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Stone Cold Undercover Agent
An undercover Texas Ranger aims to take down a human trafficker with the help of one of his victims in this romantic thriller.
Jaime Alessandro fears he’s been undercover too long. Now his only shot at destroying one of Texas’s largest crime organizations is Gabriella Torres—a “gift” from The Stallion and his longest-held captive. Her inside info and inspired moves are helping Jaime take the gang apart. But what he’s starting to feel for the brilliant, tough-minded Gabriella could get them worse than dead . . .
Gabriella learned early to put her emotions on lockdown. She has no reason to trust Jaime. But every moment together, every stolen glance, kindles a desire she hungers to explore. And now trust is the only weapon they dare risk—even if it proves lethal.
Jaime Alessandro fears he’s been undercover too long. Now his only shot at destroying one of Texas’s largest crime organizations is Gabriella Torres—a “gift” from The Stallion and his longest-held captive. Her inside info and inspired moves are helping Jaime take the gang apart. But what he’s starting to feel for the brilliant, tough-minded Gabriella could get them worse than dead . . .
Gabriella learned early to put her emotions on lockdown. She has no reason to trust Jaime. But every moment together, every stolen glance, kindles a desire she hungers to explore. And now trust is the only weapon they dare risk—even if it proves lethal.
- GenresRomance
288 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 18, 2017
58 people are currently reading
69 people want to read
About the author
Nicole Helm
313 books498 followersNicole Helm is the national bestselling author of fast-paced romantic suspense for Harlequin Intrigue and down-to-earth contemporary romance. Her Intrigues routinely land on the Publishers Weekly Bestseller list, and she’s received starred PW reviews for her contemporary romances. She’s written over 75 books, known for their emotional depth and happily ever afters.
Nicole also writes with Megan Crane/Caitlin Crews as Hazel Beck writing the Witchlore series, which began with SMALL TOWN, BIG MAGIC in 2022.
In her spare time, Nicole loves losing herself in genealogy research, watching Cardinals baseball, and hiking with her family. She lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons.
You can contact her via email: Nicole@nicolehelm.com
You can sign up for Nicole’s monthly newsletter at http://eepurl.com/V973n
Nicole also writes with Megan Crane/Caitlin Crews as Hazel Beck writing the Witchlore series, which began with SMALL TOWN, BIG MAGIC in 2022.
In her spare time, Nicole loves losing herself in genealogy research, watching Cardinals baseball, and hiking with her family. She lives in Missouri with her husband and two sons.
You can contact her via email: Nicole@nicolehelm.com
You can sign up for Nicole’s monthly newsletter at http://eepurl.com/V973n
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
August 30, 2018
I don't know WTF Nicole Helm was snorting when she cooked this one up, but she must have shared some of it with her editor, because this is one messed-up romance!
There was nothing wrong with the characters of Jaime Alessandro or Gabby Torres as such. In fact, Gabby was a very strong, capable and likable character. But the circumstances of the romance were just very, very off! Gabby has been a captive of The Stallion for 8 years, and is close to giving up hope of ever getting free. Jaime Alessandro is an FBI agent who is working undercover as an associate to The Stallion. His reward for his hard work is to do with Gabby whatever he pleases.
Once the book gets past the very awkward stage where Gabby thinks Jaime is there to rape her (!), it doesn't even get much better from there. This is because the only time the two of them have any physical contact is when Gabby has to pretend that Jaime is sexually assaulting her in order to keep up Jaime's cover! GROSS! I mean, what the actual f**k?
Having a heroine who has been a prisoner of a human trafficker for 8 whole years just didn't work for me. It is revealed that Gabby and the other captives have never been sexually assaulted by The Stallion, but I found that hard to believe considering that The Stallion was happy to let Jaime "rape" Gabby. I mean, is that the first time he's ever let a lackey sexually abuse a captive in 8 whole years??? I didn't buy it. And even if Gabby wasn't abused, she's still been a prisoner for nearly a decade. There are so many other things I'm concerned about regarding her welfare before I start wondering whether she will find a man and live happily ever after! You know, such things as mental health, physical health and being reunited with her family!
So there was all that. And then we had all those instances where Gabby had to pretend she was being sexually assaulted by Jaime as the basis for realising that, "Hey, Jaime is hot!" Yuck. Yuck, yuck, yuck! And what sort of compound is this anyway? The girls are kept in rooms that have locks, but can wander into a common room and kitchen at will, and the place is unguarded enough that Jaime and Gabby are able to spend an entire day having sex without getting caught!
