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Avalon Investigations #6
Tough Enough
An agent for Avalon, a top-secret cadre of mercenaries who specialize in tracking down and recovering stolen art, Will Tiernay finds his latest investigation leading directly to Mia Dolan, a former lover, and finds himself torn between dury and desire as his mission draws them both into an underworld of deception, peril, and murder. Original.
384 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 27, 2007
About the author
Michele Albert
10 books20 followersMichelle Jerott was born on 17 January 1961 in Wisconsin, USA. Her very first romances she ever read, way back in high school, were Kathleen E. Woodiwiss's "The Flame and the Flower" and "The Wolf and the Dove" (published by Avon in the mid-70s). She said: "I fell in love with Heather and Brandon, Wulfgar and Aislinn--and have been hooked on romances ever since. I like nothing better than to curl up with a good book and a hot cup of coffee, and romances will always be my books of choice. Unlike some authors, I didn't come out of the womb wanting to write books. In fact, from about the age of 14, I wanted to be an archaeologist."
Michelle graduated with a classical Archaeology degree from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and even attended a summer program at University of London's Institute of Archaeology. She remembered: "My first dig, in high school, was a Mississippian Indian site not far from Terre Haute, Indiana, and my last was a Roman fort outside Newcastle in Great Britain. There, standing up to my knees in mud and swinging a pick ax, I decided that maybe archaeology wasn't my calling in life, after all. A career fast track was fine and dandy, but I wanted to take the scenic route through my own life instead. So, I had a baby and eventually went to work in a research lab, which allowed me time to write. When I sat down to write my first story, I had no doubt it would be a romance. As a kid, I was disappointed that girl oriented stories rarely had the same sort of fun, excitement or dangerous adventures as the boy oriented stories. Consequently, I re-wrote a lot of those books in my head. As I grew older, I discovered the books I liked to read (and write) were those in which the heroine has all sorts of fun and excitement... and yes, even adventures, dangerous or otherwise. On July 31, 1997, after three years of writing and shopping my manuscripts around, I sold my first book to Avon. A couple days later, I won the Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart Award for that same book, an award given to manuscripts written by unpublished writers. All in all, 1997 was an exciting year! Becoming a published writer has been a long-time goal, and I'm so excited to have this chance to make my dream come true. More importantly, I hope to share with you, through my characters and their stories, a little magic, a little fun, and a whole lot of romance!"
She signed her firts four books with her real name, Michelle Jerott, and later she used the pen name Michele Albert to continued a Series that started with "Absolute Trouble", her debut novel. Her novels: "Her Bodyguard" and "Getting Her Man" were both nominated for Best Mainstream Novel by Romantic Times and "Off Limits" appeared on the Waldenbook's National Bestseller List.
Married with a father of theee, Michelle lived with her husband, her son, his three children, and two lazy cats in a small town outside Madison, Wisconsin. She passed away on 5 July 2021 in her native Wisconsin.
Michelle graduated with a classical Archaeology degree from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, and even attended a summer program at University of London's Institute of Archaeology. She remembered: "My first dig, in high school, was a Mississippian Indian site not far from Terre Haute, Indiana, and my last was a Roman fort outside Newcastle in Great Britain. There, standing up to my knees in mud and swinging a pick ax, I decided that maybe archaeology wasn't my calling in life, after all. A career fast track was fine and dandy, but I wanted to take the scenic route through my own life instead. So, I had a baby and eventually went to work in a research lab, which allowed me time to write. When I sat down to write my first story, I had no doubt it would be a romance. As a kid, I was disappointed that girl oriented stories rarely had the same sort of fun, excitement or dangerous adventures as the boy oriented stories. Consequently, I re-wrote a lot of those books in my head. As I grew older, I discovered the books I liked to read (and write) were those in which the heroine has all sorts of fun and excitement... and yes, even adventures, dangerous or otherwise. On July 31, 1997, after three years of writing and shopping my manuscripts around, I sold my first book to Avon. A couple days later, I won the Romance Writers of America's Golden Heart Award for that same book, an award given to manuscripts written by unpublished writers. All in all, 1997 was an exciting year! Becoming a published writer has been a long-time goal, and I'm so excited to have this chance to make my dream come true. More importantly, I hope to share with you, through my characters and their stories, a little magic, a little fun, and a whole lot of romance!"
