no matter who he was.

Genres: Romance, Romantic Suspense, Contemporary Romance, Suspense, Contemporary, Fiction, Mystery

Hardcover

First published April 22, 1994

About the author

After childhood plans to become the captain of a starship didn’t pan out, Suzanne Brockmann took her fascination with military history, her respect for the men and women who serve, her reverence for diversity, and her love of storytelling, and explored brave new worlds as a bestselling romance author.

Over the past thirty years she has written sixty-three novels, including her award-winning Troubleshooters series about Navy SEAL heroes and the women—and sometimes men—who win their hearts. Her personal favorite is the one where her most popular character, gay FBI agent Jules Cassidy, wins his happily-ever-after and marries the man of his dreams. Called All Through the Night, this mainstream romance novel with a hero and a hero hit the New York Times hardcover fiction bestseller list. In 2007, Suz donated all of her earnings from this book, in perpetuity, to MassEquality, to help win and preserve equal marriage rights in Massachusetts.

In addition to writing books, Suz writes and produces indie movies and TV including the award-winning romantic comedy The Perfect Wedding. Her recent feature, Out of Body, is streaming on Amazon Prime.

In 2018, Suz was given the Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award from the Romance Writers of America. Her latest projects are Blame It on Rio (Tall, Dark & Dangerous # 14), available in print and e-book from Suzanne Brockmann Books, and Marriage of Inconvenience, a six-episode LBGTQ rom-com TV series, streaming on Dekkoo in April 2023.

Reviews

[Mir · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yet another "romance" in which male bullying is portrayed positively. Yuck. I'm disappointed to be seeing this from Brockmann, although it's nice that her books improved with time.

In the opening scene, our heroine Annie, an antiquities appraiser, has been held without charges or legal counsel on barely-even-circumstantial evidence that she might, possibly, have something to do with some recent art-related crimes. After 6 hours of questioning, our titular "hero" agent Peterson has her strip-searched while he and a couple other male agents watch through one-way glass. He gets all hot and bothered so blam! the reader knows it is true love.

Since they can't find any evidence against her, they use some shady tactics to force her, via a client from whom she is evaluating a high-price item, to accept a bodyguard. Surprise! It is seeecretly Peterson (now called Taylor) totally violating Annie's privacy and trying to find proof that she is a criminal. Since there isn't any, he fills his days pushing her around and yelling at her rudely. Hot!

I find the abuse of authority even more revolting than the abuse of physical strength. Stories like this make me offended on behalf of all the enforcement personnel et al who don't take advantage of their positions to bully the weak or harass sexy women. I don't believe real bodyguards are allowed to yell at and manhandle their clients except in emergencies, either.

My least favorite scene aside from the opening was the one where Annie runs out for some syrup while Taylor is the shower. He physically drags her out of the store while yelling at her in front of various neighbors and ordering her to never leave the house without his permission. I hope if I were a witness to such a scene I would call the police.

Annie is a lot more forgiving in the end than I would be if I found out the person I was sleeping with had not only lied to me about pretty much everything but also was the one who violated my civil rights and made me strip in front of a bunch of assholes. I guess a hot guy who can make a peanut butter sandwich is hard to find.

[Cheri · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an older one by her, but it is likeable. Romance, suspense, artifacts info, and a little action.

[Sarah (is clearing her shelves) · Rating 2 out of 5]

19/12 - The review space asks "What did you think?" before you start typing and overwrite it. So, what did I think? I thought this was pretty stupid. I was tempted to give it 1 star, but it wasn't as bad as some of the other 1 star books I've read in the past. So I'll give it two stars for GR's rating system, but in my head it's really only 1.5. Some excerpts taken from the book will help explain why it's just barely managed to get above the worst possible rating.

Page 49
'...he breathed in her natural fragrance. She smelled sweet and warm with a little bit of baby shampoo, some rich-smelling skin lotion and tart apple thrown in for good measure.'

How can baby shampoo, skin lotion and apple be her 'natural fragrance'? She smells of those things because she used them on her hands/body/hair. Her skin doesn't secrete baby shampoo naturally.

Page 82
'One of these days, he was going to lose the last bit of his control.'

One of these days?! He hasn't even been there 24 hours! He turned up late afternoon the day before and now it's sometime between breakfast and lunch.

Page 83
'Although his hair was cut too short, it was dark and luxuriant.'

On page 42, when she first met him his hair was described as 'almost military short', so if it's that short how can it also be 'luxuriant'?

Page 91
'...both faces (of a statue) decidedly Byzantine. They had been cast from a mold, their seams worn with age, seemingly ancient.'