WTF?!?
Nothing in this story added up. I couldn't figure out what Jaime was there getting evidence of and what his end game was. I never got a sense of what it is that The Stallion actually did, other than smuggle drugs inside toys and apparently bury dead bodies. What was his end game? And I've read the previous book in the series (which I thought at the time was a standalone)! This can easily be read as a standalone, too, by the way, which is one of its very minor saving graces. I also couldn't figure out why
Plot-wise, not a lot really happened, and there was no mystery or intrigue. The Stallion was a bad guy who kidnapped women, trafficked drugs (and possibly people, but I'm not sure), and had a creepy doll collection. Jaime was there on some vaguely defined mission, and Gabby was a prisoner under very vaguely defined circumstances. There's no real exciting climax, and the book carries on for too long after everything wraps up, to give us a bizarre, out-of-place-and-context black moment for our characters before their happy-ever-after.
There is some suspense, and I really liked Gabby's character, but not a lot else worked here!
There was nothing wrong with the characters of Jaime Alessandro or Gabby Torres as such. In fact, Gabby was a very strong, capable and likable character. But the circumstances of the romance were just very, very off! Gabby has been a captive of The Stallion for 8 years, and is close to giving up hope of ever getting free. Jaime Alessandro is an FBI agent who is working undercover as an associate to The Stallion. His reward for his hard work is to do with Gabby whatever he pleases.
Once the book gets past the very awkward stage where Gabby thinks Jaime is there to rape her (!), it doesn't even get much better from there. This is because the only time the two of them have any physical contact is when Gabby has to pretend that Jaime is sexually assaulting her in order to keep up Jaime's cover! GROSS! I mean, what the actual f**k?
Having a heroine who has been a prisoner of a human trafficker for 8 whole years just didn't work for me. It is revealed that Gabby and the other captives have never been sexually assaulted by The Stallion, but I found that hard to believe considering that The Stallion was happy to let Jaime "rape" Gabby. I mean, is that the first time he's ever let a lackey sexually abuse a captive in 8 whole years??? I didn't buy it. And even if Gabby wasn't abused, she's still been a prisoner for nearly a decade. There are so many other things I'm concerned about regarding her welfare before I start wondering whether she will find a man and live happily ever after! You know, such things as mental health, physical health and being reunited with her family!
So there was all that. And then we had all those instances where Gabby had to pretend she was being sexually assaulted by Jaime as the basis for realising that, "Hey, Jaime is hot!" Yuck. Yuck, yuck, yuck! And what sort of compound is this anyway? The girls are kept in rooms that have locks, but can wander into a common room and kitchen at will, and the place is unguarded enough that Jaime and Gabby are able to spend an entire day having sex without getting caught!
WTF?!?
Nothing in this story added up. I couldn't figure out what Jaime was there getting evidence of and what his end game was. I never got a sense of what it is that The Stallion actually did, other than smuggle drugs inside toys and apparently bury dead bodies. What was his end game? And I've read the previous book in the series (which I thought at the time was a standalone)! This can easily be read as a standalone, too, by the way, which is one of its very minor saving graces. I also couldn't figure out why
Plot-wise, not a lot really happened, and there was no mystery or intrigue. The Stallion was a bad guy who kidnapped women, trafficked drugs (and possibly people, but I'm not sure), and had a creepy doll collection. Jaime was there on some vaguely defined mission, and Gabby was a prisoner under very vaguely defined circumstances. There's no real exciting climax, and the book carries on for too long after everything wraps up, to give us a bizarre, out-of-place-and-context black moment for our characters before their happy-ever-after.
There is some suspense, and I really liked Gabby's character, but not a lot else worked here!
December 30, 2017
Good book that caught my attention from the beginning. Gabby is a woman who was kidnapped and has been held as a slave for eight years. At this point, she has given up hope of ever being found and released. As the oldest one there, she serves as kind of a mentor for the other three women captives. Things take an unexpected turn when her captor gives her to one of his henchmen.
Jaime Alessandro, an FBI agent aka Rodriguez, has worked his way up The Stallion's organization over two years. He has begun to feel that he has been undercover too long. He is disturbed by some of the things he has had to do and has started to feel like he no longer remembers the real Jaime. He's not very happy at being "given" one of the women until he discovers just how good a resource Gabby is.