She signed her firts four books with her real name, Michelle Jerott, and later she used the pen name Michele Albert to continued a Series that started with "Absolute Trouble", her debut novel. Her novels: "Her Bodyguard" and "Getting Her Man" were both nominated for Best Mainstream Novel by Romantic Times and "Off Limits" appeared on the Waldenbook's National Bestseller List.
Married with a father of theee, Michelle lived with her husband, her son, his three children, and two lazy cats in a small town outside Madison, Wisconsin. She passed away on 5 July 2021 in her native Wisconsin.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
February 14, 2015
Haddington Reproductions makes copies of priceless art to be used in museums around the world. Avalon Investigations assigned their operative, Will Tiernay, to track down an art forger working at Haddington before they can abscond with the priceless Eudoxia Reliquary. Posing as a journalist doing a story on the production, Will is shocked to find that one of the three suspects is his old girlfriend, Mia Dolan. As Will investigates, he and Mia begin to rekindle their relationship. Will believes she is not behind the theft, but worries how she will react when it becomes clear he lied about his reasons for being there.
This is the sixth book in the Avalon Investigations series. The romance was a problem for me. Will and Mia had lived together, but she broke his heart twelve years ago when she cheated on him. Nothing much was said about it except a quick "I'm sorry" from her. I didn't see them building any trust between them and didn't believe she was really in love with him at the end of the book.
The art theft storyline was interesting. Avalon believes Rainart von Lahr is behind the theft and will stop at nothing to catch him. He has showed up in previous books and more or less ties the series together since the rarely see characters from the previous books. It was obvious which employee at the reproduction company was helping with the forgeries, but I liked the cat and mouse game between Will and the villains. My rating: 3 Stars.
This is the sixth book in the Avalon Investigations series. The romance was a problem for me. Will and Mia had lived together, but she broke his heart twelve years ago when she cheated on him. Nothing much was said about it except a quick "I'm sorry" from her. I didn't see them building any trust between them and didn't believe she was really in love with him at the end of the book.
The art theft storyline was interesting. Avalon believes Rainart von Lahr is behind the theft and will stop at nothing to catch him. He has showed up in previous books and more or less ties the series together since the rarely see characters from the previous books. It was obvious which employee at the reproduction company was helping with the forgeries, but I liked the cat and mouse game between Will and the villains. My rating: 3 Stars.
May 12, 2013
Overall Rating: 3.85 // Action: 4.0 / Emotion: 2.0 / Romance: 2.0 / Sensuous: 2.75 / Suspense: 3.5 // Laughter: 0 / Tears: 0
Touch Enough: 3.85:
Tough Enough , the second book in The Avalon Investigation Series is an enjoyable read and showcases Albert's talent as she spins a tale of romance and intrigue, but it is not a top of the line Romantic Suspense novel. This entertaining and easy to read book failed to generate a nail-biting kind of suspense, nor was the reader entertained with dialogue and emotional interactions between Will and Mia that would explain why it was so easy to re-establish a relationship after a bad break up twelve years ago.
Hero: 3.5:
William "Will" Tiernay: It was easy to fall for this handsome, sharp-dressing, charming, flirtatious agent during his initial introduction. It was commendable that Will not only got on with his life after being jilted by the love of his life back in college, but became a successful Avalon agent. But as the story progressed, and Albert failed to develop the rebuilding of trust that should have been necessary to heal Will's broken heart, his heroic rating fell. Will also lost points because, although he caught Kostandin "Kos" Vulaj in the end, the bad guy proved himself the more honorable man.
Heroine: 2.0:
Mia Shaeffer Dolan: Couldn't develop any kind of connection to this gorgeous, sparkling, museum reproductionist. This heroine was greatly under-developed and the last two nails in her coffin were {1} her puny little apology to Will twelve years after she broke his heart and {2} her failure to accept her friend, Vanessa Sharpton, as she was.