Well, if they're from the Byzantine Empire of course they're ancient as that was thousands of years ago (from 330AD to 1453AD).

Page 214
'She resisted the urge to press her lips against him, to taste the saltiness of his skin with her tongue.'

Yeah, because the perfect time to express your interest is while you're searching the house for a possible armed and insane intruder!!

Page 225
"I love it when you wear your hair up, darling - you look like a little girl playing dress up."

And that's not at all creepy of the paedophile variety with a capital C.

Page 226
'With his hair slicked back and his cheeks freshly shaven...'

So what, he didn't shave his chin or his neck?

Need I say more? This is my second Brockmann book, it's doubtful I'll take a chance on a third.

[Saly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hero Under Cover was not bad but it was actually quite un-remarkable. I never really clicked with the characters Pete and Annie.
Annie is an archaeologist who is fed up with the FBI and CIA, harassing her whenever she gets into the country and accusing her of being some thief. "Pete" is at the other end of the interrogation room enjoys Annie's guts.

So, well when she gets one threatening phone-call relating to a death-mask of some Native-American that gives them an excuse and Pete goes undercover as her bodyguard, about which Annie is not happy and kicks quite a fuss. Of course he gets to know her and even falls in love with her but feels afraid since he is lying to her about who he is, so he is reluctant to act on their attraction even when Anne makes it clear she wants to.

So, we are told Pete is half-Navaho and his life has been different ever since he went to Vietnam and he's a bit of a ladies man, so I didn't see what was so special about Annie that he fell for her so quickly. Annie didn't seem that great of a character to me and neither did Pete.

Just an okay read like I said earlier.

[Zita · Rating 3 out of 5]

(3.25) เล่มแปลไทยชื่อแผนซ้อนซ่อนรัก สนพ.เกรซ แปลโดยคุณพิชญา

นางเอกเป็นนักโบราณคดี ทำงานตรวจสอบวัตถุโบราณ จู่ๆ ก็ตกเป็นผู้ต้องสงสัยคดีวางระเบิดหอศิลป์ แถมยังโดนคนร้ายตัวจริงขู่ฆ่าอีก พระเอกที่เป็น CIA และสืบคดีนางเอกอยู่เลยปลอมตัวมาเป็นบอดี้การ์ดให้นางเอกเพื่อสืบหาหลักฐาน

เป็นนิยายตั้งกะปี 1994 ที่อ่านแล้วรู้สึกว่าสมัยนั้นเค้าฮิตแนวนักโบราณคดีแบบนี้กันจังเลยแฮะ ทั้งแนว romance และ thriller ทั่วไป เพราะอิทธิพลของ Indiana Jones หรือไงไม่รู้ เล่มนี้อ่านเอาความนักโบราณคดีก็เพลินๆ ดี แต่คิดว่าพาร์ท suspense มันง่ายไปหน่อย นึกจะเฉลยก็เฉลยง่ายๆ โดยเฉพาะตรงที่ใครเป็นคนร้ายที่แฝงตัวอยู่ใน FBI/CIA พี่ก็เฉลยง่ายเกิ๊น

[Cherise · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was originally published in 1994.

Dr. Annie Morrow, archaeologist, art historian, and artifact authenticator, is under investigation by the FBI and CIA for some European museum thefts and tragedies. The government agencies have been harassing her and investigating her for months and are no closer to the truth. When a threat is made against Annie's life, the CIA seizes its opportunity and plants one of it's agents in her home as a bodyguard. Kendall Peterson takes on the persona of Pete Taylor and moves in.

Annie is not happy about the permanent shadow but is forced to accept it. The mystery surrounding the European thefts and bombings only increases as she and Pete get into an easy routine and love grows beneath the deceptions and omissions.

With so much potential for an exciting, intriguing read, I just found it a bit flat and slow moving. The main characters have some heat, but not enough to rescue this tepid tale.

When the mystery finally wraps up, I was less than enthused and a little disappointed. I thought the discovery, confrontation and conclusion to be too quick. It was almost like an afterthought. Suzanne Brockmann is one of my favorite writers, but this is not one of my favorite works. I find myself not hating it, not liking it, just sort of ambivalent.

