An Garda Síochána have patrolled the cobbled streets of their storied capital for nearly a century. Within the heart of their headquarters, a bloody secret is revealed.The tortured, brutalized bodies of young women are being discovered in the shadowed corners of the city. The victims are all young, American, and the killer has left behind a chilling calling card that could have drastic political ramifications.Detective Tadgh O’Brien has spent three years working his way into the Special Detectives Unit of the Dublin Garda. When he’s assigned to a task force, investigating a series of murders of young American women, he finds himself unlikely allies with a U.S. FBI agent.Special Agent Charlie Ryan is assigned to the International Human Rights Crime Unit of the FBI. She’s ecstatic to receive a career launching assignment to work alongside the Garda task force in Ireland. But she discovers that her job will involve more than murder investigations. Her Irish counterparts will use her as bait to lure a homicidal trio out of the shadows.When Tadgh and Charlie become temporary colleagues, they find themselves both at odds and unmistakably drawn to one another. Charlie is an experienced, street savvy law enforcement agent from a large American city. Coming from an abusive home life, she’s learned to depend solely on herself, hesitant to trust anyone with her heart. Tadgh O’Brien has acclimated to life in the urban jungle of Dublin, but at his core he is an island boy, growing up on the coastal shores of Western Ireland. He has watched generations of O’Brien’s find love and happiness. Tadgh's darkest fear is that he may be the lone O’Brien that is cursed to be the exception. What if he has no mate? When he meets the feisty, intelligent, no-frills Special Agent Ryan, his fears change. How will he protect her during these dark times? And at the end of this brutal case, how will he learn to live without her?
Stacey Reynolds began writing after a trip to Europe, where she was bewitched by the coastal counties of Western Ireland. She lives on the coast of North Carolina with three of her five children and her dashing husband, a retired Marine Officer. To learn more about the author check these resources: www.staceylreynolds.weebly.com facebook.com/staceyreynoldsauthor/ Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/staceyreyno...#
I'm biased, I know. But this story really challenged me and I am so happy with it. Tadgh is a beloved character. From the beginning he has been a sweet, beautiful, unsung hero. It was time for him to get his HEA.
Stacey Reynolds did it again with this novel - another excellent O’Brien story. For whatever reason, I’ve been in a book reading slump and just not in the mood to read anything, which explains the huge stack of unread books on my nightstand. It took me longer to read this book than it did the first three because of my reading slump but it by no means was less of a compelling story. Once again, I fell in love with an O’Brien man and was transported to Ireland where I laughed, loved, cried (oh, how I cried!) and sat on the edge of my seat in suspense. I normally hate for these books to end because I have to wait for the next one to come out. But since I took forever, I can immediately start reading Mrs. Reynolds’ latest book that was just released! If you haven’t read any of the O’Brien stories, I highly recommend that you do. You won’t regret it.
Book three in the series and it's like coming home to your clan: your O'Brian clan. I've loved every book in this series- always good for a laugh, a cry, a swoon- just great!
Book three in the series. I enjoyed it but it was my least favorite of the three. Now that I know so many of the characters it's fun to watch them age, however. The O'Brien family just keeps growing and growing. I think Tadgh is one of my favorite characters. I believe this whole series is a must read. My Audible edition came with a short Novella that I will listen to next.
Third time's a charm with Stacey Reynolds newest novel! As with books 1 and 2, I'm left missing people I never met and a place I've never visited. I've decided that reading the O'Brien Tales has left me depressed. It has also caused me to compare these perfect men to my husband, leaving me irritated and annoyed. I find myself saying "Michael wouldn't do that, Aidan wouldn't say that or Tagdh would........". Unfortunately I now find my husband lacking, uninteresting and mediocre. Where are these O'Brien men and where can I meet one? Shhhhhhh, don't tell my husband! LOL!!! While I'm only halfway kidding, Reynolds does do an incredible job at creating "all the feels" within you. Shadow Guardian, as with the others, had the tension, the hot sex scenes leaving you wanting more, and the subplots to include surprising twists! But, it also went in the direction of modern day events that we can all relate to. Some of us, the author and myself included, can relate all too well being married to Marines. Others may have seen or heard things via the news. Either way, extremists, violence, and terrorism is a very real and rapidly growing epidemic in our world. If you don't admit to that, then you have your head in the sand. Ms. Reynolds did a fantastic job, as she did in book two with Wounded Warriors, bringing such issues to the forefront. One of the reasons I really enjoy her writing is because I can relate so much after 18 years of being married to my Marine. Having said that, even if you have no military affiliation whatsoever, she still does a great job to inform the reader so they aren't left in the dark. I'm an avid historical fiction reader. I love the ability to learn while incorporating the fiction parts of a novel. This is exactly what I get from Ms. Reynolds books. I love her passion for teaching while also entertaining. She has a way of weaving real life with descriptive fantasy! I'm looking forward to Fio, the novella and of course more from the O'Brien series in the future as well!
Wow!!! What an amazing journey. I laughed and cried, a few times. Stacey's storytelling just keeps getting better. You fall in love with everyone in the story and you just want to learn more about all of the O'Brien's. After the other two books I would think they were my favourite, but I think this one is now. Tadgh is an amazing character. I loved him in the other two books and was so glad he got his own story. Please keep The O'Brien's coming Stacey!!!
Why to keep the reader in gauged. It’s hard to put her books down she makes you feel like you’re right there with all the characters. I need to find me an O’Brien guy 😊
I'm not really a romance book type of reader, but I haven't been able to stop reading your books. This book in particular was amazing, because of human trafficking topic. And, the ending, perfect.
I have never written a review before, but this 3rd book in the O'Brien series captured me within the first chapter. I lived the story, attention to detail, the characters felt real, and the plot of the story helped your interest all the way through. I laughed out loud & shed tears at times, Thank you for a great read!