Story Line: 4.0:
Albert made great strides in beginning to flesh out the characters who were members of the Avalon Investigations team as she wrote about Will taking on an assignment to stop the theft of valuable artifacts being reproduced for the owner who was gifting them to the Met. Making Mia (for a very short time) one of the suspects added potential intrigue. The strongest feature to the entire story, however, was the truly intriguing arguments Albert gave voice to from the "bad guys" to justify their actions.
Action: 4.0:
Albert kept the story moving at a fast pace as Will used subterfuge, illegal breaking and entering and called in help from a fellow agent after he realized he increased the danger to Mia by revealing his feelings for her. Could not help but be entertained by the way Will tried to keep up with the thieves, who always seemed to be one step ahead of him.
Emotion: 2.0:
Albert's lack of extensive character development failed to make Will and Mia the kind of hero and heroine that brought forth an emotional connection. The idea that Will and Mia could resolve a bad break up with just a simply little apology did not ring true. Where was the angst and the emotionally draining and then revitalizing reconciliation dialogue?
Romance: 2.0:
Sorry, but just didn't feel the love. Will and Mia apparently still had feelings for each other -- and since they knew so much about the other from the past, they just hopped back into bed instead of discussing how Mia's previous actions had ended their relationship.
Sensuous: 2.75:
Albert showcases her skill by writing heated, spicy, well-written lovemaking scenes. It was probably the lack of emotional connection to Will and Mia that failed to further enhance the sensuality into a flow-blown sizzle factor.
Suspense: 3.5:
Yes, it was obvious pretty quickly who the antiquity thieves were. But Albert kept the suspense alive by leaving the reader to wonder how in the world Will and Mia were going to outwit the bad guys and, hopefully, bring down the Avalon arch-nemesis, Rainert von Lahr.
Secondary Characters: 4.0:
Was very impressed with the way Albert began painting more colors into the picture of the Avalon Investigations team. And while Will and Mia were minimally developed as heroic characters, the other couple in the book, Kos and Vanessa, were very richly developed and added a wonderful contrast to Will and Mia. These two characters really helped make the book more enjoyable.
See Wolf Bear Does Books for a more in-depth, detailed review of Tough Enough.
Touch Enough: 3.85:
Tough Enough , the second book in The Avalon Investigation Series is an enjoyable read and showcases Albert's talent as she spins a tale of romance and intrigue, but it is not a top of the line Romantic Suspense novel. This entertaining and easy to read book failed to generate a nail-biting kind of suspense, nor was the reader entertained with dialogue and emotional interactions between Will and Mia that would explain why it was so easy to re-establish a relationship after a bad break up twelve years ago.
Hero: 3.5:
William "Will" Tiernay: It was easy to fall for this handsome, sharp-dressing, charming, flirtatious agent during his initial introduction. It was commendable that Will not only got on with his life after being jilted by the love of his life back in college, but became a successful Avalon agent. But as the story progressed, and Albert failed to develop the rebuilding of trust that should have been necessary to heal Will's broken heart, his heroic rating fell. Will also lost points because, although he caught Kostandin "Kos" Vulaj in the end, the bad guy proved himself the more honorable man.
Heroine: 2.0:
Mia Shaeffer Dolan: Couldn't develop any kind of connection to this gorgeous, sparkling, museum reproductionist. This heroine was greatly under-developed and the last two nails in her coffin were {1} her puny little apology to Will twelve years after she broke his heart and {2} her failure to accept her friend, Vanessa Sharpton, as she was.
Story Line: 4.0:
Albert made great strides in beginning to flesh out the characters who were members of the Avalon Investigations team as she wrote about Will taking on an assignment to stop the theft of valuable artifacts being reproduced for the owner who was gifting them to the Met. Making Mia (for a very short time) one of the suspects added potential intrigue. The strongest feature to the entire story, however, was the truly intriguing arguments Albert gave voice to from the "bad guys" to justify their actions.