Cherise Everhard, November 2008

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an early Brockmann, and it shows. She hadn't quite honed her craft when she wrote it. There's a LOT of head-hopping, the characters are really schmoopy with each other in some scenes, and you can see the Big Misunderstanding coming chapters in advance, which makes you want to yell at Pete. The resolution to the central mystery feels a little out of left field, too. (MILD SPOILER: There's a lot of stuff with artifacts and archaeology, and then, all of a sudden, in the last chapter it turns out it's about drugs.) The set up that puts Pete and Annie in the same house feels a little problematic also; would the FBI really be telling a CIA agent to go undercover and seduce a woman for information? Brockmann is still a better writer than many, many of the romance writers I've read, but this novel is very clearly early in her writing career. Definitely stick with her later novels.

[Pam · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. the hero was great even though he lied. I liked the feisty heroine. The story was nice too.

[Dasha · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 estrellas

Desde luego, se nota que este libro es de los primeros de esta escritora o, por lo menos, de sus inicios.
Tengo unos cuantos problemas con él pero por lo menos lo he terminado (por eso redondeo a dos estrellas). Parecerá una tontería, pero una de las cosas que ha impedido que disfrute de esta lectura ha sido la rama de la Arqueología en la que trabaja la protagonista. Llamadme ignorante, pero a mí me ha parecido más una pasante de artilugios y de antigüedades que otra cosa. No soporto todo ese mundillo, además de estar bastante en contra de la compra/venta del patrimonio histórico de un país o cultura. Precisamente porque el expolio arqueológico fue muy bestia en mi país durante los Siglos XIX y XX. Luego nos encontramos con que la protagonista parece ser el modelo de arqueólogo de aquellos siglos adaptado a los años 90... Este detalle me sacaba continuamente de la lectura.

Quizás, si no hubiese sido por esto, me habría gustado más esta lectura. No mucho más, aún tiene alguna cosilla por ahí (la protagonista hace todo lo posible por ponerse en peligro y es un poco inmadura en sus interacciones con el protagonista masculino, por ejemplo).
Un último detalle, los malos eran bastante arquetípicos y planos, planos. En personajes ha estado flojo, la verdad.

Ea. Como he escrito antes, por lo menos lo he terminado.

[Alp · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75/5

Good, almost great.

After reading some of Suzanne Brockmann’s books, one particular thing I often find rather annoying is that her heroes always keep pushing the heroines away (for whatever reason). This classic push and pull makes me really frustrated and I hate to see this kind of thing happen in any romance stories I read. And in this case, Pete, this book’s hero, proved himself to be no different. I was fed up with how he ran hot one minute and cold the next. I know, I know, he had his reason and he never intended to hurt Annie (but eventually he did…again and again), and of course, he tried to do the right thing, but come on, I think he could do better than that!

However, despite the above-mentioned problem, the story moved fairly fast and it had a well-knit and engrossing plot. Moreover, there were also plenty of conflicts which added a perfect amount of depth to the characters.

The best part of this book was the suspense. It was so intense and gripping, so much so that I stayed up late reading it and totally lost track of time. I liked that the author wrapped things up neatly with no loose ends left hanging in the end.

Overall, this was an enjoyable and fast-paced read.

[Joyce · Rating 3 out of 5]

Formulaic, but decently done. Both protagonists are bright and knowledgeable in their fields. He is an undercover CIA agent, she is an art appraiser. It is pure chick lit with a decent plot thrown in. Harlequin made a great training ground for authors that grew during their tenure there and became mainstream.

[Anita · Rating 4 out of 5]

3 1/2 stars. I generally love Suzanne Brockmann's early romances, but this one just wasn't quite there. The plot had major holes in it, but the romance was great. Overall it was a good romance w/mystery story.

[Alexandra Pauley]

Oops- forgot I already read this!

[Doris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really enjoy Ms. Brockmann's more recent/later works but sometimes going back to an author's early works is disappointing. Great premise but the story never really went anywhere. It was all about the repetitive attraction and misreading of signals (I know, the basis of a romance) while they played, essentially, a waiting game, instead of really being involved in the suspicion and intrigue until the end, when all that went on behind the scenes got explained. It made them passive and reactive and the story a missed opportunity. Thank goodness she moved on to her "Troubleshooters" series.

[Wendy Bocock · Rating 4 out of 5]

Would give it a 3.5. I love Brockmann's Troubleshooters series, and while this one isn't part of it, and I think was one of her older books, reading it was like "comfort food", and I enjoyed it quite a bit. It didn't feel as well developed as the Troubleshooters books, but it still had all the hallmarks of her books that make me keep coming back to them - characters you fall in love with, suspense, and grabbing your attention right from the beginning.

[CJ Mills · Rating 4 out of 5]

The anthropologist protagonist, evaluating an American Indian mask for a collector, finds herself threatened by who-knows-who, then gets a bodyguard from the CIA because the FBI and CIA suspect she is part of a gang that bombs museums in order to steal precious art during the uproar. This was good enough that I reread the last 20 pages again before writing this.

[Tammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never met a Suze Brockmann book that didn't make me sigh & smile. This one falls just below the ever exceptional Trouble Shooters. It's a tad too insta-lovey and melodramatic. Just a tad. It's going in the Keep pile.

[Kem · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a lot of meat to this one, but I like the characters. The FBI really did not have enough evidence to arrest Annie. That didn't come across legit at all. The mystery was a mystery to me the whole way. I never guessed and I usually do.

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable reading. I confess I had read the paperback some time ago but had minimal remembrance of the story so continued reading. I think similar to her tall, dark series but not as dark as the troubleshooter series. Free e-book from the library.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely a 2.5 star book. I was attracted by the archaeology, but this is a pretty run of the mill 1990s bodyguard book. Jarring to have a hero who served in Vietnam. It had its moments, but the emotional beats were pretty crazy.

[Denetia · Rating 2 out of 5]

The main character is EXTREMELY unlikeable.

[Andrew Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very typical book from Brockmann...quick and fun read.

[Whtyac · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a quick read but can tell the characters lack the depth of her later stories.

[buchverliebt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Der falsche Bodyguard.

Annie kann es kaum fassen, dass die CIA sie tatsächlich beschuldigt professionellen Kunstdiebstahl zu betreiben. Als wäre das nicht schon nervenaufreibend genug, wird auch noch ein Anschlag auf ihr Leben verübt. Nur warum? Auf Wunsch eines ihrer Kunden, und gleichzeitig Freund der Familie, steht auf einmal ein Bodyguard vor ihrer Tür. Was sie allerdings kategorisch ablehnt. Was wiederum ihn nicht interessiert. Somit folgt Pete ihr nun wie ein Schatten um ihr Leben zu schützen, doch bald scheint Annie sich den Reizen des umwerfenden Fremden nicht mehr entziehen zu können und auch Pete hat nach und nach Schwierigkeiten die Finger von ihr zu lassen um seinen Job zu erledigen. Doch was soll er nur tun, wenn sich diese Frau doch in sein Herz hinein schleicht?

Dieser romantische Roman, angehaucht mit einem bisschen Thrill, ist wirklich sehr lesenswert. Es sind vor allem Petes innere Zerrissenheit zwischen Job und persönlichen Wünschen, die den Leser in seinem Bann halten. Wird er nachgeben? Wird er versuchen der schönen, selbstbewussten Annie näher zu kommen? Wird er sie schützen können? Und, ist sie tatsächlich so unschuldig wie es scheint? Doch zusammen mit Pete fühlt sich Annie erstmals nicht mehr so einsam. Es ist schön auch einmal Gesellschaft zu haben, auch wenn er zumeist den schweigsamen Helden mimt, doch lernt sie bald wie sehr sie sich doch auf ihn verlassen kann.

Die Liebesgeschichte der beiden ist nicht einfach, nicht rasant und braucht tatsächlich ihre Zeit und Annäherungsversuche um zu fruchten. Natürlich sind die beiden sich sympathisch, doch Sympathien zweiter Menschen ist nicht alles was der Leser erwartet. Und wir werden nicht enttäuscht! Die Frage ist nur: Soll er Annie die Wahrheit sagen? Sie weiß doch gar nicht wer er ist. Wird sie ihm sein falsches Spiel verzeihen und, ist ihrer beider Liebe stark genug?
Doch vorerst ist nur eines Wichtig: Annie muss beschützt werden, denn so langsam aber sicher kristallisiert sich heraus, wer ihr nach dem Leben trachtet. Wird Pete sie retten können ohne selbst zum Opfer zu werden?

Gefährliche Enthüllung bietet in mehrerlei Hinsicht was der Titel verspricht. Wie viele Geheimnisse eine Liebe unter Extrembedingung aushält und wer Pete nun wirklich ist erfahrt ihr, wenn ihr dieses Buch lest. Wundervoll Leidenschaftlich, ein wenig Tragisch und mit einem spannenden, zum miträtseln einladenden Plot, bietet dieses Buch einige wirklich schöne Lesestunden für jeden Romantik-Fan.

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

TBR Challenge 2011- Hero Under Cover has been on my TBR pile since May 2010.

3.5* While Hero Under Cover had a few plot holes, and one or two "duh!" moments, it was a better than average "light" romantic suspense read. The main characters were sympathetic and the chemistry was believable. One "duh!" item was when Annie thought Pete didn't want her and he gave no explanation. Since Pete was undercover as a bodyguard, the only explanation he needed was that it's unethical for a bodyguard to sleep with the person he's guarding. I don't understand why that never occurred to Pete (or the author).