I loved the development of their relationship. Gabby was understandably wary at first as she has no reason to trust Jaime. I loved their first encounter, as his actions bewildered her until she figured out that there was something different about him and he told her who he was. I loved the way that he was so impressed by her observational and deduction skills. It was kind of funny how he was so freaked out by how easy she figured him out. There was also an immediate attraction between them. This surprised Gabby, who thought that her emotions were permanently suppressed after being held captive for so long. His strength and unexpected sensitivity rekindled things she had long forgotten. Jaime tries hard to resist the attraction he feels for Gabby. She is a victim and vulnerable, plus getting involved could put them both at risk if discovered. But the more they are together, the harder he finds it to resist his growing feelings for her. It was interesting to see how their relationship/partnership evolved. Gabby's growing strength and confidence were fantastic and I loved seeing her stand up to him when it was necessary. I was surprised by how he was willing to risk the investigation at one point. When everything was over, it was interesting to see how both Jaime and Gabby dealt with what had happened. I liked the realism of Gabby's worry over re-entering the real world and his bosses' concerns for Jaime after his return. Jaime's concern for giving Gabby enough time to recover was sweet, but Gabby wasn't having any part of it. I loved watching her go after what she wanted.
The suspense was good from the beginning. The Stallion was so unpredictable that it made him even more menacing. Jaime's need to project his henchman persona was obvious, especially when it came to the other two men who were there also. I loved seeing the way that he and Gabby worked together to try to identify the fourth compound. It was nerve-wracking to see how Layle was constantly in Jaime's face. When Gabby's sister was threatened (Stone Cold Texas Ranger) Jaime becomes even more determined to bring the case to a quick conclusion. The tension at the compound steadily increases and begins to affect the women also. I wasn't sure how the whole thing with Alyssa was going to go and was very impressed with the way that Gabby handled it. Jaime's confrontation with The Stallion was intense, all the while he worried about Gabby and her safety. I loved how the women took matters into their own hands, though once again Alyssa was a problem. That confrontation was intense, but also a bit amusing in places. I'm really looking forward to the next book and reading Alyssa's story.
Jaime Alessandro, an FBI agent aka Rodriguez, has worked his way up The Stallion's organization over two years. He has begun to feel that he has been undercover too long. He is disturbed by some of the things he has had to do and has started to feel like he no longer remembers the real Jaime. He's not very happy at being "given" one of the women until he discovers just how good a resource Gabby is.
I loved the development of their relationship. Gabby was understandably wary at first as she has no reason to trust Jaime. I loved their first encounter, as his actions bewildered her until she figured out that there was something different about him and he told her who he was. I loved the way that he was so impressed by her observational and deduction skills. It was kind of funny how he was so freaked out by how easy she figured him out. There was also an immediate attraction between them. This surprised Gabby, who thought that her emotions were permanently suppressed after being held captive for so long. His strength and unexpected sensitivity rekindled things she had long forgotten. Jaime tries hard to resist the attraction he feels for Gabby. She is a victim and vulnerable, plus getting involved could put them both at risk if discovered. But the more they are together, the harder he finds it to resist his growing feelings for her. It was interesting to see how their relationship/partnership evolved. Gabby's growing strength and confidence were fantastic and I loved seeing her stand up to him when it was necessary. I was surprised by how he was willing to risk the investigation at one point. When everything was over, it was interesting to see how both Jaime and Gabby dealt with what had happened. I liked the realism of Gabby's worry over re-entering the real world and his bosses' concerns for Jaime after his return. Jaime's concern for giving Gabby enough time to recover was sweet, but Gabby wasn't having any part of it. I loved watching her go after what she wanted.
The suspense was good from the beginning. The Stallion was so unpredictable that it made him even more menacing. Jaime's need to project his henchman persona was obvious, especially when it came to the other two men who were there also. I loved seeing the way that he and Gabby worked together to try to identify the fourth compound. It was nerve-wracking to see how Layle was constantly in Jaime's face. When Gabby's sister was threatened (Stone Cold Texas Ranger) Jaime becomes even more determined to bring the case to a quick conclusion. The tension at the compound steadily increases and begins to affect the women also. I wasn't sure how the whole thing with Alyssa was going to go and was very impressed with the way that Gabby handled it. Jaime's confrontation with The Stallion was intense, all the while he worried about Gabby and her safety. I loved how the women took matters into their own hands, though once again Alyssa was a problem. That confrontation was intense, but also a bit amusing in places. I'm really looking forward to the next book and reading Alyssa's story.
November 22, 2017
Hard to read. Story was sad but was glad that Gabby learned to trust Jaime!'