Action: 4.0:
Albert kept the story moving at a fast pace as Will used subterfuge, illegal breaking and entering and called in help from a fellow agent after he realized he increased the danger to Mia by revealing his feelings for her. Could not help but be entertained by the way Will tried to keep up with the thieves, who always seemed to be one step ahead of him.
Emotion: 2.0:
Albert's lack of extensive character development failed to make Will and Mia the kind of hero and heroine that brought forth an emotional connection. The idea that Will and Mia could resolve a bad break up with just a simply little apology did not ring true. Where was the angst and the emotionally draining and then revitalizing reconciliation dialogue?
Romance: 2.0:
Sorry, but just didn't feel the love. Will and Mia apparently still had feelings for each other -- and since they knew so much about the other from the past, they just hopped back into bed instead of discussing how Mia's previous actions had ended their relationship.
Sensuous: 2.75:
Albert showcases her skill by writing heated, spicy, well-written lovemaking scenes. It was probably the lack of emotional connection to Will and Mia that failed to further enhance the sensuality into a flow-blown sizzle factor.
Suspense: 3.5:
Yes, it was obvious pretty quickly who the antiquity thieves were. But Albert kept the suspense alive by leaving the reader to wonder how in the world Will and Mia were going to outwit the bad guys and, hopefully, bring down the Avalon arch-nemesis, Rainert von Lahr.
Secondary Characters: 4.0:
Was very impressed with the way Albert began painting more colors into the picture of the Avalon Investigations team. And while Will and Mia were minimally developed as heroic characters, the other couple in the book, Kos and Vanessa, were very richly developed and added a wonderful contrast to Will and Mia. These two characters really helped make the book more enjoyable.
See Wolf Bear Does Books for a more in-depth, detailed review of Tough Enough.
June 12, 2023
I liked this okay. I skipped around some in this series so had a hard time connecting this one to what I'd already read. I read the previous book a couple of years ago then backtracked recently and read books 1-2, so it took me a while to remember who and what Avalon was.
The immediate suspense story in this book was pretty good. I'm not sure I agree with how quickly the MCs fell back into bed, but I guess based on their backstory, chemistry was never really a problem for them. I did feel like they came together in the end in a believable HEA. Even though I say I wasn't sure about how fast they fell into bed (their 2nd day of seeing each other after 10-12 years), I didn't doubt that they had unresolved feelings for each other and that being together again, those feelings would deepen into something more and with maturity able to withstand the pressures of real life.
We're left with questions about the over-acrching mystery of Avalon to be resolved in the next book (one assumes) but this book ended nicely with the HEA for the MCs and the immediate suspense story solved.
The immediate suspense story in this book was pretty good. I'm not sure I agree with how quickly the MCs fell back into bed, but I guess based on their backstory, chemistry was never really a problem for them. I did feel like they came together in the end in a believable HEA. Even though I say I wasn't sure about how fast they fell into bed (their 2nd day of seeing each other after 10-12 years), I didn't doubt that they had unresolved feelings for each other and that being together again, those feelings would deepen into something more and with maturity able to withstand the pressures of real life.
We're left with questions about the over-acrching mystery of Avalon to be resolved in the next book (one assumes) but this book ended nicely with the HEA for the MCs and the immediate suspense story solved.
January 11, 2017
Tough Enough
I like the characters and. The. Plot, i got tired of the sex scenes. Sometimes it is. Better to leave a little to ones imagination but all said. I enjoyed the book and will probably read the continuing story. To find out the mystery of the baroness's and the connection to the boss of Avalon
I like the characters and. The. Plot, i got tired of the sex scenes. Sometimes it is. Better to leave a little to ones imagination but all said. I enjoyed the book and will probably read the continuing story. To find out the mystery of the baroness's and the connection to the boss of Avalon
January 13, 2009
High end art theft and reproductions are the crimes in this suspense novel that pits former lovers against one another as they try ti discover who's guilty.
July 13, 2009
I have to say I was a little annoyed with how this ended - I hadn't realized it was a series and wouldn't be wrapped up in this book. Otherwise, it was a decent read.
July 27, 2012
Good beach read
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews