Kathryn Delroy thinks the management training session she’s been asked to attend will be a dream come true. The excitement hits a new level when an old family friend, Thomas Ryan, shows up as well.
When the training ends, their passion for each other finds them stranded in a cabin in the Alaskan mountains – a cabin that belongs to a wanted fugitive. When they discover documents that identify illegal activities, they panic and report what they’ve found to the FBI. Kathryn and Thomas end up on a dash for their lives, protected by federal agents. The man believed to be chasing them is contracted to manipulate political and financial agendas through physical violence – and death.
Cross-country travels and high-stakes mountain adventures are only part of the trials they face as they attempt to build a relationship and stay alive.
Shelley grew up in Missouri, graduated from Oklahoma State University, and took post graduate courses from OSU and the University of Wyoming.
She's a member of RWA, Sisters In Crime (SinC), and Houston Literary Guild. She writes daily, striving to perfect a voice that supplies enjoyable and memorable reads.
She has yet to meet a person she doesn't like or a job that's not worth enjoying. She writes with humor, drama, and a desire to share life's precious moments.
(I received this book in a First Reads giveaway, but all opinions are my own)
I really ended up loving this book. I usually don't like romance suspense as much because most of the time it ends up being "hey, our lives are in danger, let's have lots of sex to celebrate being in alive.." and it's pages and pages of quivering and gasping and forty different terms for penises and I just can't take that. The suspense is an afterthought and usually just used to push the sex scenes. But, not this book. I LOVE that the first 11 chapters of the book are establishing the relationship and tension between Katy and Tommy. You can feel it as you read it. It helps to understand their actions later on when they are in danger and running around. You understand why Tommy would feel the way he does about her and why he responds the way he does to certain things (sorry, I don't want to put spoilers so I'm not very descriptive) Don't get me wrong, the "love scenes" in the book are hot. But, they aren't built around the actual act of sex. The emphasis is on the build up, the foreplay, the back and forth between them. Ms. Wall doesn't spend time explaining that the man has a penis and the woman has a vagina and what they are used for. She doesn't need to. You understand what took place but you don't feel like you missed anything because the lead up was so great. It is more about the romance and less about the raunch. Now, the suspense/thriller aspect. I love the way the book goes back and forth between the "good guys'" point of view and the "bad guy's" point of view. You get to see the story from both sides, which I really enjoyed. I actually didn't really see the twist at the end. It was done well, but did feel a little rushed. I understand why the details were blurted out quickly, but I did have to reread it to have it fully sink in. The resolution at the end of the book felt a little rushed as well. It felt a bit like a "let's just say what has happened in the last year in a paragraph". It didn't bother me too much because it wasn't completely necessary. The book could have ended before that last chapter and it would have been fine. Maybe just one little sentence at the end of the second to last chapter and I would have been good. But, all in all a great story, I read in one night. It's not so suspenseful that you have to sit in the corner to read it so nothing is behind you and it's not so romance filled that you need a cold shower, ok, maybe a cool one the first few chapters, but it's a nice balance between the two.
(I received this book for free as part of Goodreads First Reads giveaways).
(This review may contain spoilers).
I did quite enjoy this book. It was somewhat complicated in parts and Kathryn irritated me a little, but it was a good read.
I found the characters to be quite interesting, though I did feel that Kathryn acted like an idiot at times. So did the FBI agents, to be honest. I'd personally feel that FBI agents would know better than to let a witness, who they have to protect, dictate what to do, knowing that a man willing to kill is after her.
I noticed quite a lot of contradictions in the book - and mood swings that made me somewhat dizzy. As an example, during one paragraph, Tommy is amused. The next, he gets angry - and nothing else has been said between the two different emotions. There was also quite a lot of repetitiveness in the contradictions - I couldn't see why Kathryn changed constantly between claiming that Tommy would leave her and jumping his bones.
I did like the romantic scenes between Tommy and Kathryn and I liked Tommy as a character. I also liked the supporting characters, though there was one of those hated cliches - 'it's about time the two of you got together!'
I didn't expect who Smitty turned out to be, though I did have my suspicions. I'm not completely sure what to make of Eric. Part of me likes him as a character, but part of me knows that he isn't a good guy. I'm not clear on how he got into the whole business he did. Still, he came across as quite a human character, despite what he actually was.
The book was good enough and engaging enough to keep me reading it and it was a good, enjoyable read. There were a few errors in the book, but nothing really major. There was a lot of switching between characters, however, that I found somewhat confusing.
BRING IT ON was something of a surprise for me. I do not normally read romance novels but this labeled itself as a suspense story, so, what the hell; I’d give it a go. And I am happy that I did. Katy Delroy is off to a week long management training session in Alaska and meets up with a friend of her brothers from when they were all teens. Tommy is a dream hunk and she is gorgeous so of course they will have to hook up after the usual squabbles, during the usual squabbles and before even more of the usual squabbles. She is self possessed, a natural athlete and with a mind of her own. She knows him as the womanizer her brother talked about. For his part, Tommy promised her brother not to look at Katy, but that was twelve years ago and now he finds the view well worth admiring. But the North Woods are chock-full of dangerous animals, none more so than the hired killer who is lurking in the small town just outside the training area. It is with the introduction of this third party that the action, the other action, begins. Our pair manages to screw up his plans and now find themselves in his sight-line. Enter the FBI, fleeing back home to Texas and an ending that not only ties everything together but will leave you more than pleasantly surprised, and you have a wonderful read that has far more good twists and turns to it than a romantic suspense novel should be allowed to have. I may have to read another of Shelley Wall’s books, although I won this through Goodreads.
The story of Kathryn and Thomas was captivating from the beginning. Part romance, part suspense ….both genre’s I enjoy and all in one book! The storytelling kept me engaged and wanting more, so much so that I spent a couple of evenings reading much longer than I should. . I became invested in the progression of Kathryn and Thomas, rooting for their romance, wishing at times that they were not so strong…and just give in to their feelings. While we hope that in the end….they will come together as a couple, the journey was captivating. Without any spoilers…I enjoyed getting to know the “bad guy” - Eric. He has a quality about him that made me wish he was not the bad guy.
Bring It On was a delight to read.
This was my first book by author Shelley Wall and I will certainly put her on my list of authors to explore further. Thank you for participating in the Goodreads giveaways and allowing me the honour of receiving a copy of this book.
Some say the best predictor of future behaviour is past behaviour. Bring It On is a story that challenges the hero Tommy to prove he’s not defined by his past. Right from the start, I rooted for Tommy, a sexy, loveable hero because he cherishes the heroine Katy. Who doesn’t love to be cherished? The lust between Katy and Tommy is evident, but lust isn’t enough, not in the eye of this willful heroine, and not in the midst of the whirlwind adventure that Shelley K. Wall throws at her characters. It’s hard to hate the bad guy because this author does a great job of writing a sympathetic villain. This adds all sorts of conflict for the reader as the suspense builds in tandem with the heat and friction between Katy and Tommy. Bring It On is a wonderful love story that will keep you guessing until the end!
Bring It On by Shelley K. Wall is a romance full of excitement and intrigue that will keep you turning the pages.
Kathryn Delroy is on a week long vacation in Alaska for a management training session. For her this is a dream come-true since she loves the outdoors. But everything changes when Thomas Ryan, an old family-friend, shows up for this management training.
Thomas doesn’t know why he was sent to this management training session, he is a corporate lawyer, but he has no complaints especially after he sees Kathryn there. Read More...
Kathryn Delroy, Thomas Ryan Katy was always the younger sister who tagged along, doing for others never taking for herself, and she always always had eyes for Tommy, until that disastrous day when she clumsily came on to him... Tommy swore to leave Katy alone, he dogged around town and went off to college a player, but now ten years later all promises are off... things get convoluted a little bit to add the "Suspense" to this romantic suspense but all in all it was pretty good. The writing was ok, the pacing was odd, the development of their relationship happens in fits and starts and then gets superseded by the "suspense"
I’m a big fan of romantic suspense (Kathleen O’Brien is one of my favorite authors), so I was predisposed to like Shelley Wall’s Bring It On in terms of the genre. But then, the same tendency to predispose me toward romantic suspense means I’m a sharp critic of this genre. I know what’s good and what works because I’ve read so much of it, and Shelley’s book works. Just when you think the action and tension can’t get any hotter, Bring It On turns up the heat. This is a fun, roller coaster of a read.
This is my first book by Shelley Wall and I will pick up her others. Watching Kate and Tommy go back and forth was the highlight of this book. I don't like weak heroines, and I immediately synced with Kate's personality. She is a smart heroine who doesn't fall for sly tricks (as one of her coworkers learned the hard way) The suspense kept me engaged until the end, where I was surprised by the "bad" guy. I recommend giving this a try.
I've never really read a lot of romantic suspense, but I'm glad I gave Shelley Wall's Bring It On a try. I really enjoyed reading about the relationship of Tommy and Katy and how it flourished, two long lost friends who reconnect in an unexpected way. Then, there's the suspense. What a plus! The POV of the antagonist was brilliant. I almost liked him! This book keeps you hooked from beginning to end.
I received this signed by the author book Bring It On for free through Goodreads First Reads. I really enjoyed this book and found it hard to put down. It was very well written and I loved the romance mixed with suspense. This is my first book by Shelley Wall and I can't wait to read her others! I loved Kathryn and Thomas and I surprisingly even liked Eric! This book is a definite page turner and I loved the ending.I was left feeling very satisfied.
I was excited about this book because it was a romance book. I liked how the author did not make them have insta-love. But after the first few times Katy refused Tommy it got a little redundant. Other than that I enjoyed it. I liked how she made the "criminal" have morals. She gave him feelings and he wasn't just a 2 dimensional character. I recommend this for anyone who likes romance novels with a twist.
This book was sort of slow in the beginning, but got better at the end. It is more a love story than a real mystery because it was easy to figure out who Smitty was. It was still a GoodRead.
Though only 180 pages, I found this story to be long-winded and drawn out. I didn't have a problem with the premise or the characters per se. My issue was with the constant and never ending angst of two people, Tommy and Katy, admitting their feelings for one another. It felt like the author was trying to fill the pages with witty banter of their sexual longing for one another. However, instead of witty, it came across as irritating and boring; even ludicrous at times like when they're flanked by FBI agents protecting them from a killer. Definitely not a winner for me.