What I did like was the relationship between Annie and Pete. If the reader buys into the over-the-top attraction (which you have to in most romance novels, it seems), the interactions between the leads are believable. Pete's feelings of being trapped in a no-win situation, and Annie's feelings of betrayal are real. I was moved by Pete's sense of loss and his desire for forgiveness.

Brockmann creates believable emotions from the very first page with Annie's anger and frustration at being held up at the airport by the FBI. Recommended for fans of light romantic suspense and Suzanne Brockmann.

[Romantična Geekica · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an easy read to me, and I think it is OK for a romance suspense, but you have to ignore some pretty big plot holes...

SPOILERS AHEAD!


For example...there is a lot of explaining how she doesn't like bats but NO ONE knows (expect for him now) or should know about it...and then...somebody fills her room with bats and they don't suspect that someone had bugged her house or room...and she doesn't even suspects him (even though he is the only one who knows) they do talk about did her assistant do that, although it was specifically said that she doesn't know about the fear...and guess what, at the end, it look that it was just some random lucky guess...it seems that they didn't know about her fear...come ooooon...and by the way of course we had the whole bat tangling in someones hair cliche.

And the whole "why won't you sleep with me?" thing...and he can't think of a reason? Errrmmm...because you are a client?!? Noup...he didn't remember to say that, but she did have a whole discussion at the beginning of the book with her assistant how she doesn't date clients, but it didn't occur to her that he might have the same policy...

[Holly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoy reading Suzanne Brockmann whenever I feel like reading stories featuring
alpha males and strong females. Most of her books have a FBI/CIA connection.

In this very interesting book, she created a heroine, MS. Annie Morgan, who is an archeologist protecting an ancient death mask worth millions. Too bad there have been fires and theft, with people dying at each one of her digs lately. She gets on a short list of suspects within the FBI/CIA.
Enter Mr. Pete Taylor,posing as a bodyguard who is really a CIA operative sent in to investigate whether or not she is guilty of theft and murder. He has to spend his life 24/7 "protecting" her. Of course, the whole thing is just a ruse.
Lies, death threats, intrigue,etc.
Predictably, as in all really fun romance novels, Mr. Bodyguard cant stop thinking about
how much he wants Ms. Annie, but cant do a thing about it, because of his hidden identity. Enjoyable dialog and lots of plot to keep you guessing. This was a really fun read, and comes with a HEA. I highly recommend.

[Warren-Newport Public Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been reading Suzanne Brockmann for quite a while and it was a pleasure to find an older book that I hadn’t read yet.

Hero Under Cover gives us two unlikely lovers. Annie Morrow is hired to value an Indian death mask. She knows it is valuable but not worth killing for. When Pete Taylor first offered his services as a bodyguard, Annie Morrow wanted nothing to do with him. She was sure the threats against her weren’t serious. One murder attempt later, Annie was awfully glad to have him around. She owed him her life. Suddenly she was beginning to believe in heroes — and dreams. Pete was a real man, and the only person she could allow herself to trust.

This was a fun read. There was enough mystery and intrigue to keep the reader interested, but it also had two very interesting characters who come together from different places in life. (Debbie)

[Donna Hatridge · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an early novel by Suzanne Brockmann. If you have followed her Navy Seal series you know that her writing has only gotten better over time. That said I did enjoy this story.

When Pete Taylor first offered his services as a bodyguard, Annie Morgan wanted nothing to do with him. She was sure that the death threats against her weren't serious. While the Native American mask she was working on was valuable, it wasn't worth killing for.

One murder attempt later, Annie was glad to have Pete around. She owed him her life. Suddenly she was beginning to believe in heroes—and dreams. But Pete wasn't a fantasy—he was real, and at the moment he was the only person she could allow herself to trust, no matter who he was.

[*Dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dr. Anne Morrow (archaeologist, art historian and professional artifact authenticator) is under investigation for bombing and robbing a couple museums. CIA operative, Captain Kendall "Pete" Peterson is assigned the job of finding the information proving her guilt (yes, I know how that sounds but that's the way they were playing it). After she receives numerous death threats from an organization referring to themselves as Stands Against the Storm, supposedly connected to the Navajo tribe, wanting her to return a Navajo death mask she's authenticating, Capt. Peterson has his "in", posing as a bodyguard (Pete Taylor) assigned to her safety. The more he gets to know her, he realizes she is innocent but has to find out who is framing her before one or both of them get killed.