Beautifully written and profound in it's tale. All of Stacey Renolds books are wonderful and draw you in and capture your heart, but this one goes above and beyond.
All of the Stacey Renolds books are wonderful and draw you in and capture your heart, but this one goes above and beyond.
I really enjoyed the first two books. They were great, touching love stories. Always heartwarming - reminds you of those new and shiny feelings. The sex scenes were fabulous.… very descriptive without being over-the-top, so you could picture it and it was tastefully amazing! BUT BOOK 3, in my opinion, BLOWS THE OTHER TWO OUT OF THE WATER!!!!
This book is just a whole different level. The style of writing, which I love, is exactly the same. The descriptions are exactly the same - not too much, not too little. All the writing content I love is there. But now there's a deeper story. It's as if the book has added another layer, another side of the author's writing.
In this book I love how bits and pieces of other characters are being pulled out and added to the story.
I truly just CAN'T SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THIS ONE!! It's got it all - love, mystery, family, heart, fun - EVERYTHING!!!
Tadgh is such a lovely man and it was wonderful to see him having his own book with all our favourite O'Briens interspersed. To catch up with this wonderful, kind, loving and forgiving family is balm to the soul. The narrator is superb for this series and is good at catching the humour, tension, love and nuances of all the characters. This book had more substance and some very sad moments which were dealt with well. At the end of the Audio book is a short Novella about Fiona. That was lighter and very pleasant to have her story tied up in what we have come to expect from Stacey Reynolds. I like the epilogues where we get to see how the clan is progressing. I really like this series and each book improves on the last.
Solid 3.5! I really loved the mystery part of this book! While it’s not giving the “biggest twist I’ve ever read” it’s really engaging and suspenseful and as always wraps up nicely in the end.
After listening to 3 books about the O’Brians, I’m left wanting more differentiators from all the female main characters. The romance and spice is great, but it seems to be almost a rinse and repeat from book to book! And thank god this one didn’t end in a pregnancy although birth control was mentioned yet again in this book lmao
Overall, I like listening to these books on audible and will continue on to book 4, hopefully the plot is a bit different from the first 3!
How is it that this writer gets better with each book in this series?This series has been great from book 1 and I can’t get over the fact that each book is equally, if not a little better than the last. This story is wonderful. I can’t wait to get to the next book. I love when a Series can end each book with some closure, a happy ending and give us bits and pieces of the other couples in the news books. You don’t ever have to miss the previous couples. I’m sure I’m not alone in saying these books make me want to go to Ireland and hang out with the O’Brien’s!
This third in the series takes the O'Brien Tales in a new and exciting direction. A suspense/crime drama element shares equal billing with the lush, romantic story arc that Reynolds is known for. The plot is fast-paced and anxiety-inducing. A page-turner to be sure. But no fear, the sexy times are as sexy as ever. The two main characters are easy to root for and their attraction to one another is palpable. Just the right balance between suspense and romance. Highly recommend.
A wonderful happy tale of survival, hope and love conquering everything.
I love the O'Brien series. They're such great people who support each other and love more than most are capable of. I really enjoy the pictures that come to mind of Ireland and hope to one day visit again. Everyone should be so lucky to have a family full of characters who have your back and love you to pieces!
This was the best so far in the series. The 1st 2 books seemed a little rah rah preachy - for the military & police. This book succeeded by showing those values through the plot - a much more successful method! I throughly enjoyed this novel. The sex scenes really weren’t necessary and could have simply been implied, but overall I thought this book the most successful of the three so far - and much better written as well!
3.75 stars I enjoyed Tadgh story, though not as much as the previous ones. I love how closely knit this family is. How much they love and support each other, and how easily embrace others into their family. The island where Tadgh’s mother lived sounded so beautiful. As usual in this series, there’s a lovely HEA at the end, but you’re gladly enticed to read the next character’s story. In this case, l need to see what happens to poor Liam.
Tadgh has been my favorite character since book one so having him finally get his story is amazing!!! Stacey has created a family that you want to be apart of and one that you miss dearly when you close the book. You can't help but experience every emotion while reading this series. Well done....probably my favorite in the series thus far :-)
This series just keeps getting better. Stacey Reynolds is an accomplished author, an artist painting with words. She makes you want to run off to Ireland to see for yourself the places she describes. Oh and don't we all wish we could find men like the O'Briens. Start with book one, I promise you will not be disappointed.
Very well written. I feel as if I'm right there. I love them. I can't put it down when I start. Sometime if I fall asleep reading these books? I wake up and have to think where I am actually at because i feel like I'm a character in the story and in beautiful Ireland.
This is the fourth of her books that I've read and I will finish them all. Her characters are so real I can hear their voices in my head and 'see' every face. While the romance is wonderful, each book has a gripping story filled with suspense that I find hard to put down. The O'Briens are a family I would love to know!
Oh my gosh! I thought book 1 was great, then came book 2 which I dearly loved but book 3 blew my socks off! It’s the best yet. Headed to book 4 now. I just love how Stacy keeps all of the family in each book and very involved. Many series I have read the people in the previous books are totally forgotten and I don’t like that. But not Stacy. Thank you so much!
This book was a fantastic read. Not only are the characters interesting but the plot has substance and makes you want to keep turning pages. This was an alright read for me, I just couldn’t get enough of this O’Brian. Great book for those who love the O’Brian series with an extra rich back story.
This book definitely deserves five stars! It was excellent, full of intrigue, and tension, and romance! I really enjoyed it and had a very hard time putting in down to sleep. I had some pretty late nights reading it. I'm sure I will enjoy the next one. I love that I have so many more to read of the O'Brien Tales!