August 30, 2017
Plot: 4/5
Characterisation: 3/5
Prose: 3/5
How much I enjoyed it: 3/5
Characterisation: 3/5
Prose: 3/5
How much I enjoyed it: 3/5
October 18, 2019
I've enjoyed this author's work in the past, but this plot defies logic. The villain's motives are never made clear and don't make any sense upon close scrutiny. Look, it's downright refreshing to read about a heroine in a romantic suspense novel who hasn't been sexually assaulted - but when said heroine has been held captive for 8 long years...there's been too many real life cases, too many true crime podcasts/shows, and too much profiling work done for me to buy it. Also, why suddenly after 8 years of not raping her nor letting his henchmen rape her nor prostituting her does the villain decide to "gift" the hero (who is undercover) with the heroine. It. Doesn't. Make. Sense.
The power dynamic between hero and heroine is pretty squirky (he has to pretend to rough her up when the villains are around so his cover isn't blown) and the way she helps him with his investigation is pretty weak. I mean, she gives him vague information where other hideouts are which, for some reason, he couldn't figure out for himself after 2 years undercover and it's not like her information leads to piles of cash or a mass grave filled with dead bodies.
Did read it in one sitting and plan on reading the next book in the trilogy only because that heroine is another kidnapped woman who becomes fairly unhinged in this book. So...I'm intrigued despite myself.
The power dynamic between hero and heroine is pretty squirky (he has to pretend to rough her up when the villains are around so his cover isn't blown) and the way she helps him with his investigation is pretty weak. I mean, she gives him vague information where other hideouts are which, for some reason, he couldn't figure out for himself after 2 years undercover and it's not like her information leads to piles of cash or a mass grave filled with dead bodies.
Did read it in one sitting and plan on reading the next book in the trilogy only because that heroine is another kidnapped woman who becomes fairly unhinged in this book. So...I'm intrigued despite myself.
March 1, 2018
Finally pulled this from my TBR stack & knew I was going to enjoy it! This was certainly a captivating read because of the fact that Our heroine Gabby has been held captive for the last 8 years as slave to a madman who has also taken others. Enter FBI AGENT Jamie who’s been undercover for 2 years trying to crack this case . It bacame clear quickly that Gabby would have to learn to trust agent Jamie ASAP if she was ever to believe in having her freedom . This story was very well crafted & managed to keep me intrigued as to what would happen next & Just HOW were these two going to become romantically involved with such intense complicated issues at hand with trust, captivity & professional behavior at play. Needless to say Nicole delivered & really did a beautiful job handling the final HEA THAT really was quite honestly heartwarmingly perfect!
November 6, 2024
Jaime Alessandro is an FBI agent working undercover to bring down a drug kingpin with weird predilections relating to dolls when Jaime encounters four women, victims of kidnapping in the compound run by the criminal. Gabriella has no illusions about escaping. She's been trapped for 8 years, but when Jaime tells her he'll get her out, she has to set aside her doubts and trust that he'll do just that.
But can he? Will she survive long enough to thank him in person when she and the other three women decide to break out on their own?
But can he? Will she survive long enough to thank him in person when she and the other three women decide to break out on their own?
March 25, 2025
Book 2 in the stone cold series. A must read after the first book. Book 1&2 go together there a greatly woven puzzle of a story. Each one about a sister and there stone cold Texas Ranger. This one tacks you in to the drug lords layer and a sister and her undercover ranger. Do they get out or will the lord have them for lunch if you liked book 1 then this one is a must read Nicole Helm has done it again with characters well rounded and characters that you root for to find a happy ending with. She knows how to get you with emotions that are all over the place. This is a four star read.
July 2, 2017
Really good book and different from other harlequin books.
I am happy that the book got a realistic ending.(Ignoring the early "I love u" part.[LOL])
I only wish that the book was longer and a bit more intense but otherwise amazing book.
I am happy that the book got a realistic ending.(Ignoring the early "I love u" part.[LOL])
I only wish that the book was longer and a bit more intense but otherwise amazing book.
March 29, 2018
This was great!! The only reason it took me so long to finish is because my baby came home from the hospital and I keep randomly falling asleep. Man, The Stallion was super creepy! The doll collection! Jaime was so great, and Gabby was super tough. Loved it!
August 6, 2017
This was a quick read. It just left me unenthused. Meh.
February 17, 2018
LOL NO REGRETS
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August 26, 2017received 4 1/2 stars @ harlequin.com (as of 8/26/17). To view reviews, go HERE> https://www.harlequin.com/shop/books/...
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews